96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB5455

 

Introduced 2/5/2010, by Rep. John E. Bradley

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
20 ILCS 3305/14.5 new

    Amends the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. Creates the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES), within the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, to provide emergency communications service in the State. Requires the Director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency to appoint a State RACES officer to serve as the point of contact between the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the Illinois amateur radio community, appoint a Deputy State RACES officer, identify amateur radio operators to staff the State Emergency Operations Center when necessary, and serve other functions. Specifies the duties of the Regional RACES officers. Authorizes the appointment, and specifies the duties, of county and municipal RACES officers. Defines when RACES stations may be activated.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5455 LRB096 19223 JDS 34614 b

1     AN ACT concerning government.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 5. The Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act is
5 amended by adding Section 14.5 as follows:
 
6     (20 ILCS 3305/14.5 new)
7     Sec. 14.5. Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES)
8 program.
9     (a) The Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES)
10 program is created within the Illinois Emergency Management
11 Agency to provide emergency communications service in the State
12 of Illinois.
13     (b) The Director of the Illinois Emergency Management
14 Agency shall appoint a qualified individual to serve as the
15 volunteer State RACES Officer, who shall:
16         (1) serve as the point of contact between the Illinois
17     Emergency Management Agency and the Illinois amateur radio
18     community;
19         (2) appoint a volunteer Deputy State RACES Officer to
20     ensure continuity of command and control in the event of
21     unavailability of the State RACES Officer;
22         (3) identify and appoint 6 qualified amateur radio
23     operators (3 of whom shall be considered primary operators

 

 

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1     and 3 of whom shall be considered as secondary or alternate
2     operators) to staff the State Emergency Operations Center
3     as communicators when the RACES has been activated for an
4     emergency or exercise event;
5         (4) appoint 8 volunteer Regional RACES Officers, one
6     for each of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency
7     regions;
8         (5) establish suitable training criteria for Regional
9     RACES Officers and State Emergency Operations Center RACES
10     Operators;
11         (6) make recommendations to county and municipal
12     emergency managers regarding suitable training courses for
13     all enrolled volunteer Illinois RACES operators;
14         (7) develop and distribute a State RACES plan detailing
15     RACES operations and logistics; and
16         (8) provide the schedule and details of regular
17     emergency communications exercises designed to ensure that
18     all RACES operators have adequate experience and training
19     to perform back-up communications in the event of an
20     emergency.
21     (c) Each Regional RACES Officer shall:
22         (1) provide emergency or exercise amateur radio
23     communications assistance to the Illinois Emergency
24     Management Agency Regional Coordinator as needed;
25         (2) serve as the amateur radio point of contact between
26     the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Regional

 

 

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1     Coordinator and the county RACES programs in that region;
2     and
3         (3) work with local emergency managers to recruit and
4     train suitable county and municipal RACES officers.
5     (d) In each Illinois county or municipality that provides
6 its own emergency management agency, the emergency manager
7 wishing to participate in the Illinois RACES program shall be
8 responsible for identifying and appointing a suitably trained
9 amateur radio operator who holds holding a valid General class
10 (or higher) FCC-issued amateur radio license to serve as the
11 county or municipal RACES Officer, who shall:
12         (1) provide RACES communications services in times of
13     emergency and during exercise events; and
14         (2) be responsible for enrolling and managing
15     volunteer amateur radio operators in the county RACES
16     organization in accordance with the credentialing and
17     membership requirements of the respective county or
18     municipal emergency management agency.
19     (e) The State Emergency Operations Center RACES station
20 shall be activated only by the Director of the Illinois
21 Emergency Management Agency or his or her designee. Regional
22 RACES stations shall be activated only by the Director of the
23 Illinois Emergency Management Agency or his or her designee.
24 County or municipal RACES groups shall be activated only by the
25 responsible county or municipal emergency manager.