East Central Region Governance Meeting
September 2, 2008
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Meeting Minutes
Location:
Community Room – Platte Co. Courthouse (basement), 2610 14th Street, Columbus, NE
Present:
Bob Carey, Boone County, Bill Rook, Dodge County, Jaequeline Mayberry, Howard County, Tim Hofbauer, Platte County, Dean Hefti, Columbus Fire Department, Anthony McPhillips, Merrick County, Dave Moore, Nance County, Mark Monroe, Nance County, Norm Euse, Merrick County, Brenda Rist, Colfax County, Terry Miller, Saunders County, Rob Schnieder, Butler/Polk County, Kate Speck, University of Nebraska, Public Policy Center
Following introductions, a review of the Open Meeting Law, and setting the agenda the discussion began:
1. Leadership model discussion
· Leadership Responsibilities
a. Leadership needs to exist to direct the meetings and to keep the meetings on track as to the agenda.
b. The leadership will be responsible for dispersing the funding for projects brought forth by County representatives, and for approving the projects based on the criteria.
c. Oversight of approved projects will include a review of one (1) page quarterly reports of the ongoing projects. This will be used as an essential tool to keep the Governing Board informed on project movement as well as the budget expenditures.
d. Additional governance discussion resulted in the understanding that this Governing Board is not responsible for following up on projects to ensure completion.
e. Projects for funding will be considered from anyone who makes the request, and who completes the Investment Justification forms. Each request will be presented at the Public meeting of the Governing Board.
i. Individuals who are on the Governing Board and who hold positions such as Emergency Manager for the county will be able to represent the project in lieu of other representation present, and for efficiency.
ii. The Governing Board will meet monthly.
· Leadership Positions
a. Chair, Co-Chair, and Secretary/Treasurer
i. The group made the decision that Roberts Rules of Order will be used to guide the meetings.
ii. It was discussed that due to the required duties that Tim has currently for the financial responsibilities, that the Secretary and Treasurer duties can easily be combined.
· Determining Leadership
a. The Board made the decision to elect the leaders by Nominations from the Floor, and that a simple majority would carry decisions. Nominations were made and the following individuals were elected:
i. Chair – Bob Carey
ii. Co-Chair – Terry Miller
iii. Secretary/ Treasurer – Tim Hofbauer
· Leadership Tenure
a. The Board made the decision that the leadership tenure will be a bi-annual period.
i. Some discussion centered on shifting the Co-Chair into the Chair position upon completion of the 2 year term. No decision was made at this meeting and it was tabled for later discussion. Some discussed that the Co-Chair may not be willing to serve as the Chair, and that the Governing Board charges could change significantly in a 2 year period.
2. Stakeholder Participation
· Stakeholder Involvement
a. Stakeholders will be all of those who are mentioned in the County Local Emergency Operations Plan (LEOP), including but not limited to fire, rescue, law enforcement, schools, hospitals, all first responders, public works etc.
b. Discussion on MOU Cities being actively involved on the governance structure was brought up by the Dean Hefti, Columbus Fire Chief, who stated that other MOU City representatives across the state have discussed the need to be involved as voting members of the governance structure. This district has only one MOU City and other regions have more than one. The members of this Board have been appointed by the County Boards at the direction of the Governor.
c. The Board will appoint a sub-committee to look at the possibility of adding an Ex-Officio member to the Board as a voting member to accommodate the MOU City membership on the Governing Board.
· Stakeholders Role in Meeting Activities
a. County Emergency Managers needs to have approved any project brought to the board and it is preferred that the EM makes the presentation.
i. Criteria for the proposed projects are that they be on the local county Planning, Exercise, & Training (PET) calendar, and/or on the Regional PET calendar.
ii. Project Managers may be asked to present information on proposed projects, as requested by the Board, and to clarify any questions the Board may have in the proposed projects or in their progress. In order to keep the meetings efficient, the Board determined that whoever is in charge of the project, may present as approved by the Board and as set in the Agenda.
b. The Emergency Manager will be the liaison between the stakeholders and the Governing Board.
· Engagement of Local Stakeholders
a. This is determined by the agenda – engagement the local county representative is responsible to disseminate information on the activities and welcome all representatives including elected officials as well as all responder groups to the events, related to the process. They will also solicit information from these entities.
b. Emails will be sent out regarding the activities to the appropriate representation
c. Stakeholders need to communicate the PET activities to their contacts to get the most participation in the event possible.
· What are the responsibilities of the stakeholders?
a. When there is business in front of the Board that involves communications, those local Communications personnel are critical to the process, and must participate in the activities, especially in dealing with mass causality events.
b. Stakeholders need to be responsible for ensuring that their project has been placed on the Governing Board agenda, and on the appropriate county/regional calendar.
c. Stakeholders need to make sure it is a valid project (a HEP-C Project)
d. NEMA Policies and procedures need to be followed in determining if a project meets the criteria for presentation to the Governing Board, and funding must be available before activities are funded.
Questions as to the authority of the Governing Board to add members such as adding an Ex Officio member to the board were discussed. Going back to the County Board in each county was determined to be problematic to get additional agreement, however informing the County Board representatives may be beneficial.
Reports -
· Reports and upcoming meeting topics:
o Bylaws and process to form them
o Exercise/Training Planning
o County/MOU/Hazmat Projects
o NIMSCAST Reporting
Upcoming Meetings:
September 15, 2008 - 9:00 AM - Action items for East Central Region workshop - in Platte County Community Room
October 6, 2008 – 1:00 – 3:00 PM