FEMA Emergency Response & Planning — Questions and Answers

Question 1: How many steps make up the planning process described in FEMA's Comprehensive Preparedness Guide (CPG) 101?

Four
Five
Six (Correct answer)
Seven

Correct answer: Six

CPG 101 outlines six steps, from forming a collaborative planning team through plan implementation and maintenance.

Question 2: Which ICS General Staff position is responsible for collecting incident information, tracking resource status, and preparing the Incident Action Plan?

Operations Section Chief
Planning Section Chief (Correct answer)
Logistics Section Chief
Finance/Administration Section Chief

Correct answer: Planning Section Chief

The Planning Section gathers and evaluates information, tracks resources, and prepares the IAP.

Question 3: What does ICS consider the optimal span of control for most incident supervisors?

One supervisor to five subordinates (Correct answer)
One supervisor to ten subordinates
One supervisor to two subordinates
One supervisor to fifteen subordinates

Correct answer: One supervisor to five subordinates

ICS recommends a span of control of 3 to 7, with 1:5 as the optimal ratio.

Question 4: Under the National Response Framework, which Emergency Support Function covers mass care, emergency assistance, temporary housing, and human services?

ESF #3
ESF #6 (Correct answer)
ESF #8
ESF #13

Correct answer: ESF #6

ESF #6 coordinates mass care, emergency assistance, temporary housing, and human services.

Question 5: When is Unified Command most appropriate?

When a single agency has full jurisdiction over a small incident
When only private-sector resources are involved
When the Incident Commander is unavailable for a shift
When several agencies or jurisdictions share legal authority or functional responsibility for the incident (Correct answer)

Correct answer: When several agencies or jurisdictions share legal authority or functional responsibility for the incident

Unified Command lets agencies with shared authority set common objectives without giving up their own authority.

Question 6: Under the Stafford Act, who submits the request to the President for a major disaster declaration?

The county emergency manager
The FEMA Regional Administrator
The Governor or tribal chief executive (Correct answer)
The mayor of the most affected city

Correct answer: The Governor or tribal chief executive

Only a Governor or tribal chief executive may request a Stafford Act declaration from the President.

Question 7: How long is a typical ICS operational period covered by an Incident Action Plan?

Exactly 1 hour
Always 72 hours
One full week
Generally 12 to 24 hours (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Generally 12 to 24 hours

Operational periods are usually 12 to 24 hours but can be adjusted to fit the incident.

Question 8: Which of the following is NOT one of the five mission areas in the National Preparedness Goal?

Prevention
Mitigation
Recovery
Notification (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Notification

The five mission areas are Prevention, Protection, Mitigation, Response, and Recovery.

Question 9: Under FEMA's Community Lifelines construct, which lifeline includes 911, dispatch, and alerts and warnings?

Communications (Correct answer)
Safety and Security
Health and Medical
Energy

Correct answer: Communications

The Communications lifeline covers infrastructure, alerts and warnings, 911 and dispatch, responder communications, and finance.

Question 10: What is the main purpose of a Joint Information Center (JIC) during an incident?

Directing tactical operations in the field
Tracking incident costs and reimbursements
Coordinating consistent public information from multiple agencies (Correct answer)
Managing staging areas for incoming resources

Correct answer: Coordinating consistent public information from multiple agencies

The JIC brings public information officers together so the public gets coordinated, accurate messages.

Question 11: Under the Stafford Act, what is the general limit on federal assistance for a single emergency declaration unless the President reports to Congress?

$1 million
$5 million (Correct answer)
$25 million
No limit applies

Correct answer: $5 million

Emergency declaration assistance is generally capped at $5 million unless the President finds a continuing need and reports to Congress.

Question 12: What is the minimum federal cost share for eligible Public Assistance projects under a major disaster declaration?

50 percent
60 percent
75 percent (Correct answer)
100 percent

Correct answer: 75 percent

The federal share for Public Assistance is at least 75 percent and can be raised for catastrophic events.

Question 13: What is the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC)?

A state-to-state mutual aid agreement ratified by Congress (Correct answer)
A federal grant for local fire departments
A FEMA contract with private ambulance companies
An international treaty for disaster relief

Correct answer: A state-to-state mutual aid agreement ratified by Congress

EMAC lets states share resources during governor-declared emergencies, with liability and reimbursement protections built in.

Question 14: In ICS, where are resources temporarily kept while waiting for a tactical assignment?

Incident Command Post
Base
Camp
Staging Area (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Staging Area

Staging Areas hold resources that are available for immediate assignment, usually within three minutes.

Question 15: At an initial-response incident where no Planning Section has been set up, who is responsible for planning functions?

The first-arriving Safety Officer
The Incident Commander (Correct answer)
The Logistics Section Chief
The EOC director

Correct answer: The Incident Commander

In ICS, the Incident Commander performs any General Staff function that has not been delegated.

Question 16: A more qualified officer arrives and will take over as Incident Commander. What must happen during the transfer of command?

The new officer silently assumes command upon arrival
The transfer waits until the incident ends
A face-to-face briefing on incident status, followed by notification of all personnel (Correct answer)
The previous IC leaves the scene right away

Correct answer: A face-to-face briefing on incident status, followed by notification of all personnel

Transfer of command requires a full briefing, preferably face to face, and notification to everyone involved.

Question 17: A short-duration toxic chemical plume will pass over a neighborhood within an hour. Which protective action is usually best?

Shelter-in-place (Correct answer)
Full-scale evacuation
Voluntary relocation over several days
No protective action

Correct answer: Shelter-in-place

For brief releases, sheltering in place often protects better than evacuating through the plume.

Question 18: Which law requires state and local emergency plans to account for household pets and service animals before, during, and after a disaster?

Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act
Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000
Sandy Recovery Improvement Act
Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act of 2006 (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards (PETS) Act of 2006

The PETS Act amended the Stafford Act to require plans for household pets and service animals.

Question 19: A homeowner's insurance has already paid for their storm-damaged roof. Why will FEMA's Individuals and Households Program not pay for the same repair?

FEMA never pays for roof repairs
Federal law prohibits duplication of benefits (Correct answer)
The homeowner must first wait one year
Only renters qualify for FEMA housing assistance

Correct answer: Federal law prohibits duplication of benefits

The Stafford Act bars FEMA from paying for losses already covered by insurance or another source.

Question 20: Before requesting a major disaster declaration, which assessment do state and FEMA teams usually conduct together to document impacts?

After-Action Review
Hazard Vulnerability Analysis
Joint Preliminary Damage Assessment (Correct answer)
Benefit-Cost Analysis

Correct answer: Joint Preliminary Damage Assessment

Joint PDAs by federal, state, tribal, and local officials document damage to support the declaration request.

Question 21: Using the ICS incident complexity typing scale, which incident type is the most complex and needs national-level resources?

Type 5
Type 4
Type 3
Type 1 (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Type 1

Incidents range from Type 5, the least complex, to Type 1, the most complex.

FEMA Emergency Response & Planning

How many steps make up the planning process described in FEMA's Comprehensive Preparedness Guide (CPG) 101?

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