Commissioners decline to place Emergency Management Association under direct county control; authorize prosecutor review of EMA records

Butler County commissioners on Sept. 30 decided not to proceed with a proposal to withdraw from the countywide Emergency Management Association and place emergency management under direct commissioner control, following extensive public comment from first responders and a consultant's presentation.

At issue was whether the EMA, an independent association of the county and political subdivisions, should be replaced by a county emergency management program overseen directly by the commissioners under Ohio law. Envision Group LLC, a consultant hired by the county, presented a short report that recommended placing the agency under county governance. The consultant described EMA's role as logistics and coordination rather than incident command and provided an organizational chart that placed emergency management under the commissioners.

Multiple fire chiefs, technical‑rescue leaders and incident management personnel urged the board to retain the existing EMA structure. Captain Joel Coomer, in written comments relayed at the meeting, called Butler County's EMA "one of the strongest programs in the state" and warned that placing EMA under political control would jeopardize the agency's impartiality. Several speakers stressed EMA's role in coordinating hazmat and technical‑rescue teams that respond within and beyond county lines.

After deliberation, a motion regarding the governance change was put to a roll‑call vote and recorded as: Commissioner Carpenter — no; Commissioner Rogers — no; Commissioner Dixon — yes. The motion failed, leaving the current EMA structure in place.

Separately, the county's prosecuting attorney read a prepared assessment into the record that identified concerns such as participation gaps with the sheriff's office, recordkeeping and fee‑setting. The prosecutor asked for direction to work with the EMA to update participation agreements, document inventories of assets and grants, and codify protocols; commissioners consented and additionally requested involvement from the county auditor and the state auditor as appropriate.

Commissioner Rogers said he intends to work with EMA stakeholders to address cooperation and oversight concerns; prosecutors' office staff will proceed with a document review and report back to commissioners. The meeting produced no immediate governance change; commissioners said the next step is a compliance and records review coordinated by the prosecutor, with auditing support if needed.