COOP Plan Template for Non-Federal Governments

1. Getting Ready and Prepared

This addresses the activities that are essential in ensuring that the personnel continue undertaking essential functions.

2. Plan Activation

The section explains the process followed in activating a continuity plan and the person mandated to activate the plan. It also provides the guidance and procedures for the personnel to be left behind when others relocate to the continuity facility.

3. Continuity of Operations

The section addresses the primary activities after plan activation. It elaborates about the operational procedures for the continuation of essential functions.

4. Operations for Reconstitution

This is the plan for returning to normal operations. This is activated when the organizational successors determine that it is necessary to reconstitute operations to resume normal business (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2014).

5. Control and direction devolution

The planning for devolution must support the continuity of operations and address the spectrum of all threats and events that may render the leadership and other support staff unavailable or incapable of executing their services.

6. Procedure for devolving functions

This section elaborates on the instructions and procedures on how functions are to be devolved to the emergency relocation groups (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2014). It explains the details of the transfer of responsibility to the emergency specific emergency group.

COOP Plan for Baltimore County Government

The United States Constitution requires the federal agencies and states to develop a continuity plan to ensure that there is continuity in the performance of the essential functions at all times. With threats such as terror, it is significant to have a continuity plan. COOP planning helps an organization or state to have a contingency plan. It provides procedures for operating for 14 to 30 days after a disrupting event. While the Continuity of Government ensures that essential public functions are continually performed, the COOP ensures that first department or state functions continue to be performed (United States Accounting Office, 2011). This paper will cover the activation section of the continuity plan after the local government management system is unavailable due to a cyber attack. The county government networks and computer systems ensure that the local government functions efficiently. The system contains documents that facilitate the functioning of the different departments in the local government.

Decision Process Matrix

In times of a cyber attack on the systems, it is the mandate of the county executive to activate the COOP plan by signing the COOP plan activation document authorizing the personnel to shift to a continuity facility. If the county commissioner is incapable of activating the plan, then the designated successor is mandated to initiate the plan activation (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2013). The county has a contingency facility, which ensures that in the case of any cyber attack, or other disasters, functions are normally be delivered. The contingency facility has computer systems, which is connected to the original county system backup. This ensures that in cases of cyber attacks, information stored in the backup is available to the personnel in the contingency facility. The county commissioner should be informed about the threat environment always using the available means of communication. The commissioner will then evaluate the available information relating to the major concern areas and make an informed decision.

Alert and Notification Procedures

The county government of Baltimore has plans for communicating and procedure coordination during and after a continuity event. Once the cyber attack threat is identified, the county commissioner is notified of the emergency requiring the activation of the COOP plan. The successor rule is followed if the commissioner is incapable. The notification occurs through a secure phone call in case the system is compromised. Included in the notifications include the required response and the viability of the continuity site (Maryland Emergency Management Agency, n.d.). The employees are allowed to notify the family members and the next of kin about the continuity plan activation. Once the continuity plan is active, all the personnel, and all the affected entities are notified about the operational status, communication status, and relocation duration. Entities to receive notifications include all county departments, employees, subordinate organizations and any other entity that is affected by the threat.

Relocation plan

Once the COOP plan is activated and all personnel notified, it is time to relocate the continuity personnel and the vital records to the continuity facility. In times of cyber attacks, the continuity personnel relocated include all the personnel with administrative rights to the system and other significant personnel. These employees will be relocated to the continuity facility to continue undertaking the essential functions. If the emergency occurs during work hours, the personnel and the excellent team will immediately depart to the continuity facility and the remaining personnel will receive further instructions from the designated authority (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2016). If the emergency occurs during non-working hours, the continuity personnel are to the continuity facility using the available transportation immediately. The non-continuity personnel will remain at their residence awaiting instructions from the designated authority. The executive authority will then direct the non-continuity personnel to report to respective offices to handle the mitigation measures. The threat still needs elimination, and the necessary professionals and equipment to eliminate the threat are procured on emergency protocols.

References

Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2013). Continuity Assistance Tool | FEMA.gov. Fema.gov. Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/86286

Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2016). Guidance & Directives | FEMA.gov. Fema.gov. Retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/guidance-directives

Federal Emergency Management Agency. (2014). Non-Federal Continuity Plan Template | FEMA.gov. Fema.gov. from https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/90025

Maryland Emergency Management Agency. (n.d.) Continuity of Operations (COOP). Mema.maryland.gov. Retrieved from http://mema.maryland.gov/community/Pages/coop.aspx

United States, Accounting Office. (2011). Continuity of Operations: Improved Planning Needed to Ensure Delivery of Essential Government Services. General Books LLC.

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