California Code of Regulations
Title 23 - Waters
Division 1.5 - General Provisions
Article 1 - General Provisions
Section 201 - Definitions

(a) (Reserved)

(b) (Reserved)

(c) (Reserved)

(d) Design Flood. "Design Flood" shall mean the selected flood against which protection is provided, or eventually will be provided, by means of flood protective or control works. When a federal survey has been authorized the design flood will be determined by the appropriate federal agency, and in all other cases, it will be determined by the responsible local agency. It is the basis for design and operation of a particular project after full consideration of flood characteristics, frequencies, and potentials, and economic and other practical considerations.

(e) Designated Floodway. "Designated floodway" shall mean the channel of the stream and that portion of the adjoining flood plain required to reasonably provide for the construction of a project for passage of the design flood, including the lands necessary for construction of project levees.

(f) (Reserved)

(g) Flood Plain. "Flood plain" shall mean the relatively flat area or lowlands adjoining the channel of a river, stream, watercourse, ocean, lake, or other body of standing water, which has been or may be covered by floodwater.

(h) Adjoining Flood Plain. "Adjoining flood plain" shall mean that portion of the flood plain contiguous to a particular river, stream, watercourse, or other body of water which might reasonably be expected to flood at depths or velocities which could endanger life or where encroachment upon which could significantly restrict the carrying capacity of the floodway under conditions resulting from a design flood. For streams traversing alluvial cones, the "adjoining flood plain" for purposes of these rules and regulations shall be construed to refer only to the existing active stream channel area and the immediately adjoining active overflow area.

(i) Appropriate Public Agency. "Appropriate public agency," as that term is used in Water Code Section 8411, shall mean any city, city and county, county, or other public agency organized, existing, and acting pursuant to the laws of this State, which is authorized under the laws of this State to exercise the police power to establish flood plain regulations within its jurisdiction.

(j) Federal Agency. "Federal agency" shall mean any agency of the Federal Government which is responsible under federal law for construction of a flood control project.

(k) Completion of a Federal Project Report.

(l) Act. "Act" shall mean the Cobey-Alquist Flood Plain Management Act as set forth in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 8400) of Part 2 of Division 5 of the California Water Code, and any and all amendments made or which may hereafter be made thereto.