The director shall administer this chapter. The director may delegate any power or duty vested in him or her under this chapter to a state agency or to any other officer or employee of the Office of Emergency Services.

To the extent that funds are allocated therefor, a state agency, when requested by the director, shall render services and perform duties within its area of responsibility when considered necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

The project proposal executed between a local agency and the director pursuant to Section 8685.6 shall contain a provision under which the local agency agrees to hold the state harmless from damages due to the work for which funds are allocated.

When certified by the director, claims of local agencies for payment shall be presented to the Controller for payment out of funds made available therefor. The director may request the Controller to audit any claim to ensure that funds were expended in accordance with the requirements and purposes of this chapter.

The director shall adopt regulations, as necessary, to govern the administration of the disaster assistance program authorized by this chapter in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3). These regulations shall include specific project eligibility requirements, a procedure for local governments to request the implementation of programs under this chapter, and a method for evaluating these requests by the Office of Emergency Services.