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Marion County adopts 2025–2030 Emergency Operations Plan; officials flag cybersecurity and intergovernmental coordination
Summary
The board adopted an updated county Emergency Operations Plan covering 2025–2030 to keep federal grant eligibility and modernize response priorities; emergency management said the update incorporates community lifelines and will remain an evergreen document updated as needed.
The Marion County Board of Commissioners on June 25 adopted the county’s Emergency Operations Plan for 2025–2030 to maintain eligibility for federal disaster grants and to modernize the county’s approach to community lifelines and threat assessments.
Greg Walsh of Marion County Emergency Management said the plan update is required to meet ORS 401 requirements and to retain eligibility for FEMA and other state and federal assistance following disasters. Walsh said the plan incorporates “community lifelines” and that the county intends the document to be evergreen, with ongoing updates as new information and best practices emerge.
Commissioners pressed Walsh on prioritization because many hazards were rated “high.” Walsh said the plan includes a THIRA (Threat and Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment) and that the county prioritizes risks by a combination of impact and frequency — for example, Cascadia-related catastrophic earthquake scenarios are treated as highest-impact even if lower probability, while more frequent hazards such as flooding and wildfire also receive substantial planning attention. Walsh said county staff plan to elevate cybersecurity and develop a tailored IT/cyber disaster response plan in coordination with the county IT department.
Walsh described the stakeholder process: internal county departments (sheriff’s office, health and human services, public works), neighboring counties (Linn County, others), state partners, the Red Cross and nonprofit partners were engaged; the county also shares the plan with cities and offers to assist cities with their plan updates. Commissioners asked staff to ensure that smaller cities outside Salem have opportunity for direct input; Walsh agreed to follow up with additional outreach to cities.
The board approved an order to adopt the 2025–2030 Emergency Operations Plan by voice vote.
