Homeland Security and
Emergency
Management
By Craig Erb
HLSC 510
Professor Fox
December 14, 2018
What is the purpose of homeland
security?
•Prevent terrorism and enhance security
•Secure and manage the borders
•Enforce and administer immigration laws
•Safeguard and secure cyberspace
•Strengthen national preparedness and resilience (DHS.gov, 2018)
•Homeland security is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist
attacks within the United States, reduce America’s vulnerability to
terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do
occur. (The National Strategy for Homeland Security, 2002)
Presidential Directives – George W.
Bush
•HSPD 1: Organization and operation of the Homeland Security
Council
•HSPD 5: Management of Domestic Incidents
•HSPD 8: National Preparedness
•HSPD 18: Medical countermeasures against WMD
•HSPD 21: Public health and medical preparedness
(National Security Presidential Directives, 2015)
Presidential Directives – Barack H.
Obama
•PPD2: Implementation of the National Strategy for Countering
Biological Threats
•PPD8: National Preparedness
•PPD21: Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience
(Presidential Policy Directives, 2016)
Emergency Management as a Part
of Homeland Security
What is Emergency Management?
-A process, under the elected leadership, where communities manage complex
emergencies and disasters.
-Based on the concept of local disaster management supported by higher levels
of Government to include State and Federal assistance when needed.
-Emergency Management attempts to improve the outcome of a disaster. These
outcomes can be measured in lives saved, fewer injuries, reduced damages,
decreased disruptions, shorter recovery time, to name a few. If we do not
improve the outcome of a disaster, then we have failed.
(Shultz, 2008)
Four Phases to Emergency
Management
1. Mitigation - the effort to reduce loss of life and property by lessening the impact of
disasters. (What is Mitigation, 2018)
2. Preparedness - measures taken to prepare for and reduce the effects of disasters; to
predict and, where possible, prevent disasters, mitigate their impact on vulnerable
populations, and respond to and effectively cope with their consequences. (Disaster
Preparedness, 2018)
3. Response - actions carried out immediately before, during, and after a hazard impact;
aimed at saving lives, reducing economic losses, and alleviating suffering. (The Four
Phases of Emergency Management, 2018)
4. Recovery - Actions taken to return a community to normal or near-normal conditions,
including the restoration of basic services and the repair of physical, social and economic
damages. (The Four Phases of Emergency Management, 2018)
Mitigation
Achieved through risk analysis, which results
in information that provides foundation for
typical mitigation measures include
establishing building codes, zoning
requirements, and constructing barriers such
as levees. (The Four Phases of Emergency Management, 2018)
Preparedness
Developing mutual aid agreements and memorandums of
understanding, training for both response personnel and
concerned citizens, conducting disaster exercises to reinforce
training and test capabilities, and presenting all-hazards
education campaigns. Unlike mitigation activities, which are
aimed at preventing a disaster from occurring, personal
preparedness focuses on preparing equipment and procedures
for use when a disaster occurs, i.e. planning. (The Four Phases of
Emergency Management, 2018)
Response
May include activating the Emergency Operations
Center (EOC), evacuating threatened populations,
opening shelters and providing mass care, emergency
rescue and medical care, fire fighting, and urban
search and rescue. Response begins when an
emergency event is imminent or immediately after an
event occurs. (The Four Phases of Emergency Management, 2018)
Recovery
Actions include debris cleanup, financial assistance to
individuals and governments, rebuilding of roads and bridges
and key facilities, and sustained mass care for displaced
human and animal populations. Recovery differs from the
response phase in its focus; recovery efforts are concerned
with issues and decisions that must be made after immediate
needs are addressed. Recovery efforts are primarily concerned
with actions that involve rebuilding destroyed property, re-
employment, and the repair of other essential infrastructure.
(The Four Phases of Emergency Management, 2018)
Legislation relating to Emergency
Management
•Stafford Act (1988) - provides the legal authority for the
federal government to provide assistance to states during
declared major disasters and emergencies. The Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) coordinates
administration of disaster relief resources and assistance to
states. Federal assistance is provided under the Stafford Act if
an event is beyond the combined response capabilities of
state and local governments. (Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 2013)
Legislation relating to Emergency
Management (con’t)
•Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 - Provides the legal basis for
FEMA mitigation planning requirements for State, local and
Indian Tribal governments as a condition of mitigation grant
assistance. DMA 2000 amended the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act by repealing
the previous mitigation planning provisions and replacing
them with a new set of requirements that emphasize the
need for State, local, and Indian Tribal entities to closely
coordinate mitigation planning and implementation efforts.
(FEMA.gov, 2018)
Legislation relating to Emergency
Management (con’t)
•Homeland Security Act (2002) - To prevent terrorist attacks
within the United States, reduce the vulnerability of the
United States to terrorism, and minimize damage and assist
in recovery for terrorist attacks that occur in the United
States. The Homeland Security Act provides the secretary of
Homeland Security with the authority to direct and control
investigations that require access to information needed to
investigate and prevent terrorism. Placed FEMA under the
DHS. (Homeland Security Act, 2010)
Legislation relating to Emergency
Management (con’t)
•The Post Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act (2006)
- reorganized FEMA by redefining its mission, consolidating
its emergency management functions, and granting it greater
autonomy.
•National Disaster Recovery Framework (2011) - coordinates
pre-disaster planning and facilitate post-disaster response
and recovery across all levels of government.
(History of Federal Disaster Policy, 2015)
Guidelines and Resources for
Emergency Management
•National Response Framework (NRF)
•National Incident Management System (NIMS)
•Incident Command System (ICS)
National Response Framework (NRF)
•A guide to how the Nation responds to all types of disasters and
emergencies. It is built on scalable, flexible, and adaptable concepts
identified in the National Incident Management System to align key
roles and responsibilities across the Nation. This Framework describes
specific authorities and best practices for managing incidents that
range from the serious but purely local to large-scale terrorist attacks
or catastrophic natural disasters. The National Response Framework
describes the principles, roles and responsibilities, and coordinating
structures for delivering the core capabilities required to respond to
an incident and further describes how response efforts integrate with
those of the other mission areas. (FEMA.gov, 2018)
National Incident Management
System (NIMS)
•Guides all levels of government, nongovernmental organizations
(NGO), and the private sector to work together to prevent, protect
against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from incidents. NIMS
provides stakeholders across the whole community with the shared
vocabulary, systems, and processes to successfully deliver the
capabilities described in the National Preparedness System. NIMS
defines operational systems, including the Incident Command System
(ICS), Emergency Operations Center (EOC) structures, and
Multiagency Coordination Groups (MAC Groups) that guide how
personnel work together during incidents. NIMS applies to all
incidents, from traffic accidents to major disasters. (FEMA.gov, 2018)
Incident Command System (ICS)
•Designed to enable effective and efficient domestic incident
management by integrating a combination of facilities, equipment,
personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a
common organizational structure. ICS is normally structured to
facilitate activities in five major functional areas: command,
operations, planning, logistics, Intelligence & Investigations, finance
and administration. It is a fundamental form of management, with the
purpose of enabling incident managers to identify the key concerns
associated with the incident—often under urgent conditions—
without sacrificing attention to any component of the command
system. (FEMA.gov, 2018)
Conclusion
Homeland security and emergency management go hand in hand when it comes to
protecting and recovering from a natural disaster, terrorist attack or other emergency.
The number one requirement to handle any type of incident is to have a plan. An
emergency management plan is a course of action developed to mitigate the damage
of potential events that could endanger an organization's ability to function. Such a
plan should include measures that provide for the safety of personnel and, if possible,
property and facilities. It should also include provisions to assess the severity of an
incident and implement steps to eliminate the problem (Rouse, 2018). Not having a
plan will be disastrous for a community and its residents. We will be a much more
trusted agency if the citizens of this community know that we have a plan, we train
with the plan, and we update and improve the plan in the event of an emergency.
References
Department of Homeland Security. (2018). Retrieved from
https://obamaadministration.archives.performance.gov/agency/department-homeland-security.html
Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 | FEMA.gov. (2013, September 26). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/media-
library/assets/documents/4596?id=1935
Disaster preparedness. (2018). Retrieved from https://media.ifrc.org/ifrc/what-we-do/disaster-and-crisis-
management/disaster-preparedness/
History of Federal Disaster Policy | HUD USER. (2015). Retrieved from
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/periodicals/em/winter15/highlight1_sidebar.html
Homeland Security Act, Patriot Act, Freedom of Information Act, and HIM. (2018). Retrieved from
http://bok.ahima.org/doc?oid=106172#.XBQ4OmhKjIU
References (con’t)
Incident Command System Resources | FEMA.gov. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/incident-command-
system-resources
National Incident Management System | FEMA.gov. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/national-incident-
management-system
National Response Framework | FEMA.gov. (2014, July 14). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/media-
library/assets/documents/32230
National Security Presidential Directives [NSPD]George W. Bush Administration. (2015, November 17). Retrieved from
https://fas.org/irp/offdocs/nspd/index.html
National strategy for homeland security. (2002, July). Retrieved from
https://web.archive.org/web/20030308162013/http://www.whitehouse.gov:80/homeland/book/nat_strat_hls.pdf
References (con’t)
Preparedness | Response | Recovery | Emergency Management. (2018). Retrieved from
https://www.stlouisco.com/lawandpublicsafety/emergencymanagement/thefivephasesofemergencymanagement
Presidential Policy Directives [PPDs]Barack Obama Administration. (2016, October 19). Retrieved from
https://fas.org/irp/offdocs/ppd/index.html
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act Fact Sheet | State Public Health | ASTHO. (2018).
Retrieved from http://www.astho.org/Programs/Preparedness/Public-Health-Emergency-Law/Emergency-
Authority-and-Immunity-Toolkit/Robert-T--Stafford-Disaster-Relief-and-Emergency-Assistance-Act-Fact-Sheet/
Rouse, M. (2012, September). What is emergency management plan? - Definition from WhatIs.com. Retrieved
from https://searchdisasterrecovery.techtarget.com/definition/emergency-management-plan
References (con’t)
Schultz, J. (2008, May 23). Emergency Management 101. Retrieved from
http://www.disastersrus.org/em101.htm
What is Mitigation? | FEMA.gov. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/what-mitigation
