N.Y. Executive Law § 29-h: Intrastate mutual aid program

§ 29-h. Intrastate mutual aid program. 1. Creation. There is hereby

created the intrastate mutual aid program to complement existing mutual

aid agreements in the event of a disaster that results in a formal

declaration of an emergency by a participating local government. All

local governments within the state, excepting those which affirmatively

choose not to participate in accordance with subdivision four of this

section, are deemed to be participants in the program; provided,

however, with respect to school districts and boards of cooperative

educational services, such participation shall be limited to the sharing

of facilities management and administrative personnel and equipment.

2. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall

have the following meanings:

a. "Employee" means any person holding a position by election,

appointment, or employment by a local government;

b. "Local government" means any county, city, town, village, school

district or board of cooperative educational services of the state;

c. "Local emergency management director" means the local government

official responsible for emergency preparedness, response and recovery;

d. "Requesting local government" means the local government that asks

another local government for assistance during a declared emergency, or

for the purposes of conducting training, or undertaking a drill or

exercise;

e. "Assisting local government" means one or more local governments

that provide assistance pursuant to a request for assistance from a

requesting local government during a declared emergency, or for the

purposes of conducting training, or undertaking a drill or exercise;

f. "Disaster" shall have the same meaning as in section twenty of this

article;

g. "School district" shall have the same meaning as in title two of

the education law, including any public school district and any special

act school district as defined in section four thousand one of the

education law; and

h. "Board of cooperative educational services" shall have the same

meaning as in section nineteen hundred fifty of the education law.

3. Intrastate mutual aid program committee established; meetings;

powers and duties. a. There is hereby created within the disaster

preparedness commission an intrastate mutual aid program committee, for

purposes of this section to be referred to as the committee, which shall

be chaired by the commissioner of the division of homeland security and

emergency services, and shall include the state fire administrator, the

commissioner of health, the commissioner of education and the

commissioner of agriculture and markets, provided that each such

official may appoint a designee to serve in his or her place on the

committee. The committee shall also include five representatives from

local public safety or emergency response agencies and one

representative from a school district or board of cooperative

educational services. Such representatives, who shall serve a maximum

two-year term, shall be appointed by the commissioner of the division of

homeland security and emergency services, with regard to a balance of

geographic representation and discipline expertise.

b. The committee, on the call of the chairperson, shall meet at least

twice each year and at such other times as may be necessary. The agenda

and meeting place of all regular meetings shall be made available to the

public in advance of such meetings and all such meetings shall be open

to the public.

c. The committee shall have the following powers and responsibilities:

(1) to promulgate rules and regulations, acting through the division

of homeland security and emergency services, to implement the intrastate

mutual aid program as described in this section;

(2) to develop policies, procedures and guidelines associated with the

program, including a process for the reimbursement of assisting local

governments by requesting local governments;

(3) to evaluate the use of the intrastate mutual aid program;

(4) to examine issues facing participating local governments regarding

the implementation of the intrastate mutual aid program; and

(5) to prepare reports to the disaster preparedness commission

discussing the effectiveness of mutual aid in the state and making

recommendations for improving the efficacy of the system, if

appropriate.

4. Local government participation in the intrastate mutual aid

program. a. A local government may elect not to participate in the

intrastate mutual aid program, or to withdraw from the program, by its

governing body enacting a resolution declaring that it elects not to

participate in the program and providing such resolution to the division

of homeland security and emergency services. Participation in the

program will continue until a copy of such resolution is received and

confirmed by the division of homeland security and emergency services.

b. A local government that has declined to participate in the program

may, acting by resolution through its governing body and providing a

copy of the resolution to the division of homeland security and

emergency services, elect to participate in the program.

c. Nothing in this section shall preclude a local government from

entering into mutual aid agreements with other local governments or

other entities with terms that supplement or differ from the provisions

of this section.

d. Nothing in this section shall affect any other agreement to which a

local government may currently be a party, or later enter into,

including, but not limited to, the state fire mobilization and mutual

aid plan.

5. Fire related resources. Notwithstanding the authority vested

pursuant to this section, all fire related resources shall be

administered pursuant to section two hundred nine-e of the general

municipal law.

6. Requesting assistance under the intrastate mutual aid program. a.

Subject to the restrictions on school districts and boards of

cooperative educational services set forth in subdivision one of this

section, the state or a participating local government may request

assistance of other participating local governments in preventing,

mitigating, responding to and recovering from disasters that result in

the declaration of a state disaster emergency or locally-declared

emergencies, or for the purpose of conducting multi-jurisdictional or

regional training, drills or exercises. Requests for assistance may be

made verbally or in writing; verbal requests shall be memorialized in

writing as soon thereafter as is practicable. Notwithstanding the

provisions of section twenty-five of this article, the local emergency

management director shall have the authority to request and accept

assistance and deploy the local resources of his or her jurisdiction

under the intrastate mutual aid program. The director of the state

office of emergency management is authorized to request and accept

assistance pursuant to this section.

b. Once an emergency is declared at the county level, all requests and

offers for assistance, to the extent practical, shall be made through

the county emergency management office, or in the case of the city of

New York, through the city emergency management office. All requests for

assistance should include:

(1) a description of the disaster;

(2) a description of the assistance needed;

(3) a description of the mission for which assistance is requested;

(4) an estimate of the length of time the assistance will be needed;

(5) the specific place and time for staging of the assistance and a

point of contact at that location; and

(6) any other information that will enable an assisting local

government to respond appropriately to the request.

c. Assisting local governments shall submit to the state or requesting

local government an inventory of the resources being deployed.

d. The written request for assistance and all inventories of resources

being deployed shall be submitted to the division of homeland security

and emergency services within three calendar days of the request for or

deployment of such resources.

7. Division of homeland security and emergency services

responsibilities under the intrastate mutual aid program. The division

of homeland security and emergency services shall provide notification

by mail to each local government with a comprehensive description of the

intrastate mutual aid program, including a statement that all local

governments are participants of the program unless they expressly opt

out pursuant to subdivision four of this section; maintain a current

list of participating local governments with their authorized

representatives and contact information, and provide a copy of the list

to each of the participating local governments on an annual basis during

the second quarter of each calendar year; monitor and report to the

intrastate mutual aid program committee on the use of the intrastate

mutual aid program; coordinate the provision of mutual aid resources in

accordance with the comprehensive emergency management plan and

supporting protocols; identify mutual aid best practices; when

practical, provide the committee with statistical information related to

the use of mutual aid during recent regional disaster responses; and

assist with the development, implementation and management of a

state-wide resource typing system.

8. Reimbursement of assisting local government by the state or

requesting local government; resolving disputes regarding reimbursement.

a. Any assisting local government requesting reimbursement under this

program for loss, damage or expenses incurred in connection with the

provision of assistance that seeks reimbursement by the state or

requesting local government shall make such request in accordance with

procedures developed by the intrastate mutual aid committee.

b. Notwithstanding the provisions of section twenty-five of this

article or any inconsistent provision of law to the contrary, the state

or any requesting local government requesting assistance under this

program shall be liable and responsible to the assisting local

government for any loss or damage to equipment or supplies and shall

bear and pay the expense incurred in the operation and maintenance of

any equipment and the cost of materials and supplies used in rendering

assistance under this section.

c. The assisting local government shall be liable for salaries or

other compensation for its employees deployed to the state or a

requesting local government during the time they are not rendering

assistance pursuant to such request, and shall defray the actual

traveling and maintenance expense of its employees and equipment while

they are rendering assistance under this section. The state or

requesting local government shall reimburse the assisting local

government for any moneys paid for such salaries or other compensation

and traveling and maintenance expenses incurred from activities

performed while rendering assistance under this program.

d. Notwithstanding paragraph c of this subdivision, any voluntary

ambulance service rendered pursuant to a request for assistance under

this program that affects a volunteer ambulance workers service award or

supplemental service award from a service award program or a

supplemental service award program established pursuant to article

eleven-aa, article eleven-aaa, or article eleven-aaaa of the general

municipal law shall be the responsibility of the political subdivision

which adopted the service award program or supplemental service award

program and not the responsibility of the state or requesting local

government.

e. Where a dispute arises between an assisting local government and

the state or a requesting local government regarding reimbursement for

loss, damages or expenses incurred in connection with the provision of

aid, the parties will make every effort to resolve the dispute within

thirty business days of written notice of the dispute by the party

asserting noncompliance.

9. Performance of services. a. (1) Employees of an assisting local

government shall continue under the administrative control of their home

jurisdiction. However, in all other cases where not prohibited by

general, special or local law, rule or regulation, employees of an

assisting local government shall be under the direction and control of

the director of the state office of emergency management, local

emergency management director or other official charged with performing

emergency management functions for the state or requesting local

government;

(2) Performance by employees of an assisting local government of

services for the state or a requesting local government pursuant to this

section shall have no impact upon whether negotiating unit employees

represented by an employee organization, recognized or certified

pursuant to section two hundred six or two hundred seven of the civil

service law, exclusively perform such services, as that phrase is used

by the public employment relations board, on behalf of the state or

requesting local government;

b. Assets and equipment of an assisting local government shall

continue under the ownership of the assisting local government, but

shall be under the direction and control of the director of the state

office of emergency management, local emergency management director or

other official charged with performing emergency management functions

for the state or requesting local government.

10. Liability. a. Each local government is responsible for procuring

and maintaining insurance or other coverage as it deems appropriate.

b. While rendering assistance under the intrastate mutual aid program,

employees of the assisting local government shall have the same

immunities and privileges as if such duties were performed within their

home jurisdiction. An assisting local government providing assistance

pursuant to the intrastate mutual aid program shall be liable for the

negligence of its employees, which occurs in the performance of their

duties in the same manner and to the same extent as if such negligence

occurred in the performance of their duties in their home jurisdiction.

c. Employees of an assisting local government responding to or

rendering assistance pursuant to a request for assistance who sustain

injury or death in the course of, and arising out of, their response are

entitled to all applicable benefits as if they were responding in their

home jurisdiction. The assisting local government shall be liable for

all costs or payments for such benefits as required by law.

d. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the assisting

and requesting local governments from agreeing to other terms related to

liability and compensation. Local governments may choose to enter into

an agreement, at any time, to alter these terms as they deem necessary.

e. Nothing in this section shall be construed to provide any

protection against liability, or to create any liability, for an

individual who responds to a state of emergency where aid has not been

requested, or where aid has not been authorized by the individual's home

jurisdiction.

11. Obligation of insurers. Nothing in this section shall impair,

alter, limit or modify the rights or obligations of any insurer under

any policy of insurance.

12. License, certificate and permit portability. a. State certified

emergency medical services providers who respond outside of their normal

jurisdiction pursuant to a request for assistance under this program

shall follow their normal operating protocols as if they were responding

and rendering services in their home jurisdiction.

b. Any other individual authorized and deployed by a participating

local government when responding pursuant to a request for assistance

under this program shall have the same powers and duties as if they were

responding in their home jurisdiction.