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Executive Order 44

Executive Order 65 (PDF)

ECO Change Form

 

Emergency Coordination Officers Information

In accordance with Executive Order 44, emergency preparedness planning, training and promotion as a core component of all executive branch agencies, including institutions of higher education’s mission. This Executive Order directs the agency’s Emergency Coordination Officer to actively plan, train and act in the interest of the protection of the citizens of the Commonwealth and its infrastructure.

This page will assist the Emergency Coordination Officers in their duties on Preparedness Planning, the Annual Preparedness Assessment, and the Continuity of Operations Plans. We will provide you with important due dates, links to helpful documents, and other information.

Agency Preparedness Guide

Each agency received their 2007 Agency Preparedness Assessment results in December. Colleges and universities will receive an overview of information from the 2007 assessment shortly.

This year, the Office of Commonwealth Preparedness in coordination with state agencies will develop an Agency Preparedness Guide that list requirements and resources available to assist agencies in building successful preparedness programs. If you are interested in participating in the process, please email Curtis Brown at Curtis.Brown@Governor.Virginia.gov.

Adjunct Emergency Workforce

In November 2007, Governor Kaine announced and encouraged all eligible state employees to support the Commonwealth's continuing efforts to stand at the forefront of a response to any disaster or emergency by participating in Virginia's new Adjunct Emergency Workforce. The Adjunct Emergency Workforce provides opportunities for employees to be assigned to emergency response teams during periods of declared emergencies. The initial effort in a declared emergency will focus on the area of greatest need -- the emergency sheltering of our fellow citizens. In the event of the mass evacuation of a large region of Virginia, state government will assume primary responsibility for sheltering, and there will be a critical need for shelter support staff.

Please visit www.dhrm.state.va.us/AdjunctEmergencyWorkforce.html for more information.

COOP Information and Resources

VDEM has posted the updated COOP Toolkits including the Templates for this year's June 2nd COOP Plan submittal online at www.vaemergency.com/library/coop/index.cfm

Institutions of Higher Education

The Manual and Templates for Institutions of Higher Education are now Version 1.1, dated March 2008. If you have already begun updating your plan based on the Version 1, dated November 2007 Template, you may continue to do so -- the changes were minimal, mostly informational and will not impact the viability of your institutions plan.

For the templates, the changes were minimal and fall in the following categories:

  • Acronyms and Definitions: A few more acronyms were added to align with the state agency manual and a couple of definitions were changed, again to align with the state agency manual.
  • Authorities and References: The new Federal Continuity Directive 1 (FCD1) was added to replace FPC 65 and the reference to the VDEM COOP Planning Manual was updated to reference the March 2008 version.

For the manual, the changes were again minimal and fall in the following categories:

  • Acronyms and Definitions: A few more acronyms were added to align with the state agency manual and a couple of definitions were changed, again to align with the state agency manual.
  • Risk and Vulnerability Assessment and Mitigation Strategies: A reference was added to the sample BIA Template VDEM posted online in collaboration with VITA. Links were also added to the IT specific guidelines and information VITA has available to aid in completing an IT Disaster Recovery Plan.
  • COOP Planning Objectives, Alternate Facilities, Interoperable Communications, Human Capital Management, Training, Testing and Exercise, Maintenance: References to information provided in the newly released Federal Continuity Directive 1 (FCD 1) were added to these sections. This information is not mandated, but may prove helpful in the planning process.
  • Vital Records Management: A reference to information available in FCD 1 Annex I was added to this section.

Executive Branch Agencies

The COOP Planning Manual and Template were posted on VITA's Online Review and Comment Application for 30 days, allowing individuals to provide insight and comment on the document before being reposted on the VDEM website. VDEM would like to express thanks to the two individuals who provided comments via the ORCA tool as well as the individuals who provided insight prior to the documents being posted. All of the comments were taken into consideration and many of them incorporated into the revised versions.

The Manual is now Version 4, dated March 2008; the template is now Version 2, dated March 2008; and the worksheets are now Version 2, dated February 2008.

The elements of the COOP plan have not changed and are all still found in the COOP template. The structure of the template is where agencies will notice the biggest change. The focus is on three scenarios: 1) Loss of access to a facility; 2) Loss of services due to a reduction in workforce, and; 3) Loss of services due to equipment or system failure. These three scenarios encompass any hazard or event that may impact an agency. The template also places a greater emphasis on the procedures necessary to implement a COOP plan. By documenting these procedures for each of the three scenarios, an agency should be able to successfully recover from an event that causes a disruption to their essential functions. The template closely mirrors those of the institutions of higher education and local government. The goal was to maintain consistency across the Commonwealth throughout the planning process. It provides common language and a common practice.

For the manual, the changes were minimal and fall in the following categories:

  • Acronyms and Definitions: A few more acronyms were added to align with the state agency manual and a couple of definitions were changed, again to align with the state agency manual.
  • Risk and Vulnerability Assessment and Mitigation Strategies: A reference was added to the sample BIA Template VDEM posted online in collaboration with VITA. Links were also added to the IT specific guidelines and information VITA has available to aid in completing an IT Disaster Recovery Plan.
  • COOP Planning Objectives, Alternate Facilities, Interoperable Communications, Human Capital Management, Training, Testing and Exercise, Maintenance: References to information provided in the newly released Federal Continuity Directive 1 (FCD 1) were added to these sections. This information is not mandated, but may prove helpful in the planning process.
  • Vital Records Management: A reference to information available in FCD 1 Annex I was added to this section.
  • Worksheets: The number of worksheets have been drastically reduced to help streamline the data gathering process.

BIA Template

The Business Impact Analysis (BIA) Template is an optional tool to assist in performing a BIA. This template serves as a comprehensive resource, allowing agencies and institutions to fully assess the business impact on each function for any type of situation. It focuses on the loss of that function and the related impact rather than specific emergency events. The template is designed to be used once agencies or institutions have compiled a listing of all their business functions. Two templates are provided: an example template with information filled in as a reference and a blank template for agencies and institutions to use and alter to meet their individual needs.

Submittal Process

COOP Plans are due to VDEM via a CD on Monday, June 2, 2008. Please submit COOP plans with Pan Flu Annex on CD by mail to:

ATTN: Brittany Schaal
Virginia Department of Emergency Management
10501 Trade Court
Richmond, VA 23236

Training Opportunities

Training is available in Richmond on April 1 and 2 and at GMU on April 8 and 9. The purpose of the training is to review the areas of improvement consistently identified during the 2007 assessment, walk through the COOP templates and answer questions about the assessment reports, templates and submittal process for 2008. For more information and registration forms, visit www.vaemergency.com/library/coop/resources/training.cfm.

Important Dates

Monday June 2, 2008: Due date for Agency Continuity of Operation Plans (including Pandemic Flu Annex)

Please submit COOP plans with Pan Flu Annex on CD by mail to:

ATTN: Brittany Schaal
Virginia Department of Emergency Management
10501 Trade Court
Richmond, VA 23236

August 18, 2008: 2008 Annual Agency Preparedness Assessment Disseminated

September 15, 2008: Due Date for 2008 Annual Agency Preparedness Assessment
 
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