Policy and Planning
The Office of Policy and Planning is primarily responsible for formulating policy for the Division involving emergency management issues. It is also responsible for developing the annual Emergency Management Performance Agreement between the Division and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Office also serves as the Division’s interface between the Florida League of Cities, the Florida Association of Counties, Enterprise Florida’s Defense Alliance, and the Regional Planning Councils. It also serves as a focal coordinating point with the Department of Justice on mass migration issues, as well as the Florida Association of Broadcasters and the Federal Communications Commission on the Emergency Information System. The office also coordinates the requests for Presidential Disaster Declarations, when needed.
Accreditation
The ability of our communities to respond to and recover from natural and man-made disasters is of vital importance to public health and safety and quality of life. The Emergency Management Accreditation Program, or EMAP, is a voluntary accreditation process for the state and local programs responsible for disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. This program is currently managed by the National Emergency Management Association. (http://www.emaponline.org/index.cfm)
Accreditation is a means of demonstrating, through program assessment, documentation and on-site assessment by an independent team of emergency managers, that a program meets national standards. EMAP is designed to foster continuous improvement in emergency management capabilities.
Florida's Emergency Management program is the first in the nation to apply for accreditation. At this time, an in-house assessment team will be interviewing program managers in preparation for an on-site peer review team.
Web Based Tracking System
The Emergency Operations Center Online Web Based Tracking System consist of two distinct products designed to work in conjunction with each other to provide both the citizens of Florida and Local Emergency Managers/State Agencies information pertinent to disaster events. The two components are a web enabled version of the “Tracker 2000” messaging software system and a “GIS” based online mapping information system designed for the public. The online “Tracker 2000” system is password protected and designed for use by County Emergency Personnel and State Agencies to communicate with the Emergency Operations Center. The GIS based online mapping system, “EOCMapsOnline”, is designed to inform the public as to what zones require evacuation, evacuation routing, available shelters, and road closure information.
Mass Migration Emergency Planning
Florida’s geography poses a unique threat of illegal immigration from the Caribbean basin. Much of South Florida’s current population is a result of the 1980 Mariel boatlift when 125,000 illegal aliens from Cuba made their way to Key West. Again, in August 1994, political problems in Haiti and Cuba caused Florida’s emergency management personnel to respond to a mass influx of illegal aliens to ensure regular services were not interrupted.
This section coordinates Mass Migration emergency planning by working with the U.S. Department of Justice and local governments on operational and cost-recovery activities. This section serves as the Governor’s Office liaison with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, the U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Public Health Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Also, state agency coordination is conducted with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Department of Corrections, Department of Children and Families, Department of Health, Department of Elder Affairs and the Department of Military Affairs. For the latest INS news releases regarding immigration issues, visit: http://www.ins.usdoj.gov/graphics/publicaffairs/presinfo.htm
While immigration law is solely under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Attorney General and the U.S. the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, the state of Florida discourages dangerous attempts to enter the United States illegally. In 1998, the state of Florida and the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service signed an historic agreement that details how the federal government will assume primary responsibility for on-shore operations and how the state can assist in supporting this federal operation.
Governor's Hurricane Conference
Since its inception in 1986, the Governor’s Hurricane Conference has grown into the nation’s largest educational forum for hurricane preparedness, response and recovery issues. The Department of Community Affairs, along with the Florida Emergency Preparedness Association and the American Red Cross are the original primary sponsoring agencies. Others from local and state governments provide personnel to organize, instruct and support this conference. Program information is located at: www.flghc.org.
Emergency Alert System
One of the state’s most reliable warning methods is through the Emergency Alert System, a network of broadcasters who volunteer their airtime to relay emergency warnings to the public. This office works with the Florida Association of Broadcasters www.fab.org, the National Weather Service http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/ and the Federal Communications Commission http://www.fcc.gov to ensure the state plan is kept up-to-date and monthly tests are conducted and successfully received by the primary participant. More information on the EAS is located at: http://www.floridadisaster.org/bpr/EMTOOLS/Warning/eas.htm
This office also works with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) and the Florida Association of Broadcasters in coordinating the Florida Emergency Missing Child Alert (FEMCA), also known as the “Florida Amber Plan.” The “Amber Plan” was created in memory of Amber Hagerman, a 9-year-old girl who was abducted and brutally murdered in 1996 in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area of Texas. Based on the model of emergency alerts for serious weather conditions, an Amber Alert provides an immediate radio and television notice to the public when a report of a child abduction has been confirmed by law enforcement. Florida was the second state in the nation to take the partnership for missing child alerts statewide, while many others have implemented similar plans in major metropolitan areas only. Other coordinating partners include the Florida Department of Transportation and AAA South travel services. For more information, go to: http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/AmberPlan/index.html
