Rockwall County emergency management urges maintaining staff, highlights grant revenue and training costs

Emergency Management Director Jared Rossen told the Rockwall County Commissioners Court on June 11 that the county’s emergency management office has moved from a “reactionary” posture to a proactive one and asked the court not to reduce his office’s budget, saying that cuts would risk the efficiencies the team has created.

Rossen said the office now provides emergency messaging to roughly 53,000 residents and participates regularly in exercises and mutual-aid activations. He told the court that in the past year the office’s direct cost to county residents was about $330,000 while the department brought in roughly $668,000 in grant funding and opportunities for the county, producing what he described as a net positive of approximately $338,000.

The request comes as staff outlined recurring and one-time items the office oversees: updating a 177-page hazard mitigation action plan required for many grants, chairing the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC), overseeing the county ambulance contract and its performance metrics, administering multiple grants, and operating the county’s Nixle/Everbridge emergency alert feed. Rossen said his daily work varies but this year has focused on getting the hazard mitigation action plan approved by the state and FEMA.

Why it matters: Rossen and staff framed emergency management as both a public-safety function and a revenue-generator for Rockwall County because of successful grant applications. The office’s role in preparing the county for disasters affects grant eligibility for multiple departments and influences the county’s ability to operate during and after incidents.

Key details and debate

• Staffing and pay: Rossen said his office can accomplish its work because of trained staff. He described a staffing structure including an emergency management specialist, Lloyd (first name only in the transcript), who Rossen said has an extensive background in administration and emergency management courses, and a deputy who is leaving for a city manager role. Rossen asked that the court not reduce the office’s budget “so that we lose the efficiency that we have worked so hard to achieve.”

• Grants and projects: Staff described several grant-funded projects under development or award review, including a solar surveillance trailer, generators for critical facilities with a potential contract value over $1 million (processing through Texas Division of Emergency Management and FEMA), and other grants such as City Readiness Initiative (CRI) funds. The court was told the LEPC grant contract was approved by the court the day before the presentation.

• Hazard mitigation plan: Rossen said the county’s hazard mitigation action plan — roughly 177 pages — had been revised and passed TDEM review and would go next to FEMA for final review, a step cited as important for many county and city grant eligibilities.

• Nixle/Everbridge alerts and public outreach: Rossen said the county’s alert service rebroadcasts National Weather Service watches and warnings (with watches rebroadcast during daytime hours and warnings 24/7) and that staff exercise discretion for other messages. He told the court that the county’s subscriber rate to the alert system is high (he stated an opt-in around 40% compared with an industry expectation nearer 20%), and he gave an example of mobilizing 2,000 people for a COVID testing event via the system.

• Training and exercises: The travel and training line item — explained as the fund used to hold the office’s full-scale exercise and to reimburse departments for staff time to allow broad participation — was listed in the proposed budget at about $20,812 (several discussion participants noted the CRI fund covers some items and that budget book line placement can differ by fund). Rossen and others emphasized that full-scale exercises have produced equipment, training benefits and after-action reviews used to improve performance.

• Other responsibilities: Rossen and staff noted they administer the ambulance contract and respond to resident complaints about EMS performance; they also conduct outreach when residents search for health department information and get routed to emergency management.

Court questions and clarifications

Commissioners and staff asked a series of clarifying questions about grant lifecycles (Rossen said CRI is the only recurring grant; most others are one-time awards), the office’s three vehicles (Rossen said they have three), the single administrative position in the office (Rossen said there is not a separate administrative assistant), and a capital outlay request of about $6,000 for desks and chairs tied to the office’s relocation into renovated space in the sheriff’s office building (Rossen asked the court to consider the request but was told FF&E for the remodel may cover those costs if approved at a future session).

County staff and the judge highlighted that the county’s relationship with the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) is new and still evolving; Rossen cautioned that county staff should not expect a state liaison to perform county work and that role’s responsibilities are still being defined.

Ending

Rossen closed by reiterating the office’s request that the court not cut the emergency management budget, emphasizing the return on investment from grant-seeking and the operational value of exercises. The court recessed for a short break after the presentation and several commissioners praised the office’s work.

Direct quotes (selected)

• "Do not reduce our budget so that we lose the efficiency that we have worked so hard to achieve." — Jared Rossen, Emergency Management Director.

• "Our office provides emergency messaging to 53,000 citizens." — Jared Rossen.

• "The benefit of this plan is it is a requirement for the county to have an approved plan as well as all of our cities for a lot of grant funding." — Jared Rossen.

Speakers

- Jared Rossen — Emergency Management Director (government). First referenced 00:36–00:72 (transcript block starting at 36.91). - Lloyd — Emergency Management Specialist / Safety Officer (government). First referenced 09:55–10:20 (transcript block starting at 569.94). - Lisa — County staff (auditor/budget/administrative) (government). First referenced 07:45–08:10 (transcript block where grants and reporting are discussed). - Judge New — County Judge (government). First referenced 02:10–02:40 (judge-led questioning throughout). - Alan — Commissioner or county official (role not explicitly stated in transcript) (government). First referenced 08:40–08:55 (transcript block at which LEPC and grants were discussed).

Authorities

- grant — "City Readiness Initiative (CRI)" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"] - other — "Rockwall County Hazard Mitigation Action Plan (county plan)" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"] - grant — "Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) grant/contract" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"] - other — "Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM)" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"] - other — "Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"] - other — "Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Region 2/3" referenced_by: ["emergency management presentation"]

Actions

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Discussion_decision

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