January 16

National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Monthly Meeting Minutes January 16-17, 2013 Action Decision No. Topic Welcome and Introduction of Bob Roper, IAFC 1. Agenda: Review X 2. NWCG Meeting Minutes: Review and Approval 3. International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC): Presentation X 4. NWCG Web Portal: Status Update X 5. NWCG Budget: Review and Approval of Budget Guidance FY2014 6. WFEC: Meeting Summary and Emerging Issues 7. Cohesive Strategy (CS): Phase III Update 8. NWCG February All-Chairs Meeting: Update and Discussion 9. OSHA Wildland Fire Orientation Course: Update X 10. FEMA Course Crosswalk: Update and Decision on First Set of Courses X X 11. JFSP: Program Review Update 12. WFI: Review of Implementation Task Team (ITT) Membership List X X 13. Interagency Aviation Strategy: Discussion on Comprehensive Review 14. NWCG PMU: Monthly Update 15. BIN ITEMS X Bin No. 1: NWCG MOU Modification No. 1: Update Bin No. 2: I&T Advisory Meeting: Update 16. “Featured Committee”: OWDC: Presentation and Update on Tasking 17. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Update 18. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Update on Overarching Principles and Discussion on Moving Forward X 19. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Review and Approval of Draft Tasking to the Phase 3 Task Team National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Monthly Meeting Minutes January 16-17, 2013 This meeting of the NWCG was held at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. NWCG Executive Board Members Attending: Aitor Bidaburu (Chair), U.S. Fire Administration Dan Smith (Vice-Chair), National Association of State Foresters John Segar, Fish and Wildlife Service John Gould, Bureau of Land Management Steve Gage, USDA Forest Service Lyle Carlile, Bureau of Indian Affairs Bill Kaage, National Park Service Tim Sexton, USDA Forest Service – Fire Research PMU Attending: Paul Schlobohm, (Acting) NWCG Manager Tim Blake, Preparedness Branch Coordinator Deb Fleming, Training Branch Manager Carol Saras, Applications Architect (Topic No. 4) Nikki Saleen, Communication Specialist Bonnie Bradshaw, Administrative Support Assistant Others Attending: Rod Bloms, Office of Wildland Fire, OWF (Topic Nos. 1-9) Frank Guzman, Assistant Director of Workforce Development and Succession Planning, FS (Topic Nos. 1-4, 16) Bob Roper, Chair of Wildland Fire Policy Committee, IAFC (All Day Wednesday, including Topic No. 16) Lisa McDevitt, NWCG Budget Advisory Unit (BAU) Chair, BLM (Topic No. 5) Mark Jones, Operations and Workforce Development Committee (OWDC) Chair, BLM (Topic No. 16) Nicole Hallisey, OWDC Executive Secretary, BLM (Topic No. 16) Jeff Arnberger, OWDC Member, BLM (Topic No. 16) Dalan Romero, OWDC Member, BIA (Topic No. 16) Michael Morgan, OWDC IQCS Advisor, BLM (Topic No. 16) Ron Stoffel, OWDC Member, NASF Eastern States (Topic No. 16) Don Johnson, OWDC Member, NASF Eastern States (Topic No. 16) Paul Hannemann, OWDC Member, NASF Western States (Topic No. 16) David Utley, OWDC Member, NASF Eastern States (Topic No. 16) Mark Koontz, OWDC Member, NPS (Topic No. 16) Tony Doty, Associate member, OWDC, DOI (Topic No. 16) Brad Gibbs, OWDC Aviation Advisor, BLM (Topic No. 16) Bill Van Bruggen, OWDC Member, FS (Topic No. 16) Kevin Conn, OWDC Member, FWS (Topic No. 16) Barry Mathias, NWCG EIM Project Lead, Contractor (Topic No. 16) Fay Anderson, NWCG Web Portal Assistant, Contractor (Topic No. 16) Meeting minutes mirror the topics listed on the Meeting Agenda, but not necessarily the order in which they were discussed at the meeting. Meeting started at 8:00 a.m. (Frank Guzman, Forest Service Assistant Director of Workforce Development and Succession Planning, attended most of the day at the request of Steve Gage) Welcome and Introduction of Bob Roper Presenter: Aitor Bidaburu Discussion: Aitor welcomed and introduced Bob Roper, Chair of the Wildland Fire Policy Committee for the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC). Introductions were made around the room. Acknowledgement of Bonnie Bradshaw Presenter: Aitor Bidaburu Aitor thanked Bonnie Bradshaw for her six (6) years of service to NWCG as the Executive Secretary/Administrative Support Assistant and wished her the best of luck with her new position with the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Her final day will be January 25th. Aitor scheduled an Executive Session with the Executive Board after the Evolving Incident Management (EIM) topics January 17 to discuss the Administrative Support Assistant position. 1. Agenda: Review Presenter: Aitor Bidaburu Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 1: NWCG Monthly Meeting Agenda, dated 1/10/13 Handout No. 2: NWCG February Agenda Spreadsheet Discussion: Aitor briefly reviewed the agenda and the February Agenda Spreadsheet. Changes to the spreadsheet were: • Increase the time to 15 minutes for the IFEC topic • Add: NASF Fire Committee Meeting: Update on January Meeting – 15 minutes – Dan Smith. Aitor further stated Topic Nos. 17-19 (Evolving Incident Management topics) will be an Executive Session. AGENDA ITEM FOR FUTURE MEETING: NASF Fire Committee – Update on January Meeting – Dan Smith – 15 minutes – February Business Meeting 2. NWCG Meeting Minutes: Discussion and Approval Presenter: Aitor Bidaburu Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 3: NWCG December 2012 Meeting Minutes – Reviewed Draft Discussion: Aitor requested any editorial comments or changes to the minutes. Bill Kaage provided written edits to Topic No. 6 (Wildland Fire Executive Council). The Executive Board approved the minutes, incorporating Bill Kaage’s edits. DECISION: On NWCG December 2012 Minutes, approved the meeting minutes, incorporating the edits provided by Bill Kaage to Topic No. 6 (Wildland Fire Executive Council). 3. International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC): Presentation Presenter: Bob Roper Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 4: International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) PowerPoint Presentation: Role of the IAFC in Relation to Wildland Fires Handout No. 5: IAFC Wildland Fire Policy Committee: Initiatives and Action Plan 2012-2013 Handout No. 6: Justification for Local Government Representative within NMAC & NWCG Discussion: Bob provided his background and gave a PowerPoint presentation, entitled “Role of the IAFC in Relation to Wildland Fires” (see handout). The presentation covered: • Who the IAFC represents • The authority of IAFC • Wildland Fire Policy Committee (WFPC) Overview • WFPC Funding, Members and Their Locations, Key Relationships, Accomplishments, and Activities • Why the IAFC is a Key Partner. Bob stated the International Association of Fire Chiefs’ (IAFC) Executive Board approved bringing the membership proposal (see Handout No. 6) to the NWCG Executive Board for consideration. IAFC is in the process of acquiring delegation letters from the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National League of Cities. IAFC’s goal is to have an adjunct member in every state in the USA. IAFC membership is in the thousands, and their wildland conference usually numbers between 400-600 participants. IAFC’s interest in NWCG membership is to bring NWCG certification, qualification, and related standards to local resources. If IAFC is granted membership, someone would be appointed by IAFC to be their representative and report to the IAFC Chair. Being a member of NWCG, IAFC could: • Influence local resources across the United States to improve qualifications and readiness to support wildland fire, thereby enlarging the resource pool. • Help local fire departments get the training and qualifications needed for wildland fires by influencing State policy centers. • Develop options or a roadmap for entities (locals) across the USA who do not have access to the 310-1 (Wildland Fire Qualification System Guide) so they can meet NWCG standards and participate in wildland fires. Currently, they can only respond to local fires. • Add perspective to the Executive Board on incident management team issues and all-hazard issues. Comments by NWCG Board members: • IAFC is an important stakeholder in wildland fire. • IAFC documents have been used in creating some of the foundational documents in the Cohesive Strategy (CS). • A task group is currently working on wildland fire governance, developing documents for the Wildland Fire Leadership (WFLC), the Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC), and NWCG (charters and memorandums of understanding). More discussion will occur on Topic No. 6 (WFEC: Meeting Summary and Emerging Issues). • Before looking at NWCG membership, the Executive Board is waiting to see the Cohesive Strategy’s Final Report to see what the impacts will be to NWCG. • For any change in NWCG membership, the NWCG Charter and MOU will have to be considered, along with requirements from WFLC and WFEC. Federal meeting rules have to be followed with regard to decision-making. • If IAFC is looking to become a member of NMAC (National Multi-Agency Coordinating Group), further discussion will be necessary. Aitor thanked Bob for coming to the meeting and for his presentation. 4. NWCG Web Portal: Status Update Presenter: Carol Saras (NWCG Contracting Officer Representative) Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 7: Agenda Item Request Form Handout No. 8: NWCG Web Portal Project: Talking Points Discussion: Carol provided an update, discussing the following: • GBTI Solutions’ (the contractor) new Project Manager • Difficulty of GBTI to get access to USDA servers at NITC (in Kansas City) • Documents from MyFireCommunity are being copied to the portal • Draft Test Plan is completed, with comments to the plan being currently addressed. Final will be ready in two (2) weeks. • The NWCG Webmaster (Tammy Denney) is working with GBTI’s programmer on modifications. • The contract expires March 29, 2013 unless an option year is exercised. Written notice of our intent must be sent to the contractor 60 days prior to the end of the contract. • Work plans for the contractor if option is exercised. Contractor has been working on fixing the program developed by the original contractor and additional modifications. Work for the rest of the year includes testing and troubleshooting the demo/test site, continuing work on specific areas (data standards, GIS standards, and glossary), and addressing general issues and other areas identified by the Webmaster and PMU members. The portal will be more user-friendly than our current website, a collaborative work space for our committees, and the location of publications and other products, and the processing of data standards and glossary terms. Discussion included clarity of contract deliverables, return on investment, similarities to the development situation of the Lessons Learned Center portal, and the idea of managing portal development by the Fire I&T’s Program Board. The Executive Board requested the following: • Find out whether or not the MyFireCommunity website is eventually disappearing and whether it is a secure website. • Advise the I&T of the NWCG Portal investment. • Develop options for the pending contract option year (with the Contracting Officer’s input) for Executive Board review within the next two (2) weeks (before January 30, 2013). • Provide a breakdown of the funds spent on the NWCG Portal project to the Executive Board. ACTION No. 13-001: On NWCG Web Portal, a) Find out whether or not the MyFireCommunity website is eventually disappearing and whether it is a secure website. b) Advise the I&T of the NWCG Portal investment. c) Develop options for the pending contract option year (with the Contracting Officer’s input) for Executive Board review. d) Provide a breakdown of the funds spent on the NWCG Portal project to the Executive Board. Lead: Carol Saras (working with Paul Schlobohm) Due Date: January 30, 2013 (Frank Guzman left the meeting) 5. NWCG Budget: Review and Approval of NWCG Budget Guidance for FY2014 Presenter: Paul Schlobohm Other(s) Attending: Lisa McDevitt Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 9: Agenda Item Request Form Handout No. 10: FY2014 NWCG Budget Guidance: Changes from FY2013 Handout No. 11: NWCG Draft Budget Guidance FY2014 Discussion: Paul provided the topic background and reviewed the changes from FY2013 (see handout). The biggest change is the submission date for all budget requests is now May 30th. The Branch Coordinators, Branch Manager and Committee Chairs are working together to look at the budget through the use of e-Share webinars to develop the final proposed budget. The Executive Board approved the draft Budget Guidance for FY2014. Paul will have Elaine finalize the document and send it out to the NWCG Committees. Bill Kaage stated Appendix B will need to be rewritten next year as the information technology (IT) process for proposals is changing. DECISION: On NWCG Budget, approved the draft Budget Guidance for FY2014 for finalization and distribution to the NWCG Committees. 6. Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC): Meeting Summary and Emerging Issues Presenter: Bill Kaage Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 12: Proposal from WFEC Governance Task Group to the Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC) Handout No. 13: Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC): Draft Charter Handout No. 14: Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC): Charter Handout No. 15: National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG): Draft Revision – Charter Handout No. 16: Memorandum of Understanding (MOU): The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Handout No. 17: Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC): Proposal on Agenda and Logistics for the March Face-to-Face Meeting Handout No. 18: Intergovernmental Diagram Lines of Communication and Lines of Authority Handout No. 19: Responsibility Assignment Matrix Discussion: Bill stated the Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC) Governance Task Group has completed their assignment to look at governance of the Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC), the Wildland Fire Executive Council (WFEC), and the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG). All the attached handouts were presented to WFEC for review on January 11, 2013. WFEC was requested to review the documents and provide any edits by January 18th. Acceptance of all the documents will be requested at the WFEC Meeting on February 3rd. No date has been set for the spring WFLC Meeting, but it should occur before May 2013. The following people worked on the purpose and roles for each organization: • WFLC – Jim Karels • WFEC – Roy Johnson and Shari Eckhoff • NWCG – Jim Erickson and Bill Kaage. Aitor requested an edit on the WFEC Charter under the Membership and Designation section. For the U.S. Fire Administration, title should be “Deputy Administrator” instead of Assistant Administrator. Dan Smith requested that Bill stress to WFEC that the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) is part of NWCG and should be included in Charter and MOU discussions. Bill discussed the considerations and recommendations listed in the proposal from the WFEC Governance Task Group. He has more work to do on the NWCG Charter and MOU (membership, associate members, FACA considerations, etc.). Bill stated that possible changes may occur in February for NWCG. Discussions are being held to divide NWCG into an operational board and a fire management board (federal only). It is the perception that some decisions currently being made by NWCG should be department decisions instead. It is apparent there is a lack of understanding of NWCG. Dan Smith stated that State partners have not been included in these discussions. This will be discussed at the NASF Fire Committee Meeting next week. Jim Karels, Roy Johnson, and Dan will be attending that meeting. 7. Cohesive Strategy (CS): Phase III Update Presenter: Dan Smith Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 20: Cohesive Strategy Update Handout No. 21: Background Brief from National Science and Analysis Team (NSAT) Discussion: Dan provided the following update: • Regional Actions Plans – Completion date has been extended to March 5, 2013. • Identifying National Issues for Analysis (National Risk Assessment Report) – The National Science and Analysis Team (NSAT) will provide a broad strategic view of the issues, explore various options, and identify the trade-offs and risks inherent in each option. Action items will be listed in the report from the regions. • Draft of National Report – Tentative completion is June 2013. • Final of National Report – Tentative completion is fall of 2013. • Barriers/Critical Success Factors – Topics to be addressed are qualifications, sharing resources, local zoning and ordinances, and increasing fuels management on federal, state, and private lands. 8. NWCG February All-Chairs Meeting: Update and Discussion on Executive Board Participation Presenter: John Gould and Nikki Saleen Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 22: Agenda Item Request Form Handout No. 23: 2013 NWCG All-Chairs Meeting: Draft Agenda (11/06/12) Handout No. 24: NWCG 2013 Strategic Plan Goals and Key Issues with Emphasis Areas Handout No. 25: NWCG Key Issues – Comparing 2012 to 2013 Discussion: Nikki stated the keynote speakers will be Tom Harbour (FS), Kim Thorsen (DOI), and Jim Karels (NASF). They will cover what major changes (shrinking budgets, etc.) are on the horizon that will affect NWCG and its committees, and speak about 20 minutes each. The intention is to introduce a strategic discussion with the Executive Board and Committee Chairs on the years ahead. Nikki stated all keynote speakers have made firm commitments to attend. The Executive Board suggested alternate speakers be lined up in case of last-minute conflicts. Agenda was discussed, and the following changes were made: • Keynote Speakers – Order will be Tom Harbour, Jim Karels, Kim Thorsen, and then NWCG (Kick-off with Aitor as Chair, DOI representative, Steve Gage, and Dan Smith). • Tuesday AM Session Order – Keynote Speakers, break, NWCG Executive Board Shares Vision, and then Question and Answer Session. • Wednesday AM Session – Cohesive Strategy will follow the EIM Project, and Dan Smith will be the speaker. Fire Info Technology will be the final project topic, and Jim Douglas will be the speaker. • Thursday AM Session – Branch Coordinators update first, then Executive Board’s reaction to Committee’s strategic visions. • Thursday PM Session – John Gould will handle the Wrap Up. • Miscellaneous: • Table with keynote speakers at the front of the room, with Executive Board members disbursed all over the room at various tables – keep it an informal setting. • A bigger room may be needed for Tuesday as all NIFC committee members will be invited to attend that day. In order to get a head count, possible tickets will be issued. Nikki will work with Betty Percival (NIFC Receptionist) on this. Nikki stated two venues will be used for this three-day meeting: • Tuesday, February 12, 2013 – Boise Centre on the Grove • Wednesday and Thursday, February 13-14, 2013 – Hotel 43. 9. OSHA Wildland Fire Orientation Course: Update Presenter: Rod Bloms and Paul Schlobohm Discussion: Rod stated a contract has been awarded to develop the course. A high level overview of the course is being developed by Sircle and should be available the week of January 21st. Paul Schlobohm has replaced Bonnie Wood on the conference calls with Rod (last call was January 9th, and next one is February 6th). Tim Blake has spoken with Tony Beita (Risk Management Committee Chair) to identify a representative to be involved with this course development (Action No. 12-066). [After the meeting, it was determined that Ted Mason, the Fish & Wildlife Service representative on the Risk Management Committee, would be the liaison for the OSHA course.] Paul provided clarification on the documents that will be associated with this course: • Digest – An OSHA standards document • Quick Reference Guide – A 1 or 2 page OSHA document with references to locations of relevant content in NWCG publications. A short-term project • NWCG Code Book – An NWCG document of relevant standards. This is a long-term project (approximately a three-year commitment) for which NWCG is responsible. A tasking will need to be developed for this part of the project. (Rod Bloms left the meeting) 10. FEMA Course Crosswalk: Update and Decision on First Set of Courses Presenter: Deb Fleming Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 26: Agenda Item Request Form Handout No. 27: NWCG Transition to the FEMA National Training Curriculum Discussion: Deb stated an analysis was performed by the NWCG Training Branch on 19 NWCG courses proposed to transition to the FEMA National Training Curriculum. The courses fell into three (3) categories: • Category A – Straight transition to FEMA (possible target transition date of October 2014) • Category B – Transition with supplemental endorsement material to adequately cover wildland fire specific content • Category C – Significant wildland fire content exists and there may be no benefit to transitioning the course Since FEMA updated and improved the NWCG courses, the NWCG taskbooks were compared with the FEMA courses. 12 of the 19 courses (see handout for listing) fell into Category A. As NWCG transitions to use of the National Training Curriculum the NWCG version of those courses will be phased out. This will allow for more time for revision of the wildland fire specific courses and creating supplemental modules as needed. Discussion occurred on the following: • Course Instructors – Our instructors can teach the courses if they get into the FEMA instructors database. Deb will be obtaining more information about this from FEMA. She will find out the answer to the following question: “If an instructor is only listed for one course, but is qualified to teach other courses, will he/she be able to teach those other course(s)?” • FEMA Course Guide – Deb stated that course numbering is an issue that warrants more discussion. IQCS and IQS representatives will be consulted for direction and solutions. Deb requested the Executive Board’s approval to develop an implementation plan for transitioning the Category A courses to FEMA once all the questions are answered. The Executive Board gave their approval. DECISION: On NWCG courses, approved the development of an Implementation Plan for transitioning the twelve (12) courses in Category A (straight transition). . 11. Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP): Program Review Update Presenter: Aitor Bidaburu Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 28: 2013 JFSP Program Review - Draft Discussion: Aitor stated the Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) has scheduled a Program Review for February 12-15, 2013 and would like to meet with the NWCG Executive Board at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 13th. The last Program Review was performed in 2008. This will be an addition to the NWCG February Business Meeting, but it is an opportunity to provide input to JFSP. The February Agenda Spreadsheet was reviewed, and the following decisions were made: • Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center (LLC): Meeting with Brit Rosso, LLC Manager – Nikki Saleen will arrange for another room at Hotel 43 to meet with Brit from 11:00 to 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 13, 2013. • Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP): Meet with JFSP Program Review Team – Wednesday, February 13, 2013 – 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at the Holiday Inn. DECISION: On NWCG February Business Meeting Agenda, agreed to the following: • Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center (LLC): Meeting with Brit Rosso, LLC Manager – Nikki Saleen will arrange for another room at Hotel 43 to meet with Brit from 11:00 to 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 13, 2013. • Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP): Meet with JFSP Program Review Team – Wednesday, February 13, 2013 – 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. ACTION No. 13-002: On NWCG February Business Meeting, arrange for a small conference room at Hotel 43 for the Executive Board to meet with Brit Rosso, Manager of the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center from 11:00 to 12:00 p.m. Lead: Nikki Saleen Due Date: January 31, 2013 12. Wildland Fire Institute (WFI): Review of Implementation Task Team (ITT) Membership List Presenter: Deb Fleming Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 29: WFI Implementation Task Team Membership Discussion: Deb provided the handout per the Executive Board’s request at the NWCG December Meeting. Lyle Carlile, WFI ITT liaison, has agreed to provide input to Deb when decision space issues arise. John Gould stated he will be submitting the WFI Chief Learning Officer position description for classification, and advertise the position as a detail, not to exceed one (1) year. 13. Interagency Aviation Strategy: Discussion on Directing the National Interagency Aviation Committee (NIAC) to Perform a Comprehensive Review Presenter: John Gould Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 30: John Gould’s E-Mail, dated 1/09/12 Discussion: John is requesting that the NWCG National Interagency Aviation Committee (NIAC) be tasked to review and update the 2008 Interagency Aviation Strategy. The review will take approximately one (1) year to perform. Completion of the tasking should be before the 2014 fire season. The Executive Board agreed to the need for a tasking, and asked that a wide spectrum of people work on the tasking. Joel Kerley, the NIAC Chair, will cast a wide net for participants per John. John will assist Tim Blake with writing the tasking. DECISION: On 2008 Interagency Aviation Strategy, agreed to the need for a tasking to the NWCG National Interagency Aviation Committee (NIAC) to review and update the strategy, completing the tasking before the 2014 fire season. ACTION No. 13-003: On 2008 Interagency Aviation Strategy, prepare a tasking to NIAC to review and update the strategy, completing the tasking before the 2014 fire season. Lead: Tim Blake (working with John Gould) Due Date: February 15, 2013 14. NWCG PMU: Monthly Update Presenter: Paul Schlobohm, Deb Fleming, Tim Blake, and Nikki Saleen Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 31: Program Management Unit (PMU) Update: January 2013 Discussion: Paul, Deb, Tim, and Nikki reviewed the various sections of the update. Other topics discussed that were not mentioned in the report were: • Unit ID Task Team – Team is meeting weekly for an hour and is on schedule to provide recommendations by March. • Operations and Workforce Development Committee (OWDC) Membership – Tim Blake discussed the current membership on the committee in preparation for this afternoon’s meeting. • 15. BIN ITEMS Bin No. 1: NWCG Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Modification No. 1: Update Presenter: Bonnie Bradshaw Discussion: Bonnie stated that only three (3) signatures have been received (Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Association of State Foresters, and Intertribal Timber Council) on Modification 1. She requested the Board to follow-up with their directors and obtain the missing signatures. ACTION No. 13-004: On NWCG Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Modification No. 1 (One Year Extension), obtain your director’s signature and submit to the NWCG Administrative Support Assistant. Lead: NWCG Executive Board Due Date: February 15, 2013 Bin No. 2: I&T Advisory Meeting: Update Presenter: Bill Kaage Discussion: Bill stated an I&T Management Advisory Board Meeting was held yesterday (Tuesday, January 15th). Several topics were discussed (work for this year, support staff needs and workload, I&T subcommittees coordinating with NWCG committees, business requirements validation using NWCG staff, etc.). The Program Board (John Gebhard and Richard Del Hierro) also attended the meeting. Bill continued to stress the need for discussion with the NWCG Executive Board. (Travel to Homewood Suites to join the Operations and Workforce Development Committee at their Meeting) 16. “Featured Committee: Operations and Workforce Development Committee (OWDC)”: Presentation and Update on Complexity Analysis and Organizational Needs Assessment (ONA) Evaluation Tasking (TM-2012-002) Presenter: Tim Blake and Mark Jones Other(s) Attending: OWDC Committee – Nicole Hallisey, Jeff Arnberger, Dalan Romero, Michael Morgen, Ron Stoffel, Don Johnson, Paul Hannemann, David Utley, Mark Koontz, Tony Doty, Brad Gibbs, Bill Van Bruggen, and Kevin Conn, Barry Mathias, Frank Guzman, Bob Roper, and Fay Anderson Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 32: NWCG Tasking Memorandum (TM-2012-002): Complexity Analysis and Organizational Needs Assessment Evaluation Handout No. 33: National Fire Protection Association (NFPA): List of Standards Requiring NWCG Engagement Discussion: Tim Blake opened the meeting between the OWDC, the NWCG Executive Board, and the PMU staff. Introductions were made around the room. The following are five (5) topics that were discussed: (1) OWDC Membership – Presented by Mark Jones – Mark covered who the current members are on the committee. (2) National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standards Requiring NWCG Engagement – Presented by Paul Hannemann – Paul walked through the handout, stating that a NWCG representative should be engaged in each of the listed standard. Dan Smith stated he is the NWCG liaison to NFPA for the Executive Board, and has had meetings with NFPA the past two years to discuss standards. Paul Hannemann will share handout with Paul Schlobohm. Paul Schlobohm will share information the Executive Board has developed on NFPA committee participation with OWDC. (3) Wildland Fire Qualification System Guide (PMS 310-1) – Presented by Kevin Conn – Kevin led the discussion on modifications to the current qualifications. Shortening the time to qualify for positions is being addressed in the NWCG Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation and also the Cohesive Strategy. (4) Complexity Analysis and Organizational Needs Assessment (ONA) Tasking – Presented by Jeff Arnberger – Jeff discussed the draft Wildland Fire Complexity Analysis being developed by the task team created to address the tasking. The Complexity Analysis and ONA have been combined into a matrix in an effort to reduce redundancy. Jeff stated that more work is needed on the matrix. The plan is to field test the matrix with different agencies and geographic areas this summer, make any adjustments necessary, and finalize it for distribution in the fall. The Executive Board agreed with the plan. Jeff discussed the addition of the Firefighter Safety Assessment and the Rationale sections. (5) Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation – Presented by Mark Jones – Mark stated OWDC’s concerns on team typing. Until this issue is decided upon, the committee is at a standstill. Aitor stated the Executive Board is empowering OWDC to come up with recommendations both pros and cons, and to think out-of-the-box. This issue is the cornerstone to all the other work in the EIM Implementation Strategy and has to be determined very soon. OWDC will develop an issue paper on their proposed solution for Executive Board review. Meeting was adjourned at 4:15 p.m. Day 2: NWCG Meeting Meeting started at 8:00 a.m. 17. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Update Presenter: Barry Mathias Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 1: EIM Work Unit Meeting Minutes (January 8-9, 2013) Handout No. 2: 2013-2013 EIM Conference Call and Work Unit Lead Meeting Schedule Discussion: Barry stated the following: • Meeting with the Operations and Workforce Development Committee (OWDC) on EIM was beneficial. • He is attempting to schedule a meeting with the Unit Leads instead of a conference call for January 31st. • He is waiting for the Unit Leads to give him timelines for their units. • Mike Ferris (FS) will be assisting the project with communications, augmenting Nikki Saleen’s work. He will be at NIFC the week of January 21st. He will be working to identify stakeholder meetings and updating meeting handouts. • Progress is slow. Until the team typing issue has been decided, everything is on hold. Barry asked the following questions: (1) Who is the replacement for Tory Henderson and Billy Terry for Forest Service Workforce Development and Succession Planning since they both retired? Answer: Steve Gage stated that Frank Guzman has been hired to fill behind Tory. (2) Who is Tory Henderson’s replacement as the Unit Lead on the IMT Augmentation Work Unit and the NIMO Work Unit? Answer: Steve Gage stated that he will take Tory’s place on these Work Units. Stakeholder meetings were discussed. Barry suggested that a calendar be developed and that question and answers sessions be included in these meetings to make them interactive. The same approach used in Phase 1 (IMOSP Project) will be used – Executive Board members will help Mike Ferris populate the meetings in the calendar (see calendar from the IMOSP Project), meeting handouts and PowerPoint will be updated, and Executive Board members will take the information to the various meetings and share it. Fire Directors are liaisons to the geographic areas and various committees. Suggestion was made to include in the PowerPoint information on when IMOSP was started and show the progression to where we are today. Clarity should be conveyed to the stakeholders that we are proceeding with the Implementation Plan – not asking for more input to re-plow or change the plan. Meetings are to inform the stakeholders and bring them up-to-date on the progress that has been made. (John Glenn came into the meeting to replace John Gould. John Gould left the meeting) John Glenn stated the geographic areas do not feel like they have any input. Getting information and updating them will help. Stakeholder engagement and communication will be key components for success. A suggestion was made that the Work Units keep a work history with questions asked and decisions made for historical purposes. 18. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Update on Overarching Principles and Discussion on Moving Forward Presenter: Steve Gage and Aitor Bidaburu Discussion: This topic was divided into two (2) parts as follows: a) Update on Overarching Principles – Steve Gage stated he is not totally up-to-speed on this yet as he has only been in his position since October 2012. b) Discussion on Moving Forward on Section 5 and the Rest of the Recommendations Contained in the Evolving Incident Management Report, dated 2/18/11 – All the Overarching Principles are embedded in each Work Unit. The Agency Purview Work Unit should be worked on to show the Work Unit Leads that the NWCG Executive Board is working on the project. What is not mapped out in the matrix from Section 5 of the IMOSP Report needs to be addressed. An action plan should be developed. The Executive Board agreed. Board members can bring other agency personnel to assist with this. The meeting was set for Tuesday, January 22, 2013, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., with the following objectives: • Prioritize the Overarching Principles • Map out the Agency Purview Work Unit • Develop an Action Plan. [After the meeting, the NICC Briefing Room was scheduled for this meeting.] Team typing was discussed. The discussion with the Operations and Workforce Development Committee (OWDC) yesterday was important. The timeline for the implementation to take place will need further discussion. The exact date when the implementation will take effect will need to be conveyed to the GACCs as they will need to do the work. 19. Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation: Review and Approval of Draft Tasking to the Phase 3 Task Team Presenter: Nikki Saleen Distributed and reviewed: Handout No. 3: Draft Tasking to Phase 3 Task Team Discussion: Nikki stated that she and Bonnie Wood worked on the handout at the end of December. This general tasking will give the Work Unit leads parameters that Pam Ensley and Beth Lund requested at the December 12th Meeting with the Executive Board. After reviewing the tasking, the Executive Board approved the tasking, with deleting No. 12 under the Expectations section. Nikki stated the tasking is rather lengthy and suggested shortening it. Aitor will work with the PMU staff to shorten it. (Action Item No. 12-064 will be updated). DECISION: On Evolving Incident Management (EIM) Implementation, approved the draft tasking content to the Work Unit leads. Meeting was adjourned at 9: 25 a.m.