Report 2019-103 Recommendation 12 Responses

Report 2019-103: California Is Not Adequately Prepared to Protect Its Most Vulnerable Residents From Natural Disasters (Release Date: December 2019)

Recommendation #12 To: Emergency Services, Office of

To ensure that it fulfills its responsibilities under state law, Cal OES should, by no later than June 2020, issue the guidance that state law requires it to produce related to access and functional needs, including guidance related to establishing disaster registries and guidance on evacuating people with access and functional needs.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From September 2023

Cal OES has completed the guidance documents outlined in Recommendation #12. Specifically, Cal OES addressed the access and functional needs-related considerations in Recommendation #12 by creating the following information products:

- Voluntary Disaster Registry Guidance (released July 2020);

- Integrated Evacuation Planning for Jurisdictions and Individuals with Access and Functional Needs (released August 2023); and

- Integrating AFN within the Emergency Process: Best Practices for Stakeholder Inclusion (released June 2020).

All three resources have been distributed to emergency managers and community stakeholders throughout the state. Each of the resources are also available online via the Cal OES AFN library.

Further, the Integrated Evacuation Planning for Jurisdictions and Individuals with Access and Functional Needs (released August 2023) and the Integrating AFN within the Emergency Process: Best Practices for Stakeholder Inclusion (released June 2020) are referenced in the State of California Emergency Plan (SEP) and Cal OES's public website. Another product, Best Practices for County Emergency Plans, is also available on Cal OES's public website.

Cal OES's Planning, Preparedness, and Prevention Directorate anticipates the SEP to be finalized and posted by the end of first quarter in 2024. The SEP is currently out for public comment. Once the SEP becomes an official document, Cal OES will provide a copy to CSA.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Partially Implemented

CalOES provided the guidance that it describes in its response, including two guidance documents that in our report we noted that CalOES had not yet developed as required by state law. One of those documents was its voluntary disaster registry guidance, which we found addresses all of the elements required by law. Another was its integrated evacuation planning for jurisdictions and individuals with access and functional needs, which appears to address the requirement in state law that it produce guidance for evacuating individuals with access and functional needs. We will review the state emergency plan when CalOES completes it and submits it for our review.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2022

Cal OES continues to fulfill its responsibilities under state law related to access and functional needs.

Cal OES continues to amplify its guidance related to access and functional needs, including its disaster registries and guidance on evacuations, by reflecting this in the State of California Emergency Plan (SEP), which is updated on a five-year cycle and revisions are completed in coordination with State agencies, local governments, and relevant stakeholders as needed. Currently, Cal OES is still working on revising the SEP and anticipates its completion in the first quarter of 2023.

The SEP incorporates by reference the latest AFN guidelines and best practices at the bottom of the SEP webpage, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/cal-oes-divisions/planning-preparedness/state-of-california-emergency-plan-emergency-support-functions for supporting documents and included a link to the Access and Functional Needs (AFN) Library, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/office-of-the-director/policy-administration/access-functional-needs/afn-library/ where the AFN Evacuation and Transportation Planning Guidelines are located. Additionally, the Office of Access and Functional Needs created a Best Practices document that was added to the AFN library and is linked under the Community Planning page, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/AFN/Documents/AFN-Library/Cal-OES-Best-Practices-for-Stakeholder-Inclusion-June-2020.pdf. Further, the Community Planning Unit created the following best practices document, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/Preparedness/Documents/Planning-Best-Practices-for-County-Emergency-Plans-draft.pdf. The reference to the AFN library is on page 14.

Lastly, Planning, Preparedness, and Prevention (PPP) will incorporate references to the AFN library, Integrating Access and Functional Needs within the Emergency Planning Process: Best Practices for Stakeholder Inclusion, and Planning Best Practices for County Emergency Plans into the updated SEP.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Pending

We look forward to reviewing Cal OES's new guidance documents when they are completed, and we will consider this recommendation to be fully implemented if the guidance includes all of the elements required by law.

Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From October 2021

Cal OES has taken, and will take, steps to incorporate best practices for evacuating individuals with access and functional needs into the State of California Emergency Plan (SEP). The SEP is updated on a five-year cycle, and the next update is expected to be completed in October 2022.

1. October 2021: Cal OES added a section at the bottom of the SEP webpage, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/cal-oes-divisions/planning-preparedness/state-of-california-emergency-plan-emergency-support-functions, for supporting documents and included a link to the AFN Library where the AFN Evacuation and Transportation Planning Guidelines are located.

2. January 2022: Cal OES's Office of Access and Functional Needs will create a Best Practices document to also post in their library, https://www.caloes.ca.gov/cal-oes-divisions/access-functional-needs/afn-library, and it will be incorporated by reference into the Best Practices for Local Emergency Operations Plans document currently under development and expected to be completed by January 2022.

3. October 2022: Cal OES will incorporate both resources by reference into the 2022 SEP.

California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Partially Implemented

Cal OES developed the disaster registry guidance as state law requires. We look forward to reviewing Cal OES's incorporation of its evacuation best practice guidance into its next version of the State Emergency Plan.

1-Year Agency Response

Office of Access and Functional Needs completed and distributed Cal OES Voluntary Disaster Registry Planning Guidance to local emergency managers statewide on 7/27/2020. We also request Finding #12 to be closed.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 1-Year Status: Partially Implemented

Cal OES developed the disaster registry guidance as state law requires. However, Cal OES continues to state that it will not comply with state law by including in the state emergency plan guidance on evacuating people with access and functional needs. We will not consider this recommendation to be fully implemented until Cal OES fulfills its statutory obligation to assist counties by providing that guidance.

6-Month Agency Response

Cal OES continues to develop guidance regarding disaster registries. The guidance will meet all statutory requirements outlined in state law while outlining the agency's determination that disaster registries themselves are not a best practice.

As indicated in its response to CSA's report,

Cal OES will not change its approach to the SEP, but will continue to reflect AFN considerations throughout all of its planning documents.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

Cal OES continues to state that it will not comply with state law by including in the state emergency plan guidance on evacuating people with access and functional needs. Given the importance of planning to protect people with access and functional needs during evacuations, Cal OES should assist counties in that planning by issuing that guidance in compliance with the law. Further, Cal OES does not have the authority to chose not to comply with state law.

60-Day Agency Response

Cal OES will develop guidance regarding disaster registries. The guidance will meet all statutory requirements outlined in state law while outlining the agency's determination that disaster registries themselves are not a best practice.

As indicated in its response to CSA's report, Cal OES will not change its approach to the SEP, but will continue to reflect AFN considerations throughout all of its planning documents.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Cal OES states that it will not comply with state law by including in the state emergency plan guidance on evacuating people with access and functional needs. As we state in our report, Cal OES does not have the authority to chose not to comply with state law. It is critically important for local jurisdictions to include strategies for evacuating people with access and functional needs during natural disasters because people with those needs are more likely to need additional assistance. A lack of adequate guidance in this area is a critical deficiency in Cal OES's leadership. This recommendation will not be fully implemented until Cal OES issues the guidance that state law requires it to produce related to providing guidance on evacuating people with access and functional needs.

All Recommendations in 2019-103

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.