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Home My WebLink About15.C.3. Implementing a Citizen Corps Council-Res. No. 6290 IS. c.3. CITY OF SHAKOPEE Police Department Memorandum CONSENT To: Honorable Mayor; City Council Mark McNeill, City Administrator From: Officer Cody Horner&::> Subject: Adoption of Resolution 6290 Authorizing the Implementation of the Shakopee Citizen Corps Council Date: August 21,2005 INTRODUCTION City staff is seeking council approval for the adoption of Resolution 6290 authorizing the implementation of a Citizen Corps Council within the City of Shakopee. BACKGROUND The Fire and Police Departments have implemented a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program. The City of Shakopee, Police Department, has received notification from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety - Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management that a Citizen Corps Council is recommended to oversee the Neighborhood Watch and CERT programs. This council would have the following community members: . Police Chief . Crime Prevention Officer . Fire Chief . A CERT Coordinator for the Fire Department . A Supervisor from Allina Paramedics . Mayor of Shako pee . The Scott Co. Emergency Management Coordinator . A community member from the first Shakopee CERT class The Shakopee Citizen Corps Council would meet twice a year and discuss the enhancement of these programs. ALTERNATIVES 1. Adopt Resolution 6290 authorizing the implementation of the Shakopee Citizen Corps Council. 2. Do not adopt the resolution. 3. Table for further information from staff. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends alternative one. ACTION REQUESTED If Council concurs, they should by motion adopt Resolution 6290 authorizing the implementation of a Citizen Corps Council within the City of Shakopee. RESOLUTION NO. 6290 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SHAKOPEE, MINNESOTA, AUTHORIZING SUPPORT FOR THE SHAKOPEE CITIZEN CORPS COUNCIL. WHEREAS, the City of Shakopee, Fire and Police Departments, developed a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). WHEREAS, the City of Shakopee, Police Department, has received notification from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety - Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management that a Citizen Corps Council is recommended to oversee the Neighborhood Watch and CERT programs. WHEREAS, by working closely with Minnesota Department of Public Safety- Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, Scott County's Division of Emergency Management, and Allina Ambulance Service, we will be able to help our citizens work closely with emergency services. WHEREAS, we need to reach out to volunteers of all ages - youth, middle-aged and senior citizens; and to our corporate citizens as well, in order to have a successful Citizen's Corp Council. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SHAKOPEE, MINNESOTA, AS FOLLOWS: That the Mayor, City Administrator and City Clerk are hereby authorized to enact a Citizen Corps Council and to allow the Fire and Police Departments to respectively participate within. Adopted in regular session of the City Council of the City of Shakopee, Minnesota held this 6th day of September, 2005. Mayor of the City of Shakopee ATTEST: City Clerk 1 Since the terrorist attacks of September 11,2001, Americans have acted with courage, compassion, and unity. To capture this spirit and to foster an American culture of service, citizenship, and responsibility, President George W. Bush has called upon all Americans to dedicate at least two years of their lives-the equivalent of 4,000 hours-in service to others. He launched the USA Freedom Corps initiative to inspire and enable all Americans to find ways to serve their community, their country, or the world. Citizen Corps is the component of USA Freedom Corps that creates opportunities for individuals to volunteer to help their communities prepare for and respond to emergencies by bringing together local leaders, citizen volunteers and the network of first responder organizations, such as fire departments, police departments and emergency medical personnel. The goal is to have all citizens participate in making their communities safer, stronger, and better prepared for preventing and handling threats of terrorism, crime, and disasters of all kinds. ClT!ZEN CORPS LEADERSHIP the country as well as funds to support the federal The Citizen Corps effort will be coordinated at the Citizen Corps programs. These funds would support local level by Citizen Corps Councils, or a similar local activities that foster preparedness programs and coordinating body, which will bring together leaders partnerships between the first responder organizations from the relevant sectors of your community. The and the volunteers. purpose of the Council is to have all decision makers at the table to manage existing volunteer resources, CITIZEN COlU'S PROGRAlvlS to leverage mutually supportive endeavors among the Citizen Corps programs build on the successful represented groups, and to direct the overall local efforts that are in place in many communities around plans to implement Citizen Corps in the community. the country to prevent crime and respond to emer- At the state level, all Governors have appointed a gencies. Programs started through local innovation are the foundation for Citizen Corps and this national state coordinator for Citizen Corps to facilitate this approach to citizen participation in community safety. locally driven initiative. The state coordinator will work closely with the local governments, other state Currently three federal departments, DHS, DOT, and organizations, the Department of Homeland Security, HHS, administer four programs that are being pro- (DHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), the moted at the national level as part of Citizen Corps. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), DHS also coordinates the overall effort of helping and other federal agencies to implement a successful communities establish local Citizen Corps Councils Citizen Corps program for the state. and programs. Key state responsibilities include: identifying needs The federal Citizen Corps programs are: and developing a statewide strategy for increasing the * The Neighborhood Watch Program, funded first responder and volunteer collaboration; develop- by DO] and administered by the National Sheriffs' ing statewide marketing strategies; matching Citizen Association, has been reinvigorated to increase the Corps training needs with other major state training number of groups involved in crime prevention and initiatives; reporting statewide accomplishments; and homeland security and preparedness efforts. The goal ensuring that Citizen Corps communities receive is to double the number of groups participating in consideration for relevant grant funding administered Neighborhood Watch by 2004. Additional informa- by the state. tion about registering a watch group or obtaining The President has requested funding from Congress resources to support Neighborhood Watch effort:> is to support and expand Citizen Corps Councils around available at www.usaonwatch.org. =''^~,~~ ~~~~~~~, -~,,~~, --,~,--- ~"~-~"'~~~~~~~~,~"~~--,-----~,~""~~~" * FEMA's Community Emergency Response comprised of leaders from: emergency management Team (CERT) program provides training in emer- and the first responder community; volunteer, gency preparedness and in basic response techniques community service, faith- and community-based to local trainers who in turn train citizens, enabling organizations; educational institutions; medical them to take a more active role in personal and public facilities; business and industry; and the community's safety. The goal is to triple the number of citizens who neighborhood networks. are CERT trained, increasing the number nationwide Each community that is implementing Citizen Corps to 600,000 by 2004. Additional information on CERT should consider creating a Citizen Corps Council. This is available at www.training.fema.gov/emiweb/cert. guide will help your community join the many others * Volunteers in Police Service (VIPS) is funded across the country that have already started Citizen Corps by DOT and administered by the International Councils in order to be prepared to fully implement the Association of Chiefs of Police. The program, which Citizen Corps programs in their communities. was launched nationwide in spring 2002, provides The primary objectives of the Councils are to: training for volunteers to perform administrative and non-intervention policing activities to free up * Match the needs of first responders with the law enforcement professionals for frontline duty. skills and abilities of volunteers to make their families, Additional information is available at their homes, and their communities safer from the www.policevolunteers.org. threats of terrorism, crime, and disasters. * HHS administers a community-based Medical * Educate the public on safety, help citizens take Reserve Corps that was launched in fall 2002. an active role in protecting themselves from harm, Through this program, currently practicing and and teach citizens what to do in the event of a crisis. retired volunteers trained in healthcare and others * Spearhead efforts to offer citizens new and interested in public health issues will be able to assist existing volunteer opportunities, educational informa- during large-scale emergencies and will augment the tion, and training courses to address crime, terrorism, emergency medical response community. Medical and natural disaster risks. Reserve Corps volunteers can also playa productive role in meeting pressing but non-emergency public * Promote all Citizen Corps programs and activi- health needs of the community throughout the ties across the community. year. Additional information is available at * Capture innovative practices and report www.medicalreservecorps.gov. accomplishments that can be replicated in other There are also many other opportunities for communities nationwide. participating in Citizen Corps. There is a vast array of * Survey the community to assess increased educational and volunteer activities already underway awareness and Citizen Corps participation. across the country that focus on making communities safer, stronger, and better prepared. These activities Creating a new organization to start Citizen Corps is are also part of Citizen Corps. In addition, Citizen not required. If your community already has a strong Corps has an Affiliate Program to formally recognize team that brings together all sectors of your communi:- and collaborate with programs and organizations that ty, including first responders and volunteer groups,you offer communities resources for public education and may want to ask this group td'takeon the responsibility outreach, training and voluteer service to support of promoting Citizen Corps and to acknowledge this homeland security. group as affiliated with Citizen Corps. You are strongly encouraged to leverage existing resources and build on LOCAL GOVE.RJ':'lMENT IMPLEMENTATION current successful programs whenever possible. Citizen Corps is designed to be tailored to each BENEFITS TO THE COMMUNITY community and will be managed at the localle~el by Citizen Corps Councils, or a similar entity, Major disasters in a comm.unity can overload the ~uti.laLSummary-<CQntinu.e.d}. .- "'~,~~~..~....,.,~=~,~"~" capability of first responders, especially during the responsibilities. Successful models of such activity first 12 to 72 hours of the response. Having citizens exist throughout the country and are primed to be who are better prepared to take care of themselves taken nationwide. and others during times of crisis will allow first Citizen Corps will help citizens take a more active responders to focus their efforts on the most critical, life-threatening situations. role in crime prevention, risk reduction, and emergency preparedness. It will bring together all In addition, there are many tasks that a well- sectors of the community involved in first responder trained and organized group of volunteers could issues and will enable them to establish ongoing perform on an ongoing basis that would free up working relationships and to work together in sworn officers, licensed health professionals, and times of crisis. As a component of President Bush's professional firefighters so that they could focus call to service, Citizen Corps will also help build a more on immediate emergency response needs and community's sense of pride and cohesion. _ less on the routine or administrative aspects of their