Utah § 2a-603 - State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account.

Full text of Utah Utah Code § 2a-603 — State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account., with citation guidance and answers to common questions.

§ 2a-603. State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account.

Effective 7/1/2025
53-2a-603.  State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account.
(1)
(a)There is created a restricted account in the General Fund known as the "State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account."
(b)The disaster recovery account consists of:
(i)money deposited into the disaster recovery account in accordance with Section 63J-1-314;
(ii)money appropriated to the disaster recovery account by the Legislature; and
(iii)any other public or private money received by the division that is:
(A)given to the division for purposes consistent with this section; and
(B)deposited into the disaster recovery account at the request of:
(I)the division; or
(II)the person or entity giving the money.
(c)The Division of Finance shall deposit interest or other earnings derived from investment of account money into the General Fund.
(2)Money in the disaster recovery account may only be expended or committed to be expended as follows:
(a)
(i)subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit to expend an amount that does not exceed $3,000,000, in accordance with Section 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to a declared disaster;
(ii)subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit to expend an amount that exceeds $3,000,000, but does not exceed $10,000,000, in accordance with Section 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to a declared disaster if the division:
(A)before making the expenditure or commitment to expend, obtains approval for the expenditure or commitment to expend from the governor;
(B)subject to Subsection (5), provides written notice of the expenditure or commitment to expend to the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president of the Senate, the Division of Finance, the Criminal Justice Appropriations Subcommittee, the Legislative Management Committee, and the Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst no later than 72 hours after making the expenditure or commitment to expend; and
(C)makes the report required by Subsection 53-2a-606(2);
(iii)subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit to expend an amount that exceeds $10,000,000, in accordance with Section 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to a declared disaster if, before making the expenditure or commitment to expend, the division:
(A)obtains approval for the expenditure or commitment to expend from the governor; and
(B)submits the expenditure or commitment to expend to the Executive Appropriations Committee in accordance with Subsection 53-2a-606(3);
(iv)in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit to expend an amount that does not exceed $500,000 to fund expenses incurred by the National Guard if:
(A)in accordance with Section 39A-3-103, the governor orders into active service the National Guard in response to a declared disaster; and
(B)the money is not used for expenses that qualify for payment as emergency disaster services; and
(v)in any fiscal year, the division may expend an amount that does not exceed $750,000 to fund expenses incurred to develop or enhance emergency management capabilities if:
(A)the money is used for personnel, equipment, supplies, contracts, training, exercises, or other expenses deemed reasonable and necessary to:
(I)promote and strengthen the state's level of resiliency through mitigation, preparedness, response, or recovery activities; or
(II)meet federal grant matching requirements; and
(B)the disaster recovery account has a balance of funds available to be utilized while maintaining a minimum balance of $5,000,000;
(b)money not described in Subsections (2)(a)(i), (ii), and (iii) may be expended or committed to be expended to fund costs to the state directly related to a declared disaster that are not costs related to:
(i)emergency disaster services;
(ii)emergency preparedness; or
(iii)notwithstanding whether a county participates in the Utah Wildfire Fund created in Section 65A-8-217, any fire suppression or presuppression costs that may be paid for from the Utah Wildfire Fund if the county participates in the Utah Wildfire Fund;
(c)to fund:
(i)the Local Government Emergency Response Loan Fund created in Section 53-2a-607; and
(ii)the Disaster Response, Recovery, and Mitigation Restricted Account created in Section 53-2a-1302;
(d)the division may provide advanced funding from the disaster recovery account to recognized agents of the state when:
(i)Utah has agreed, through the division, to enact the Emergency Management Assistance Compact with another member state that has requested assistance during a declared disaster;
(ii)Utah agrees to provide resources to the requesting member state;
(iii)the agent of the state who represents the requested resource has no other funding source available at the time of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact request; and
(iv)the disaster recovery account has a balance of funds available to be utilized while maintaining a minimum balance of $5,000,000;
(e)to fund up to $500,000 for the governor's emergency appropriations described in Subsection 63J-1-217(4); and
(f)to pay the state's deductible in the event of an earthquake.
(3)All funding provided in advance to an agent of the state and subsequently reimbursed shall be credited to the account.
(4)The state treasurer shall invest money in the disaster recovery account according to Title 51, Chapter 7, State Money Management Act.
(5)
(a)Except as provided in Subsections (1) and (2), the money in the disaster recovery account may not be diverted, appropriated, expended, or committed to be expended for a purpose that is not listed in this section.
(b)Notwithstanding Section 63J-1-410, the Legislature may not appropriate money from the disaster recovery account to eliminate or otherwise reduce an operating deficit if the money appropriated from the disaster recovery account is expended or committed to be expended for a purpose other than one listed in this section.
(c)The Legislature may not amend the purposes for which money in the disaster recovery account may be expended or committed to be expended except by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house.
(6)The division:
(a)shall provide the notice required by Subsection (2)(a)(ii) using the best available method under the circumstances as determined by the division; and
(b)may provide the notice required by Subsection (2)(a)(ii) in electronic format.


Amended by Chapter 113, 2025 General Session

Source: official Utah text · Last verified 2026-08-27

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Frequently Asked Questions About Utah § 2a-603

What does Utah Code § 2a-603 cover?

Section 2a-603 ("State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account.") is part of the Utah Code, the codified statutory law of Utah. It sets out the legal rule or procedure described in the text above. Statutes are amended regularly, so always verify against the official source.

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