WASHINGTON—To ensure the nation continues to adopt the best standards and operating procedures when it comes to emergency alerting, the Federal Emergency Management Agency recently announced the names of 31 individuals that will be serving on the IPAWS subcommittee, which is part of FEMA’s National Advisory Council.
The first IPAWS subcommittee meeting will be held Aug. 8 and 9 in Washington, and will meet up to four times per year (two in person and two by video conferencing).
Among the subcommittee’s responsibilities are providing recommendations for new alerting protocols and operating procedures for the nation’s public alert and warning system, as well as submitting a recommendation report on the overall system to the NAC. Any subcommittee report will be submitted to other government agencies, including the House and Senate committees on homeland security.
NAC itself is tasked with advising FEMA’s administrator on all aspects of emergency management.
The new club of 31 members joins eight federal leaders and five members from the NAC to create a total group of 44 that include broadcasters, emergency management agencies, emergency response providers and consumer advocate groups, among others.
In addition to expected representatives like state officials and emergency management agencies, a FEMA selection panel requested participation from national tribal organizations, organizations representing individuals with disabilities, those representing individuals with limited English proficiency and the elderly (although only one organization is included from the later three: a representative from a center for the deaf/hard of hearing in North Carolina).
The subcommittee will also include chairman of the Federal Communications Commission or someone that Chairman Ajit Pai designates to serve.
It was back in September 2016 that FEMA called for applications to this subcommittee as part of its modernization efforts. The committee will disband by April 2019.
When contacted by Radio World, one new committee member, Ed Czarnecki with Monroe Electronics, said he’s most looking forward to the collaborating with colleagues across the government and within different industries to further advance the capabilities of FEMA IPAWS.
The complete IPAWS subcommittee list:
State and Local Governments; Emergency Management Agencies; Emergency Response Providers
Samantha Brear, Alert Iowa Program Manager and E911 Program Planner
Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
Benjamin Krakauer, Assistant Commissioner, Strategy & Program Development
New York City Emergency Management
Francisco Sánchez, Liaison and Public Information Officer
Harris County (Texas) Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
Art Botterell, Senior Emergency Services Coordinator
California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services
Michael Sprayberry (NAC Member), Director
North Carolina Emergency Management, North Carolina Department of Public Safety
Gerard Dio (NAC Member),(Retired) Fire Chief
Fire Department City of Worcester (Mass.)
Federally Recognized Indian Tribes and National Indian Organizations
Robert Deleon, Emergency Manager /Emergency Operations Director
Gila River Indian Community
Michael Fila, Emergency Manager/Public Health Officer
Office of Emergency Management, Cocopah Indian Tribe
Communications Service Providers
Thomas Crane, Senior Solutions Consultant
Everbridge Inc.
Don Hall, Government Solutions Director
OnSolve LLC
Vendors, Developers and Manufacturers of Systems, Facilities, Equipment and Capabilities for the Provision of Communications Services
Edward Czarnecki, Senior Director, Strategy and Government Affairs
Monroe Electronics Inc.
Harold Price, President
Sage Alerting Systems Inc.
Mark Demski, Senior Client Services Manager
WebEOC Intermedix Corp.
John Lawson, Executive Director
AWARN Alliance
Hutch McClendon, CEO and President
Advanced, Computers and Communications LLC
Third-Party Service Bureaus
Richard Strack, Chief Engineer
Boise State Public Radio
Broadcasting Industry, Including Public Broadcasting
Suzanne Goucher, President and Chief Executive Officer
Maine Association of Broadcasters
Sam Matheny, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
National Association of Broadcasters
Dana Golub, Senior Director, Public Programs
Public Broadcasting Service
Commercial Mobile Radio Service Industry
Brian Josef, Assistant Vice President Regulatory Affairs
CTIA
Cable Industry
Craig Saari, Principle Video Engineer II
Charter Communications
Andy Scott, Vice President of Engineering
NCTA – The Internet & Television Association
Satellite Industry
John Archer, Vice President and General Manager Operations
Sirius XM Satellite Radio
Steven Hill, Chief Executive Officer
Satellite and Broadcast Communication Association
National Organizations Representing Individuals With Disabilities; Blind, Deaf and Hearing-Loss Communities; Individuals With Access and Functional Needs; Elderly
Donna Platt, Emergency Preparedness Coordinator
North Carolina Division of Services for the Deaf and the Hard of Hearing
Bryen Yunashko, Owner
Access256 Productions LLC
Consumer or Privacy Advocates
Harold Feld, Senior Vice President
Public Knowledge
Organizations Representing Individuals With Limited-English Proficiency
Lillian McDonald, Managing Director Emergency Response Services
Twin Cities PBS
Jacqueline Nguyen, Senior Project Specialist
CalOptima
Other Stakeholders and Interested and Affected Parties
Dennis Mileti, Professor Emeritus, Director of the Natural Hazards Center
University of Colorado at Boulder
Frank Mark Lucia, Independent Telecommunications Professional, and Consultant
Georgia Tech Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center
Tafaimamao Tua-Tupuola, Director of University Center for Excellence on Developmental Disabilities
American Samoa Community College
Darrell Darnell, Senior Associate Vice President for Safety and Security
George Washington University
Dr. Meloyde Batten-Mickens(NAC Member), Interim Chief/Director of Public Safety
Simmons College
Capt. William “Brett” Bailey (NAC Member), Investigations Commander
Tulsa Police Department
Jeanne-Aimee DeMarrais (NAC Member), Senior Director U.S. Emergencies
Save the Children
Senior Federal Leaders (or Their Designees)
The Deputy Administrator for Protection and National Preparedness of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the Department of Commerce
The Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information of the Department of Commerce
The Under Secretary for Science and Technology of the Department of Homeland Security
The Under Secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate
The Director of Disability Integration and Coordination of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Chairperson of the National Council on Disability
This story originally appeared on TVT's sister publication Radio World.
