Glossary of Related Terms

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INCIDENTS,

ICS 300

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GLOSSARY

Access and Functional Needs: Individual circumstances requiring assistance,

accommodation, or modification for mobility, communication, transportation, safety,

health maintenance, etc., due to any temporary or permanent situation that limits an

individual’s ability to take action in an emergency.

Agency: A government element with a specific function offering a particular kind of

assistance.

Agency Administrator/Executive: The official responsible for administering policy for

an agency or jurisdiction.

Agency Representative: A person assigned by a primary, assisting, or cooperating

local, state, tribal, territorial, or Federal Government agency, or nongovernmental or

private organization, who has authority to make decisions affecting that agency’s or

organization’s participation in incident management activities following appropriate

consultation with that agency’s leadership.

Area Command: An organization that oversees the management of multiple incidents

or oversees the management of a very large or evolving situation with multiple ICS

organizations. See Unified Area Command.

Assigned Resource: A resource that has been checked in and assigned work tasks on

an incident.

Assignment: A task given to a person or team to perform based on operational

objectives defined in the IAP.

Assistant: A title for subordinates of principal Command Staff and EOC director’s staff

positions. The title indicates a level of technical capability, qualification, and

responsibility subordinate to the primary positions. Assistants may also be assigned to

unit leaders.

Assisting Agency: An agency or organization providing personnel, services, or other

resources to the agency with direct responsibility for incident management.

Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ): An entity that has the authority and

responsibility for developing, implementing, maintaining, and overseeing the

qualification process within its organization or jurisdiction. This may be a state or

Federal agency, training commission, NGO, private sector company, or a tribal or local

agency such as a police, fire, or public works department. In some cases, the AHJ may

provide support to multiple disciplines that collaborate as a part of a team (e.g., an IMT).

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Available Resource: A resource assigned to an incident, checked in, and available for

assignment.

Badging: The assignment of physical incident-specific credentials to establish

legitimacy and permit access to incident sites. See Credentialing.

Base: See Incident Base.

Branch: The organizational level having functional or geographical responsibility for

major aspects of incident operations. A branch falls between the Section Chief and the

division or group in the Operations Section, and between the section and units in the

Logistics Section. Branches are identified by Roman numerals or by functional area.

Camp: A geographical site within the general incident area (separate from the Incident

Base) that is equipped and staffed to provide sleeping, food, water, and sanitary

services to incident personnel.

Certification: The process of authoritatively attesting that individuals meet

qualifications established for key incident management functions and are, therefore,

qualified for specific positions.

Chain of Command: The orderly line of authority within the ranks of incident

management organizations.

Check-In: The process through which resources first report to an incident. All

responders, regardless of agency affiliation, report in to receive an assignment in

accordance with the Incident Commander or Unified Command’s established

procedures.

Chief: The ICS title for individuals responsible for the management of functional

sections: Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration.

Clear Text: Communication that does not use codes. See Plain Language.

Command: The act of directing, ordering, or controlling by virtue of explicit statutory,

regulatory, or delegated authority.

Command Staff: A group of incident personnel that the Incident Commander or Unified

Command assigns to support the command function at an ICP. Command staff often

include a PIO, a Safety Officer, and a Liaison Officer, who have assistants as

necessary. Additional positions may be needed, depending on the incident.

Cooperating Agency: An agency supplying assistance other than direct operational or

support functions or resources to the incident management effort.

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Coordinate: To exchange information systematically among principals who have or

may have a need to know certain information to carry out specific incident management

responsibilities.

Core Capability: An element defined in the National Preparedness Goal as necessary

to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from the threats and

hazards that pose the greatest risk.

Credentialing: Providing documentation that identifies personnel and authenticates and

verifies their qualification for a particular position. See Badging.

Critical Infrastructure: Assets, systems, and networks, whether physical or virtual, so

vital to the United States that the incapacitation or destruction of such assets, systems,

or networks would have a debilitating impact on security, national economic security,

national public health or safety, or any combination of those matters.

Delegation of Authority: A statement that the agency executive delegating authority

and assigning responsibility provides to the Incident Commander. The delegation of

authority can include priorities, expectations, constraints, and other considerations or

guidelines, as needed.

Demobilization: The orderly, safe, and efficient return of an incident resource to its

original location and status.

Department Operations Center (DOC): An operations or coordination center

dedicated to a single, specific department or agency. The focus of a DOC is on internal

agency incident management and response. DOCs are often linked to and/or physically

represented in a combined agency EOC by an authorized agent(s) for the department

or agency.

Deputy: A fully qualified individual who, in the absence of a superior, can be delegated

the authority to manage a functional operation or to perform a specific task. In some

cases, a deputy can act as relief for a superior, and, therefore, should be fully qualified

in the position. Deputies generally can be assigned to the Incident Commander, EOC

director, General Staff, and branch directors.

Director: The ICS title for individuals responsible for supervision of a branch. Also, an

organizational title for an individual responsible for managing and directing the team in

an EOC.

Dispatch: The ordered movement of a resource or resources to an assigned

operational mission, or an administrative move from one location to another.

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Division: The organizational level having responsibility for operations within a defined

geographic area. Divisions are established when the number of resources exceeds the

manageable span of control of the Section Chief. See Group.

Emergency: Any incident, whether natural, technological, or human-caused, that

necessitates responsive action to protect life or property.

Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC): A congressionally ratified

agreement that provides form and structure to interstate mutual aid. Through EMAC, a

disaster-affected state can request and receive assistance from other member states

quickly and efficiently, resolving two key issues up front: liability and reimbursement.

Emergency Operations Center (EOC): The physical location where the coordination of

information and resources to support incident management (on-scene operations)

activities normally takes place. An EOC may be a temporary facility or located in a more

central or permanently established facility, perhaps at a higher level of organization

within a jurisdiction.

Emergency Operations Plan: A plan for responding to a variety of potential hazards.

Emergency Support Function (ESF): The grouping of governmental and certain

private sector capabilities into an organizational structure to provide capabilities and

services most likely needed to manage domestic incidents.

Essential Elements of Information (EEI): Important and standard information items,

which support timely and informed decisions.

Evacuation: The organized, phased, and supervised withdrawal, dispersal, or removal

of people from dangerous or potentially dangerous areas, and their reception and care

in safe areas.

Event: See Planned Event.

Federal: Of or pertaining to the Federal Government of the United States of America.

Finance/Administration Section: The ICS Section responsible for an incident’s

administrative and financial considerations.

General Staff: A group of incident personnel organized according to function and

reporting to the Incident Commander or Unified Command. The ICS General Staff

consists of the Operations Section Chief, Planning Section Chief, Logistics Section

Chief, Finance/Administration Section Chief.

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Group: An organizational subdivision established to divide the incident management

structure into functional areas of operation. Groups are composed of resources

assembled to perform a special function not necessarily within a single geographic area.

See also Division.

Hazard: Something that is potentially dangerous or harmful, often the root cause of an

Incident: An occurrence, natural or manmade, that necessitates a response to protect

life or property. In NIMS, the word “incident” includes planned events as well as

emergencies and/or disasters of all kinds and sizes.

Incident Action Plan (IAP): An oral or written plan containing the objectives

established by the Incident Commander or Unified Command and addressing tactics

and support activities for the planned operational period, generally 12 to 24 hours.

Incident Base: A location where personnel coordinate and administer logistics

functions for an incident. There is typically only one base per incident. (An incident

name or other designator is added to the term Base.) The ICP may be co-located with

the Incident Base.

Incident Command (IC): The ICS organizational element responsible for overall

management of the incident and consisting of the Incident Commander or Unified

Command and any additional Command Staff activated.

Incident Command Post (ICP): The field location where the primary functions of

incident command are performed. The ICP may be co-located with the Incident Base or

other incident facilities.

Incident Command System (ICS): A standardized approach to the command, control,

and coordination of on-scene incident management, providing a common hierarchy

within which personnel from multiple organizations can be effective. ICS is the

combination of procedures, personnel, facilities, equipment, and communications

operating within a common organizational structure, designed to aid in the management

of on-scene resources during incidents. It is used for all kinds of incidents and is

applicable to small, as well as large and complex, incidents, including planned events.

Incident Commander: The individual responsible for on-scene incident activities,

including developing incident objectives and ordering and releasing resources. The

Incident Commander has overall authority and responsibility for conducting incident

operations.

Incident Complex: Two or more individual incidents located in the same general area

and assigned to a single Incident Commander or Unified Command.

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Incident Management: The broad spectrum of activities and organizations providing

operations, coordination, and support applied at all levels of government, using both

governmental and nongovernmental resources to plan for, respond to, and recover from

an incident, regardless of cause, size, or complexity.

Incident Management Assistance Team (IMAT): A team of ICS-qualified personnel,

configured according to ICS that deploy in support of affected jurisdictions and/or on-

scene personnel.

Incident Management Team (IMT): A rostered group of ICS-qualified personnel

consisting of an Incident Commander, Command and General Staff, and personnel

assigned to other key ICS positions.

Incident Objective: A statement of an outcome to be accomplished or achieved.

Incident objectives are used to select strategies and tactics. Incident objectives should

be realistic, achievable, and measurable, yet flexible enough to allow strategic and

tactical alternatives.

Incident Personnel: All individuals who have roles in incident management or support,

whether on scene, in an EOC, or participating in a MAC Group.

Information Management: The collection, organization, and control over the structure,

processing, and delivery of information from one or more sources and distribution to one

or more audiences who have a stake in that information.

Intelligence/Investigations (I/I): Efforts to determine the source or cause of the

incident (e.g., disease outbreak, fire, complex coordinated attack, or cyber incident) in

order to control its impact and/or help prevent the occurrence of similar incidents. In

ICS, the function may be accomplished in the Planning Section, Operations Section,

Command Staff, as a separate General Staff section, or in some combination of these

locations.

Interoperability: The ability of systems, personnel, and equipment to provide and

receive functionality, data, information, and/or services to and from other systems,

personnel, and equipment, between both public and private agencies, departments, and

other organizations, in a manner enabling them to operate effectively together.

Joint Field Office (JFO): The primary Federal incident management field structure.

The JFO is a temporary Federal facility that provides a central location for the

coordination of local, state, tribal, and Federal governments and private sector and

NGOs with primary responsibility for response and recovery.

Joint Information Center (JIC): A facility in which personnel coordinate incident-

related public information activities. The JIC serves as the central point of contact for all

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news media. Public information officials from all participating agencies co-locate at, or

virtually coordinate through, the JIC.

Joint Information System (JIS): A structure that integrates overarching incident

information and public affairs into a cohesive organization designed to provide

consistent, coordinated, accurate, accessible, timely, and complete information during

crisis or incident operations.

Jurisdiction: Jurisdiction has two definitions depending on the context:

• A range or sphere of authority. Public agencies have jurisdiction at an incident

related to their legal responsibilities and authority. Jurisdictional authority at an

incident can be political or geographical (e.g., local, state, tribal, territorial, and

Federal boundary lines) and/or functional (e.g., law enforcement, public health).

• A political subdivision (e.g., municipality, county, parish, state, Federal) with the

responsibility for ensuring public safety, health, and welfare within its legal

authorities and geographic boundaries.

Kind: As applied to incident resources, a class or group of items or people of the same

nature or character or classified together because they have traits in common.

Leader: The ICS title for an individual who is responsible for supervision of a unit, strike

team, resource team, or task force.

Liaison Officer (LOFR or LNO): A member of the ICS Command Staff responsible for

coordinating with representatives from cooperating and assisting agencies or

organizations.

Local Government: Public entities responsible for the security and welfare of a

designated area as established by law. A county, municipality, city, town, township,

local public authority, school district, special district, intrastate district, council of

governments (regardless of whether the council of governments is incorporated as a

nonprofit corporation under state law), regional or interstate government entity, or

agency or instrumentality of a local government; a tribe or authorized tribal entity, or in

Alaska, a Native Village or Alaska Regional Native Corporation; a rural community,

unincorporated town or village, or other public entity.).

Logistics: The process and procedure for providing resources and other services to

support incident management.

Logistics Section: The ICS Section responsible for providing facilities, services, and

material support for the incident.

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Management by Objectives: A management approach, fundamental to NIMS, that

involves (1) establishing objectives, e.g., specific, measurable and realistic outcomes to

be achieved;(2) identifying strategies, tactics, and tasks to achieve the objectives; (3)

performing the tactics and tasks and measuring and documenting results in achieving

the objectives; and (4) taking corrective action to modify strategies, tactics, and/or

performance to achieve the objectives.

Manager: The individual within an ICS organizational unit assigned specific managerial

responsibilities (e.g., Staging Area Manager or Camp Manager).

Mission Area: One of five areas (Prevention, Protection, Mitigation, Response, and

Recovery) designated in the National Preparedness Goal to group core capabilities.

Mitigation: The capabilities necessary to reduce the loss of life and property from

natural and/or manmade disasters by lessening the impacts of disasters.

Mobilization: The processes and procedures for activating, assembling, and

transporting resources that have been requested to respond to or support an incident.

Multiagency Coordination Group (MAC Group): A group, typically consisting of

agency administrators or executives from organizations, or their designees, that

provides policy guidance to incident personnel, supports resource prioritization and

allocation, and enables decision making among elected and appointed officials and

senior executives in other organizations, as well as those directly responsible for

incident management. Can also be called the Policy Group.

Multiagency Coordination Systems: An overarching term for the NIMS Command

and Coordination systems: ICS, EOCs, MAC Group/policy groups, and JISs.

Mutual Aid and Assistance Agreement: A written or oral agreement between and

among agencies/organizations and/or jurisdictions that provides a mechanism to quickly

obtain assistance in the form of personnel, equipment, materials, and other associated

services. The primary objective is to facilitate the rapid, short-term deployment of

support prior to, during, and/or after an incident.

National: Of a nationwide character, including the local, state, tribal, territorial, and

Federal aspects of governance and policy.

National Incident Management System (NIMS): A systematic, proactive approach to

guide all levels of government, NGOs, and the private sector to work together to

prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to, and recover from the effects of incidents.

NIMS provides stakeholders across the whole community with the shared vocabulary,

systems, and processes to successfully deliver the capabilities described in the National

Preparedness System. NIMS provides a consistent foundation for dealing with all

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incidents, ranging from daily occurrences to incidents requiring a coordinated Federal

response.

National Planning Frameworks: Guidance documents for each of the five

preparedness mission areas that describe how the whole community works together to

achieve the National Preparedness Goal. The Frameworks foster a shared

understanding of roles and responsibilities, from the firehouse to the White House, and

clarifies how the Nation coordinates, shares information, and works together—ultimately

resulting in a more secure and resilient Nation.

National Preparedness: The actions taken to plan, organize, equip, train, and exercise

to build and sustain the capabilities necessary to prevent, protect against, mitigate the

effects of, respond to, and recover from those threats that pose the greatest risk to the

security of the Nation.

National Preparedness Goal (NPG): Doctrine describing what it means for the whole

community to be prepared for the types of incidents that pose the greatest threat to the

security of the Nation, including acts of terrorism and emergencies and disasters,

regardless of cause. The goal itself is: “A secure and resilient Nation with the

capabilities required across the whole community to prevent, protect against, mitigate,

respond to, and recover from the threats and hazards that pose the greatest risk.”

National Preparedness System (NPS): An organized process to achieve the National

Preparedness Goal of a secure and resilient Nation.

National Response Coordination Center (NRCC): A multiagency coordination center

located at FEMA Headquarters. Its staff coordinates the overall Federal support for

major disasters and emergencies, including catastrophic incidents and emergency

management program implementation.

Nongovernmental Organization (NGO): A group that is based on the interests of its

members, individuals, or institutions. An NGO is not created by a government, but it

may work cooperatively with government. Examples of NGOs include faith-based

groups, relief agencies, organizations that support people with access and functional

needs, and animal welfare organizations.

Normal Operations/Steady State: The activation level that describes routine

monitoring of jurisdictional situation (no event or incident anticipated).

Officer: The ICS title for a member of the Command Staff authorized to make decisions

and take action related to his/her area of responsibility.

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Operational Period: The time scheduled for executing a given set of operation actions,

as specified in the IAP. Operational periods can be of various lengths, but are typically

12 to 24 hours.

Operational Security (OPSEC): The implementation of procedures and activities to

protect sensitive or classified operations involving sources and methods of intelligence

collection, investigative techniques, tactical actions, counter-surveillance measures,

counterintelligence methods, undercover officers, cooperating witnesses, and

informants.

Operations Section: The ICS Section responsible for implementing tactical incident

operations described in the IAP. In ICS, the Operations Section may include

subordinate branches, divisions, and/or groups.

Organization: Any association or group of persons with like objectives. Examples

include, but are not limited to, governmental departments and agencies, NGOs, and

private sector entities.

Plain Language: Communication that the intended audience can understand and that

meets the communicator’s purpose. For the purpose of NIMS, plain language refers to a

communication style that avoids or limits the use of codes, abbreviations, and jargon, as

appropriate, during incidents involving more than a single agency.

Planned Event: An incident that is a scheduled non-emergency activity (e.g., sporting

event, concert, parade).

Planning Meeting: A meeting held, as needed, before and throughout an incident to

select specific strategies and tactics for incident control operations and for service and

support planning.

Planning Section: The ICS Section that collects, evaluates, and disseminates

operational information related to the incident and for the preparation and

documentation of the IAP. This section also maintains information on the current and

forecasted situation and on the status of resources assigned to the incident.

Position Qualifications: The minimum criteria necessary for individuals to fill a specific

position.

Prevention: The capabilities necessary to avoid, prevent, or stop a threatened or actual

act of terrorism. In national preparedness guidance, the term “prevention” refers to

preventing imminent threats.

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Private Sector: Organizations and individuals that are not part of any governmental

structure. The private sector includes for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, formal

and informal structures, commerce, and industry.

Protection: The capabilities necessary to secure the homeland against acts of

terrorism and manmade or natural disasters.

Protocol: A set of established guidelines for actions (designated by individuals, teams,

functions, or capabilities) under various specified conditions.

Public Information: Processes, procedures, and systems for communicating timely,

accurate, and accessible information on an incident’s cause, size, and current situation;

resources committed; and other matters of general interest to the public, responders,

and additional stakeholders (both directly affected and indirectly affected).

Public Information Officer (PIO): A member of the ICS Command Staff responsible for

interfacing with the public and media and/or with other agencies with incident-related

information needs.

Recovery: The capabilities necessary to assist communities affected by an incident to

recover effectively.

Recovery Plan: A plan developed to restore the affected area or community.

Recovery Support Function (RSF): Organizing structures for key functional areas of

assistance outlined in the National Disaster Recovery Framework that group capabilities

of various government and private sector partner organizations to promote effective

recovery from disasters before and after disasters strike.

Reimbursement: Mechanism used to recoup funds expended for incident-specific

activities.

Resource Management: Systems for identifying available resources at all jurisdictional

levels to enable timely, efficient, and unimpeded access to resources needed to prepare

for, respond to, or recover from an incident.

Resource Team: See Strike Team.

Resource Tracking: The process that all incident personnel and staff from associated

organizations use to maintain information regarding the location and status of resources

ordered for, deployed to, or assigned to an incident.

Resources: Personnel, equipment, teams, supplies, and facilities available or

potentially available for assignment to incident operations and for which status is

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maintained. Resources are described by kind and type and may be used in operational

support or supervisory capacities at an incident or at an EOC.

Response: The capabilities necessary to save lives, protect property and the

environment, and meet basic human needs after an incident has occurred.

Safety Officer (SOFR): In ICS, a member of the Command Staff responsible for

monitoring incident operations and advising the Incident Commander or Unified

Command on all matters relating to operational safety, including the health and safety of

incident personnel. The Safety Officer modifies or stops the work of personnel to

prevent unsafe acts.

Section: The ICS organizational element having responsibility for a major functional

area of incident management (e.g., Operations, Planning, Logistics, and

Finance/Administration).

Single Resource: An individual, a piece of equipment and its personnel complement,

or a crew/team of individuals with an identified work supervisor that can be used on an

incident.

Situation Report (SitRep): Confirmed or verified information regarding the specific

details relating to an incident.

Span of Control: The number of subordinates for which a supervisor is responsible,

usually expressed as the ratio of supervisors to individuals.

Staging Area: A temporary location for available resources in which personnel,

supplies, and equipment await operational assignment.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP): A reference document or an operations

manual that provides the purpose, authorities, duration, and details for the preferred

method of performing a single function or several interrelated functions in a uniform

manner.

State: Used in NIMS to include any state of the United States, the District of Columbia,

the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any possession of the United

States.

Status Report: Reports, such as spot reports, that include vital and/or time-sensitive

information. Status reports are typically function-specific, less formal than situation

reports, and are not always issued on a specific schedule.

Strategy: The general plan or direction selected to accomplish incident objectives.

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Strike Team (ST): A set number of resources of the same kind and type that have an

established minimum number of personnel, common communications, and a leader. In

the law enforcement community, strike teams are sometimes referred to as resource

teams.

Supervisor: The Incident Command System title for an individual responsible for a

Division or Group.

System: Any combination of processes, facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures,

and communications integrated for a specific purpose.

Tactics: The deployment and directing of resources on an incident to accomplish the

objectives.

Task Force (TF): Any combination of resources of different kinds and/or types

assembled to support a specific mission or operational need.

Technical Specialist: Individual with special skills that can be used anywhere within

the Incident Command System organization. No minimum qualifications are prescribed,

as technical specialists normally perform the same duties during an incident that they

perform in their everyday jobs, and they are typically certified in their fields or

professions.

Terrorism: Any activity that involves an act that is dangerous to human life or

potentially destructive of critical infrastructure and is a violation of the criminal laws of

the United States or of any state or other subdivision of the United States; and appears

to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, or to influence the policy of a

government by intimidation or coercion, or to affect the conduct of a government by

mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping.

Threat: A natural or manmade occurrence, an individual, an entity, or an action having

or indicating the potential to harm life, information, operations, the environment, and/or

property.

Tools: Instruments and capabilities that allow the professional performance of tasks,

such as information systems, agreements, doctrine, capabilities, and legislative

authorities.

Type: A NIMS resource classification that refers to capability of a specific kind of

resource to which a metric is applied to designate it as a specific numbered class.

Unified Area Command: version of command established when incidents under an

Area Command are multijurisdictional. See Area Command.

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Unified Command (UC): An ICS application used when more than one agency has

incident jurisdiction or when incidents cross political jurisdictions.

Unit: The organizational element with functional responsibility for a specific activity

within the Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration Sections in ICS.

Unit Leader: The individual in charge of a unit in ICS.

United States National Grid: A point and area location reference system that FEMA

and other incident management organizations use as an accurate and expeditious

alternative to latitude/longitude.

Unity of Command: A NIMS guiding principle stating that each individual involved in

incident management reports to and takes direction from only one person.

Unity of Effort: A NIMS guiding principle that provides coordination through

cooperation and common interests and does not interfere with Federal department and

agency supervisory, command, or statutory authorities.

Whole Community: A focus on enabling the participation in incident management

activities of a wide range of players from the private and nonprofit sectors, including

NGOs and the general public, in conjunction with the participation of all levels of

government, to foster better coordination and working relationships.