Executive Order  No. 469: Designation of the National Incident Management System as the Commonwealth's incident management standard

WHEREAS, in Homeland Security Presidential Directive 5 (HSPD-5), the President of the United States determined that in order to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other emergencies, the United States Government must establish a single comprehensive approach to domestic incident management, one which ensures that all levels of government have the capacity to work together effectively;

WHEREAS, the President of the United States directed the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to develop and administer a National Incident Management System (NIMS), which will provide a consistent nationwide approach for Federal, State, local, and tribal governments to work together to prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from domestic incidents, regardless of cause, size or complexity;

WHEREAS, the President of the United States directed the Department of Homeland Security to determine whether states, localities, territories, and tribal entities have formally recognized NIMS;

WHEREAS, the President of the United States directed all Federal departments which provide preparedness assistance through grants, contracts, or other activities to certify that only those states, localities, territories, and tribal entities which adopt NIMS will be eligible to receive future Federal assistance;

WHEREAS, it is necessary and desirable for the Commonwealth's homeland security agencies and personnel to coordinate efforts with every city and town in Massachusetts, with other states, and with the Federal government to provide the highest level of incident management;

WHEREAS, in order to achieve the highest level of incident management within the Commonwealth, with other states, and with the Federal government, it is vitally important for the Commonwealth's homeland security agencies and personnel to use NIMS, which contains standardized terminology, unified command structures, consolidated action plans, uniform personnel qualification standards, uniform standards for planning and training, comprehensive resource management, and designated incident facilities during emergencies or disasters;

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth has already incorporated a standardized Incident Command System into its Emergency Operations Plan, a recommendation made by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States and included in NIMS;

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth incorporated NIMS into its homeland security and first responder training programs and exercises, and established a NIMS Advisory Group to help first responders throughout Massachusetts incorporate NIMS into their disciplines;

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth has supported and will continue to support regional efforts to enter into agreements to provide mutual aid to plan for, meet, and prevent any occurrence or condition that represents a threat to public safety or homeland security; further, the Commonwealth has supported and will continue to support efforts by its political subdivisions to enter into mutual aid agreements;

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth, through its Regional Homeland Security Planning Councils, has determined that every city, town, and municipal entity in Massachusetts must adopt and work to implement NIMS in order to be eligible to receive Federal preparedness grant awards;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Mitt Romney, Governor of the Commonwealth, by virtue of the authority vested in me as supreme executive magistrate, do hereby order that:

Section 1.        Henceforth, the Commonwealth will utilize the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as the standard for incident management;

Section 2.        Further, the Commonwealth, through its Regional Homeland Security Planning Councils, will require all cities, towns, and other municipal entities to certify that they have adopted and implemented NIMS as a condition of receiving Federal preparedness grant awards.

Given at the Executive Chamber in Boston this 29th day of September in the year of  our Lord two thousand five, and of the Independence of the United States of America two hundred and twenty eight.

MITT ROMNEY, GOVERNOR
Commonwealth of Massachusetts

William Francis Galvin
Secretary of the Commonwealth