The National Exercise Program (NEP) is a two-year cycle of exercises across the nation that examine and validate capabilities in all preparedness mission areas. FEMA's National Exercise Division administers the NEP on behalf of the federal government, facilitating the design, coordination, conduct, evaluation and analysis of NEP exercises.
Request Exercise Support through the National Exercise Program
National Exercise Program (NEP) Exercise Support Requests will now be accepted once per year.
FEMA can provide the best support for our exercise partners nationwide by focusing on one annual application period.
Applications will open in early April and will be accepted through June 1, 2023.
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for support, sponsors must meet the following criteria:
- State, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) jurisdictions are eligible to submit requests for exercise support.
- Non-profit, private sector, and federal entities can submit requests on the condition that the request is co-sponsored by an SLTT government organization. If co-sponsoring, all organizations must be listed on the Exercise Support Request Form in Section 1: Sponsor Information.
- Submit all required supporting documentation with Exercise Support Request Form:
- All sponsors must submit documentation of plans or corrective actions that the exercise will validate (e.g., completed plans, draft plans, After-Action Report/Improvement Plan, Integrated Preparedness Plan).
- Sponsors that have previously received support from the National Exercise Division must submit Improvement Plans or other documentation of progress made on improvements since the previous exercise(s).
- Confirm that the sponsor has reached out to the appropriate FEMA Regional Exercise Officer.
How the National Exercise Program Works
State, local, tribal, territorial and other whole community partners can receive technical assistance and support for exercises at no cost from experienced exercise specialists in the National Exercise Division.
Support could include assistance with exercise design, scenario development, planning, conduct, and evaluation in the form of subject-matter expertise, material production, or facilitation for selected exercises.
Exercises in the NEP contribute evaluation data to the National Preparedness System to provide a clearer picture of the nation's readiness, such as through the National Preparedness Report.
As a culmination of each NEP cycle, the National Exercise Division leads a biennial National Level Exercise that builds off of exercises and other preparedness activities conducted during the cycle.
Policy and Resources
National Exercise Program Base Plan: Outlines the authorities, governance and concept of operations that provide the foundation for the NEP.
Principals' Exercise Priorities are set by the Principals Committee of the National Security Council and are based on sources including exercise and real-world after-action reports, preparedness data such as THIRA/SPR submissions, and subject matter expert input. The federal government uses these priorities to select topics for exercises, analyze after-action data for trends that can improve the nation's preparedness, and prioritize exercise funding. The 2023-2026 cycle runs from January 2023 to December 2026. Priorities are currently under development.
FEMA’s Regional Exercise Officers
| Region | Regional Exercise Officers | States / Territories |
|---|---|---|
| Region 01 | Kerri-Ann Trepanier | Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont |
| Region 02 | Devin Kerins | New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands |
| Region 03 | Patricia Gardner | Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, District of Columbia and West Virginia |
| Region 04 | Neil Anderson | Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee |
| Region 05 | Marc Chmielewski | Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin |
| Region 06 | Justin Breeding | Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas |
| Region 07 | John Bissen | Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska |
| Region 08 | Andrew Batten | Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming |
| Region 09 | Geoffrey Krueger | Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Guam, American Samoa, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands , Republic of Marshall Islands and Federated States of Micronesia |
| Region 10 | Casey Broom | Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington |