Amy Sebring:Welcome to the EIIP Virtual Forum! Amy Sebring:Today we are pleased to present a panel discussion/presentation about the Draft NFPA 1600 Standard for Disaster/Emergency Management. Amy Sebring:Before I introduce our special guests, some quick words about our format for the benefit of our first-timers. Amy Sebring:We will be doing approximately 30 minutes presentation with our panelists, followed by 30 minutes Q&A from audience. Amy Sebring:Please do NOT send private messages to our panelists during the session although you are welcome to send private messages to each other. Amy Sebring:At the conclusion of the session we will adjourn back to the Virtual Forum (lobby) for some follow up open discussion, if you care to stick around. Amy Sebring:When you see a blue web address, you can click on it and the referenced web page should appear in a browser window. Amy Sebring:After the first one, the browser window may not automatically come to the top, so you may need to bring it forward by clicking on a button at the status bar at the bottom of your screen. Amy Sebring:Right before we begin the Q&A portion I will review how to submit questions. Amy Sebring:Background information for today's session may be found at http://www.emforum.org/vforum/990113.htm . Amy Sebring:This page will remain on the site after the session, and will provide access to edited transcripts, both online HTML and downloadable Word versions. Amy Sebring:A raw, unedited text version will be available later today by using the Transcripts link on our home page. The edited versions should be available early next week. Amy Sebring:Thank you for your patience, and now it is my pleasure to introduce our guests, all members of the NFPA Technical Committee on Disaster Management, and all previous guests of the Virtual Forum. Amy Sebring:Lloyd Bokman is the Technical Committe Chair and is the U.S. Dept. of Energy Liaison/Hazardous Materials Planner with the Ohio Emergency Management Agency... Amy Sebring:He has worked as a radiological emergency response planner and has previous experience as a Captain and EMT in the fire service. Amy Sebring:Welcome back Lloyd. Lloyd Bokman:Hello everybody and thank you, Amy. Amy Sebring:Bob Fletcher has recently moved from a position as the Director of State and Local Preparedness Division within the FEMA PT&E Directorate ... Amy Sebring:to a Senior Policy Advisor position within FEMA's Office of Policy and Regional Operations. He represents FEMA on the Technical Committee. Amy Sebring:Welcome back Bob. Bob Fletcher:Thank you Amy and hello to my good colleagues Lloyd and Pat, as well as everyone else on line today. It's always fun to be part of the Virtual Forum. Amy Sebring:Last but not least, Ms. Pat Moore is a Certified Business Continuity professional (CBCP) and a Fellow of the Business Continuity Institute (FBCI)... Amy Sebring:She serves as Vice President, Business Continuity Education for Strohl Systems. Amy Sebring:Welcome back Pat. pat moore:Hello eveyone... Amy Sebring:We have a great deal to cover today in a very short amount of time, so we will not be able to get into any detail about specific provisions of the proposed standard ... Amy Sebring:and unfortunately, the full text is not yet available via Internet, but will be soon. Lloyd will tell us more about that ... Amy Sebring:Our focus today will be the standard-making process, where we are now in that process, and how you can become involved and participate ... Amy Sebring:Lloyd will begin with an overview and then Bob and Pat will continue with their perspectives from the public and the private sectors. Amy Sebring:Lloyd, if you please. Lloyd Bokman:I would like to thank the EIIP for this opportunity to discuss NFPA 1600. The history of the document goes back to 1991 when the Standards Council of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) received a request for a standard on disaster management. Lloyd Bokman:The NFPA, which was formed in 1896, is made up of over 60,000 members worldwide, of which 24% are affiliated with fire departments. The remaining 76% come from the various sectors of business, industry, and government. Lloyd Bokman:A committee was formed consisting of emergency management professionals from the various sectors (Note:committee members do not have to be NFPA members). The committee than began their work to develop a standard. Lloyd Bokman:Because of concerns that the emergency management community was not ready for standards, the committee decided to issue the document as a recommended practice rather than a standard in 1995. This means the various elements of the document were listed as "shoulds" rather than "shalls". Lloyd Bokman:After 1995 the document went into a revision cycle in which the committee considers proposals to hopefully, improve on the document. This is the final year of that cycle and revisions have been made, including upgrading it to a standard and a total reorganization of the document. Lloyd Bokman:As part of that revision cycle, the present draft document will be available from the NFPA after January 22 and till April 2 for public comment. To receive a hardcopy you can contact Martha Curtis, Staff Liaison, at mcurtis@nfpa.org or 617-984-7496. Lloyd Bokman:You can also download the document and submit your comments through the NFPA website (under the proposals and comments section) at www.nfpa.org however, I have been told that it will not be available on the web site until the last week of January. Lloyd Bokman:Amy has also been kind enough to provide links for the proposals and comments section to the NFPA in the background document for this chat. In addition, there is an NFPA 1600 status page on the National Assoc. of SARA Title III Program Officials (NASTTPO) website at www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/6286/NFPA1600.htm. Lloyd Bokman:The next step, in the process, is for the committee to review the comments submitted, which at that time, the committee will decide whether or not to incorporate those comments into the document. The committee will also write a formal response to each comment at that time. Amy Sebring:( http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/6286/NFPA1600.htm ) Lloyd Bokman:After reviewing the comments, the draft will be finalized, and if the committee approves the final draft, through a formal ballot, it will be submitted for consideration to the NFPA membership for their approval at the 1999 Fall Meeting of the NFPA. pat conley:bill: under control--just this a.m. trying to inlcude a pic of you in kydem newsletter! Lloyd Bokman:If approved by the membership the document would probably be printed and available in the beginning of the year 2000. Lloyd Bokman:I hope that my short history of the document and the outline of the standards making process has helped. Bob Fletcher from FEMA and Pat Moore from Strohl Systems are here to give their perspectives on the document. Lloyd Bokman:Both are members of the 1600 committee, and like all the committee members, each has played an integral part, for which I am grateful, in the development of this document. I'll be glad to answer questions later, but, now I'll turn it back over to Amy. Thank you. Amy Sebring:Thank you Lloyd. Next we will continue with Bob who will tell us something of FEMA's involvement, some of the other organizations involved, and how the standard relates to other developments in the public sector. Amy Sebring:Bob, if you please. Bob Fletcher:Thanks Amy. I am pleased to be working on this exciting project with Lloyd, Pat and the other NFPA 1600 Technical Committee representatives. Bob Fletcher:As I begin, I'd like to compliment you and Avagene for arranging this session today. The timing is perfect. It should heighten the interest of the emergency management community to the NFPA 1600 standards and of this great opportunity to provide input to the standards. Bob Fletcher:James Lee Witt, and the past Presidents of the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) and the International Association of Emergency Managers(IAEM), (then NCCEM) reached accord in the fall of 1997 ... Bob Fletcher:that it was in the best interest of those organizations to work with the NFPA and the other member organizations of the Technical Commitee to develop the first standard for emergency manangement. Bob Fletcher:In 1997, the President of NFPA, George Miller, agreed that NFPA 1600 could be issued as a joint standard endorsed by the above organizations, one of only a few joint NFPA standards. Bob Fletcher:That agreement represented the committment of the professionals involved to take a first step towards the establishment of national standards that could be embraced by the frontline emergency management professional organizations. Bob Fletcher:The work of the NFPA 1600 Technical Committee has been impressive, in part due to visionary leaders like Lloyd Bokman and also because each of the Commitee members are quite experienced in their own right. Bob Fletcher:The committee members have realistically assessed the need for a fresh approach to program standards and taken practical steps to make it happen. Bob Fletcher:The move to adopt common program elements with the widely accepted Capability Assessment for Readiness (CAR) used by NEMA and FEMA in 1998 to assess national readiness at the State level moved the NFPA 1600 ahead markedly towards serving all organizations. Bob Fletcher:FEMA is a believer in collaboration and stakeholder involvement, especially when it comes to matters of national significance such as this. Bob Fletcher:In the case of NFPA 1600, as you have heard Lloyd describe, it has been a voluntary consensus effort and continues to be. The public comment period is an example that the NFPA process seeks to be democratic and inclusive. Bob Fletcher:On a parallel course to the NFPA 1600 development, you may have heard that NEMA has proposed an initiative that would accredit state and local emergency management programs. Bob Fletcher:The NEMA proposal would use the NFPA 1600 Standard as the entry level standard for accreditation and call for the establishment of an independent body comprised of stakeholder representatives to accredit jurisdictions seeking accreditation. Bob Fletcher:They too are seeking involvement of stakeholders from the beginning. The first stakeholder meeting will be conducted in Washington, DC tomorrow, to brief a number of constituency groups on the concept of accreditation and seek their input. Bob Fletcher:Among those who will be involved with the first of the stakeholder sessions will be the National League of Cities, the International City-County Management Association, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National Association of Counties, ... Bob Fletcher:the National Conference of State Legislatures, the National Governors Association, the Council of State Governments, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the Association of State Flood Plain Managers, IAEM, NEMA and FEMA. Bob Fletcher:That's a strong indication of NEMA's desire to get widespread involvement of the stakeholders from the beginning. As the accreditation iniative evolves ... Bob Fletcher:input from other stakeholders will be sought as well. There are many things to consider, including the linkages between accreditation of organizations and the certification of individuals. Bob Fletcher:IAEM has set the pace in the area of certification with its Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) initiative. The relationships among certification, accreditation and formal degree programs in emergency management and related fields will be strengthened by the establishment of standards. Bob Fletcher:FEMA believes that the NFPA 1600 is a good first step. Back to you Amy. Amy Sebring:Thank you Bob. Amy Sebring:Just in time for Pat, as we lost her ... Amy Sebring:Let's give her a moment to try to log back on ... Amy Sebring:although the chat software does not disconnect for inactivity ... Amy Sebring:sometimes an ISP will. Amy Sebring:(checking lobby) Amy Sebring:While we are waiting for Pat ... Amy Sebring:I will go ahead and review the format for our Q&A portion ... Amy Sebring:please submit a question mark (?) to indicate you wish to be recognized. We will take questions in the order submitted. Amy Sebring:Right after you have submitted your ?, prepare your question by typing it in the message area, but do not submit until you are recognized. Avagene Moore:Amy and all --- Pat just called; she is trying to reconnect. She apologizes for the problem. dmiller:? Amy Sebring:Please be ready to go so we do not have to wait for you to type in your question ... Avagene Moore:She will be on momentarily, I am sure. Amy Sebring:and please indicate if your question is for a specific panelists. Amy Sebring:For those that joined us after the beginning ... Amy Sebring:please note the background information page for this session ... Amy Sebring:if you click on the banner that says Background Info when it comes around ... Amy Sebring:it will display in your browser. Amy Sebring:We will leave it on the site and post access to the transcript there ... Amy Sebring:and also will provide a link to the document on the NFPA site when it becomes available. Amy Sebring:Well, let's go ahead and take questions for Lloyd and Bob ... Amy Sebring:and when Pat comes back we will resume with her portion. Libbi Rucker Reed:? Amy Sebring:dmiller, your question please. David Crews:? dmiller:Are any portions of the proposed standard.. mandatory? Rick Larkin:? Amy Sebring:Lloyd can you explain that please? Stephanie Fritts:? Lloyd Bokman:All NFPA standards are voluntary... Lloyd Bokman:they only become mandatory if adopted in code by the local jurisdiction. Amy Sebring:Libbi please. Libbi Rucker Reed:Will any of this change the new EMP's just written by most states/locals to a big degree and will accredition require certified em program mgrs as directors Rick Tobin:? Amy Sebring:Bob would you take that one? Kevin Starbuck:? Bob Fletcher:Accreditation is a little more complicated that the establishment of standards. Steve Charvat:? Amy Sebring:We hope to have a future session regarding accreditation ... Bob Fletcher:If you are referring to accreditation of organizations there isn't any system for that yet... Libbi Rucker Reed:actually that was in reference to local jusridictions Bob Fletcher:If you are referring to certification, I would have to defer to IAEM. Amy Sebring:I am told that Pat is with us know. Amy Sebring:Pat if you please, the private sector perspective? pat moore:Hello everyone, sorry we lost the connection. The discussion apparentlyhas moved over to areas of acceditation ande certification and I can comment on that. I would first like to state that the private sector can certainly benefit from this document with regard to expanding theirown emergencfy response plas pat moore:But in addition, it is important that both the public and private sectors Phyllis Mann:Sorry I am so late. Are we discussing NFPA 1600? Amy Sebring:please continue Pat ... pat moore:realize that beyond emergency management and disaster response, it imporant to look beyond that in planning to 'continuity of operations' with regard to resuming and recovering to an almost 'business as usual' status if possible within a reasonable period of time pat moore:The public sector especially has to be able to operate like a 'business' in getting back to providing those critical services once the stabliziation of the situation has occurred, and there is definitely room for growth in this document in this area, and I know we will be looking at this issue when the comments come init. pat moore:With regard to accreditation and certification among the organiations, perhaps it is time that we began to look at coordinating an 'industry' accredittion or certification and I would welcome comments on that as well. pat moore:I am finished for now.. Amy Sebring:Thank you very much Pat ... Amy Sebring:Let's resume with our Q& A. David Crews is next please. David Crews:What is the proposed time frame for this standard to go from voluntary to mandatory (from shall to will)? Standards always strain fiscal resources and create training requirements (this could be a problem in the small jurisdictions - public sector!) Who is going to enforce standards if adopted? Jeremy Jones:? Amy Sebring:Lloyd can you explain what you expect may happen after the issuance of the standard ... Amy Sebring:in response to David's question? Lloyd Bokman:The standard can only be mandatory if it is codified into law or a regulation... Lloyd Bokman:This can only be done by a regulatory agency or... pat moore:Amy, if Libbi Rucker Reed will provide me with her contact information, I would like o discuss this further with her Lloyd Bokman:a state legislature or a city council... David Crews:What are the penalties on the jurisdiction that does not Codify? Lloyd Bokman:therefore, the time limit is up to the adopting agency or business Lloyd Bokman:if they choose to adopt it. Amy Sebring:Bob, can you address the training impacts? Lloyd Bokman:It is a voluntary standard, the NFPA cannot assess penalties only local jurisdictions can. Phyllis Mann:? Bob Fletcher:I would surmise that the training that is now available would suffice for the most part in meeting the standarsd as written... dmiller:In Iowa we are looking to adopt part, if not all, of NFPA 1600 by Administrative Rule as the "definition" of emergency management. We will be looking to make many of the standards "mandatory" with compliance to those standards to be completed over a period of time. We feel that NFPA 1600 establishes the strong framework for EM that may have previously been provided in FEMA CPGs. The bigger issue is how we measure compliance and progress towards the new standards. We feel this will help us Bob Fletcher:The standards are quite basic in nature... Bob Fletcher:The question will be, can you meet the standard and if not, what training will you need to meet them. Amy Sebring:Rick Larken please. Rick Larkin:is a copy of the standard avail. now - is it a draft form Bill Fletcher:? Amy Sebring:Copy will be available at the end of the month. Rick Larkin:thru NFPA ? Amy Sebring:Lloyd can you give contact information again for those that came in later. Lloyd Bokman:The draft will be available after January 22 form the NFPA. Rick Larkin:as a draft or a standard? pat moore:There is presently training being provided from the private sector to both the public and private sectors that address all of the issues within this standard. Amy Sebring:Stephanie Fritts please. Lloyd Bokman:Sure, Amy, contact Marhta Curtis, Staff Liaison, at.... Stephanie Fritts:Do the standards require adoption by the various states and local agencies? Also, will the standard then be adopted by FEMA and what will be FEMA's recommendation in regard to making it law or regulation? Will this be considered at a federal level? dmiller:For Isabel McCurdy ... First Name is David Amy Sebring:(sorry, pls finish Lloyd) Lloyd Bokman:mcurtis@nfpa.org or call her at 617-984-7496. Amy Sebring:Bob, would you care to address whether FEMA is a regulatory agency? Bob Fletcher:I'd rather try to get to Stephanie on herquestion.. Bob Fletcher:Smile... Amy Sebring:(that's what I meant please do) Bob Fletcher:FEMA doesn't envision trying to regulate compliance with the NFPA 1600 standard. Amy Sebring:Rick Tobin please. Bob Fletcher:Under OMB circular A 119... Bob Fletcher:I'm still trying on this one.. Amy Sebring:(please continue) Bob Fletcher:Federal agencies support standards thatare developed by local voluntary consensus organizations... David Crews:? Steve Charvat:? Bob Fletcher:FEMA hopes that the emergency management community will collaborate to devlop a standard... Bob Fletcher:that can be embraced by the community at large, that will evolve and ... Bob Fletcher:continually be improved to challenge the profession... Bob Fletcher:The public has a right to know that the emergency management professionals who serve them... Phyllis Mann:? Bob Fletcher:are the highest calibre professionals that can be obtained and that they are held to some sort of professional standard. Amy Sebring:Ok, NOW Rick Tobin pls. Rick Tobin:To Pat Moore: When you mean this as a standard for the public sector, would that also cover the medical facilities and operations from hospitals all the way to small nursing homes that need certification to operatate? pat moore:Hello Rick, presently the JCAHO which addresses the healthcare industry for standards for 'environment of cre' Rick Tobin:Yes, but you can walk through those standards with a Mack truck. pat moore:has recently expanded their certification requirements to comply with addressing 'continuity of operations', not just patient life safety issues, so we are seeing more movement in this area. Amy Sebring:Kevin Starbuck please. pat moore:no Kevin Starbuck:Lloyd - why the interest in having a standard that requires an emergency management council or committee on the local level? Lloyd Bokman:The committee discussed this over the past several years... Lloyd Bokman:and feels that there is a need to bring all the players together... Lloyd Bokman:both privat and public sectors in order to come up with an... cindy rice:? Rick Larkin:?? Lloyd Bokman:effective emergency management program... Lloyd Bokman:the best way to do this was through a committee. Kevin Starbuck:Any good emergency program has done that to succeed. Next step is citizen advisory committees. Amy Sebring:Steve Charvat please Lloyd Bokman:I agree that all good programs have done that... Steve Charvat:As an early contributor to NFPA 1600, I have a strong interest in its passage as a standard with some teeth! I was wondering, however, if the Standards Committee looked at the issue of "sufficient" or “minimal” staffing levels to implement the standard in an organization? Lloyd Bokman:I think that is one of the reasons the committee made it a part of the standard. pat moore:We in the private sector face many of the same issues because our only history on being held up to laws or standards on these issues, relates back to the Foreign Steve Charvat:As a 1-person EM office in a city of over 1.25 million, I was hoping that I could finally wave a piece of paper at my employer justifying my need for additional staff. Unfortunately, the revisions do not reflect that. Lloyd Bokman:As Bob Fletcher said earlier, this is a very general umbrella... Lloyd Bokman:type standard. However, that does not stop the... Lloyd Bokman:possibility of mor detailed standards being deveolped in the future. Amy Sebring:Bob will you address the staffing issue? Bob Fletcher:Steve, hopefully the standards will drive the resource requirements. If an entity can comply with all of the standards.. pat moore:Corrupt Practices Act which addresses 'duty of trust' and 'due diligence' in performing your job as an officer or director, and unfortunately it has not been held up in court, so perhas this joint standard when finalized and addresses additional issues can be passed as the standard that all plans must meet and identifies the requirements of resources in terms of time and people required to carry out this 'planning process'. Bob Fletcher:and do it with only one person, isn't that ok? I think tha t the resource numbers could cloud the standards. Amy Sebring:We will take Phyllis, Bill Fletcher and Cindy ... Steve Charvat:Thank you Amy Sebring:if your questions did not get addressed, please stick around after. Amy Sebring:Phyllis Mann please. Phyllis Mann:How will the 1600 interface with the proposed NEMA?FEMA accreditation plans Amy Sebring:We addressed that earlier Phyllis... Amy Sebring:it will be in the transcript. Amy Sebring:Bob, anything you want to add? Bob Fletcher:Yes... Bob Fletcher:NEMA has a proposal in the wrks as I mentioned earlier.. Bob Fletcher:that suggests using the NFPA 1600 as an entry level standard for State and local em programs... Bob Fletcher:to request accreditation. The independent body that would accredit... Bob Fletcher:has not been developed nor has the accreditation self assessment process been determined... Bob Fletcher:but NEMA has prposed a self-assessment based upon an instrument.... Bob Fletcher:like the capability assessment for readiness (CAR)... Bob Fletcher:developed by FEMA and NEMA., .. Bob Fletcher:but reoriented towards the NFPA 1600 standards. Amy Sebring:Bill Fletcher please. Bill Fletcher:Lloyd: What impact, if any, will NFPA 1600 have on fire service agencies? If NFPA standards have been adopted by reference by a jurisidiction (state, county, or local) for application to fire protection, will fire service agencies be required to develop an EM program that meets the standard ? Lloyd Bokman:I think they will be required to take part in emergency management... Lloyd Bokman:that already exists as one of those committee members... Lloyd Bokman:I also see private industry coming to them more... Lloyd Bokman:for the fire depts input. Amy Sebring:Cindy please. cindy rice:Would the standards be generalized for the national/international level (FEMA/IAEM/NEMA/NFPA) and become more specific/definitive as it is used at levels more closely involved (state) and finally even more definitive at a hands on/immediate response locality (local/county/city emergency management/fire/etc)? Or is the standard generic to cover all, at all levels, all situation? and can this be seen as something which would be filtered from national to local level so if only part of the stand Lloyd Bokman:The standard can be used as an outline of local development... Lloyd Bokman:either by a city or a country or a state... cindy rice:ard is used this can define compliance to existing concept of operations? (sorry) Lloyd Bokman:For example, Ohio is using to develop a program to ... Lloyd Bokman:give state funds to local programs if they meet certain requirements. Amy Sebring:Thank you panelists, and thank you audience for your excellent participation today... Amy Sebring:we hope you will take advantage of the opportunity to let your comments on the standard be known to the NFPA and/or your organizational reps. Amy Sebring:If you don't know who your reps are ... Amy Sebring:there is a link on the background page to a list of committee members. Amy Sebring:Before we adjourn, Ms. Avagene will mention our upcoming events in the Virtual Forum. Bob Goldhammer:I'm all for having standards for the profession and being accountable to the general public, but as Steve Charvet mentioned, despite our best efforts, often times we cannot get to everything with only one person. This is an issue in Iowa where we can't even always get Boards of Supervisors to fund EMA Commission budgets in compliance with state guidelines. Avagene Moore:Thank you Amy .... Avagene Moore:Next week, Tuesday, the Round Table at 1 PM EST is available for Partners' presentations and discussions. .... Avagene Moore:Phyllis Mann, IAEM President Elect, will do their first monthly session on Tuesday the 26th ... Avagene Moore:Next Weds, Jan 20, Kellye Junchaya, author of They Laughed at Noah, will be in the Virtual Library at 12:00 Noon EST. ... Avagene Moore:Back to you, Amy. Amy Sebring:I would also like to mention that there is an EENET broadcast on Incident Command available via Internet starting at 2:00 PM Eastern today. Go to: http://www.fema.gov/emi/eenet.htm to access. Amy Sebring:Thank you all again, and if you care to continue with open discussion a little longer, we will move back to the Virtual Forum room. Bob Fletcher:Thank you Amy, I hope that you all stay involved to make the standard reflect your needs. Lloyd Bokman:Yes, thank you Amy and Avagene