Politics and the Emergency Manager

“I don’t play politics!” How many times have you heard this expression or said it yourself? I know I have. Emergency managers like to consider themselves apolitical, that we provide relief to those in need and base our planning on the best available evidence without regard to political agendas. The truth is that politics is an integral and necessary part of the emergency manager’s job. You may not think you play politics, but it certainly plays you.

Leaving aside national politics, which is in itself a major topic for discussion, consider the fact that many local emergency managers work directly for elected officials. For example, in California the defacto  director of emergency services for a county is the sheriff unless otherwise stipulated by law. My own position in San Francisco was as a political appointee to the mayor. In such a situation, the minimum expectation is that you at least support the policies of the elected official for whom you work. There may also be pressure to take an active part in political campaigns.

And don’t think that because you’re in the private sector that you’re immune. Although different from public sector politics, corporate politics can be just as mean and  ruthless. I once lost a position with a private company because my boss became unwillingly embroiled in competition for the presidency of the company and the ultimate winner decided to replace us with his own team.

Assuming you can reconcile your responsibilities with the expectations of your elected officials, understanding the political process becomes essential for two important reasons. The first directly impacts your ability to get your job done: budgeting. In any organization, public or private, there is always competition for resources, usually money. You need to understand how budgets are formulated and how you can influence the process. This means knowing who the key players are and how they can be influenced. My colleagues in California and I challenged the state’s formula for distributing grant funding by showing a united front and leveraging our relationships with our federal elected officials.

A second major reason for understanding the political process is the ability to influence legislation that can either improve resilience or may have a detrimental effect on public safety. One of our Board of Supervisors intended to improve environmental conditions by eliminating the monthly generator tests performed by many organizations. The expectation was that this would save fuel and reduce harmful emissions. My office ended up working with a lobbyist hired by our local hotels, who were understandably concerned about the impact of not regularly testing generators. Together we were able to educate the supervisor as to why these tests were essential and he withdrew the legislation. Having the consensus between the hotel group and our office was the key to our success.

Influencing local legislation is not the only situation in which you may find yourself. Your jurisdiction will have a process to take an “official” position on state and, in some cases, federal legislation. In my case, this meant appearing before a working group of key executives to explain the reasons for requesting an official position. Once the group agreed and the mayor concurred, the city would instruct our lobbyists in the state and federal capitols as to our position. And before you say, “Hey, that’s not really my job,” it’s part of the Emergency Management Accreditation Program (EMAP) Standard:

3.5.2 The Emergency Management Program has a process for identifying and addressing proposed legislative and regulatory changes.

So how do you deal with politics when you’re not a politician and really don’t want to get involved? Here are the five things I suggest:

1. Accept that it’s part of your job – You may not like it but you need to accept that monitoring the legislative process and intervening as appropriate is an important part of your job. Changes to policy and the allocation of resources frequently will require legislation and you need to be part of that process. You need to be aware of when legislation will affect how you perform your program, whether for good or ill.
2. Learn the process – To influence legislation, you need to know how laws are made and the best time to intervene. The most effective way is to educate legislators while the legislation is being developed and before it is introduced. It is much easier to change a politician’s mind before they have taken a public stand. You can learn the process by reading municipal codes or by consulting the clerk of your legislative body.
3. Build a consensus - My old boss, Mayor Willie L. Brown, Jr. writes in his biography, Basic Brown: My Life and Our Times, “No matter how righteous your cause, you’ve got to do heavy political lifting to secure the consensus you need to get anything done in the actual political arena.” Emergency managers are at a disadvantage as we have a very small constituency. However, we can muster support from other department heads, citizen volunteer groups, the community, and businesses depending on the cause. It is not the size of the constituency that matters as much as how many people show up at a public hearing to support your position. Seek allies wherever you can find them.
4. Understand motivation - Unfortunately, most politicians are looking for short term wins that aid in reelection, so be prepared to answer the question, “What’s in it for me?” We were able to get funding for a mitigation program to limit residential hotel fires because we found an ally in a new supervisor who was looking for a cause and was willing to listen to our proposal.
5. Do your homework - Just because your cause is righteous isn’t enough. Be prepared to answer how much your proposal will cost and suggestions for how it will be funded. Conversely, if you’re opposing legislation, have solid reasons why it should be modified or withdrawn such as cost, political consequences, and quantifiable risk.

If you’re thinking, “If I’d wanted to be a politician, I’d have run for office,” you’re right and I’m in total agreement. But if you want to do the best for your community and your program, if you want the resources you need, if you want to avoid bad legislation, then you have no choice but to get involved in the political process.