Trained individuals can be recruited to  participate on neighborhood, business, or government teams to assist first  responders. FEMA Faces Challenges Measuring the Performance of Its Community Preparedness Efforts and the Ready Campaign

FEMA faces challenges in measuring the performance of local community  preparedness efforts because it lacks accurate information on those  efforts. FEMA is also confronted with challenges in measuring  performance for the Ready Campaign because the Ready Campaign is not  positioned to control the placement of its preparedness messages or  measure whether its message is changing the behavior of individuals. In our past work we reported on the importance of ensuring that  program data are of sufficient quality to document performance and  support decision making. FEMA programs report the number of local  units registered nationwide as a principal performance measure, but  FEMA does not verify that the registration data for Citizen Corps Councils,  CERT, or Fire Corps volunteer organizations are accurate. However, of the 17  organizations registered as councils that we contacted during our site  visits, 12 were active and 5 were not active as councils. Therefore, FEMA does not have reasonable assurance  that its data about the number of registrations for local Citizen Corps  programs are accurate, which may affect its ability to measure the results  of those programs. By developing an approach to ensure the accuracy of  local Citizen Corps program data, FEMA managers and others would be  better positioned to understand why Citizen Corps programs that no  longer exist were disbanded, possible strategies for reconstituting or  creating new programs, and a foundation for developing outcome  measures that gauge whether local programs are achieving goals  associated with enhancing community preparedness. With regard to the Ready Campaign’s ability to control the distribution of  its message, our past work has shown that it is important for agencies to  measure their performance based on clear and reliable data that are linked  to program goals, but also recognizes that agencies whose programs rely  on others to deliver services, like the Ready Campaign, may need to use  substitute measures—such as counts of Web site hits and the number of  television announcements—which are not linked to outcomes. FEMA Has Not Developed a Strategy Encompassing How Citizen Corps, Its Partner Programs, and the Ready Campaign Are to Operate within the Context of the National Preparedness System

While DHS’s and FEMA’s strategic plans have incorporated efforts to  promote community preparedness, FEMA has not developed a strategy  encompassing how Citizen Corps, its partner programs, and the Ready  Campaign are to operate within the context of the National Preparedness  System. NPD’s operating plan and  spreadsheet also did not include other key elements of an effective  national strategy, such as how NPD will measure progress in meeting  defined goals and objectives and the potential costs and types of  investments needed to implement community preparedness programs. The FEMA official leading the development of the NPD strategic plan told  us that NPD had begun to develop a strategic plan, but it had not  developed a timeline with milestone dates for completing it because NPD  is waiting to coordinate the plan’s development with the revision of HSPD- 8 and the Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. They also would provide FEMA managers  and other decision makers with insights into (1) NPD’s overall progress in  completing these strategies, (2) a basis for determining what, if any,  additional actions need to be taken, and (3) the extent to which these  strategies can be used as building blocks for the national preparedness  strategy and FEMA’s strategic approach. The majority of those responding to the surveys said they plan  to rely on assistance from first responders during a major disaster. This would also provide  FEMA managers the basis for exploring (1) why programs that no longer  exist were disbanded, and (2) possible strategies for reconstituting local  programs or developing new ones. Recommendations for Executive Action

To better ensure that national community preparedness efforts are  effective and completed in a timely fashion, we recommend that the  Administrator of FEMA take the following two actions:   examine the feasibility of developing various approaches for ensuring the  accuracy of registration data of local Citizen Corps Councils and partner  programs, and    develop plans including timelines and milestone dates for completing and  implementing (1) NPD’s strategic plan and (2) its Community  Preparedness Strategic Approach, including details on how Citizen Corps,  partner programs, and the Ready Campaign are to operate within the  context of the National Preparedness System.
Why GAO Did This Study

Individuals can reduce their need for first responder assistance by preparing for a disaster. By law, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is to develop a National Preparedness System (NPS) that includes community preparedness programs. These programs account for less than 0.5 percent of FEMA's budget. They include the Citizen Corps Program (CCP) and partner programs, e.g., Fire Corps, which provide volunteers to assist first responders. FEMA's Ready Campaign promotes preparedness through mass media. GAO was asked to review federal efforts to promote community preparedness. GAO was asked to address (1) challenges, if any, FEMA faces in measuring the performance of CCP, its partner programs, and the Ready Campaign, and (2) actions, if any, FEMA has taken to develop a strategy to encompass how these programs are to operate within the context of the NPS. GAO analyzed documents on preparedness plans and strategies and compared reported performance data with observations during 12 site visits, selected primarily on the basis of major disasters. While not projectable, the results add insight.

What GAO Found

FEMA faces challenges measuring performance for CCP, its partner programs, and the Ready Campaign because (1) it relies on states to verify data for local program units and (2) it is unable to control the distribution of the Ready Campaign messages or measure whether the messages are changing the behavior of individuals. GAO's past work showed the importance of ensuring that program data are of sufficient quality to document performance and support decision making. FEMA includes the number of local volunteer organizations registered nationwide as its principal performance measure for community preparedness, but does not verify that registration data are accurate. For example, 5 of the 17 registered Citizen Corps councils GAO contacted were not active as councils. FEMA relies on state officials to verify the accuracy of the data, and does not have staff or processes for this purpose. FEMA officials agreed that the data are inaccurate, and have plans to improve the registration process, but this process is not designed to ensure accurate data because states will continue to be responsible for verifying the accuracy of data. FEMA counts requests for literature, Web site hits, and the number of television and radio announcements made to gauge performance of the Ready Campaign, but it does not control when information is accessed or viewed. Also, changes in behavior can be the result of a variety of factors, including campaigns sponsored by other organizations. GAO's past work stated that agencies should measure performance based on accurate, clear, and reliable data that are clearly linked to program goals, but also recognized that programs like the Ready Campaign may need to rely on substitute measures that it uses such as Web site hits. GAO recognizes that FEMA is challenged measuring the performance of CCP, partner programs, and the Ready Campaign, but examining the feasibility of approaches to verify data on CCP and its partner programs could position FEMA to begin to (1) explore why programs that no longer exist were disbanded and (2) develop possible strategies for reconstituting local programs or developing new ones. FEMA's challenges in measuring the performance of community preparedness programs are compounded because it has not developed a strategy to show how its community preparedness programs and the Ready Campaign are to operate within the context of the NPS. In April and October 2009, GAO reported that FEMA's National Preparedness Directorate (NPD), responsible for community preparedness, had not developed a strategic plan; rather it used an operating plan, which lacked key elements of an effective national strategy, such as how to gauge progress. GAO recommended that NPD develop a strategic plan that contains these key elements. FEMA agreed and reported that it is taking actions to strengthen strategic planning. While officials said an NPD strategic plan and a community preparedness strategy are being developed, NPD has not developed timelines with milestone dates for completing these strategies. By doing so, consistent with standard management practices for implementing programs, FEMA would be better positioned to show progress and provide insights into how these plans can be used as building blocks for the national preparedness strategy.