continuity of government at risk with shut down

I always tell people that there are “other missions” that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has beyond natural disasters. One of the big ones is “Continuity of Government (COG)” and “Continuity of Operations (COOP). Both of which focus on continuing the functions of government in a crisis. Likely in the lead-up to the State of the Union address, there will be an announcement of the “Designated Survivor” who is a senior person who will not be present at that event to ensure that the COG portion of leadership continues should there be some form of attack that takes out the entire leadership of the government. The TV series Designated Survivor  was all about this hypothetical situation.

The article below calls out the fact that funding for this mission is one that has funding cut due to the existing government shutdown for the Department of Homeland Security.

I’m sure “all is well” and we have “nothing to worry about” but then I also know that sometimes, “For want of a nail the shoe was lost, for want of shoe the horse was lost and for want of a horse the rider was lost.” Small things sometimes have big impacts!

From the Washington Post

FEMA national security functions ‘significantly constrained’ during shutdown, email warns

One of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s most critical but lesser-known functions — keeping the government running during a national emergency — is “significantly constrained” amid the partial government shutdown, according to an email sent to the agency’s leader and four people with knowledge of the situation.

The email was sent Sunday to interim FEMA leader Karen Evans as the Office of National Continuity Programs prepares for President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday. FEMA is integral in making sure all federal agencies and departments can still function and respond if a major emergency occurs while many of the country’s leaders are at the Capitol for the event.

“If a national emergency were to occur during a lapse in appropriations, the nation’s continuity posture would be at a heightened risk,” said the email, obtained by The Washington Post.

In a statement, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said that “operations for the State of the Union Address (SOTUA) remain unaffected.”

“While non-essential training travel is paused, FEMA continues to authorize all travel necessary for national security,” the statement said.

The agency’s Office of National Continuity Programs plays a key national security role, since it is in charge of keeping the executive branch running during a catastrophe. It ensures that the president and top officials at different agencies can stay in contact with one another during massive disasters, nuclear threats and terrorist attacks, and it also runs the Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS). That system buzzes radios, broadcast TV stations and phones with alerts about missing children, accidents, floods and fires.

Now, some staffers have been furloughed; trainings and exercises on the warning systems have been suspended, along with meetings with wireless carriers and broadcasters, according to five people with knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.Ask The Post AIDive deeper

The email states that “continuity planning and operations are significantly constrained.” It details how suspending nonessential training and exercises will reduce federal readiness, which affects state, local and tribal partners.

Essential activities are hampered by the office’s limited staffing and lapses in “critical contracts and system support,” it adds.

“This would impede the government’s ability to sustain leadership, maintain essential functions, and ensure reliable communication during the crisis,” it said. “The shutdown limits engagement with key partners and hinders preparations [for] events such as the State of the Union this week … and other national events, increasing risk to the nation’s ability to sustain government during emergencies.”

Because the department has restricted much of agency’s travel budget, the office’s employees also can’t respond to issues and situations in the field, three people familiar with the situation said. The travel restrictions mean some staff could not travel for work related to the State of the Union address — work that is usually allowed to continue during government shutdowns because it concerns national security, according to a former senior official with extensive knowledge of the department. Agency officials have been scrambling to try to write memos justifying employee travel, with DHS making evaluations on a case-by-case basis.

Historically, the operation has been largely exempt from limitations during a shutdown because the majority of its work is considered vital, said the former official, who like others interviewed for this article spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

“Continuity is a national security priority,” said Michael Coen, a former chief of staff in the FEMA administrator’s office. “In my experience much of the continuity apparatus was not affected by [a] lapse in funding. They would continue to work. … When I was there, the nation was not at risk because of a lapse.”