Relief Compact Officials Delay Leadership Switch to N.C.

Compact officials decided Tuesday to delay the shift in leadership from Iowa to North Carolina due to Tuesday's terrorist attacks in Washington, D.C., New York and Pennsylvania.

EMAC is a legally binding agreement between most states and territories to provide support in times of need. The compact's legislation is signed by each member state's legislature and eliminates much of the red tape involved in providing aid.

EMAC is designed to respond to emergencies from hurricanes to wildfires to terrorist attacks.

The lead state rotates annually based on the current president of the National Emergency Management Agency.

N.C. Department of Emergency Management Director Eric Tolbert recently became the national agency's new president.

Tom Ditt, information officer of N.C. Emergency Management, said Iowa offered to extend its lead role even though it was scheduled to pass the responsibility to North Carolina this week."Iowa had told us (Tuesday) that they would go ahead and hold it for a few days," he said.

But North Carolina already has sent four staff members to Washington, to help coordinate efforts there.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency requested a team to coordinate state-to-state reports, said Richard Cheek, deputy logistics chief for response at the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

As of Wednesday, there were no requests from New York, but Cheek said there might be some in the future. "My experience is, at the very beginning of a crisis like this, they think they can handle everything," he said. "But as time goes on they might realize they need specialized people."

New York is not a member of EMAC, but Kathy Stodola, Iowa Department of Emergency Management Public Officer, said if there is a need, member states are willing to provide aid. "Obviously, if they need help in that process (their request) would be honored," Stodola said.

She said Iowa officials are bringing N.C. officials up to speed about the management process and hand over responsibility by the end of the month.

When a state joins EMAC, its legislature ratifies the compact's agreement, which includes provisions for states to give and receive aid. Stodola said this partnership also ensures that the state requesting assistance will pay for the services provided and has full liability for personnel.

Cheek said EMAC is less expensive than using some forms of federal aid. "When we borrow each other's stuff we are paying for the exact cost of the item," he said. "We're not paying 10 percent or 15 percent over to pay for administration cost -- it saves us money."

During the summer, Florida used EMAC to borrow aviation mechanics to work on its helicopters during the May wildfires. Cheek said EMAC facilitated the process because Florida officials did not need to contact each individual state with their request or go through governors and lawyers to reach a borrowing agreement. "It makes it very easy to say, `I need help' and for others states to provide for those needs."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.