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Local elected officials should set the tone for taking a commuintywide approach to disaster training. Local elected and appointed officials, or their direct reports, should be trained and knowledgeable in disaster recovery, and also set an example for local government departments, NGOs and private sector organizations to do the same.

Roger Jolliff, emergency manager for the Tulsa, Oklahoma, Area Emergency Management Agency, is a strong proponent of training a broad range of stakeholders. Below are Jolliff’s tips and advice for local elected officials to train and better work to support emergency management in natural disaster planning, response and recovery.

Enroll in relevant FEMA training.

• Jolliff recommends that local elected and appointed officials, or their direct reports, enroll in in FEMA’s Professional Development Series (PDS) and Advanced Professional Series (APS). “If they take these courses they will better support emergency management programs,” Jolliff says.

Encourage or require that municipal department heads in your locality enroll in FEMA training.

• Municipal department heads should examine their roles and self-define what courses they need. Jolliff recommends that municipal department heads take ICS 300 and ICS 400 classes, IS 700 and IS 800 level classes and any additional courses that apply to an agency’s specific support functions.

Encourage each local department to develop a continuity of operations (COOP) plan.

• Every municipal department should have a plan for how to carry out essential functions if facilities and personnel  are severely impacted.
• Distribute this COOP plan template for local government departments as a starting point.
• Encourage department heads to enroll in FEMA’s continuity courses.

Integrate NIMS into your communitywide disaster operations approach.

• “Disaster plans should reflect NIMS as part of your culture and how you manage your events,” says Jolliff. Local elected or appointed officials, or their direct reports, should consider taking IS-700 and ICS 100.
• Encourage all municipal departments, NGOs, associations, utilities and the private sector to adopt NIMS.
• See FEMA’s NIMS fact sheet for elected officials for more information.

Participate in at least one training session per year with emergency management. 

• This ensures you or your direct report are up-to-date on changes to emergency management’s disaster plans and helps build relationships with your local disaster management team. Seasonal training sessions that review and exercise disaster plans for perils most apt to occur in the upcoming season typically work best.

Participate in any city or countywide training initiatives.

• Set an example for local department heads by participating. Develop action items from the course that can improve emergency response and recovery operations. For example, Jolliff held an initiative with the city of Tulsa to build continuity operations (COOP) plans. “As a result, many municipal departments, NGOs and private sector organizations are taking the COOP courses, reflecting on the workshops and writing their plans,” Jolliff says.