Whole-of-the-Community Engagement Committee Organization Chart

MARCER

Mid-America Regional Council Emergency Rescue Committee

The Mid-America Regional Council Emergency Rescue Committee, commonly known as MARCER, promotes regional coordination and cooperation in emergency pre-hospital care for metropolitan Kansas City. MARCER is composed of professionals in the emergency medical services (EMS) community. Members include state-licensed emergency ambulance services and other EMS providers, as well as representatives from area hospitals, emergency room nurse managers, the Heart of America Metro Fire Chiefs Council and Kansas and Missouri Hospital Associations.

Role:

• Find solutions to common problems to ensure the highest quality of pre-hospital care throughout the region.
• Influence decisions impacting the EMS profession.
• Track and influence state legislation.
• Maximize local and regional pre-hospital EMS resources through such means as cooperative purchasing.
• Coordinate communications between EMS personnel and hospitals through the Kansas City area Med Channel system and an internet-based EMSystem.
• Research “technology options” for improvements to pre-hospital care.
• Ensure that local agencies are prepared to respond to multi-casualty incidents and those involving weapons of mass destruction.

Leadership:

Chair: Jamie Miller, Leavenworth, Kansas Emergency Medical Services

Vice Chair: Chip Portz, Central Jackson County Fire Protection District

MEMC

Metropolitan Emergency Managers Committee

The Metropolitan Emergency Managers Committee serves as a forum for local emergency managers to discuss and resolve regional issues, problems, projects and activities related to all-hazards emergency management. The MEMC's mission is to foster coordination, communication and cooperation among local emergency management and allied organizations through the development of policies, procedures, educational programs and resource materials related to all-hazards emergency management.

Leadership:

Chair: Dante Glineicki, Emergency Manager, City of Independence

Vice Chair: Matt Epperson, Emergency Services Chief, Shawnee Fire Department

Hospital Committee

The RHSCC Hospital Committee brings hospitals from across the MARC region together to coordinate planning, training and exercises — within and among hospitals, as well as with other organizations.

Leadership:

Co-Chair: Steve Hoeger, Truman Medical Center

Co-Chair: Eli Thompson, Overland Park Regional Medical Center

KCAMSC

Kansas City Area Maritime Security Committee

The Area Maritime Security Committee (AMSC) provides a forum for port stakeholders to work together in facilitating the Coast Guard’s ports, waterways, and coastal security (PWCS) mission to deter, detect, prevent and respond to attacks against U.S. territory, population and critical maritime infrastructure and to oversee the development and implementation of the Area Maritime Security Plan (AMSP) and Area Maritime Security Assessment.

Leadership:

Chair: Matt May, Emergency Management Director, Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas

Vice Chair: Will Akin, Captain, Clay County Sheriff’s Office

LEPC

Mid-America Local Emergency Planning Committee

This regional public-private partnership focuses on reducing the risks and increasing capabilties to respons to emergency events involving hazardous materials. Utility companies, transportation companies, and companies using hazardous materials in their operations participate in the LEPC.

Leadership:

Chair: Pete Knudsen, Battalion Chief - HazMat Division, City of Kansas City, Missouri, Fire Department

Vice Chair: James Zeeb Training Chief Kansas City Kansas Fire Department

Second Vice Chair: Scott Munk, Bayer Crop Science

PSC Board

Public Safety Communications Regional 911 System

This board consists of agency administrators and elected officials from local governments throughout the region and is primarily responsible for executive level policy guidance and oversight for the regional 911 and interoperable communications systems. The overriding purpose of the board is to ensure these systems are a high quality; reliable method of interoperable communications available to all regional public safety personnel. It is the responsibility of the board to ensure that the 911 and regional communications systems meet the needs of and are financed equitably among participants.

The board is charged with administering the 911 Interlocal Cooperation Agreement, monitoring and auditing expenditures for 911 and public safety communication services, approving the annual budget for 9-1-1 and public safety communications systems, monitoring technical operation of the regional systems to include the network design and performance, selective routing and database management, and ensuring the effective operation of the Regional 9-1-1 System. Membership classifications for the board are set by the committee by-laws.

Leadership:

Co-Chair: Mark Owen, Platte County Sheriff

Co-Chair: Maury Thompson, Deputy County Manager, Johnson County

HOAFC

Heart of America Fire Chiefs

The Heart of America Fire Chiefs Association (HOA) represents fire agencies that serve nearly two million residents in an eight county, bistate metropolitan area. A major subunit of the Missouri Valley Division of the International Association of Fire Chiefs, its membership represents chief officers from agencies ranging from rural volunteer departments to the largest and most active metro and suburban departments in the Midwest. The HOA’s role in the region is to enhance fire and emergency protection with emphasis on: education, training, safety, mutual aid, communication, legislation, administration and other fire service concerns of the region. The HOA regularly sponsors training programs and regional courses for its member organizations and has been the catalyst for many innovative community initiatives.

Leadership:

President: Fire Chief Dave Williams Leawood, KS Fire Department

Vice President: Fire Chief Michael Snider Liberty, MO Fire Department

Secretary Treasurer: Fire Chief Jeff DeGraffenreid Olathe, KS Fire Department

APWA

American Public Works Association - KC Metro Chapter

Description

Role

Leadership:
Chair: Placeholder

Vice Chair: Placeholder

RAPIO

Regional Association of Public Information Officers

The Regional Association of Public Information Officers (RAPIO) was formed in 2000 to give area PIOs an opportunity to share information, work cooperatively on regional issues and network with their peers.

Leadership:

Co-Chair: Libby Hastert, North Kansas City Hospital

Co-Chair: Kelly Fry, WaterOne

MOHACKA

Metropolitan Official Health Agencies of the Kansas City Area

MOHAKCA is an organization created to promote public health at the regional level by coordinating, strengthening and increasing the effectiveness of local city and county health agencies.

Leadership:

Chair: Amanda Prough, Cass County Health Department Director, Chair

Vice Chair: Bridget Shaffer, Jackson County Health Department Director

CHIEFS & SHERIFFS

Metro Police Chiefs and Sheriffs Association

The Metropolitan Police Chiefs and Sheriffs Association is a voluntary association made up of active Law Enforcement associates and lifetime members who are bound by the ideas to support and exchange information in aiding and assisting law enforcement and crime prevention more effectively on a metropolitan basis. Further, to cooperate with all persons, who are engaged in the prevention of crime, as well as those who are engaged in the apprehension, detention and treatment of persons who commit acts hostile to society in general. Finally, through cooperation and coordination of agencies and individuals, to build individual character for a more perfect respect for law and order in every community.

Leadership:

President: Chief Travis Forbes, Lee’s Summit Police Department

Vice President: Chief Tim Schwartzkopt, Prairie Village Police Department

RHSCC

Regional Homeland Security Coordinating Committee

The Regional Homeland Security Coordinating Committee (RHSCC) provides leadership to the region’s efforts to enhance capabilities to prevent, protect, respond to and recover from a broad range of threats and hazards, including terrorism, by strengthening relationships between jurisdictions and across disciplines; outlining protocols for regional action; maximizing the sharing and coordination of resources; and enhancing the capabilities of first responders/receivers through equipment, training and exercise investments; and improving surveillance, early detection and mitigation of hazards and threats.

The RHSCC operates as a policy committee of the MARC Board of Directors and oversees regional emergency preparedness and homeland security grant funds. Its members — elected and appointed leaders from the nine counties in the MARC region — oversee the financial and programmatic aspects of the grants.

This structure provides strong board leadership with its working subcommittees and long-standing partner committees charged with helping direct work to accomplish specific strategy plan goals, and to ensure that other homeland security grant opportunities are known and leveraged, and that deliverables not specifically outlined in the strategy plan are met.

Current work plan priorities include:

• Sustain multi-disciplined regional collaborative efforts to share information, minimize duplication and maximize resource sharing.
• Identify and secure new grants and determine use of new resources.
• Develop strategies for maintaining strong regional response systems with reduced federal support.
• Strengthen public-private partnerships in the region.
• Communicate with one regional voice to state and federal officials about the region’s needs and positions on legislative, regulatory and funding issues.

Leadership:

Co-Chair: Bill Ebel, City Manager, Overland Park, Kansas

Co-Chair: Stephen Arbo, City Manager, Lee’s Summit, Missouri

HCC

MARC Health Care Coalition

The mission of MARC-HCC is to prepare and coordinate health and medical response and recovery to the threats and hazards the region faces to help patients during emergencies receive the care they need; decrease deaths, injuries, and illnesses resulting from emergencies; and promote health care delivery system resilience.

This will be done through a cooperative strategic and operational annual assessment and planning process, identifying regional health care threats, gaps, and vulnerabilities that could impede delivery of healthcare, establishing collaborative and integrated mitigation strategies, and implementing those strategies through coordinated integrated planning and training, information and resource sharing, and exercising plans, systems and processes.

CCTA

Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attack Task Force

In July 2017, the Mid-America Regional Council received $2.25 million grant to help the region prepare for CCTAs — complex, coordinated terrorist attacks that occur at multiple locations in quick succession. MARC applied for the grant on behalf of the Regional Homeland Security Coordinating Committee (RHSCC) and local governments in the region. Working through its established whole-of-community committee structure, the RHSCC will lead the CCTA project over the next three years.

Vision:
Through a proactive, cooperative community effort, relationships and systems needed to prevent and respond to CCTAs are in place across the region. Synchronized and well-practiced plans are in place, and the region is ready to mobilize resources to interdict threats and conduct operations to minimize loss of life and meet the needs of survivors.

Project Goals:

• Increase CCTA response proficiency within specific disciplines while improving prevention and response planning and information sharing across disciplines and jurisdictions.
• Increase coordination and interoperability among all audiences and improve the ability to respond to a CCTA through joint training and exercises.
• Expedite operational coordination through improved situational awareness and faster recognition of CCTA events.
• Increase community awareness of activities and locations vulnerable to CCTAs, helping both community partner organizations and individuals be better prepared.
• Build the capacity to manage public information in high-stress, dynamic and evolving situations to help protect victims, responders and the public.
• Meet the information and assistance needs of survivors, victims, witnesses, families and affected agencies by pre-planning with community agencies.

Leadership:
Co-Chair: Curt Wenson, City Administrator, Liberty, Missouri

Co-Chair: Maury Thompson, Assistant County Manager, Johnson County, Kansas