AB 871: Office of Emergency Services: disaster programs.

Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services, in coordination with all interested state agencies with designated response roles in the State Emergency Plan and interested local emergency management agencies, to jointly establish by regulation a Standardized Emergency Management System for use by all emergency response agencies, as specified. Existing law requires all state agencies to use the Standardized Emergency Management System to coordinate multiple jurisdiction or multiple agency emergency and disaster operations. Existing law requires the Office of Emergency Services, in coordination with the Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Department of the California Highway Patrol, the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, the Emergency Medical Services Authority, and all other interested state agencies with designated response roles in the State Emergency Plan, to jointly develop an approved course of instruction for use in training all emergency response personnel, consisting of the concepts and procedures associated with the Standardized Emergency Management System.

This bill would appropriate $3,000,000 from the General Fund to the Office of Emergency Services to fund current disaster preparedness, resiliency, and response programs in vulnerable underserved neighborhoods and communities that may be subject to earthquake, fire, or other disaster. The bill would require the office to distribute the funds on or before June 31, 2018, to a qualified charitable organization, as defined, that provides a regional disaster preparedness, response, and resilience program to underserved neighborhoods and communities that meets specified criteria, including that it have, among other things, an educational component that aims to educate underserved neighborhoods and communities on the risks that make them more susceptible to disasters and emergencies, and have a focus on increasing reliance with a volunteer workforce to support disaster response.