39A.010 Legislative intent -- Necessity

39A.010 Legislative intent -- Necessity.

The General Assembly realizes the Commonwealth is subject at all times to disaster or

emergency occurrences which can range from crises affecting limited areas to widespread

catastrophic events, and that response to these occurrences is a fundamental responsibility

of elected government in the Commonwealth. It is the intent of the General Assembly to

establish and to support a statewide comprehensive emergency management program for

the Commonwealth, and through it an integrated emergency management system, in order

to provide for adequate assessment and mitigation of, preparation for, response to, and

recovery from, the threats to public safety and the harmful effects or destruction resulting

from all major hazards, including but not limited to: flood, flash flood, tornado, blizzard,

ice storm, snow storm, wind storm, hail storm, or other severe storms; drought, extremes

of temperature, earthquake, landslides, or other natural hazards; fire, forest fire, or other

conflagration; enemy attack, threats to public safety and health involving nuclear,

chemical, or biological agents or weapons; sabotage, riot, civil disorder or acts of

terrorism, and other domestic or national security emergencies; explosion, power failure

or energy shortages, major utility system failure, dam failure, building collapse, other

infrastructure failures; transportation-related emergencies on, over, or through the

highways, railways, air, land, and waters in the Commonwealth; emergencies caused by

spill or release of hazardous materials or substances; mass-casualty or mass-fatality

emergencies; other technological, biological, etiological, radiological, environmental,

industrial, or agricultural hazards; or other disaster or emergency occurrences; or

catastrophe; or other causes; and the potential, threatened, or impending occurrence of

any of these events; and in order to protect life and property of the people of the

Commonwealth, and to protect public peace, health, safety, and welfare, and the

environment; and in order to ensure the continuity and effectiveness of government in

time of emergency, disaster, or catastrophe in the Commonwealth, it is hereby declared to

be necessary:

(1) To create a Division of Emergency Management as the emergency management

agency of state government and to authorize the creation of local emergency

management agencies in the cities, counties, and urban-county or charter county

governments of the Commonwealth;

(2) To confer upon the Governor, the county judges/executive of the counties, the

mayors of the cities and urban-county governments of the Commonwealth, and the

chief executive of other local governments the emergency powers provided in KRS

Chapters 39A to 39F;

(3) To establish provisions for mutual aid among the cities, counties, and urban-county

or charter county governments of the Commonwealth, with other states, and with

the federal government with respect to the performance of disaster and emergency

preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation functions; and

(4) To authorize the establishment of a statewide comprehensive emergency

management program and integrated emergency management system, the

promulgation of orders or administrative regulations, and the taking of other steps

necessary and appropriate to carry out the provisions of KRS Chapters 39A to 39F.