AN
ACT Relating to emergency management; amending RCW 38.52.010, 38.52.030,
38.52.050, 38.52.070, 38.52.400, 38.52.420, 38.52.530, 38.54.020, 38.54.030,
38.54.040, and 38.54.050; and reenacting and amending RCW 38.54.010.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec.
1. RCW
38.52.010 and 1995 c 391 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
As
used in this chapter:
(1)
"Emergency management" or "comprehensive emergency
management" means the preparation for and the carrying out of all
emergency functions, other than functions for which the military forces are
primarily responsible, to mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from
emergencies and disasters, and to aid victims suffering from injury or damage,
resulting from disasters caused by all hazards, whether natural ((or
man-made)), technological, or human caused, and to provide support
for search and rescue operations for persons and property in distress.
However, "emergency management" or "comprehensive emergency
management" does not mean preparation for emergency evacuation or
relocation of residents in anticipation of nuclear attack.
(2)
"Local organization for emergency services or management" means an
organization created in accordance with the provisions of this chapter by state
or local authority to perform local emergency management functions.
(3)
"Political subdivision" means any county, city or town.
(4)
"Emergency worker" means any person, including but not limited to an
architect registered under chapter 18.08 RCW or a professional engineer
registered under chapter 18.43 RCW, who is registered with a local emergency
management organization or the department and holds an identification card
issued by the local emergency management director or the department for the
purpose of engaging in authorized emergency management activities or is an
employee of the state of Washington or any political subdivision thereof who is
called upon to perform emergency management activities.
(5)
"Injury" as used in this chapter shall mean and include accidental
injuries and/or occupational diseases arising out of emergency management
activities.
(6)(a)
"Emergency or disaster" as used in all sections of this chapter
except RCW 38.52.430 shall mean an event or set of circumstances which: (I)
Demands immediate action to preserve public health, protect life, protect
public property, or to provide relief to any stricken community overtaken by
such occurrences, or (ii) reaches such a dimension or degree of destructiveness
as to warrant the governor declaring a state of emergency pursuant to RCW
43.06.010.
(b)
"Emergency" as used in RCW 38.52.430 means an incident that requires
a normal police, coroner, fire, rescue, emergency medical services, or utility
response as a result of a violation of one of the statutes enumerated in RCW
38.52.430.
(7)
"Search and rescue" means the acts of searching for, rescuing, or
recovering by means of ground, marine, or air activity any person who becomes
lost, injured, or is killed while outdoors or as a result of a natural ((or
man-made)), technological, or human caused disaster, including
instances involving searches for downed aircraft when ground personnel are
used. Nothing in this section shall affect appropriate activity by the
department of transportation under chapter 47.68 RCW.
(8)
"Executive head" and "executive heads" means the county
executive in those charter counties with an elective office of county
executive, however designated, and, in the case of other counties, the county
legislative authority. In the case of cities and towns, it means the mayor in
those cities and towns with mayor-council or commission forms of government,
where the mayor is directly elected, and it means the city manager in those
cities and towns with council manager forms of government. Cities and towns
may also designate an executive head for the purposes of this chapter by
ordinance.
(9)
"Director" means the adjutant general.
(10)
"Local director" means the director of a local organization of
emergency management or emergency services.
(11)
"Department" means the state military department.
(12)
"Emergency response" as used in RCW 38.52.430 means a public agency's
use of emergency services during an emergency or disaster as defined in
subsection (6)(b) of this section.
(13)
"Expense of an emergency response" as used in RCW 38.52.430 means reasonable
costs incurred by a public agency in reasonably making an appropriate emergency
response to the incident, but shall only include those costs directly arising
from the response to the particular incident. Reasonable costs shall include
the costs of providing police, coroner, fire fighting, rescue, emergency
medical services, or utility response at the scene of the incident, as well as
the salaries of the personnel responding to the incident.
(14)
"Public agency" means the state, and a city, county, municipal
corporation, district, town, or public authority located, in whole or in
part, within this state which provides or may provide fire fighting, police,
ambulance, medical, or other emergency services.
(15)
"Incident command system" means: (a) An all-hazards, on-scene
functional management system that establishes common standards in organization,
terminology, and procedures; provides a means (unified command) for the
establishment of a common set of incident objectives and strategies during multiagency/multijurisdiction
operations while maintaining individual agency/jurisdiction authority,
responsibility, and accountability; and is a component of the national
interagency incident management system; or (b) an equivalent and compatible
all-hazards, on-scene functional management system.
Sec.
2. RCW
38.52.030 and 1995 c 269 s 1201 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The director may employ such personnel and may make such expenditures within
the appropriation therefor, or from other funds made available for purposes of
emergency management, as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this
chapter.
(2)
The director, subject to the direction and control of the governor, shall be
responsible to the governor for carrying out the program for emergency
management of this state. The director shall coordinate the activities of all
organizations for emergency management within the state, and shall maintain
liaison with and cooperate with emergency management agencies and organizations
of other states and of the federal government, and shall have such additional
authority, duties, and responsibilities authorized by this chapter, as may be
prescribed by the governor.
(3)
The director shall develop and maintain a comprehensive, all-hazard emergency
plan for the state which shall include an analysis of the natural ((and
man-caused)), technological, or human caused hazards which could
affect the state of Washington, and shall include the procedures to be used
during emergencies for coordinating local resources, as necessary, and the
resources of all state agencies, departments, commissions, and boards. The
comprehensive emergency management plan shall direct the department in times of
state emergency to administer and manage the state's emergency operations
center. This will include representation from all appropriate state agencies
and be available as a single point of contact for the authorizing of state
resources or actions, including emergency permits. The comprehensive emergency
management plan must specify the use of the incident command system for
multiagency/multijurisdiction operations. The comprehensive, all-hazard
emergency plan authorized under this subsection may not include preparation for
emergency evacuation or relocation of residents in anticipation of nuclear
attack. This plan shall be known as the comprehensive emergency management
plan.
(4)
In accordance with the comprehensive emergency management plans and the
programs for the emergency management of this state, the director shall procure
supplies and equipment, institute training programs and public information
programs, and shall take all other preparatory steps, including the partial or
full mobilization of emergency management organizations in advance of actual
disaster, to insure the furnishing of adequately trained and equipped forces of
emergency management personnel in time of need.
(5)
The director shall make such studies and surveys of the industries, resources,
and facilities in this state as may be necessary to ascertain the capabilities
of the state for emergency management, and shall plan for the most efficient
emergency use thereof.
(6)
The emergency management council shall advise the director on all aspects of
the communications and warning systems and facilities operated or controlled
under the provisions of this chapter.
(7)
The director, through the state enhanced 911 coordinator, shall coordinate and
facilitate implementation and operation of a state-wide enhanced 911 emergency
communications network.
(8)
The director shall appoint a state coordinator of search and rescue operations
to coordinate those state resources, services and facilities (other than those
for which the state director of aeronautics is directly responsible) requested
by political subdivisions in support of search and rescue operations, and on
request to maintain liaison with and coordinate the resources, services, and
facilities of political subdivisions when more than one political subdivision
is engaged in joint search and rescue operations.
(9)
The director, subject to the direction and control of the governor, shall
prepare and administer a state program for emergency assistance to individuals
within the state who are victims of a natural ((or man-made)), technological,
or human caused disaster, as defined by RCW 38.52.010(6). Such program may
be integrated into and coordinated with disaster assistance plans and programs
of the federal government which provide to the state, or through the state to
any political subdivision thereof, services, equipment, supplies, materials, or
funds by way of gift, grant, or loan for purposes of assistance to individuals
affected by a disaster. Further, such program may include, but shall not be
limited to, grants, loans, or gifts of services, equipment, supplies,
materials, or funds of the state, or any political subdivision thereof, to
individuals who, as a result of a disaster, are in need of assistance and who
meet standards of eligibility for disaster assistance established by the
department of social and health services: PROVIDED, HOWEVER, That nothing
herein shall be construed in any manner inconsistent with the provisions of
Article VIII, section 5 or section 7 of the Washington state Constitution.
(10)
The director shall appoint a state coordinator for radioactive and hazardous
waste emergency response programs. The coordinator shall consult with the
state radiation control officer in matters relating to radioactive materials.
The duties of the state coordinator for radioactive and hazardous waste
emergency response programs shall include:
(a)
Assessing the current needs and capabilities of state and local radioactive and
hazardous waste emergency response teams on an ongoing basis;
(b)
Coordinating training programs for state and local officials for the purpose of
updating skills relating to emergency mitigation, preparedness, response,
and recovery;
(c)
Utilizing appropriate training programs such as those offered by the federal
emergency management agency, the department of transportation and the
environmental protection agency; and
(d) Undertaking other duties in this area that are deemed
appropriate by the director.
Sec.
3. RCW
38.52.050 and 1986 c 266 s 27 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The governor, through the director, shall have general supervision and control
of the emergency management functions in the department, and shall be
responsible for the carrying out of the provisions of this chapter, and in the
event of disaster beyond local control, may assume direct operational control
over all or any part of the emergency management functions within this state.
(2)
In performing his or her duties under this chapter, the governor is authorized
to cooperate with the federal government, with other states, and with private
agencies in all matters pertaining to the emergency management of this state
and of the nation.
(3)
In performing his or her duties under this chapter and to effect its policy and
purpose, the governor is further authorized and empowered:
(a)
To make, amend, and rescind the necessary orders, rules, and regulations to
carry out the provisions of this chapter within the limits of the authority conferred
upon him herein, with due consideration of the plans of the federal government;
(b)
On behalf of this state, to enter into mutual aid arrangements with other
states and territories, or provinces of the Dominion of Canada and to
coordinate mutual aid ((plans)) interlocal agreements between
political subdivisions of this state;
(c)
To delegate any administrative authority vested in him under this chapter, and
to provide for the subdelegation of any such authority;
(d)
To appoint, with the advice of local authorities, metropolitan or regional area
coordinators, or both, when practicable;
(e) To cooperate with the president and the heads of the armed
forces, the emergency management agency of the United States, and other
appropriate federal officers and agencies, and with the officers and agencies
of other states in matters pertaining to the emergency management of the state
and nation.
Sec.
4. RCW
38.52.070 and 1986 c 266 s 28 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
Each political subdivision of this state is hereby authorized and directed to
establish a local organization or to be a member of a joint local
organization for emergency management in accordance with the state comprehensive
emergency management plan and program: PROVIDED, That a political subdivision
proposing such establishment shall submit its plan and program for emergency
management to the state director and secure his or her recommendations thereon,
and ((certification for)) verification of consistency with the
state comprehensive emergency management plan, in order that the plan of the
local organization for emergency management may be coordinated with the plan
and program of the state. Local comprehensive emergency management plans
must specify the use of the incident command system for
multiagency/multijurisdiction operations. No political subdivision may be
required to include in its plan provisions for the emergency evacuation or
relocation of residents in anticipation of nuclear attack. If the director's
recommendations are adverse to the plan as submitted, and, if the local
organization does not agree to the director's recommendations for modification
to the proposal, the matter shall be referred to the council for final action.
The director may authorize two or more political subdivisions to join in the
establishment and operation of a joint local organization for emergency
management as circumstances may warrant, in which case each political
subdivision shall contribute to the cost of emergency management upon such fair
and equitable basis as may be determined upon by the executive heads of the
constituent subdivisions. If in any case the executive heads cannot agree upon
the proper division of cost the matter shall be referred to the council for
arbitration and its decision shall be final. When two or more political
subdivisions join in the establishment and operation of a joint local
organization for emergency management each shall pay its share of the cost into
a special pooled fund to be administered by the treasurer of the most populous
subdivision, which fund shall be known as the
. . . . . . emergency management fund. Each local
organization or joint local organization for emergency management shall
have a director who shall be appointed by the executive head of the political
subdivision, and who shall have direct responsibility for the organization,
administration, and operation of such local organization for emergency
management, subject to the direction and control of such executive officer or
officers. In the case of a ((jointly established and operated)) joint
local organization for emergency management, the director shall be
appointed by the joint action of the executive heads of the constituent political
subdivisions. Each local organization or joint local organization for
emergency management shall perform emergency management functions within the
territorial limits of the political subdivision within which it is organized,
and, in addition, shall conduct such functions outside of such territorial
limits as may be required pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
(2) In carrying out the provisions of this chapter each political
subdivision, in which any disaster as described in RCW 38.52.020 occurs, shall
have the power to enter into contracts and incur obligations necessary to
combat such disaster, protecting the health and safety of persons and property,
and providing emergency assistance to the victims of such disaster. Each
political subdivision is authorized to exercise the powers vested under this
section in the light of the exigencies of an extreme emergency situation
without regard to time-consuming procedures and formalities prescribed by law
(excepting mandatory constitutional requirements), including, but not limited
to, budget law limitations, requirements of competitive bidding and publication
of notices, provisions pertaining to the performance of public work, entering
into contracts, the incurring of obligations, the employment of temporary
workers, the rental of equipment, the purchase of supplies and materials, the
levying of taxes, and the appropriation and expenditures of public funds.
Sec.
5. RCW
38.52.400 and 1986 c 266 s 43 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The chief law enforcement officer of each political subdivision shall be
responsible for local search and rescue activities. Operation of search and
rescue activities shall be in accordance with state and local operations plans
adopted by the elected governing body of each local political subdivision. These
state and local plans must specify the use of the incident command system for
multiagency/multijurisdiction search and rescue operations. The local
emergency management director shall notify the department of all search and
rescue missions. The local director of emergency management shall work in a
coordinating capacity directly supporting all search and rescue activities in
that political subdivision and in registering emergency search and rescue
workers for employee status. The chief law enforcement officer of each
political subdivision may restrict access to a specific search and rescue area
to personnel authorized by him. Access shall be restricted only for the period
of time necessary to accomplish the search and rescue mission. No unauthorized
person shall interfere with a search and rescue mission.
(2)
When search and rescue activities result in the discovery of a deceased person
or search and rescue workers assist in the recovery of human remains, the chief
law enforcement officer of the political subdivision shall insure compliance
with chapter ((68.08)) 68.50 RCW.
Sec.
6. RCW
38.52.420 and 1995 c 391 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)
The department, in consultation with appropriate federal agencies, the
departments of natural resources, fish and wildlife, and ecology,
representatives of local government, and any other person the director may deem
appropriate, shall ((develop)) assist in the development of a
model contingency plan, consistent with other plans required for hazardous
materials by federal and state law, to serve as a draft plan for local
governments which may be incorporated into the state and local emergency
management plans.
(2)
The model contingency plan shall:
(a)
Include specific recommendations for pollution control facilities which are
deemed to be most appropriate for the control, collection, storage, treatment,
disposal, and recycling of oil and other spilled material and furthering the
prevention and mitigation of such pollution;
(b)
Include recommendations for the training of local personnel consistent with
other training proposed, funded, or required by federal or state laws for
hazardous materials;
(c)
Suggest cooperative training exercises between the public and private sector
consistent with other training proposed, funded, or required by federal or
state laws for hazardous materials;
(d)
Identify federal and state laws requiring contingency or management plans
applicable or related to prevention of pollution, emergency response
capabilities, and hazardous waste management, together with a list of funding
sources that local governments may use in development of their specific plans;
(e)
Promote formal agreements between the department and local entities for
effective spill response; and
(f) Develop policies and procedures for the augmentation of
emergency services and agency spill response personnel through the use of
volunteers: PROVIDED, That no contingency plan may require the use of
volunteers by a responding responsible party without that party's consent.
Sec.
7. RCW
38.52.530 and 1991 c 54 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
The
enhanced 911 advisory committee is created to advise and assist the state
enhanced 911 coordinator in coordinating and facilitating the implementation
and operation of enhanced 911 throughout the state. The director shall appoint
members of the committee who represent diverse geographical areas of the state
and include state residents who are members of the national emergency number
association, the associated public communications officers ((northwest))
Washington chapter, the Washington state fire chiefs association, the
Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, the Washington state
council of fire fighters, the Washington state council of police officers, the
Washington ambulance association, the state fire protection policy
board, the Washington fire commissioners association, the Washington state
patrol, the association of Washington cities, the Washington state association
of counties, the utilities and transportation commission or commission staff,
and representatives of large and small local exchange telephone companies.
This section shall expire December 31, 2000.
Sec.
8. RCW
38.54.010 and 1995 c 391 s 5 and 1995 c 369 s 10 are each reenacted and amended
to read as follows:
Unless
the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply
throughout this chapter.
(1)
"Department" means the military department.
(2)
"The adjutant general" means the adjutant general of the military
department.
(3)
"State fire marshal" means the ((assistant)) director of ((the
division of)) fire protection ((services)) in the Washington state
patrol.
(4)
"Fire chief" includes the chief officer of a statutorily authorized
fire agency, or the fire chief's authorized representative. Also included are
the department of natural resources fire control chief, and the department of
natural resources regional managers.
(5)
"Jurisdiction" means state, county, city, fire district, or port
district fire fighting units, or other units covered by this chapter.
(6)
"Mobilization" means that fire fighting resources beyond those
available through existing agreements will be requested and, when available,
sent in response to an emergency or disaster situation that has exceeded the
capabilities of available local resources. During a large scale emergency,
mobilization includes the redistribution of regional or state-wide fire
fighting resources to either direct emergency incident assignments or to
assignment in communities where fire fighting resources are needed.
When
mobilization is declared and authorized as provided in this chapter, all fire
fighting resources ((except)) including those of the host fire
protection authorities, i.e. incident jurisdiction, shall be deemed as
mobilized under this chapter, including those that responded earlier under
existing mutual aid or other agreement. All nonhost fire protection
authorities providing fire fighting resources in response to a mobilization
declaration shall be eligible for expense reimbursement as provided by this
chapter from the time of the mobilization declaration.
This
chapter shall not reduce or suspend the authority or responsibility of the
department of natural resources under chapter 76.04 RCW.
(7)
"Mutual aid" means emergency interagency assistance provided without
compensation under an agreement between jurisdictions under chapter 39.34 RCW.
Sec.
9. RCW
38.54.020 and 1995 c 391 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
Because
of the possibility of the occurrence of disastrous fires or other disasters of
unprecedented size and destructiveness, the need to insure that the state is
adequately prepared to respond to such a fire or disaster, the need to
establish a mechanism and a procedure to provide for reimbursement to fire
fighting agencies that respond to help others in time of need or to a host fire
district that experiences expenses beyond the resources of the fire district,
and generally to protect the public peace, health, safety, lives, and property
of the people of Washington, it is hereby declared necessary to:
(1)
Provide the policy and organizational structure for large scale mobilization of
fire fighting resources in the state through creation of the Washington state
fire services mobilization plan;
(2)
Confer upon the ((director)) adjutant general the powers provided
herein;
(3)
Provide a means for reimbursement to fire jurisdictions that incur expenses
when mobilized by the ((director)) adjutant general under the
Washington state fire services mobilization plan; and
(4)
Provide for reimbursement of the host fire department or fire
protection district ((fire fighting resources)) when ((the local
district)) it has: (a) Exhausted all of its resources; and (b)
invoked its local mutual aid network and exhausted those resources. Upon
implementation of state fire mobilization, the host district resources shall
become state fire mobilization resources consistent with the fire mobilization
plan.
It
is the intent of the legislature that mutual aid and other interlocal
agreements providing for enhanced emergency response be encouraged as essential
to the public peace, safety, health, and welfare, and for the protection of the
lives and property of the people of the state of Washington. If possible,
mutual aid agreements should be without stated limitations as to resources
available, time, or area. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed or
interpreted to limit the eligibility of any nonhost fire protection authority
for reimbursement of expenses incurred in providing fire fighting resources for
mobilization.
Sec.
10. RCW
38.54.030 and 1995 c 269 s 1101 are each amended to read as follows:
The
state fire protection policy board shall review and make recommendations to the
((director)) adjutant general on the refinement and maintenance
of the Washington state fire services mobilization plan, which shall include
the procedures to be used during fire and other emergencies for coordinating
local, regional, and state fire jurisdiction resources. In carrying out this
duty, the fire protection policy board shall consult with and solicit
recommendations from representatives of state and local fire and emergency
management organizations, regional fire defense boards, and the department of
natural resources. The Washington state fire services mobilization plan shall
be consistent with, and made part of, the Washington state comprehensive
emergency management plan. The ((director)) adjutant general
shall review the fire services mobilization plan as submitted by ((the state
fire defense board and after consultation with)) the fire protection policy
board, recommend changes that may be necessary, and approve the fire services
mobilization plan for inclusion within the state comprehensive emergency
management plan.
It
is the responsibility of the ((director)) adjutant general to
mobilize jurisdictions under the Washington state fire services mobilization
plan. The state fire marshal shall serve as the state fire resources
coordinator when the Washington state fire services mobilization plan is
mobilized.
Sec.
11. RCW
38.54.040 and 1992 c 117 s 12 are each amended to read as follows:
Regions
within the state are initially established as follows but may be adjusted as
necessary by the ((director)) state fire marshal:
(1)
Northwest region - Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish, San Juan, and Island counties;
(2)
Northeast region - Okanogan, Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, Spokane, and Lincoln
counties;
(3)
Olympic region - Clallam and Jefferson counties;
(4)
South Puget Sound region - Kitsap, Mason, King, and Pierce counties;
(5)
Southeast region - Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Grant, Adams, Whitman, Yakima,
Klickitat, Benton, Franklin, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield, and Asotin
counties;
(6)
Central region - Grays Harbor, Thurston, Pacific, and Lewis counties; and
(7)
Southwest region - Wahkiakum, Cowlitz, Clark, and Skamania counties.
Within
each of these regions there is created a regional fire defense board. The
regional fire defense boards shall consist of two members from each county in
the region. One member from each county shall be appointed by the county fire
chiefs' association or, in the event there is no such county association, by
the county's legislative authority. Each county's office of emergency
management or, in the event there is no such office, the county's legislative
authority shall select the second representative to the regional board. The
department of natural resources fire control chief shall appoint a
representative from each department of natural resources region to serve as a
member of the appropriate regional fire defense board. Members of each
regional board will select a chairperson and secretary as officers. Members
serving on the regional boards do so in a voluntary capacity and are not
eligible for reimbursement for meeting-related expenses from the state.
Regional
defense boards shall develop regional fire service plans that include
provisions for organized fire agencies to respond across municipal, county, or
regional boundaries. Each regional plan shall be consistent with the incident
command system, the Washington state fire services mobilization plan, and
regional response plans already adopted and in use in the state. The regional
boards shall work with the relevant local government entities to facilitate
development of intergovernmental agreements if any such agreements are required
to implement a regional fire service plan. Each regional plan shall be
approved by the ((state)) fire ((defense)) protection policy
board before implementation.
Sec.
12. RCW
38.54.050 and 1995 c 391 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
The department in consultation with the office of financial
management shall develop procedures to facilitate reimbursement to
jurisdictions from appropriate federal and state funds when jurisdictions are
mobilized by the ((director)) adjutant general under the
Washington state fire services mobilization plan. The department shall ensure
that these procedures provide reimbursement to the host district in as timely a
manner as possible.
