§ 14-1204

(a) With support from appropriate State agencies and State entities, the Office of Resilience shall coordinate strategies and improve interagency coordination to meet the following goals:

(1) ensuring rapid State support following emergencies;

(2) minimizing flooding in residential areas;

(3) promoting climate–informed investments;

(4) informing and educating the public on emergency safety and risks;

(5) building neighborhood resiliency;

(6) improving coastal resilience;

(7) adapting agricultural practices to respond to increasing precipitation, temperatures, and soil salinization; and

(8) reducing the potential impact of other hazards identified in the Maryland Hazard Mitigation Plan.

(b) The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science shall coordinate with the Office of Resilience to:

(1) establish a resilience baseline for the State;

(2) develop a statewide resilience assessment to support local government benchmarking for use in a statewide resilience tracker to help identify investment needs;

(3) develop indicators to monitor the effectiveness of resilience efforts and establish future goals; and

(4) produce an economic analysis and policy benchmark report to include:

(i) an examination of the financial impact of extreme weather or other hazardous events in the State;

(ii) an estimate of necessary resources needed to prepare for and reduce the adverse effects of hazardous events in the State;

(iii) the identification of available funding sources, including those used by other states; and

(iv) a comparison of State policies and resilience efforts with those of other vulnerable states, including Florida, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, and Virginia.