National Incident Management System
FY 2006 NIMS Training Requirements
On February 28, 2003, President Bush issued Homeland Security Presidential Directive -5. HSPD-5 directed the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and administer a National Incident Management System. NIMS provides a consistent nationwide template to enable all government, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to work together during domestic incidents.
Under NIMS, preparedness is based on national standards for qualification and certification of emergency response personnel. Managed by the NIMS Integration Center, standards will help ensure that the participating agencies' and organizations' field personnel possess the minimum knowledge, skills, and experience to perform activities safely and effectively.
Standards will include training, experience, credentialing, currency, and physical and medical fitness. Personnel who are certified to support interstate incidents will be required to meet national qualification and certification standards.
The benefits of the NIMS system will be significant:
- Standardize organizational structures, processes and procedures;
- Standards for planning, training and exercising, and personnel qualification standards;
- Equipment acquisition and certification standards;
- Interoperable communications processes, procedures and systems;
- Information management systems; and
- Supporting technologies - voice and data communications processes, information systems, data display systems and specialized technologies.
Training is one of the important elements that state, territorial, tribal and local entities must complete during the FY 2006 (October 1, 2005 - September 30, 2006) to become fully compliant with the National Incident Management System (NIMS).Jurisdictions will be required to meet the FY 2006 NIMS implementation requirements as a condition of receiving federal preparedness funding assistance in FY 2007.
The FY 2005 requirements for NIMS compliance for local agencies are the following:
- Institutionalize the use of the Incident Command System;
- Complete the NIMS awareness course IS-700 NIMS: An Introduction;
- Formally recognize NIMS and adopt NIMS principles and policies;
- Establish a NIMS compliance baseline by determining the NIMS requirements that have already been met; and
- Develop a strategy and timelines for full NIMS implementation.
All departments within a city or local government must have completed these requirements to fully comply with the implementation of NIMS.
It is important to recognize that NIMS implementation will not end in FY 2006.The NIMS is a dynamic system, and the doctrine as well as the implementation requirements will continue to evolve as our prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery capabilities improve and our homeland security landscape changes.Further, new personnel will continue to need NIMS training, and NIMS processes will still have to be exercised in future years.
For FY 2006 the requirements for NIMS compliancy* is as follows:
| Audience |
Required Training |
| Federal/State/Tribal/Private Sector and Non-governmental personnel to include:
Entry level first responders & disaster workers
- Emergency medical service personnel
- Firefighters
- Hospital staff
- Law enforcement personnel
- Public health personnel
- Public works/utility personnel
- Skilled support personnel
- Other emergency management response, support, volunteer personnel at all levels
|
- FEMA IS-700: NIMS, An Introduction
- ICS-100: Introduction to ICS or equivalent
|
| Federal/State/Tribal/Private Sector and Non-governmental personnel to include:
First line supervisors , single resource leaders, field supervisors and other emergency management / response personnel that require a higher level of ICS/NIMS training.
|
- FEMA IS-700: NIMS, An Introduction
- ICS-100: Introduction to ICS or equivalent
- ICS-200: Basic ICS or equivalent
|
| Federal/State/Tribal/Private Sector and Non-governmental personnel to include:
Middle management including strike team leaders, task force leaders, unit leaders, division/group supervisors, branch directors and multi-agency coordination system/emergency operations center staff.
|
- FEMA IS-700: NIMS, An Introduction
- FEMA IS-800: National Response Plan (NRP), An Introduction
- ICS-100: Introduction to ICS or equivalent
- ICS-200: Basic ICS or equivalent
- ICS-300: Intermediate ICS or equivalent (FY07 Requirement)
|
| Federal/State/Tribal/Private Sector and Non-governmental personnel to include:
Command and general staff , select department heads with multi-agency coordination system responsibilities, area commanders, emergency managers and multi-agency coordination system/emergency operations center managers.
|
- FEMA IS-700: NIMS, An Introduction
- FEMA IS-800: National Response Plan (NRP), An Introduction
- ICS-100: Introduction to ICS or equivalent
- ICS-200: Basic ICS or equivalent
- ICS-300: Intermediate ICS or equivalent (FY07 Requirement)
- ICS-400: Advance ICS or equivalent (FY07 Requirement)
|
* This table is reproduced from the www.fema.gov/nims
There are two courses available from the Utah Fire & Rescue Academy that will help meet these requirements for FY 2006, which ends October 31, 2006.
- NIMS - Incident Command Systems for the Fire Service (NIMS-ICSFS) is a 14-hour course that is designed to develop an understanding of the Incident Command System (ICS) and its application in both emergency and non-emergency situations. This course addresses the need for an ICS, an overview of the structure and flexibility of ICS, and an understanding of the command skills necessary to function effectively in an ICS structure. This course meets the requirements for ICS-100 and ICS-200.
- NIMS - Incident Command Systems for Emergency Medical Services (NIMS-ICSEMS) is a 16-hour course, during which the student will be introduced to the concepts of EMS-specific incident command through lecture and guided discussion. They will use scenarios, case studies, graphics, and audiovisuals and role-play to demonstrate understanding of the concepts. This course meets the requirements for ICS-100 and ICS-200.
In addition to these two courses the Emergency Management Institute (EMI) at the NETC in Maryland, has several ICS-100 and ICS-200 level courses that may be taken online as interactive Web-courses (http://training.fema.gov/emiweb/IS/crslist.asp).
If an agency would like additional information about NIMS compliancy or about anything in this article, please contact the Utah Fire & Rescue Academy at 888-548-7816.
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