Federal Support for Domestic Disaster Assistance: Deployable Assets & Responders

For most disasters across the nation, the affected local, state, or tribal governments have sufficient capabilities to respond to the incident. However, for disasters with consequences that require unique capabilities or that overwhelm the existing capabilities of a respective state or tribal government, Congress has authorised and appropriated a suite of deployable federal assets to support domestic disaster response operations. This book reviews several key concepts about these federal assets, and highlights possible issues Congress may consider when evaluating their authorisation and appropriation. This book also provides information that can aid policymakers as they navigate through the many levels of responsibility, and numerous policy pressure points, by having an understanding of the laws and administrative policies governing the disaster response and recovery process. The book also reviews the legislative framework that exists for providing federal assistance, as well as the implementing polices the executive branch employs to provide supplemental help to state, tribal, and local governments during time of disasters.