National Response Plan

National Response Plan
Name	National Response Plan
Jurisdiction	United States
Formed	2004
Superseded by	National Response Framework
Agency type	Interagency coordination plan
Parent agency	United States Department of Homeland Security

Contents

National Response Plan The National Response Plan provided a unified federalism-centered framework for coordinating federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, and private-sector actions during disasters and emergencies. It integrated existing statutes such as the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, executive authorities like Homeland Security Presidential Directive 5, and interagency capabilities from departments including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Defense, and Department of Health and Human Services. The Plan sought to align operational systems demonstrated in incidents such as Hurricane Katrina, the September 11 attacks, and the Anthrax attacks with longstanding emergency management concepts from events like the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake and the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.

Overview

The Plan established a common lexicon and standardized concept of operations modeled on the Incident Command System and the National Incident Management System, drawing on precedents set by the California Office of Emergency Services, New York City Office of Emergency Management, and the Federal Response Plan. It described mission areas—prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery—while coordinating assets from the Department of Transportation, United States Coast Guard, Environmental Protection Agency, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and private partners such as the American Red Cross and Salvation Army. Interoperability goals echoed initiatives like the Project Shield America and were informed by lessons from the Hurricane Andrew response and the Mount St. Helens eruption.

Development accelerated after the September 11 attacks and subsequent reorganization that created the Department of Homeland Security in 2003 under the Homeland Security Act of 2002. The Plan consolidated guidance from the Federal Radiological Emergency Response Plan, the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan, and the Biological Incident Annexes used in responses to the 2001 anthrax attacks. Influential reviews, including the Gilmore Commission reports and congressional hearings led by committees such as the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, shaped revisions. Practical testing incorporated scenarios from tabletop exercises inspired by programs like Operation Dark Winter and full-scale exercises similar to TOPOFF.

The Plan organized response into Emergency Support Functions (ESFs) that linked lead agencies—FEMA (ESF #5 coordination), Department of Health and Human Services (ESF #8), Department of Transportation (ESF #1), Department of Energy (ESF #12)—with supporting agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, United States Postal Service, and Federal Communications Commission. Annexes addressed specialized areas including the National Response Framework precursor concepts for catastrophic incidents, the Continuity of Operations arrangements derived from Presidential Decision Directive 67, and the Public Affairs operations modeled on past disaster communications used during the Iraq War mobilizations. The Plan included concepts for Incident Command System integration, resource typing, and mutual aid mechanisms rooted in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact.

Implementation relied on coordination among cabinet-level departments: Department of Justice for law enforcement liaison with agencies like the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Department of Agriculture for food and agriculture emergencies; Department of Housing and Urban Development for housing recovery efforts; Department of the Treasury for financial stabilization; and the Small Business Administration for disaster loans. Tribal coordination referenced relationships with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. International coordination invoked partners such as United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and bilateral mechanisms with neighbors like Canada and Mexico under the North American Free Trade Agreement era arrangements. The Plan also delineated private-sector engagement with corporations and non-governmental organizations including United Way and Team Rubicon.

Training programs linked to the Plan included courses from the Emergency Management Institute, joint exercises by Department of Defense components, and interagency drills modeled on TOPOFF and Vigilant Guard. State and local jurisdictions used the Plan as a basis for tabletop, functional, and full-scale exercises paralleling scenarios from the National Exercise Program. Certification and credentialing efforts referenced standards from the International Association of Emergency Managers and interoperability work by the National Emergency Management Association. After-action reports from events such as Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy informed updates, as did inquiries from the Government Accountability Office and recommendations in reports by the Institute of Medicine.

Critics cited ambiguity in roles during catastrophic incidents, overlapping authority among agencies like FEMA and the Department of Defense, and coordination failures during Hurricane Katrina that echoed historical critiques from the 1970 Laguna Colorada disaster review. Congressional oversight by the House Committee on Homeland Security and reports from the Government Accountability Office urged clearer delineation of responsibilities. Revisions culminated in replacement by the National Response Framework in 2008, influenced by accountability reforms from the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 and doctrinal guidance from Homeland Security Presidential Directive 8.