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State's Emergency Management Program Retains National Accreditation
SPRINGFIELD - Illinois' emergency management program was recognized recently for three "best practices" as part of a rigorous review by a national accreditation program. The Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) notified officials with the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) that Illinois will retain national accreditation after an assessment team determined the state's program complied with 63 national standards.
"There is nothing more important than making sure the people of our state are safe," said IEMA Interim Director Joe Klinger. "Illinois has seen its fair share of disasters over the years. It's critical that our emergency management program is capable of meeting those difficult challenges head-on."
A team of certified assessors from across the nation conducted a week-long review of Illinois' program in September. EMAP assessors found Illinois' program met all the standards and recommended the state for national "best practices" for its interoperable communications capabilities, implementation of an interagency strategic planning cell and strategic use of federal funding. The team's findings were reviewed and approved by the EMAP National Board.
EMAP is an independent non-profit organization that fosters excellence and accountability in emergency management and homeland security programs by establishing credible standards applied in a peer review accreditation program. EMAP accreditation is a voluntary process for state and local emergency management programs. Illinois is currently one of 25 states in the U.S. that are EMAP accredited.
In order to receive EMAP accreditation and re-accreditation, states are required to demonstrate 100 percent compliance with 63 standards. The standards cover 16 key program areas, including planning, incident management, hazard mitigation, mutual aid, communications, public information and more.
Illinois was just the sixth state in the nation to receive EMAP accreditation in 2006. For more information about Illinois' emergency management program, visit IEMA's website at www.iema.illinois.gov.
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