A council member who attended a series of disaster‑preparedness webinars summarized key takeaways and urged the council to review local readiness and documentation practices. The briefing emphasized the importance of pre‑identified contacts, asset inventories, preapproved permits for debris staging and careful tracking of hours, mileage and equipment to preserve eligibility for FEMA public assistance funding.

Why it matters: the presenter said small cities can be deprioritized for aid if they are not integrated into county planning and lack accurate, contemporaneous records of response activity. The presenter urged the council to confirm chain‑of‑command contact information, to pre‑register assets where possible, and to train staff on tracking protocols that FEMA requires for reimbursement.

Details and follow‑up: staff confirmed the city has an intergovernmental agreement with Walton County for emergency assistance and identified Carl Morrow as the county official in charge of disaster preparedness and the city’s point of contact for FEMA coordination. Staff said public‑works managers already check generators and equipment ahead of storms and the city has used county assistance in prior storms. The council member who attended the webinars said FEMA requires detailed tracking of every response action (hours, equipment, contractor use, disposal locations) to obtain reimbursement; staff and the council agreed to invite Carl Morrow to a future work session to review the city’s IGA and preparedness responsibilities.

Outcome: council asked staff to schedule a workshop with the county emergency director before year‑end to review the IGA, preapproval options and recordkeeping requirements so the city can better position itself for assistance and reimbursement during a disaster.