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Code · Kentucky · Chapter 39A — Statewide emergency management programs

39A.020 Definitions for KRS Chapters 39A to 39F.

831 words·~4 min read·/ky/chapter-39a/39a-020

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

As used in KRS Chapters 39A to 39F, unless the context requires otherwise:
(1)"Adjutant General" means the executive head of the Department of Military
Affairs vested with general direction and control authority for the department
and the division of emergency management;
(2)"Catastrophe" means a disaster or series of concurrent disasters which
adversely affect the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky or a major geographical
portion thereof;
(3)"Chief executive officer" means a:
(a)County judge/executive of a county;
(b)Mayor of a consolidated local government;
(c)Mayor of an urban-county government;
(d)Chief executive officer of a charter county government;
(e)Chief executive officer of a unified local government; or
(f)Mayor of a city;
(4)"Comprehensive emergency management program" means the public safety
program developed, organized, implemented, administered, maintained, and
coordinated by the Division of Emergency Management and local emergency
management agencies created pursuant to the provisions of KRS Chapters
39A to 39F, to assess, mitigate, prepare for, respond to, or recover from, an
emergency, declared emergency, disaster, or catastrophe, or threat of any of
those, as contemplated in KRS 39A.010 or as defined in this section;
(5)"Coordination" means having and exercising primary state or local executive
branch oversight for the purpose of organizing, planning, and implementing;
(6)"County" means a county, urban-county government, charter county
government, consolidated local government, or unified local government;
(7)"Declared emergency" means any incident or situation declared to be an
emergency, disaster, or catastrophe by executive order of the Governor, or a
county judge/executive, or a mayor, or the chief executive of other local
governments in the Commonwealth pursuant to the provisions of KRS
Chapters 39A to 39F;
(8)"Director" means the director of the Division of Emergency Management of the
Department of Military Affairs;
(9)"Disaster" means any incident or situation declared as such by executive
action of the Governor, or the President of the United States, pursuant to
federal law;
(10)"Disaster and emergency response" means the performance of all emergency
functions, other than war-related functions for which military forces are primarily
responsible, including but not limited to: direction and control, incident
command, or management; communications; fire protection services; police
services; medical and health services; ambulance services; rescue; search and
rescue or recovery; urban search and rescue; engineering; alerting and
warning services; resource management; public works services; nuclear,
chemical, biological, or other hazardous material or substance monitoring,
containment, decontamination, neutralization, and disposal; emergency worker
protection, site safety, site operations and response planning; evacuation of
persons; emergency welfare services; emergency transportation; physical plant
protection; temporary restoration of public utility services; emergency lighting
and power services; emergency public information; incident investigation,
hazards analysis, and damage assessment; and other functions related to
effective reaction to a disaster or emergency or catastrophe, or the potential,
threatened, or impending threat of any disaster or emergency or catastrophe,
together with all other activities necessary or incidental to the preparation for
and carrying out of the functions set out in this subsection;
(11)"Division" means the Division of Emergency Management of the Department of
Military Affairs;
(12)"Emergency" means any incident or situation which poses a major threat to
public safety so as to cause, or threaten to cause, loss of life, serious injury,
significant damage to property, or major harm to public health or the
environment;
(a)"Executive action" means:
1. All orders and guidelines related to a COVID-19 declared
emergency issued by the Governor or any state agency, the
President of the United States or any federal agency, or a local
governmental agency; and
2. Industry-specific guidelines related to a COVID-19 declared
emergency adopted by a state agency that govern the industry; and
(b)"Executive action":
1. Does not mean informal or indefinite statements or
recommendations made by government officials; and
2. Does not create a duty of care;
(14)"Integrated emergency management system" means the unified and
multidisciplinary disaster and emergency response infrastructure developed in
the Commonwealth, under the coordination of the division, using methods
which align state or local administrative, organizational, and operational
resources, to accomplish the mission, goals, and objectives of the
comprehensive emergency management program of the Commonwealth;
(15)"Local disaster and emergency services organization" means that organization
of public and private entities developed to carry out the multiagency disaster
and emergency response of a city, county, urban-county or charter county
pursuant to KRS Chapters 39A to 39F;
(16)"Local emergency management agency" means the agency created, operated,
and maintained to coordinate the local comprehensive emergency
management program and disaster and emergency response of a city, county,
and urban-county or charter county government pursuant to KRS Chapters
39A to 39F;
(17)"Local emergency management director" or "Local director" means the
executive head of the local emergency management agency, appointed
pursuant to the provisions of KRS Chapters 39A to 39F;
(18)"State emergency management agency" means the Division of Emergency
Management of the Department of Military Affairs; and
(19)"State emergency management director" means the director of the Division of
Emergency Management.
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