The training is made possible through a funding agreement with DHS' SAFECOMProgram Office, which works with federal, state and local public safety agencies to improve emergency response through more effective and efficient interoperable wireless communications.
"These resources will help NACo members be informed and effective leaders on such a critically important issue in our communities," said Marilyn Praisner, council member, Montgomery County, Md., who currently chairs the SAFECOM Executive Committee at DHS as well as NACo's Telecommunications and Technology Steering Committee.
The goal of the program is to improve local emergency preparedness by educating county officials and other local policymakers about wireless interoperability, building a better understanding of the complex issues involved and resulting in optimal local decision-making about public safety communications.
Under the grant, NACo will provide information and training to build awareness and knowledge; facilitate peer networking; and design and deliver technical assistance to counties in their efforts to implement interoperability strategies.
The program will aim to assist county officials to:
- understand the importance of interoperability
- be able to effectively communicate the benefits of interoperability to the public
- understand the political and institutional barriers within the public safety community that can impede interoperability
- facilitate collaborative planning among local, state and federal government agencies
- encourage the development of flexible and open architectures and standards, and
- support funding for public safety agencies that work to achieve interoperability within an agreed-upon plan.
Preliminary plans are underway to conduct the first policy academy at a mid-Atlantic disaster preparedness conference in the fall. More information will be available about the training schedule in the early summer.
The partnership with DHS is one of several new funding agreements recently awarded to NACo that will enable the association to expand its education, training and assistance programs for county officials. Other new programs coming online in 2006 include:
- the Coastal Counties Restoration Initiative, to assist counties in protecting and restoring coastal wetlands and watersheds
- a partnership with the Department of Defense on cooperative land-use planning around military installations
- best practices for revitalizing previously used properties, such as brownfields
- jail-to-community transition planning for inmates exiting county jails with substance abuse, addiction and mental illness diagnoses
- strategies to increase access to health care for vulnerable populations, especially in rural counties and counties designated as persistently poor, and
- enhanced research, education and training regarding methamphetamine and its impact on counties.
