Bill Text: VA HJR132 | 2012 | Regular Session | Enrolled

Virginia House Joint Resolution 132 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Homeland security and emergency management; JLARC to study planning & preparedness efforts in State.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2012-02-29 - House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ132ER) [HJR132 Detail]

Download: Virginia-2012-HJR132-Enrolled.html

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 132 Directing the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to study the ongoing planning and preparedness efforts throughout the Commonwealth with regard to homeland security and emergency management. Report.

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 10, 2012 Agreed to by the Senate, February 28, 2012

WHEREAS, in 2005, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission completed a review of homeland security funding and preparedness; and

WHEREAS, the findings of the study by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission led to the designation of a Commonwealth Interoperability Coordinator in 2008; and

WHEREAS, the findings of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission's study also led the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security to adopt the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's risk-based methodology for allocating federal homeland security funds to localities; and

WHEREAS, no follow-up study has yet been conducted to test interoperability of preparedness planning; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission be directed to study the ongoing planning and preparedness efforts throughout the Commonwealth with regard to homeland security and emergency management.

In conducting its study, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission shall determine (i) whether the organization and management of homeland security within the Office of Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security is appropriate or would be better coordinated within another structure or as a stand-alone agency; (ii) whether there is effective integration of planning both vertically between state and federal government entities and horizontally among states and localities; (iii) whether there is effective coordination of programs or activities that require federal, state, and local interagency cooperation; (iv) the status and quality of state and local homeland security and emergency management planning throughout the Commonwealth; (v) whether such planning is aligned with appropriate statewide and regional plans; (vi) whether the Commonwealth has a system in place to monitor local and regional homeland security planning for sufficiency and currency; (vii) whether state and regional plans guide the use of funding decisions and grant requests and awards; (viii) whether there is effective oversight of funding and grants by the administration and General Assembly to ensure taxpayer funds are used for improvement and enhancement of capabilities and not as a replacement for existing funding sources; (ix) whether a system exists to audit or monitor the use of homeland security and emergency management grants; (x) whether funds are being used to promote homeland security plan development or for other purposes such as equipment and personnel; (xi) whether there is any effort to regionalize grant requests to align with regional solutions and coordination; (xii) whether there is an effective process for identifying and applying for homeland security grants; (xiii) whether localities and regional advisory councils are informed in a timely manner of grant opportunities and trained in the development of successful grant requests; (xiv) whether preparedness activities throughout the Commonwealth are effectively improving state and local capabilities for prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery; (xv) what information technology solutions can assist state and local entities in the key areas of situational awareness, intelligence and critical information, planning, training of key personnel, development of exercises, and consequence-based modeling and simulation; and (xvi) whether such a system, if found to be lacking, would help enhance comprehensive homeland security and emergency management in the Commonwealth.

All agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide assistance to the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission for this study, upon request.

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission shall complete its meetings for the first year by November 30, 2012, and for the second year by November 30, 2013, and the Chairman shall submit to the Division of Legislative Automated Systems an executive summary of its findings and recommendations no later than the first day of the next Regular Session of the General Assembly for each year. Each executive summary shall state whether the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission intends to submit to the General Assembly and the Governor a report of its findings and recommendations for publication as a House or Senate document. The executive summaries and reports shall be submitted as provided in the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.