(A) County Emergency Management Advisory Council established; appointment and terms of members. In accordance with I.C. 10-14-3-17, there is established the County Emergency Management Advisory Council which shall consist of the following persons or its designees:
(1) The President of the county executive;
(2) The President of the county fiscal body;
(3) The Mayor of each city located in the county;
(4) An individual representing the legislative bodies of all towns located within the county; and
(5) Representatives of such private and public agencies or organizations which can be of assistance to emergency management as the organizing group considers appropriate, or as may be added later by the County Emergency Management Advisory Council.
(B) Officers. The Advisory Council shall have a Chairperson, a Vice Chairperson and a Recording Secretary. These officers shall be elected by the Advisory Council for one-year terms.
(C) Duties of Emergency Management Advisory Council as established in I.C. 10-14-3-17.
(1) The Advisory Council shall exercise general supervision and control over the emergency management and disaster program of the county, and shall recommend a County Emergency Management Director to the Board of Commissioners, who may approve the Advisory Council’s recommendation or shall appoint such other person as it deems proper to serve as the County Emergency Management Director. The County Emergency Management Director shall have direct responsibility for the organization, administration and operation of the emergency management program in the county and shall be responsible to the Chairperson of the Advisory Council. The Emergency Management Director shall not hold any other local or state government office.
(2) The Advisory Council shall have the power to terminate, with the approval of the County Executive, a County Emergency Management Director, under the circumstances delineated in division (E)(2) below.
(3) The Advisory Council shall meet at least once biannually; the frequency, time and place being determined by the Council.
(4) Any and all meetings of the Advisory Council shall be open meetings and shall be posted in accordance with I.C. 5-14-1.5.
(D) Department of Emergency Management established; organization and constituency of the Department.
(1) Emergency Management within the executive branch of the county government for the purpose of utilizing to the fullest extent possible the personnel and facilities of existing county departments and agencies to prepare for and meet any disaster as defined in this subchapter. The County Commissioners and Director of Emergency Management shall be responsible for its organization, administration and operation. The Department shall consist of the following:
(a) An executive head of the Department of Emergency Management, who shall be known as the Director of Emergency Management appointed in accordance with division (E) below;
(b) A Deputy Director, who shall be appointed by the Director with the approval of the Advisory Council;
(c) Emergency management volun-teers, as deemed necessary and appointed by the Director in accordance with § 34.32 and in accordance with the Plan;
(d) The employees, equipment and facilities of all county departments and agencies suitable for, or adaptable to emergency management and designated by the plan to participate in emergency management activity;
(e) Staff officers with responsibility for Warning and Communications, Radiological, Health, Emergency Care, Police, Fire and Rescue, Public Works, and Public Information in accordance with the Plan; and
(f) Such assistants, clerical help and other employees as deemed necessary to the proper functioning of the Department who may be appointed by the Director in accordance with the Plan.
(2) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this subchapter, no compensated position may be established within the Department of Emergency Management nor any person appointed to such position without:
(a) The authorization of the County Council pursuant to I.C. 36-2-5-3(a); and
(b) The making of sufficient appropriations to pay such compensation.
(3) The County Council shall not have any power of approval over particular candidates for any position, but the County Council shall have general statutory powers to determine the numbers of officers, deputies and employees of county departments, classify positions and adopt schedules of compensation.
(4) It is the intent of this section that emergency management and disaster assignments under the Plan shall be as nearly consistent with normal duty assignments as possible.
(E) Director of Emergency Management; appointment, qualifications and tenure.
(1) The Director of Emergency Management shall be appointed pursuant to the procedures set forth in division (C)(1) above. The Director may hold no other local, state or federal office.
(2)
The appointment of the Director shall be for a two year term.
On or before the anniversary date of the appointment of the Director, the Advisory Council shall meet and recommend to the Board of Commissioners whether to retain the Director, terminate the Director or appoint a new Director. The recommendation by the Advisory Council may be the current Director or such other person as the Advisory Council shall deem proper. The Board of Commissioners may then approve the Advisory Council’s recommendation or shall appoint such other person they deem proper to serve as the County Emergency Management Director. The Director shall serve, at all times, at the pleasure of the Board of Commissioners and may be terminated at any time by the Board of Commissioners.
(3) The Advisory Council shall recommend termination of the Director to the Board of Commissioners, who may then, at its discretion, terminate the Director.
(4) Additional qualifications for Director may be determined by the Advisory Council, with input from the County Commissioners pursuant to I.C. 10-14-3-17.
(F) Director of Emergency Management; general powers and duties. The Director, subject to the direction and control of the Advisory Council, shall be executive head of the Department and shall have responsibility for the organization, administration and operation of the County Department of Emergency Management, including the following specific powers and duties:
(1) Submitting to the Advisory Council and the County Commissioners a yearly report on the County Emergency Management Agency, including mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery taken in the previous year and planned and recommended for the year to come;
(2) Keeping the County Commissioners fully informed on emergency management activities;
(3) Writing and implementing the Plan, which shall conform to the guidelines contained in the most current state and federal guidance documents if the county wishes to receive state and/or federal matching;
(4) Assuring that all county employees and rostered volunteers with responsibilities as part of the Plan receive training in the functions which they are to perform under the plan;
(5) Designing and conducting exercises of the Plan, as required by SEMA;
(6) Assuring that the Plan addresses all hazards and includes all cities, towns and other population centers within the county;
(7) Updating the Plan as needed to keep it current, as required by I.C. 10-14-3-17;
(8) Identifying and analyzing the effects of hazards that threaten the jurisdiction;
(9) Working closely with officers and employees of incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county to develop a hazard mitigation program to eliminate or reduce potential hazards;
(10) Inventorying manpower and material resources from governmental and private sector sources that would be available in a disaster or emergency;
(11) Identifying resource deficiencies and working with appropriate officials on measures to correct them;
(12) Developing an emergency operating center (“EOC”) as a site from which key officials can direct and control operations during a disaster or emergency;
(13) Developing and maintaining an emergency communications system;
(14) Establishing a system to alert key officials in event of a disaster or emergency;
(15) Developing continuity of government procedures and systems;
(16) Establishing and maintaining a shelter and reception and care system;
(17) Developing a training program for emergency response personnel;
(18) Developing a tests and exercise program;
(19) Coordinating with industry to develop and maintain industrial emergency plans and capabilities in support of the Plan;
(20) Making rapid and accurate assessment of:
(a) Property damage;
(b) Personal injuries;
(c) Fatalities;
(d) Basic needs;
(e) Special needs; and
(f) As soon as a state of emergency or disaster declaration has been made.
(21) Submitting to SEMA the assessment specified in § 3.F.7. in SEMA’s required:
(a) Format; and
(b) Time frame for submission.
(22) Providing to the SEMA Director annual reports and documentation as mandated by SEMA;
(23) Completely managing the Department’s various functions, including among others financial, personnel and logistic;
(24) Timely responsiveness to the Chairperson of the Advisory Council, as mandated by I.C. 10-14-3-17;
(25) Timely obedience to the directives of superior state authorities;
(26) Assuring that the activities of the Department at all times comport with I.C. 10-4-1 and other applicable statutes and county ordinances;
(27) Attendance at, and passing grades in, the Emergency Management Professional Development Series for emergency management presented by the Public Safety Training Institute minimum of one class per year during the tenure as Director;
(28) Attendance at, and passing grades in, such emergency management training as may be required by SEMA in subsequent years;
(29) Assuring the Deputy Director’s attendance at, and passing grades in, the Emergency Management Professional Development Series for emergency management presented by the Public Safety Training Institute minimum of one class per year during tenure as Deputy Director;
(30) Assuring the Deputy Director’s and all paid emergency management staff’s attendance at, and passing grades in, such emergency management training as may be required by SEMA in subsequent years;
(31) Assuring ongoing attendance by the Director, the Deputy Director and all paid emergency management staff at further emergency management courses presented by the Public Safety Training Institute to assure continued knowledge of the latest information on emergency management;
(32) Responsibility for public relations, information and education regarding all phases of emergency management;
(33) Assuring coordination, within the county, of all activities for emergency management;
(34) Maintaining liaison and coordination with all other affected agencies, public and private;
(35) Coordination of the recruitment and training for volunteer personnel and agencies to augment the personnel and facilities of the county for emergency management purposes;
(36) Seeking, negotiating and entering into (with the approval or ratification of the Commissioners and to the extent consistent with the State Emergency Operations Plan and programs) cooperatives, mutual aid agreements and memorandum of understanding with other public and private agencies for emergency management purposes, and taking all steps in accordance with such arrangements to comply with or take advantage thereof in the event of an actual emergency affecting the parties;
(37) Accepting any offer of the federal government to provide for the use of the county any services, equipment, supplies, materials or funds for emergency management purposes by way of gift, grant or loan, when such offer has been approved by the Governor;
(38) Seeking and accepting from any person, firm or corporation, any gratuitous offers to provide services, equipment, supplies, materials, funds or licenses or privileges to use real estate or other premises, to the county for emergency management purposes;
(39) Issuing proper insignia and papers to emergency management workers and other people directly concerned with emergency management;
(40) Assuring that all volunteers meet the criteria set forth at § 34.21 prior to accepting them as members of the Department; and
(41) In addition to the powers and duties expressly provided above, the Director shall be construed to have all powers and duties of a local emergency management director as provided under I.C. 10-14-3-17. In particular, but not by limitation, the Director, through the Department, may perform or cause to be performed with respect to the county, any function parallel or analogous to those performed on a statewide basis by SEMA under I.C. 10-14-3-17.
(G) Deputy Director; general powers and duties.
(1) If a Deputy Director has been appointed pursuant to division (E)(1)(b) above, he or she shall during normal times assist the Director in the performance of his or her duties.
(2) During an emergency, the Deputy Director shall assist the Director and shall fulfill the duties of the Director in the absence or incapacity of the Director to serve.
(H) Principal Executive Officer and Board of Commissioners: general administrative powers and duties; tests of emergency operations plan.
(1) In time of normal county operations, powers and duties of the Principal Executive Officer pertaining to emergency management shall be:
(a) Seeking the advice and input of the Director as to the advisability of declaring a local disaster emergency; and
(b) Declaring, pursuant to I.C. 10-4-1-23(a), a local disaster emergency.
(2) In time of normal county operations, powers and duties of the County Commissioners pertaining to emergency management shall be:
(a) Maintaining general supervision over the planning and administration for the Department;
(b) Adoption of the Plan;
(c) Coordinating emergency management activities consistent with the Plan;
(d) Making assignments of county personnel to emergency management activities consistent with the Plan;
(e) Making assignments of county personnel to emergency management duties in order to meet situations not covered in the normal duties and powers of such agencies consistent with the Plan;
(f) Taking all necessary action in coordination with the Department to conduct tests of the Plan; and
(g) Educating themselves as to their responsibilities under the Plan.
(3) Emergency management tests may be conducted at any time with or without prior notification to persons other than the Director. All emergency tests conducted within the boundaries of the county shall be coordinated with the Department.
(I) Qualifications and appointment of emergency management volunteers.
(1) The Director shall assure that all volunteer personnel meet the following qualifications before being placed on the roster as a member of the Department:
(a) Be at least 18 years of age or older;
(b) Not be convicted of a felony; and
(c) Have completed and have on file with the Department an application form.
(2) Upon satisfaction of the above requirements and formal entry upon the Department’s roster of volunteers, the applicant is officially a member of the County Department of Emergency Management.
(J) Department budgeting and finance.
(1) The Advisory Council shall advise the Director in the preparation of the budget.
(2) The County Council shall appropriate such funds as it may deem necessary for the purpose of emergency management.
(3) All funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Department of Emergency Management shall be administered by the Director.
(K) Emergency operations plan; formulation, content and adoption of plan.
(1) A County Emergency Operations Plan shall be adopted by resolution of the County Commissioners. in the preparation of this Plan, as it pertains to county organization, it is the intent that the services, equipment, facilities and personnel of all existing departments and agencies shall be utilized to the fullest extent possible.
(2) The Plan shall have, at minimum, the following contents:
(a) Basic Plan - to include:
1. Purpose;
2. Situation/Assumptions;
3. Concept of Operations;
4. Assignment of Respon-sibilities;
5. Direction and Control;
6. Continuity of Government;
7. Administration and Logistics; and
8. Execution.
(b) Annexes - to include:
1. Direction and Control (Warning and Communication);
2. Radiological Protection;
3. Law Enforcement;
4. Fire and Rescue;
5. Health and Medical;
6. Hazardous Materials Response for SARA Title 111 release (to be drafted by the Local Emergency Planning Committee, pursuant to I.C. 13-7-37-12);
7. Hazardous Materials Response for Non-SARA Title III release;
8. American Red Cross of Greater Indianapolis, County Branch Disaster Operation Plan (Sheltering, Welfare and Human Services);
9. Evacuation;
10. Public Works; and
11. Resources and Supply.
(3) In addition, all emergency services within the county shall:
(a) If they develop internal plans, assure that those plans are drafted subject to the requirements of the Plan;
(b) Coordinate internal plans with the Department of Emergency Management;
(c) Assure inclusion of internal plans within the County Plan;
(d) Perform the functions and duties assigned by the County Plan; and
(e) Maintain their portion of the Plan in a current state of readiness at all times.
(L) County-wide jurisdictions of Department of Emergency Management; county emergency operations plan; and related official powers.
(1) Except as provided by Indiana Code, the jurisdiction of the County Department of Emergency Management shall be:
(a) Inclusive county-wide; and
(b) Effective in both the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county.
(2) The jurisdictions and applicability of the County Emergency Management and Disaster Plan as adopted pursuant to Indiana Code, and the exercise of any powers of the Principal Executive Officer of the county and the County Commissioners under Indiana Code, shall be:
(a) Inclusive county-wide; and
(b) Effective in both the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county.
(3) All incorporated areas of the county shall:
(a) If they develop internal plans, assure that those plans are drafted subject to the requirements of the Plan;
(b) Coordinate internal plans with the Department of Emergency Management;
(c) Assure inclusion of internal plans within the County Plan;
(d) Perform the functions and duties assigned by the County Plan; and
(e) Maintain their portion of the Plan in a current state of readiness at all times.
(Ord. 1-4-1.3, passed 3-19-2001; Ord. 2018-17, passed 12-17-2018)