Board retires Emergency Preparedness Council; staff directed to report back on community engagement in 3–6 months

Clackamas County commissioners voted April 8 to retire the county’s Emergency Preparedness Council (EPC) and directed staff to return in three to six months with plans for how the county will continue community engagement and channel volunteer expertise into preparedness and response work.

Daniel Nybauer, director of Disaster Management, presented staff’s recommendation to retire the EPC. The council had formed after the 2020 wildfires and the 2021 winter storm in response to increased community interest in emergency planning and response. Nybauer said the EPC began with 15 voting members and several ex‑officio participants, but the group struggled with quorum, committee workload and some recommendations that staff found misaligned with national emergency‑management best practices.

"The EPC has provided a new pathway for community engagement," Nybauer said, but added that disaster management has strengthened other engagement channels in recent years and that some EPC proposals exceeded the advisory role the county needs. He recommended retirement of the council and proposed that staff incorporate volunteers into existing volunteer networks and voluntary organizations active in disasters.

Commissioners expressed concerns about retaining community expertise and ensuring volunteer programs such as CERT remain viable. Commissioner Ben Savas asked how staff planned to redeploy the council’s volunteer base and noted community concern that CERT activity had waned after local fire districts changed sponsorship. Nybauer and staff said many EPC participants have been connected to community-based organizations (CBOs) or already participate in voluntary organizations active in disasters; staff proposed directing volunteers to those organizations and to the county’s existing public‑involvement forums, including the Committee for Community Involvement (CCI).

After discussion, Commissioner Martha Schrader moved to retire the EPC and to direct staff to come back in three to six months with a report describing how community engagement and volunteer coordination will be handled going forward. Commissioner Savas seconded; the roll-call vote was unanimous (4–0) in favor of retirement. The board noted the county will preserve after‑action learning from the 2020–21 incidents and that disaster management will continue to meet with cities and community groups on preparedness planning.

Ending: The board’s action retires the EPC as an advisory body. Staff will return with a plan to maintain community engagement and volunteer coordination for preparedness work within three to six months.