Deschutes County authorizes application for federal Emergency Management Performance Grant

The Deschutes County Board of Commissioners voted to authorize the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office to apply for and accept, if awarded, an Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) to support the county's emergency management program.

The vote followed a presentation by Nathan (former emergency manager), who said the EMPG "funds personnel time, to do emergency management work in Deschutes County." He told the board that the county plans to use the funds to update the emergency operations plan, begin a hazard mitigation plan update and refresh operational guides, and to support alerting and work for people with access and functional needs.

The move came amid discussion of broader federal funding uncertainty. Commissioner Chang urged county staff to track developments at the federal level and said she wanted the county to be prepared should FEMA's funding mechanisms or structure change. Nathan told commissioners the county is required to have an emergency management program under state law (referenced in the hearing as "ORS 4 0 1") and that counties are already talking with the state legislature and associations about future program structure and funding.

Ben (incoming emergency manager) described recent local events, saying of the summer's Flat Fire: "It really came together to be largely as successful as that was. It was really unfortunate. We lost some homes there. But, I think it could have really been a lot significantly worse." Ben said the event highlighted the value of preplanning and fuels-reduction work.

Commissioner Chang moved to authorize the application; the motion was seconded and carried. The record shows Commissioner Chang and the chair voted yes; Commissioner Dares was absent. The board did not specify exact grant amounts in the public record at the meeting.

County staff said the EMPG is federal pass-through funding administered by the state, and that the state must accept terms before funding is final. Nathan said staff had been directed to submit an application assuming the county will receive the funds, but that continued federal and state-level uncertainty could affect final acceptance.

The board asked staff to track federal discussions about FEMA and to coordinate with regional partners and the county's legislative contacts, including the Association of Oregon Counties and the Oregon State Sheriffs Association, to communicate the county's priorities and concerns.

The authorization allows the sheriff's office to accept the award if the county is selected; the board did not adopt any additional conditions at the meeting.

Looking ahead, commissioners directed staff to continue monitoring federal policy and to report back with updates as requested.