FEMA National Advisory Council Meeting February 10-11, 2010 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Day One Summary – February 10, 2010 The National Advisory Council (NAC) convened at 10:00 a.m. (EST) on February 10, 2010 at the Holiday Inn in Washington, DC. NAC Members Present: David Barron (via teleconference) Joseph Becker Joseph Bruno Steve Cassidy Dr. Christiana L. Catlett Irene Collins (via teleconference) Robert Connors Russell J. Decker Richard Devylder Nancy Dragani (via teleconference) Brig. Gen. Donald Dunbar Angela Mary Elgin James Featherstone Lee Feldman Jane Halliburton (via teleconference) John Wesley Hines (via teleconference) Charles Kmet (via teleconference) Larry Larson John William Libby Suzanne Mencer Dr. David Markenson Dr. Kenneth Miller James Paturas J. Michael Phillips Charles H. Ramsey (via teleconference) Teresa Scott John Stensgar DHS/FEMA Staff Present: Craig Fugate, Administrator Richard Serino, Deputy Administrator Alyson Price, Designated Federal Officer Jason McNamara, Chief of Staff Michael Coen Jr., Deputy Chief of Staff David Bibo, Counselor to the Deputy Administrator Breese Eddy, Alternate Designated Federal Officer Alyson Price, Designated Federal Officer (via teleconference) Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m. by Breese Eddy, Alternate Designated Federal Officer. Remarks – Joseph Becker, NAC Member (for Dr. Kemble Bennett, NAC Chair, and Nancy Dragani, NAC Vice Chair) . Welcomed NAC members, FEMA leadership and the public to the meeting. . Informed NAC members that Nancy Dragani has agreed to serve as the NAC Vice Chair. . The NAC has restructured the NAC subcommittees into the Preparedness & Protection, the Response & Recovery, Public Engagement & Mission Support, and Federal Insurance & Mitigation Subcommittees. Consolidating into these new Subcommittees will allow for greater access to and incorporation of Council members’ expertise. FEMA’s more holistic approach means that it is vital to the success of all four newly formed subcommittees to have strong representation from the Private Sector and Special Needs. . Many federal advisory committees take six to twelve months to formulate, research, build consensus, draft a report, and formally make recommendations to the full body. With larger Subcommittees addressing broad strategic-level issues, the NAC will transition to a six to twelve month timeframe for Subcommittees to develop their reports and recommendations to bring before the Council. New Member Swearing-in – Craig Fugate, Administrator . The following newly appointed NAC members were sworn-in: o Richard Devylder, General Dunbar, James Featherstone, Ellen Gordon, Jane Halliburton, Larry Larson, David Markenson, Mike Phillips, Charles Ramsey, Teresa Scott, Diane Rothe-Smith. . The following members were reappointed: o Joseph Bruno, Joseph Becker, John Wesley Hines. . The following outgoing members were thanked for their service to the NAC and FEMA: o Mayor Michael Brown, John Didion, Cathy Eide, Dr. Gougelet, Chief Joanne Hayes-White, Kurt Krumperman. Remarks – Craig Fugate, Administrator . The FEMA NAC is the additional bridge to build a team of citizens and first responders to provide valuable insight as the mission of FEMA evolves: o Disasters cannot be managed by one agency and should include participation from the private sector. o Preparation for disasters includes equipping citizens to best help their neighbors. o FEMA headquarters reorganization streamlines its form and functions for a more holistic approach to planning. Response and Recovery Subcommittee Report – Joseph Becker, Subcommittee Chair . The Response and Recovery Subcommittee charge includes o Guidance on strategic issues relating to the country’s disaster response and recovery and to help FEMA’s in these areas; o Creation of a working group that focuses on the Stafford Act; o Creation of a working group that focuses on Post-Disaster Housing . . The subcommittee members reviewed the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF) and provided feedback including: o There is a need for more detail on the recovery support functions and the coordinator’s role, perhaps in an accompanying document. o The document clearly recognizes that this is a collaborative activity, not just for federal stakeholders. o There are many unanswered operational questions. Preparedness and Protection Subcommittee Report – Russell Decker, Subcommittee Chair . The Preparedness and Protection Subcommittee charge includes o Guidance and recommendations based on the Post-Katrina Emergency Reform Act. . The subcommittee members addressed the importance of maintaining strategic level discussions and discussed work related to National Response Framework (NRF), National Incident Management System (NIMS), and the Target Capabilities List (TCL). . The subcommittee members reviewed the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF) and provided feedback including: o There is a need for advance recovery, guidance, and planning that includes overcoming logistical issues during recovery, achieving unity of effort, including the health and medical community. o There was concern about the concept and practicality of return on investment. o The NDRF appropriately addressed crisis communications, recognized state, local, and tribal governments and written to ensure those outside the emergency management could understand the document. . Next steps include examining the following topics going forward: Preparedness Task Force Group, TCL, NIMS, and NRF. Public Engagement and Mission Support Subcommittee Report – Robert Connors . The subcommittee provided the following updates: o Continued inclusion of representatives from private sector will be critical. o Discussed Personal and Community Preparedness. o Suggested that functional and access needs should be integrated. . FEMA’s role in public and private initiatives needs to be addressed through strategic advice to the FEMA Administrator. . There is a need for preparedness messaging to be tied into the national message by leveraging the three step process created in the past. Remarks – Richard Serino, Deputy Administrator . Previously involved in Emergency Management for 15 years in Boston, Massachusetts. . Visited eight of the ten regions to talk with employees and their comments showed consistent themes. Some of the best ideas come from the front line. Some changes have been implemented based on the comments. . The concept of team should be utilized to empower the regions with true authority and responsibility. Moving forward, areas of interest within the organization will be addressed over the next 11 months, including catastrophic planning and work force issues, and there will be a focus on getting the right resources to personnel to complete the job. . Appointments of regional administrators (RA) continue with the process ensuring that those selected for the positions are experienced managers. There is a need to review all vacancies and move a high percentage staff to the regions. . The common FEMA story related to regions is related to their variation. Since all politics are local and all disasters are local, what works in one region might not work in another. There is a need to model regions after best practices but accept some differences in the process. . National and local levels will be involved in catastrophic planning. FEMA headquarters will be examining lessons learned from the disaster in Haiti. . The approach should be common sense with simple answers and responses in order to take emergency management to the next level. FEMA Headquarters Reorganization Implementation and the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) Update – Jason McNamara, Chief of Staff . Catastrophic planning should include lessons learned, as well as new innovations. The way we perform exercises should be changed to include substantive discussion, direct reports, and asking leaders more questions. . The reorganization aligned internal operations to our mission in order to reduce redundancies in logistics, administration, policy, operations, and exercises. This defined what we do: prepare, protect, respond, recover, and mitigate. o Operations and Disaster Assistance became Response and Recover and includes logistics and Federal Coordinating Officers (FCO) operations. o Operational missions need to have CFO, CIO, Chief Administrative Officer, human capital, procurement and security. o Regional administrators directly report to the Administrator. o Each region came up with individual plans for regional reorganization. . The general mission review areas of the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) include o Preventing terrorism and enhancing security o Security and managing our borders o Enforcing and administering our immigration laws o Safeguarding and securing cyberspace o Ensuring resilience to disasters . The FEMA specific mission areas of the QHSR include o Mitigating hazards o Enhancing preparedness o Ensuring effective response and rapid recovery o Building the team to mitigate its hazards o Strengthening the capacity at state and local government throughout grant mechanisms . The timeline for the bottom-up review of the QHSR is concurrent with the budget process. FEMA will drive the process for defining a capable community, but other stakeholders will be involved in the expansion of fusion centers and of information sharing. Flood Insurance and Mitigation Subcommittee Report – Dr. Christina Catlett (for Irene Collins) . The Flood Insurance and Mitigation Subcommittee charge: o To advise the NAC on strategies to lessen the loss of life and property from the impact of disasters, to ensure all public needs are met, and implement ways to measure success. . The subcommittee reviewed the accomplishments of the last year, including supporting the national and regional disability coordinators with Resource Kits; received briefings from Marcie Roth, FEMA Disabilities Special Advisor about the Office of Disability Coordination and from Sandra Knight, Deputy Administrator for Mitigation; and discussed the NDR, supporting the issues raised about the return on investment and the definition of terms related to health and medical communities. Presentation on Children’s Working Group at FEMA – Tracy Wareing, Counselor to the Secretary . The purpose of forming the Children’s Working Group is to prepare and respond to disasters with respect for the needs of children, as children represent 25% of the population in most communities. The membership of the working group is a core team at FEMA with the Senior Advisor to Secretary Napolitano as co-chair. . The priorities of the Children’s Working Group are divided into five categories: o Disaster Management and Recovery—to address the needs of children when building relationships with key stakeholders and subject matter experts, across disaster planning and operations, in preparedness and planning activities through Homeland Security Grant Program to state and local communities, and in 2011 National Level Exercises. Create programs for children to solicit personal preparedness message for families, as children can be incredibly effective agents (example of the Region I Step Program for 5th graders). o Disaster Case Management—Complete the Inter-Agency Agreement (IAA) with Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF). o Child Care—Clarify eligible funding for emergency sheltering, temporary facilities, and costs to repair and build under the Stafford Act. o Sheltering Standards, Services and Supplies—Shelter Supply List incorporated into relevant planning, documents, and grant guidance. o Housing–Identify gaps in the delivery of disaster housing assistance as they relate to families with children. National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF) Presentation – Beth Zimmerman, Deputy Associate Administrator, Operations . The federal government is reaching out to stakeholders to develop a transparent NDRF that focuses on improving leadership and building relationships before disasters occur. . The number of players in recovery phase grows more than in the response phase. Local and state managers should know who to turn to when process is not working well, when there is dysfunction, or when a process goes awry. These questions will be answered when the responsible party is identified. . The writing style of the NDRF was written for everyone in the community and so it can be easily understood. There will be a companion document to accompany the NDRF. . Upon completion of roll call to confirm the presence of a quorum, the NAC reviewed all feedback from the four NAC Subcommittees on the NDRF. NAC recommendations for discussion and Council decision o Recommendation 1: Need to more clearly identify how this will work operationally (possibly through a companion document) . There needs to be more developed information, such as an implementation guide. . Council is concerned that State/local reaction will be mixed without reference to a potential implementation guide. o Recommendation 2: It would be helpful to be clearer on the federal leadership in the recovery effort. While the collaborative tone of the document is to be commended, it needs to identify the DHS/FEMA role as leading the overall effort from federal standpoint. o Recommendation 3: Recovery Support Functions (RSF), Coordinator Roles, and reporting relationships need more detail within the document. Of particular concern is the lack of clarity on who the Federal Recovery Coordinator reports to. o Recommendation 4: Need clarity on when efforts transition from Emergency Support Functions (ESF) to RSFs. o Recommendation 5: Who do local/state emergency management officials go to when the process is not working well? Again, this should be addressed in the document or a companion document. o Recommendation 6: Further discussion may be required on how the referenced concept of .Unity of Effort. is achieved. A core principle of the NDRF is Unity of Effort, but there is no description of how this is achieved – a NIMS compliant coordinated structure needs to be defined. o Recommendation 7: The NDRF seems to lack advanced recovery or pre- recovery guidance and planning. It is important to articulate expectations of states, tribal nations, and local governments regarding the steps they should take pre-disaster to ensure a successful recovery. o Recommendation 8: The document does not address primary importance of logistical needs as highlighted by recent events. o Recommendation 9: The Council raised concerns related to the requirement of Return on Investment hampering recovery work at the local level, which is specifically likely to impact smaller localities. The key concern is that we avoid lengthy ROI justification process at the expense of timely recovery resourcing. o Recommendation 10: The Council raised concerns about the intent and definition of terms related to the health and medical community, which should be considered an important part of a community’s infrastructure. o Recommendation 11: All State and local governments should have hazard mitigation plans in place that guide recovery, but the NDRF does not seem to reflect this requirement. The Council advises that the document be more directive in this expectation. o Recommendation 12: The document should ensure that there is clarity regarding the sensitive transition from response to recovery o Recommendation 13: Greater definition of the roles of all segments in a disaster is needed. o The Council also expressed appreciation for the following aspects of the NDRF: . The document was written in a way that anyone could read and understand the doctrine. . The council appreciated the collaborative approach. . The recognition of the local role in recovery was appreciated. . The area of crisis communications was well done. o All recommendations carried unanimously. Remarks – Jason McNamara, Chief of Staff . Thanked members for their work and participation today. . Reviewed the next day’s agenda, noting that the public comment period is now at 9:30 am and that any members of the public who would like to make comments should be seated by 8:30 am when the meeting begins. The meeting recessed at 5:30pm. Day Two Summary – February 11, 2010 The National Advisory Council (NAC) convened at 8:30 a.m. (EST) on February 11, 2010 at the Holiday Inn in Washington, DC. NAC Members Present: Dr. Kemble Bennett, Chair (via teleconference) David Barron (via teleconference) Ann Beauchesne (via teleconference) Joseph Becker Joseph Bruno Stephen Cassidy Dr. Christina L. Catlett Irene Collins (via teleconference) Robert Connors Russell J. Decker Richard Devylder Nancy J. Dragani (via teleconference) Brig. Gen. Donald Dunbar Angela Mary Elgin James Featherstone Lee Feldman Jane Halliburton (via teleconference) Charles Kmet (via teleconference) Larry Larson John William Libby Suzanne Mencer Dr. David Markenson Dr. Kenneth Miller Kenneth Murphy (via teleconference) James Paturas J. Michael Phillips Charles H. Ramsey (via teleconference) Teresa Scott John Stensgar DHS/FEMA Staff Present: Craig Fugate, Administrator Richard Serino, Deputy Administrator Jason McNamara, Chief of Staff Michael Coen Jr., Deputy Chief of Staff David Bibo, Counselor to the Deputy Administrator Tim Manning, Deputy Administrator for Protection and National Preparedness Beth Freeman, Regional Administrator, FEMA Region VII (via teleconference) Robert Fenton, Deputy Response Director Alyson Price, Designated Federal Officer (via teleconference) Breese Eddy, Alternate Designated Federal Officer Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 8:35 a.m. by Breese Eddy, Alternate Designated Federal Officer. Remarks – Joseph Becker (for Dr. Kemble Bennett, NAC Chair, and Nancy Dragani, NAC Vice Chair) . Thanked members for their work and participation the last couple days and summarized the discussions and actions from previous days. . Pleased with the development of the new subcommittees and leadership. Regional Advisory Council (RAC) Update – Beth Freeman, Regional Administrator, Region VII . Catastrophic preparedness planning is one of the top three agency priorities. We are reviewing the impacts of the Haiti earthquake to make measurable progress in preparing for future catastrophic events. Continuity of government is an important piece as it provides disaster response leadership. Impacts are physical, economic and social. . Preparedness includes both the private sector and general citizenry. Disaster responses begin at the local level and citizens far outnumber emergency responders, managers, and government employees. o People affected by the catastrophe should be self-sustaining for 1-2 weeks post disaster. o Structures and strategies should be developed to include America’s critical infrastructure (electrical and nuclear utilities, telecommunications systems, gas and oil producers, manufacturing and supply facilities) in catastrophic planning. . Region II is facilitating catastrophic planning efforts among local, state, and federal partners and Region VII is extending catastrophic planning efforts to include agriculture events. . Region III held a private sector forum in September 2009 that focused on restoration of power and telecommunications after disaster and is developing an online compendium of resources for youth emergency preparedness education and special needs planning and outreach. . Region IV is reaching out to nuclear facilities to determine additional sources for specialized response equipment. . Regions IV and VI focused efforts on interstate hurricane evacuation coordination and shelter. . Regions VII and IX are developing a private sector strategy to enhance relationships within the region. . Region IX is investigating a strategy to enhance its ability to promote personal preparedness when conducting other program presentations. . Region X is using the information from the 2009 National Household Surveys on individual preparedness to develop initiatives for their region. . Several regions are taking the opportunity with new leadership to evaluate their strategy for RAC involvement. Public Comment Period . There were no members of the public who wished to make statements. Remarks on Protection & National Preparedness – Tim Manning, Deputy Administrator for Protection and National Preparedness . National Preparedness Directorate (NPD) became a body that encompasses what is done to prepare for a response, to prepare for recovery, and the entire lifecycle of Homeland Security. . The reorganization of the Directorate o Combines the parts of FEMA that were focused on preparing the agency, the federal interagency, and intergovernmental partners for the Homeland Security mission, e.g. Grant Programs Directorate and NPD were put back together with National Continuity Programs (NCP). o Is built around the preparedness cycle of planning, training, equipping, exercising, evaluating, response, recovery, prevention, and protection. o Is based on performing exercises and then evaluating how well we have done, whether it is exercise or a real world event. . Preparedness & National Protection goals for the future include o Building a system for Emergency Management, such as an academy and training programs for senior government officials; o Changing the National Exercise Program to be more efficient, more responsive, and achieve the objective; o Building a system that recognizes everybody's ownership of the risks in their communities and our resources built on those risks; o Streamlining the fusion centers across the country; and o Developing incentives for states to join our efforts. Catastrophic Planning – Robert Fenton, Deputy Response Director, FEMA Headquarters . Catastrophic planning needs to focus on disaster response. . Preparedness and response need to be integrated to o Align resources and efforts to a specific goal; o Allow for coordination between senior leadership and experts; o Have unity of effort between local, state and federal governments; and o Streamline the local response from one direction and the strategic national guidance from the other direction. . Responses should be fast, start at a large scale, and be based on smart decisions. Going fast and early tends to be more expensive, but tends to speed up the process. It is important to communicate this message to the public. . The HSPD-8 Doctrine will be re-written to include techniques of best practices and outline the systematic process by which plans are developed, encouraging the participation of state and local governments. . We cannot plan for every disaster, but it is important to understand general concepts. Remarks – James McNamara, Chief of Staff . Plan for our community and address real issues that impact our communities. Planning should not be done for easy or for the sake of planning. The answers must address the needs of the community, understanding that what is prepared for might not always be what is needed. . We are more interested in collaboration and teamwork instead of common assumptions to address those hard problems. This year we have focused on reaching out to organizations, like the Red Cross, to build a team with federal partners, business community, NGOs, and the public. Remarks – Joseph Becker (for Dr. Kemble Bennett, NAC Chair, and Nancy Dragani, NAC Vice Chair) . The Subcommittees will be solidifying their memberships. . The NAC recommendations for the NDRF will be forwarded to the Administrator. . NAC membership appointment announcements for the positions with terms expiring on June 15, 2010 are expected in June. . Thanks to FEMA staff, the Administrator, Deputy Administrator, and the presenters for attending. The meeting adjourned at 11:52 a.m. I hereby certify that to the best of my knowledge, the foregoing minutes are accurate and complete. ____________________________________ G. Kemble Bennett Chairman National Advisory Council