The purpose of this course is to introduce senior officials to the important role they play in emergency management.

The responsibility for preparing for, responding to, and recovering from incidents, both natural and manmade, begins at the local level – with individuals and public officials in the county, city, or town affected by the incident.

This course includes the following features:

 Simple steps you can take to become acquainted with your emergency management role, authorities, and team members.

A mayor, city manager, or county manager, as a jurisdiction’s chief executive officer, is responsible for ensuring the public safety and welfare of the people of that jurisdiction.

Specifically, this official provides strategic guidance and resources during preparedness, response, and recovery efforts. Emergency management, including preparation and training for effective response, is a core obligation of local leaders.

What is the mission of emergency management within your jurisdiction?

Emergency management coordinates and integrates activities and capabilities needed to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies due to all hazards.

This definition of emergency management is derived from the Definition, Vision, Mission, Principles document developed by the International Association of Emergency Managers in conjunction with FEMA’s Emergency Management Higher Education Project.

Click on this link to for additional information on the emergency management definition, vision, mission, and principles.

Emergency management is not just responding to crisis. An effective emergency management program includes the following functions:

       Select this link to access a printable version of this content.

When possible, you should integrate emergency management into daily decisions, not just during times of disaster. While protecting the population is a primary responsibility of government, it cannot be accomplished without building partnerships among disciplines and across all sectors, including the private sector and the media.

Integrated emergency management enables all agencies and entities to work together better by improving coordination and flexibility among varied jurisdictions. Integrated emergency management:

• Addresses all hazards that threaten a community.
• Is useful in all phases of emergency management.
• Knits together all partnerships and participants for a mutual goal.

There are many statutes, rules, and regulations related to emergency management. If you have not already done so, make sure to review your authorities for:

• Developing and promulgating emergency plans and standards for emergency management.
• Proclaiming a state of emergency.
• Requesting assistance from other jurisdictions and the State.
• Disseminating information and warnings.
• Designating highways as emergency management routes.
• Imposing restrictions during an emergency (e.g., controlling traffic, closing or restricting areas, or imposing curfew).
• Ordering evacuation and restricting reentry.

This link will provide a more complete list of legal issues affecting emergency management.

In addition, local, tribal, and State authorities may require that:

• Officials are trained in emergency management.
• A local emergency operations plan is developed and maintained.
• A director of emergency management is appointed.
• The National Incident Management System (NIMS) is adopted.

Click to the next slide to learn more about NIMS.

Taking time to learn about your emergency management team is important. Make sure you understand:

• How the emergency management organization is structured.
• Emergency management roles and responsibilities.
• Reporting authorities.

In an ideal situation, the emergency manager answers directly to the jurisdiction’s chief elected official. In this arrangement, the elected official (who is ultimately legally responsible for emergency management in the jurisdiction) has direct access to unfiltered information from the emergency manager.

Click on this link to review typical emergency manager tasks.

All States have statutory requirements to prepare an emergency operations plan (EOP). Make sure that your jurisdiction’s EOP:

• Addresses all hazards.
• Outlines how all actions will be coordinated.
• Includes plans for protecting the whole community.
• Details who is responsible for carrying out specific actions.
• Identifies the personnel, equipment, facilities, supplies, and other resources available.

While many jurisdictions consider the emergency operations plan (EOP) the centerpiece of their planning effort, it is not the only plan that addresses emergency management functions. Other types of plans that support and supplement the EOP include:

• Preparedness Plans
• Continuity Plans
• Recovery Plans
• Mitigation Plans
• Prevention and Protection Plans

 Select this link to access a printable version of this content.

Before a crisis, you should be familiar with the physical layout and roles of the emergency resources and facilities in your jurisdiction. These facilities may include the following:

• Communications/Dispatch Center: The agency or interagency dispatch center, 911 call center, or emergency control or command dispatch center that handles emergency calls from the public and communication with emergency management personnel.
  
• Emergency Operations Center (EOC): The physical location at which the coordination of information and resources to support incident management (on-scene operations) activities normally takes place.
  
  An EOC may be a temporary facility or may be located in a more central or permanently established facility, perhaps at a higher level of organization within a jurisdiction.

After becoming familiar with your jurisdiction plans and facilities, it is important to review the resource management systems to ensure that they include procedures for:

• Describing, inventorying, requesting, and tracking resources.
• Activating and dispatching resources.
• Managing volunteers and donations.
• Demobilizing or recalling resources.
• Financial tracking, reimbursement, and reporting.

In addition, check that the jurisdiction has adequate mutual aid agreements for obtaining resources, facilities, services, and other required support from other jurisdictions or organizations.

Select this link to learn more about mutual aid agreements and assistance agreements.

Plans are only as effective as the people who implement them. Make sure that all personnel with roles in emergency management and incident response—including persons in leadership positions, such as elected and appointed officials—receive periodic training.

In addition, your jurisdiction should have an exercise plan. Exercises help to:

• Test and evaluate plans, policies, and procedures.
• Identify resource gaps and shortfalls.
• Improve interagency coordination and communication.
• Clarify roles and responsibilities.
• Gain public recognition that the government has taken steps to protect the safety of community members and responders—an opportunity to showcase what you can do.

Select this link for additional information on training and exercises.

During a crisis, providing leadership is the most important role of senior officials. Senior officials provide leadership by:

• Delegating authority to on-scene responders.
  
• Instilling confidence in the public that the incident is being managed effectively.
  
• Making policy decisions and securing needed resources.
  
• Building partnerships and alliances.

Your role is not to set incident objectives or direct tactical operations. Rather, officials delegate this role to Incident Commanders and first responders who are qualified to manage the incident.

One important function for senior officials is to make policy decisions. You may want to use the following criteria when making decisions and establishing priorities:

Life Safety

• Threat to responders
• Threat to public

Incident Stabilization

• Damage potential
• Incident complexity
• Infrastructure protection

Property Conservation

• Real property threatened
• Environmental impact
• Economic impact

Select this link to view common incident response actions.

In the vast majority of incidents, local resources and local mutual aid agreements provide the first line of emergency management and incident response.

In other instances, incidents that begin with a single response within a single jurisdiction rapidly expand requiring significant additional resources and operational support.

Jurisdictions may request additional assistance from the State. If State officials cannot fulfill resource requests, they may use interstate mutual aid agreements, the private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to help fulfill needs.

People during disasters are overwhelmed. As a senior official, you must ensure that information provided to the public is:

• Accurate and timely.
• Consistent.
• Accessible to the whole community.
• Focused on the immediate needs.
• Helpful for building confidence in the response and recovery efforts.

During an incident, your jurisdiction may establish or participate in a Joint Information Center (JIC) to help ensure that everyone is speaking with one voice.

Select this link to learn more about the Public Information Officer and Joint Information Center.

Individuals and households are at the core of our Nation’s preparedness. A community’s ability to respond to or recover from a disaster depends on the level of preparedness of every member.

However, a 2009 Citizen Corps national survey found that 29 percent of Americans have not prepared because they think that emergency responders will help them, and that over 60 percent expect to rely on emergency responders in the first 72 hours following a disaster.

The reality is that in a complex disaster, first responders and emergency workers may not be able to reach everyone right away. In addition, providers may not be able to restore critical services, such as power, immediately.

Individual and community preparedness is critical. A ready resource for developing an education and outreach program is available in the independent study course IS-909, Community Preparedness: Simple Activities for Everyone. This course provides a wide range of activities for promoting personal and organizational preparedness.

Select this link for a list of preparedness topics included in the program.

Citizen Corps, an organization created to help coordinate volunteer activities, established the following community preparedness principles:

• Collaboration: Government must collaborate with community leaders from all sectors for effective planning and capacity building.
• Integration: Nongovernmental assets and resources must be fully integrated into government plans, preparations, and disaster response.
• Personal/Organizational Preparedness: Everyone in America should be fully aware, trained, and practiced on how to prevent, protect, mitigate, prepare for, and respond to all threats and hazards.
• Volunteer Service: Citizen activism and volunteer service provide ongoing support for community safety and critical surge capacity in response and recovery.

Below are additional resources that you may want to consult:

• The National Incident Management System (NIMS) (https://www.fema.gov/national-incident-management-system) provides a template for the management of incidents.
• The National Response Framework (NRF) (https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/117791) provides the structure and mechanisms for national-level policy for incident management.
• The National Disaster Recovery Framework (https://www.fema.gov/national-disaster-recovery-framework) is a guide that enables effective recovery support to disaster-impacted jurisdictions.
• Comprehensive Preparedness Guide 101 (https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/25975) is designed to assist jurisdictions with developing operations plans.
• The IS-909 - Community Preparedness: Implementing Simple Activities for Everyone (http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is909.asp) course presents a model program for community preparedness. In addition, resources materials are available to help organizations conduct simple preparedness activities for everyone.
• Emergency Management: Role of the Senior Official (Video)

Congratulations! You have completed this course and now should understand the critical leadership role you play in an emergency management program. You can continue the learning process by completing the following steps:

• Step 1: Understand the Emergency Management Mission
• Step 2: Review Your Authorities
• Step 3: Learn About Your Team
• Step 4: Review Your Plans and Resources
• Step 5: Know How To Lead During a Crisis
• Step 6: Promote Community Preparedness

Note: To receive credit for this course, you will need to complete the final exam.

 Click on this link to access a printable checklist summarizing these steps.