WESTERN STATES SEISMIC POLICY COUNCIL ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING THE MARRIOTT LAKE UNION/DOWNTOWN SEATTLE HOTEL SEATTLE, WASHINGTON MAY 3, 2013 MINUTES Present:* +#Elizabeth Ashby, Nevada Division of Emergency Management +Kent Atwood, Montana Division of Disaster and Emergency Services +#Wendy Blackwell, New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management +Ken Brink, Colorado Emergency Management +Michael Conway, Arizona Geological Survey +Melinda Gibson, Wyoming Office of Homeland Security ##Ann Gravier, Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Douglas G. Gumm, Wyoming Office of Homeland Security +Rob Jackson, Colorado Earthquake Hazard Mitigation Council Claudia Kashpureff, representing self +#Richard Koehler, Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys +Kate Long, California Emergency Management Agency +#Bill Lund, Utah Geological Survey +Ron Lynn, Nevada Earthquake Safety Council Jennifer Lynette, FEMA Region IX +John Madden, Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management +Vicki McConnell, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries +Pete McDonough, Utah Seismic Safety Commission +John Metesh, Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology Stephanie Moreno, +##Teron Moore, Emergency Management British Columbia +Dave Norman, Washington Department of Natural Resources +#John Parrish, California Geological Survey Wendy Phillips, Federal Emergency Management Agency +#Althea Rizzo, Oregon Emergency Management +John Schelling, Washington Military Department, Emergency Management Division +#Mark Stephensen, Idaho Bureau of Homeland Security Patti Sutch, +Seth Wittke, Wyoming Geological Survey *KEY: + WSSPC Member # Holds Proxy for other WSSPC members unable to be present Not represented: AS-EM, AZ-EM, CO-GS, GU-EM, CNMI-EM, YK-EM Annual Business Meeting May 3, 2013 Page 1 of 5
Call to Order John Parrish The meeting was called to order by WSSPC Board Chair John Parrish. Roll Call and Establishment of Quorum Patti Sutch Twenty two members were present (+), holding an additional 11 proxies (#), for a total of 33 WSSPC members represented which established a quorum for the meeting. (A quorum is a majority of members; 20 out of 39). Adoption of Annual Business Meeting Minutes John Parrish MOTION: To adopt minutes of the Annual Business Meeting held on April 10, 2012 (Ron Lynn). SECOND: Dave Norman. Executive Director s Report Patti Sutch Patti announced that the Annual Report was put onto the flash drives that were handed out at registration. In that are the fiscal year end financial statements, and the status of the FEMA cooperative agreements, set out by tasks in the work plan. This year FEMA increased our amount to $250,000, to cover state assistance support to California, Guam, and Hawaii. At the present time most of the money has not been used. Kate Long asked Wendy Phillips if WSSPC could get a no-cost extension, and she said that was possible if the extension was applied for by June 1. The website had nearly 17,000 views last year and a decreased bounce rate for visitors. Top key words used for searching are mitigation/earthquake mitigation and WSSPC/western states. Vicki McConnell asked about the use of social media through the website. Patti answered that the Facebook link on the website has been dormant, and we do not have a Twitter account. Patti talked about the direct mail campaign to increase Affiliate members. As a result, we have 3 new members this year. Vicki suggested that the direct mail solicitation continue in each of the largest cities. Board of Directors Election John Parrish Three Board members volunteered to continue on the Board for a two year term from 2013-2015: Mark Ghilarducci, Pete McDonough, and John Parrish. There being no other nominations, a voice vote unanimously favored the three nominations. There is an Emergency Management vacancy on the Board. Certificate of Appreciation to Bill Lund Bill Lund of the Utah Geological Survey, who chaired the Basin & Range Province Committee for 8 years, received a certificate of appreciation signed by all of the Board members for his service to WSSPC. WSSPC Committee Reports Basin & Range Province (BRP) Committee Bill Lund, Past Chair, for Bill Phillips, Chair The committee meeting was well attended with 18 people 13 in person and 5 participating remotely, representing 10 states and FEMA. They discussed policy recommendations for this year and next: PR13-3: No changes to the clearinghouse policy; PR13-5: revise the Basin & Range Province Earthquake Working Group policy for next year; PR11-2: revise the fault activity definition policy for next year; PR11-5: explore strategies for preparing an Earthquake Emergency Handbook. Annual Business Meeting May 3, 2013 Page 2 of 5
The committee will work on updating the Basin & Range Province Committee webpage, and enhance geoscience activities at WSSPC, including planning for a Basin and Range Province Seismic Hazard Summit III. Engineering Construction and Building Codes (ECBC) Committee Ron Lynn, Chair Ron thanked John Parrish, WSSPC Board Chair, for his help in revising the six policy recommendations worked on by his committee: PR13-4, PR13-7, PR13-8, PR13-WW (13-10), PR13-XX (13-11), and PR13-YY (13-12). This committee is very small, and Ron will solicit additional members. He held 2 teleconferences during the year to discuss the policies. Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Committee Vicki McConnell, Interim Chair Members from the five Pacific coastal states participated in the meeting and discussed the Tsunami Warning and Education Act (TWEA) reauthorization, use of the WSSPC white paper, and reaching out to the East Coast. The committee also discussed three policy recommendations 2 for approval this year and a possible one for next year. Policy Recommendations Approval John Parrish Policy Recommendation 13-1: Rapid Tsunami Identification and Evacuation Notification MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-1 (John Schelling). SECOND: Ron Lynn. VOTE: All in favor with one abstention (Montana EM). Policy Recommendation 13-2: Support for the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program John Parrish said that the Board decision was to return this policy recommendation to the Tsunami Committee for revision. Policy Recommendation 13-3: Post-Earthquake Technical Clearinghouses MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-3 (Mike Conway). SECOND: Seth Wittke. Policy Recommendation 13-4: Seismic Provisions in the 2012 International Building Codes MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-4 (Rob Jackson). SECOND: Kent Atwood. Policy Recommendation 13-5: Basin and Range Province Earthquake Working Group(s) Withdrawn from consideration. Policy Recommendation 13-6: Post-Earthquake Information Management System MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-6 (Ron Lynn). SECOND: Mike Conway. Policy Recommendation 13-7: Seismic Design of New Schools MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-7 (Rob Jackson). SECOND: John Schelling. Discussion: Kent Atwood opposed the policy on the basis of the funding requirement. VOTE: Majority approved; Hawaii EM, Hawaii SC and Montana EM opposed. Annual Business Meeting May 3, 2013 Page 3 of 5
Policy Recommendation 13-8: Identification and Mitigation of Seismically Vulnerable School Buildings The Board recommends that 13-8 be replaced by 13-WW (13-10) if it is approved and will delay the vote until after the vote on 13-WW (13-10). Policy Recommendation 13-9: Earthquake Early Warning Systems The Board withdrew this policy from consideration. Policy Recommendation 13-10 (13-WW): Joint Policy for the Evaluation and Seismic Remediation of School Buildings MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-10 (Ron Lynn). SECOND: Mark Stephensen. Discussion: Strike the word will from the policy recommendation statement. Policy Recommendation 13-8: Identification and Mitigation of Seismically Vulnerable School Buildings The Board recommends that Policy Recommendation 13-8 not be renewed. MOTION: To adopt Policy Recommendation 13-8 (Ron Lynn). SECOND: Mike Conway. VOTE: Unanimously opposed. (Policy Recommendation 13-8 is not approved). Policy Recommendation 13-11 (13-XX): Reliability of Lifeline Infrastructure MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-11 (Elizabeth Ashby). SECOND: Kent Atwood. Pete McDonough offered to convey this policy recommendation to ASCE. Policy Recommendation 13-12 (13-YY): Earthquake Actuated Automatic Gas Shutoff Devices MOTION: To approve Policy Recommendation 13-12 (Ron Lynn). SECOND: Pete McDonough. 2014 Draft Policy Recommendation Committee Assignments John Parrish PR 11-1 Improving Tsunami Public Education, Mitigation, and Warning Procedures for Distant and Local Sources: Tsunami Committee PR 11-2 Definitions of Fault Activity for the Basin and Range Province: BRP Committee PR 11-3 Earthquake Monitoring Networks: Recommend forming an ad hoc group to review PR 11-4 Identification and Mitigation of Unreinforced Masonry Structures: ECBC Committee PR 11-5 Earthquake Emergency Handbook for First Responders and Incident Commanders: BRP Committee PR 13-5 Basin and Range Province Earthquake Working Group(s): BRP Committee 2014 Annual Meeting Patti Sutch 2014 is the 50 th anniversary of the Good Friday earthquake and tsunami, and both SSA and EERI have plans to hold their annual meeting in Anchorage. We have set aside meeting space for the WSSPC annual meeting with the EERI meeting July 20, 2014, but our concern is that WSSPC members may not be able to travel there since it is considered foreign travel. Government rate rooms are $213. With the uncertainty of continued state assistance funding, a show of hands indicated the likelihood of many members probably not being able to attend. Annual Business Meeting May 3, 2013 Page 4 of 5
FEMA Report Wendy Phillips Wendy Phillips indicated that the status of FEMA provided NEHRP state assistance funding is still unknown, as is whether NEHRP will be reauthorized. She stated that that the answer to the uncertainties is partnerships. She admired the detailed approach members have taken to discussing the WSSPC policies and the good turnout at the WSSPC meetings. She proposed quarterly calls with the consortia and states. New Business and Adjournment John Parrish Claudia Kashpureff thanked the Chair for being recognized and read a prepared statement about seismic safety of dams in the Pacific Northwest. She proposed establishing a WSSPC dam hazard mitigation committee to address this and create a policy recommendation on the issue by December. John Parrish thanked her for her comments. John also thanked Patti and Stephanie for the meetings. The meeting was adjourned by the Chair. Respectfully submitted, Patricia L. Sutch WSSPC Secretary Annual Business Meeting May 3, 2013 Page 5 of 5