Minutes_Dubuque Co. Emergency Management Commission 8 7 12Official Minutes of the August 7th, 2012
Regular Meeting
Meeting Called to Order
The meeting of the Dubuque County Emergency Management Commission was called to order at 1900
hours by Chairperson Mike Wuertzer. Roll call was completed with the following commission members
in attendance: Mike Wuertzer, Brian Arnold, Tim Pins, Don Vrotsos, Daryl Klein, Gene Hosch, Nick
Jaeger, Todd Davis, Ray Stephan, Dick Avenarius, Charlie Demmer, Marty Benda, Tom Berger, Roger
Oberbroeckling, Dan Brown and Tom Avenarius.
Approval of Minutes
The minutes of the May 1st, 2012, meeting were approved on a motion by Tim Pins and seconded by
Tom Avenarius, motion carried.
Old Business
Multi Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan Update
Tom reported the plan is now being sent to each jurisdiction to have resolutions adopting the plan. No
public comment was received during the 30 day posting period which has held during July. All of the
local jurisdictions will approve by resolution and then it will be forwarded onto the State Homeland
Security and Emergency Management Division and then forwarded onto FEMA for approval.
EMA Commission Membership Update
The administrative rules have been posted and the law about the commission membership will be
effective in October. The commission is comprised of a member of the board of supervisors, the Sheriff
and the Mayor of each incorporated city or their designated representative. The designated
representative can represent the mayors on all other matters of the commission except when approving
or amending budgets— any budget approvals need to be done by elected officials. We will have to
amend the budget in order to pay for the pick up truck. The law and our current bi -laws have been sent
to the county attorney for review and determination on what we will need to establish a quorum and if
we can set it at less than half of the commission in order to do business. We have many cities that do
not participate in the commission and having a quorum will be a challenge in the future. Dubuque
County has the most cities of any county in the state therefore we have the largest commission in the
state. Sheriff Vrotsos will follow up with the county attorney to check the status of the clarification.
EMA Commission After Action Report (AAR) Follow Up from the 2011 Floods
Tom reported on the items that were identified in the AAR from the July 2011 floods that will affect the
EMA commission. One issue identified is the back up for Tom in an extended operation or in his
absence. A person who could be cross trained in Emergency Management Duties that would be able to
be shifted to EMA during emergencies may be a possibility. A committee of Sheriff Vrotsos, Chief Brown
and Chair Wuertzer will look into alternatives for EMA staffing.
A stand alone EOC was also identified and would also be beneficial in an emergency. We currently use
the classrooms and the EOC takes a couple of hours to set up phones, computers, projectors etc. As
part of the 911 study, an EOC will be looked at for future consideration. A stand alone EOC able to
operate immediately would be a benefit in the future.
Another item for further discussion would be co- locating the city and county staff at the EOC so we can
have a unified response to questions. A more cohesive approach to future incidents would better serve
the citizens of Dubuque and Dubuque County. The city has designated the training center as the main
EOC and will meet here unless it is inaccessible due to the disaster.
Other Old Business — None
New Business
FY2012 Compliancy Letter
Tom reported that the commission received a letter stating that we have exceeded all of the FY2012
requirements and that we are compliant. This is in regards to training, planning and exercise. The
FY2012 Emergency Management Planning Grant has also been released and we should be receiving our
allocation of $39,000 before October 15`. Tom is required to file the quarterly reports from quarters 1 -3
by the end of August. This was money budgeted to be received in fiscal year 2012 so we are one year
behind in payment from the federal government. A look at the formula and the cap may happen at the
discretion of the HSEMD director.
CodeRed Notifications
Discussion was held on the changes on the severe storm warnings and the notifications to our local staff
and businesses. Our contact list will soon be notified automatically from CodeRED in the event of a
tornado warning, thunderstorm warning, or flash flood warning. If the NWS warning polygon includes
the addresses of the business or the contact person, they will be contacted automatically. The watches
will still be done through dispatch as they always have been.
A committee of local users met with different companies this spring and CodeRED dropped their price to
$12,500 per year from $25,000 in order to keep our contract. We will be working with CodeRED on
other issues to enhance the service to Dubuque County.
Other New Business — None
Committee Reports
Vehicle Replacement Committee
Tom updated the group on what transpired with the purchase of the pickup truck. The truck should be
in by the end of August. The committee did reach out to Runde Chevrolet and received a price quote
from them. When comparing all quotes, it was determined that the options and packages quoted by
Victory Ford would be in the best interest of the committee and far exceeded the minimum
specifications as determined by the committee.
Bi -laws Committee
The committee is awaiting the reply from the county attorney before meeting and presenting the
changes necessitated by the new law.
Good of the Commission
Upcoming Training Events
There is a ICS402 class for executives that will be held at the training center on September 11th The
class is designated for EOC officials and elected officials and is two hours in length.
Hazardous Materials Calls
Tom reported that the Dubuque Fire Hazmat team was called to Cascade to assist with identifying a
suspicious odor. There was no bill for the call submitted by Dubuque Fire as no supplies were used.
Tom also filed paperwork for reimbursement for a fuel spill in the Bernard Fire territory and a call in the
Key West district. There will also be another bill for a call that Key West had over the past weekend for
a fuel spill from a semi rollover.
Open Discussion
E911 Radio Replacement
Discussion about the status of the county fire radio replacement was held. The radios are in at Racom
and should be distributed to the first seven departments soon.
Next Meeting
Due to the Governors Homeland Security Conference in November, the next meeting of the Dubuque
County Emergency Management Commission will be held on Tuesday, October 30th, 2012 at the
Dubuque County Firefighters Association Regional Emergency Responder Training Facility at 7:00 p.m. in
the West Classroom. We will be watching the expenditures to see if we will be able to wait until our
February meeting to amend the budget or if that will need to be done at the October meeting.
Adjournment
A motion was made by Mayor Oberbroeckling and seconded by Mayor Avenarius to adjourn at 1950
hours. Motion Carried.
Respectfully submitted,
Thomas I. Berger, EMA Director
Future Meeting Dates
Tuesday, October 30th, 2012, 7:00 p.m. at training center
Tuesday, February 5th, 2013, 7:00 p.m. at training center
Tuesday, May 7`h, 2013, 7:00 p.m. at the training center
Tuesday, August 6`h, 2013, 7:00 p.m. at the training center