Texas Emergency Management

Texas' Emergency Management offices are located in the 22,000 square-foot Emergency Operations Center (EOC) complex three stories beneath the Department of Public Safety headquarters building in Austin, Texas.

DEM is divided into two bureaus -- Preparedness and Response, and Recovery and Mitigation. An Assistant State Coordinator heads each of these bureaus. A Public Information Office and Field Operations Office are also maintained and operated.

The PREPAREDNESS SECTION is responsible for the Division of Emergency Management's planning, training, and exercise activities

The PLANS UNIT is responsible for all-hazard, comprehensive emergency management planning.

The Plans Group of this unit is responsible for:

State level planning, including developing and maintaining the State of Texas Emergency Management Plan and other specialized emergency plans and procedures, and assisting state agencies which compose state emergency support functions in preparing annexes to the state plan.

Preparing planning guidance and establishing planning standards for local government emergency management plans and providing planning assistance to local governments.

Developing and administering a variety of agreements and compacts relating to emergency management with the federal government, interstate cooperative groups, other states, and volunteer groups.

The Technological Hazards Planning Group of this unit coordinates Division activities related to hazards posed by man-made hazards, including hazardous materials, nuclear facilities, the transportation of nuclear materials, and energy emergencies. It works closely with local governments and state and federal agencies in planning, training, and exercise activities designed to enhance preparedness to respond to incidents at the State's two nuclear power plants and the US Department of Energy's Pantex nuclear weapons assembly/disassembly plant in Carson County. Pursuant to contracts with the Southern States Energy Board and the US Department of Energy, Division planners are providing planning, training, and exercise assistance to local governments along the planned DOE transuranic waste shipment route through Texas; the Division staff will continuously monitor such shipments from the State Emergency Operating Center.

The TRAINING & EXERCISE UNIT administers emergency management education programs for local and state officials. The unit provides a two-fold service of academic instruction and exercises.

The Training Group conducts a wide array of emergency management training courses to enhance the skills of emergency managers, first responders, and local officials. It promotes continued professional development.

The Exercise Group provides assistance to local governments in designing, conducting, and evaluating emergency exercises and also develops, conducts, and evaluates state-level emergency exercises. Exercises provide realistic emergency management experience to complement classroom instruction and serve as a vehicle to evaluate training and identify strengths and weaknesses in planning.

The Hazardous Materials Training Group manages grant-funded hazardous materials training courses for local responders and also oversees hazardous materials planning grants to local jurisdictions

The ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT UNIT is responsible for providing administrative support for emergency preparedness programs, preparing preparedness publications and reports, and maintaining a number of Division databases which track the status of state and local planning.