Bill Text: NC S723 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Amended

North Carolina Senate Bill 723 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Clarify Prevention/Emergency Management Act

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-06-14 - Re-ref Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate [S723 Detail]

Download: North_Carolina-2017-S723-Amended.html

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2017

S 2

SENATE BILL 723*

State and Local Government Committee Substitute Adopted 6/12/18

Short Title: Clarify Prevention/Emergency Management Act.		(Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:

May 21, 2018

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to clarify that the prevention of and response to acts of violence are within the scope of the emergency management act, to create an integrated system of state and local authority to address risk management in schools and public facilities, and to designate the Division of Emergency Management in the Department of Public Safety as the lead agency responsible for coordinating risk management for schools and public facilities.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

PART i. cLARIFY eMERGENCY mANAGEMENT aCT TO INCLUDE PREVENTION OF DELIBERATE ACTS OF VIOLENCE

SECTION 1.1. G.S. 166A‑19.1 reads as rewritten:

"§ 166A‑19.1. Purposes.

The purposes of this Article are to set forth the authority and responsibility of the Governor, State agencies, and local governments in prevention of, preparation for, response to, and recovery from ~~natural or man‑made~~ emergencies ~~or hostile military or paramilitary action~~ and to do the following:

(1) ~~Reduce~~ Prevent or reduce vulnerability of people and property of this State to damage, injury, and loss of life and property.

(2) Prepare for prompt and efficient response, rescue, care, and treatment of threatened or affected persons.

(3) Provide for the rapid and orderly rehabilitation of persons and restoration of property.

(4) Provide for cooperation and coordination of activities relating to emergency prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery among agencies and officials of this State and with similar agencies and officials of other states, with local and federal governments, with interstate organizations, and with other private and quasi‑official organizations."

SECTION 1.2. G.S. 166A‑19.3 reads as rewritten:

"§ 166A‑19.3. Definitions.

The following definitions apply in this Article:

�

(6) Emergency. � An occurrence or imminent threat of widespread or severe damage, injury, or loss of life or property resulting from any natural or man‑made accidental, military, paramilitary, terrorism,weather‑related, public health, explosion‑related, riot‑related cause, or technological failure or accident, including, but not limited to, a cyber incident, an explosion, a transportation accident, a radiological accident, or a of the following:

a. Hazards caused by naturally occurring events such as meteorological or geological phenomena.

b. Accidents, failures, and threats to public health, including explosions, technological and cyber failures, transportation or radiological accidents, diseases and pandemics, or the release of chemical or other hazardous ~~material incident.~~materials.

c. Deliberate and coordinated acts of violence, riots, foreign or domestic terrorism, and military or paramilitary activities.

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(10a) Human‑caused emergencies. � Deliberate and coordinated acts of violence, riots, foreign or domestic terrorism, and military or paramilitary activities.

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(14a) Public institutions of higher education. � Community colleges and The University of North Carolina.

(14b) Public schools. � Schools operated by a local board of education and all charter schools, regional schools, and laboratory schools.

�."

SECTION 1.3. G.S. 166A‑19.10(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) State Emergency Management Program. � The State Emergency Management Program includes all aspects of related to the prevention of, preparations for, response to, recovery from, and mitigation against ~~war or peacetime~~all emergencies."

PART II. create integrated system of state and local authority to address risk management for schools and public facilities

SECTION 2.1. Article 1A of Chapter 166A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Part to read:

"Part 1B. Risk Management for Schools and Public Buildings.

"§ 166A‑19.100. Legislative findings.

The General Assembly finds that human‑caused emergencies are fundamentally different from emergencies caused by naturally occurring events. Naturally occurring events typically can be predicted, are regional in scope, and last over a period of hours, days, or even weeks. Human‑caused emergencies typically occur without warning, often target schools and other public facilities, and are short in duration. Naturally occurring events cannot be prevented although the impact can be mitigated. Human‑caused emergencies can be prevented or preempted given proper planning, information sharing, and integration of systems and infrastructure. The appropriate response time for human‑caused emergencies is seconds and minutes as opposed to hours, days, and months for naturally occurring events. Because of the fundamental difference between emergencies caused by naturally occurring events and human‑caused emergencies, the General Assembly finds that it is imperative that the State and local governments take coordinated and proactive steps to prevent human‑caused emergencies from occurring and put in place the infrastructure and services to respond immediately and appropriately when needed.

"§ 166A‑19.101. State role; school risk management; facility risk management.

(a) The Division of Emergency Management in the Department of Public Safety through the Office of School Risk Management established in G.S. 143B‑1001 shall be the lead State agency charged with developing and administering a statewide system to address the prevention of and response to human‑caused emergencies in public schools and public institutions of higher education. The Office shall develop a coordinated plan to prevent and preempt human‑caused emergencies that integrates local emergency management plans, in‑school education and training, safe building design, intelligence gathering and reporting, suspect registries, technology, and situational awareness. The plan shall establish clear lines of responsibility between State agencies and local governments and shall leverage existing resources such as the North Carolina Information Sharing and Analysis Center.

(b) The Division of Emergency Management in the Department of Public Safety through the Office of Public Facility Risk Management established in G.S. 143B‑1001 shall be the lead State agency charged with facility risk and emergency response management. The Office shall develop a coordinated plan to prevent and preempt human‑caused emergencies that integrates local emergency management plans, education and training, building design, intelligence gathering and reporting, suspect registries, technology, and situational awareness. The plan shall establish clear lines of responsibility between State agencies and local governments and shall leverage existing resources such as the North Carolina Information Sharing and Analysis Center.

(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any nonpublic school or private institution of higher education may seek the assistance of the Division of Emergency Management, Office of School Risk Management, to develop and implement processes and procedures to prevent and respond to human‑caused emergencies.

"§ 166A‑19.102. Local government role; school risk management; facility risk management.

Pursuant to G.S. 166A‑19.15, each county shall develop emergency management plans that address the prevention of and rapid response to human‑caused emergencies in public schools, public institutions of higher education, and public facilities.

"§ 166A‑19.103. Confidentiality of risk management information.

Information and plans related to risk management for public schools, public institutions of higher education, and public buildings developed or obtained under this Part or G.S. 143B‑1001 are confidential and are not a public record as defined in G.S. 132‑1."

PART III. eSTABLISH THE dIVISION OF eMERGENCY mANAGEMENT AS LEAD AGENCY responsible for coordinating risk management for schools and public facilities

SECTION 3.1. Subpart A of Part 5 of Article 13 of Chapter 143B of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:

"§ 143B‑1001. Office of School Risk Management; Facility Risk Management Office.

(a) School Risk Management. � There is established in the Division of Emergency Management the Office of School Risk Management. The Office will oversee and manage all data, processes, procedures, applications, and planning necessary to implement G.S. 166A‑19.12(22) and Part 1B of Article 1A of Chapter 166A of the General Statutes related to the prevention of human‑caused emergencies at public schools and public institutions of higher education.

(b) Public Facility Risk Management. � There is established in the Division of Emergency Management the Office of Public Facility Risk Management. The Office will oversee and manage all data, processes, procedures, applications, and planning necessary to implement G.S. 166A‑19.12(23) and Part 1B of Article 1A of Chapter 166A of the General Statutes related to the prevention of human‑caused emergencies at public venues.

(1) Human‑caused emergencies. � As defined in G.S. 166A‑19.3(10a).

(2) Public institutions of higher education. � As defined in G.S. 166A‑19.3(14a).

(3) Public schools. � As defined in G.S. 166A‑19.3(14b)."

SECTION 3.2. G.S. 166A‑19.12 reads as rewritten:

"§ 166A‑19.12. Powers of the Division of Emergency Management.

The Division of Emergency Management shall have the following powers and duties as delegated by the Governor and Secretary of Public Safety:

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(22) Serving as the lead State agency for the implementation and maintenance of the statewide School Risk and Response Management System (SRRMS) under ~~G.S. 115C‑105.49A.~~G.S. 115C‑104.49A, as well as all risk management and response management for public schools and public institutions of higher education as provided in G.S. 143B‑1001. The Division shall collect and manage all data, processes, procedures, applications, and planning supporting school safety. This includes higher education risk and response management. The Division shall establish and ensure efficient, timely, and secure sharing of threat assessments and anonymous safety tips with law enforcement and the State Bureau of Investigation � Information Sharing and Analysis Center. The Division shall also collect and manage all data, processes, procedures, applications, and planning supporting school safety, including:

a. Digital facility floorplan schematics and assets identification.

b. School risk management planning.

c. Higher education risk management planning.

d. Facility vulnerability assessment.

e. Anonymous student safety tip reporting.

f. Digital panic alerting and display.

g. Video monitoring.

h. Threat assessment.

i. Emergency response and recovery.

(23) Serving as the lead State agency responsible for facility risk and emergency response management as provided in G.S. 143B‑1001. The Division shall collect and manage all data, processes, procedures, applications, and planning supporting public facilities safety. In carrying out its duties and responsibilities associated with facility risk and response management, the Division shall leverage, coordinate, and collaborate with State and local agencies who shall provide information upon the request of the Division. The Division shall securely disseminate facility data and key emergency response information associated with:

a. All public schools, community colleges, and the constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina.

b. High and intermediate hazard dams.

c. State prisons and juvenile detention centers.

d. Large entertainment facilities and arenas.

e. State and local government‑operated facilities.

f. Public hospitals.

e. Licensed care facilities and mental health facilities.

f. Publicly owned and passenger service airports.

g. Passenger rail facilities.

h. Hazardous material facilities."

SECTION 3.3. G.S. 166A‑19.15 reads as rewritten:

"§ 166A‑19.15. County and municipal emergency management.

(a) Governing Body of Counties Responsible for Emergency Management. � The governing body of each county is responsible for emergency management within the geographical limits of such county. All emergency management efforts within the county will be coordinated by the county, including activities of the municipalities within the county.

(b) Counties ~~May~~ Shall Establish and Maintain Emergency Management Agencies. � The governing body of each county ~~is hereby authorized to~~shall establish and maintain an emergency management agency for the purposes contained in ~~G.S. 166A‑19.1.~~ G.S. 166A‑19.1 and Part 1B of this Article. The governing body of each county ~~which establishes an emergency management agency pursuant to this authorization~~ shall appoint a coordinator who will have a direct responsibility for the organization, administration, and operation of the county emergency management program and will be subject to the direction and guidance of such governing body. In the event that any county fails to establish an emergency management agency, and the Governor, in the Governor's discretion, determines that a need exists for such an emergency management agency, then the Governor is hereby empowered to establish an emergency management agency within that county.A county may satisfy this requirement by establishing a joint emergency management agency with another county as provided in subsection (d) of this section.

(c) Municipalities May Establish and Maintain Emergency Management Agencies. � All incorporated municipalities are authorized to establish and maintain emergency management agencies subject to coordination by the county.

(c1) Municipalities Shall Establish Emergency Management Points of Contact. � All incorporated municipalities shall establish an emergency management point of contact.

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part iv. other changes/study/effective date

SECTION 4.1. G.S. 166A‑19.70(c) reads as rewritten:

"(c) Certification System. � The Secretary shall develop a system pursuant to which a person who transports essentials in commerce, or assists in ensuring their availability, and persons who assist in the restoring of utility services can be certified as such. The certification system shall allow for both ~~preemergency~~ pre‑emergency declaration and ~~postemergency~~ post‑emergency declaration certification ~~and may include an annually~~ with a renewable precertification. The Secretary shall only allow those who routinely transport or distribute essentials or assist in the restoring of utility services to be certified. A certification of the employer shall constitute a certification of the employer's employees. The Secretary shall create an easily recognizable indicium of certification in order to assist local officials' efforts to determine which persons have received certification by the system established under this subsection."

SECTION 4.2. The Division of Emergency Management in the Department of Public Safety (Division) shall conduct a study regarding the appropriate training standards for school resource officers. The study shall include an examination of mandatory standards adopted by other states as well as best practices. The Division shall also examine ways to increase the number of trained school resource officers available to North Carolina schools. The Division shall report its findings and recommendations to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Emergency Management no later than November 1, 2018.

SECTION 4.3. This act is effective when it becomes law.