SLTT Governance Guide Working Group: Meeting 8

Author: Cary Martin, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Emergency Communications (OEC), and Robin Beatty, DHS OEC

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Emergency Communications (OEC) and members of the State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT) Officials Governance Guide Working Group are working to update the 2015 Emergency Communications Governance Guide for State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial Officials (the Governance Guide). During the meeting on August 30, 2018, the Working Group discussed the upcoming in-person meeting and the path forward for completing the first draft of the 2018 Governance Guide.

During the National Tribal Emergency Management Council Conference in Spokane, Washington on August 22-24, 2018, OEC representatives collected information on technological gaps, challenges, and lessons learned in emergency communications. The information gathered during this meeting will be incorporated into the 2018 SLTT Governance Guide. The key takeaways from the meeting include:

• Collaborative relationships based on trust are critical to the success of tribal public safety communications, response, recovery, and resource sharing
• Relationships must be established BEFORE an event occurs to ensure strong partnerships through training, planning, and coordination
• Tribes requested the tribal information be incorporated throughout the 2018 SLTT Governance Guide and not assigned to a separate chapter

Participation and Meetings

The next Working Group meeting is scheduled for October 25, 2018 via webinar. OEC is nearing the end of the data gathering process; however, if you would like to submit additional information on successes and challenges in emergency communications governance for possible inclusion in the 2018 Governance Guide, please email us at slttgovguide@hq.dhs.gov.

Information from previous Working Group meetings can be found on the SAFECOM Blog:

June-July 2018: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/blog/2018/08/17/sltt-governance-guide-working-group-meetings-5-7

May 24, 2018: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/blog/2018/06/11/sltt-governance-guide-working-group-meeting-4

May 3, 2018: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/blog/2018/05/29/sltt-governance-guide-working-group-meeting-3

April 12, 2018: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/blog/2018/04/30/sltt-governance-guide-meeting-2

March 29, 2018: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/blog/2018/04/04/2018-sltt-governance-guide

For more information on governance please visit the SAFECOM website.