OEM Law
§5. Article XXI of the County Government is amended by the addition of a new section, to read as follows:
§2113. Office of Emergency Management
- There shall be a department of county government known as the Office of Emergency Management, which shall be headed by a Commissioner who shall be appointed by the County Executive, subject to confirmation by the County Legislature and who shall also serve as, and have the powers of, the local Director of Civil Defense. The Commissioner may appoint such deputies, officers and employees, within the appropriations therefore, as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of the department and may designate, as he or she shall find appropriate, any such deputies to act in place of the Commissioner in the exercise of his or her duties.
- The Office of Emergency Management shall have the following powers and duties:
- to coordinate the county's response to all emergency conditions and potential conditions that require a multi-department response, including but not limited to severe weather, threats from natural hazards and natural disasters, power and other public service outages, labor unrest other than the keeping of the peace, water main breaks, transportation and transit incidents, building collapses, aviation disasters, explosions, acts of terrorism and other emergency conditions and incidents;
- monitor on a constant basis all potential emergency conditions and potential incidents that may require a multi-department response;
- coordinate and implement training programs, including emergency response drills, to prepare for emergency conditions and potential incidents that may require a multi-department response;
- prepare plans for responding to emergency conditions and potential incidents, including but not limited to making recommendations to the County Executive regarding the declaration of a state of emergency, and planning for the implementation of such emergency orders as may be approved by the County Executive to facilitate the rapid response and mobilization of agencies and resources;
- make recommendations to the County Executive concerning the county's emergency response capabilities and concerning the county's capability to address potential emergency conditions and potential incidents;
- increase public awareness about the appropriate responses to emergency conditions and potential incidents, and review the county's system for disseminating information to the public;
- operate an emergency operations center to assist the county in managing emergency conditions and potential incidents that may require a multi-department response;
- hold meetings of emergency response personnel of all county agencies determined by the commissioner to have a direct or support role in the management of emergency conditions and potential incidents that may require a multi-department response;
- acquire federal and other funding for emergency management, including but not limited to disaster relief and civil defense, and assist other departments in obtaining such funding;
- coordinate with other county departments to all such departments in the development and implementation of emergency response plans in connection with planning major county events;
- coordinate with state, federal and other governmental entities to effectuate the purposes of the department;
- coordinate the operation of the local emergency planning committee established pursuant to Title III of the federal Superfund Amendments and the Reauthorization Act;
- coordinate the county's civil defense effort in accordance with the provisions of the Defense Emergency Act of New York State and the county's civil defense emergency operations plan, as such plan may from time to time be amended;
- promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
- Agency cooperation. The Office of Emergency Management shall be the lead agency in the coordination and facilitation of resources, including incidents which may involve acts of terrorism. All departments shall provide the department promptly with all information relevant to the performance of the emergency management functions and shall collect and make available any information requested by the department for use in emergency planning. During emergency conditions, all departments shall promptly provide the department with all appropriate material, equipment and resources needed for emergency management functions, including personnel.