Office of the Secretary 

Office of State and Local 

Government Coordination & 

Preparedness 

Washington, DC 20531 

ODP Information Bulletin 

No. 189 September 12, 2005 

TO All State Administrative Agency Heads 

 All State Administrative Agency Points of Contact 

 All State Homeland Security Directors 

 All Urban Area Core City/Core County Points of Contact 

FROM: Matt A. Mayer 

Acting Executive Director 

SUBJECT: Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness 

On July 21, 2005, Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Michael Jackson and the 

Department’s Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Daniel Sutherland, marked the first 

anniversary of President Bush’s Executive Order on Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency 

Preparedness by releasing a Report to the President and announcing the completion of several 

major initiatives that will better integrate people with disabilities into the national preparedness 

effort. 

The Executive Order signed in July 2004 created an Interagency Coordinating Council to ensure 

that progress is made to overcome the complex challenges people with disabilities face in times 

of emergency. 

The report documents the significant progress federal agencies have made to better prepare the 

disability community and raise awareness of these issues among emergency management 

officials. The report also includes eight recommendations that represent coordination-based 

solutions that the Council believes will better integrate people with disabilities into the nation’s 

disaster and emergency mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery efforts. The report can 

be found at www.dhs.gov/disabilitypreparedness. 

In addition, the Council made several major announcements in this area, including: 

• Launch of the “Disability and Emergency Preparedness Resource Center,” a Web-based portal for 

information covering topics on emergency preparedness and response for individuals with 

disabilities. This Resource Center will provide people with disabilities easy access to critical 

emergency preparedness and planning resources. Additionally, it will aid emergency managers 

and planners seeking information pertaining to their planning and response efforts related to 

people with disabilities. This Resource Center was developed by a working group chaired by the 

Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, and can be found at 

www.dhs.gov/disabilitypreparedness. 
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• Release of the “Workplace Emergency Preparedness Guidelines,” a tool for Federal emergency 

planners, managers and employees that captures effective practices and lessons learned by 

departments and agencies. These Guidelines were developed by a working group chaired by the 

Department of Labor and can be found at www.dol.gov/odep/. 

• Launch of a new Web site containing information to help ensure safe and secure transportation 

for persons with disabilities in the event of disaster or emergency. This web site was developed 

by a working group chaired by the Department of Transportation and can be found at 

www.dotcr.ost.dot.gov/asp/emergencyprep.asp. 

At the Council meeting, Deputy Secretary Jackson stated, “Last July, President Bush recognized 

that integrating the special needs and talents of people with disabilities into the emergency 

preparedness effort must be a national priority. This Council has obviously made tremendous 

progress in translating this commitment into reality,” he stated. “The Department of Homeland 

Security is committed to this work. We will continue to work with this Council to significantly 

increase the level of preparedness among the disability community, and increase the level of 

awareness of these issues among emergency management officials and first responders.” 

The Council’s meeting can be viewed as an archived webcast at http://www.AT508.com.