DATE: December 16, 2025
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Fire Chief
SUBJECT: Adopt a Resolution Adopting the Updated Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, Disaster Debris Management Plan, and Shelter Management Plan; and Finding that the Action is Exempt from Environmental Review
RECOMMENDATION
That Council adopts the attached resolution adopting the updated Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) (Attachment III), Disaster Debris Management (Attachment IV) and Shelter Management (Attachment V) plans, establishing policies and procedures for responding to emergency and disaster situations , and finds that the action is exempt from environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
SUMMARY
The City of Hayward has prepared an updated version of the CEMP to ensure the most effective response to emergencies. The plan, led by the Fire Department, clearly assigns emergency tasks to personnel, specifies emergency policies, and establishes general procedures. The CEMP lays out the various emergency operations center (EOC) roles that will be filled during an emergency along with their responsibilities and which other roles they will collaborate with.
The CEMP also provides a basis for unified training and response exercises to maintain compliance with county and state preparedness expectations.
Previous versions of the CEMP were not approved by City Council and, in stead, were administratively adopted by the Hayward Fire Department. To support better situational awareness among the City’s elected officials and employees , staff is seeking City Council adoption of the CEMP. The City’s emergency preparedness framework also includes the newly developed Disaster Debris Management and Shelter Management plans , which provide extensive detail and layout procedures for addressing these disaster subjects.
This item was presented to the Council Public Safety Committee on December 3, 2025.
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed plan uses existing resources, and adoption will have no additional fiscal impact.
BACKGROUND & DISCUSSION
In 2023, the Hayward Fire Department gained approval from City Council to contract Ganey Science, LLC consulting group, to produce an updated, high-quality CEMP document for the City.
Hayward’s prior CEMP was over 14 years old and updating the CEMP to align with current emergency management best practices w as needed. This partnership required frequent communication with Alameda County’s Office of Emergency Services to align with the most current California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) procedures and regulations. The CEM P document under consideration is the culmination of two years of thorough collaboration between all these groups.
The City of Hayward’s emergency organization includes all City employees as disaster service workers, each role supporting the protection of life and property during emergencies, as outlined in City Code Chapter 3, Article 2 . T he City Disaster Council ( made up of the City Manager, Fire Chief, and EOC Coordinator) assigns City employees positions in the EOC based on their work expertise, creating the foundation for success during a disaster. The CEMP fills a critical gap in Hayward’s emergency preparedness as staff are tasked with making strategic decisions and allocating resources to efficiently handle an incident
The City Manager is de-jure designated as the EOC Director, although this can change to the Fire Chief, Police Chief, or other senior executive depending on the type of incident. All other EOC staff are divided into the following sections: management, operations, planning, logistics, and finance.
In addition, the policy group operates alongside the management section and includes senior level administrators (if they do not have an assigned role in the EOC). The policy group collaborates with the management section to set overall strategic direction and priorities for emergency response and recovery.
The figure on the next page shows this structure.
The CEMP document is organized into four parts: Part 1 is City’s Emergency Operations Plan, Part 2 and 3 provide the Functional (SEMS Element) and Support Annexes, and Part 4 contains the Hazard, Threat, or Incident Specific Annexes. The proposed CEMP desc ribes the City’s emergency management system and how it is activated. It also accomplishes the following:
Establishes a chain of command for emergency situations Assigns emergency response and recovery to various staff and departments Outlines roles, responsibilities, and procedures for the EOC Describes procedures for requesting and integrating resources during emergencies Establishes emergency communication and notification procedures Provides for continuity of government during emergencies
The CEMP is one part of the City’s emergency preparedness framework and pairs with the newly developed Disaster Debris Management (Attachment IV) and Shelter Management (Attachment V) plans. These two additional plans delve deep into their respective topics with extensive detail and layout procedures and regulations for addressing these disaster subjects.
The attached resolution includes the concurrent adoption of the updated CEMP plan , the Disaster Debris Management plan, and the Shelter Management plan. Working in unison these plans strengthen each other and create a strong foundation for emergency management for the City.
The proposed CEMP update incorporates the requirements from the Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) and National Incident Management System (NIMS), maintaining the City’s eligibility to receive state and federal emergency funds. If significant changes need to be made to the CEMP, it will be brought back to City Council for review and approval of an updated version.
Environmental Review
Approval of the CEMP, Disaster Debris Management Plan or Shelter Management Plan is exempt from environmental review as the adoption of the plans does not qualify as a “project” pursuant to CEQA, under Public Resource Code Section 21065 and CEQA Guidelines Section 15320, 15378, and 15061(b) (3) as there is no possibility that such action would cause either a direct, or reasonably foreseeable indirect, physical change in the environment. Even if approval of the plans is considered a project under CEQA, it is exempt from environmental review pursuant to Public Resources Code section 21080(b)(4) as an action taken to prevent or mitigate an emergency.
STRATEGIC ROADMAP
The CEMP will fulfill the “Enhance Community Safety and Quality of Life” objective of the Strategic Roadmap, with a direct impact on the “Strengthening Emergency Preparedness, Planning and Response” category and the “Update Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan” task.
SUSTAINABILITY FEATURES
Formalizing emergency preparedness systems will help the City of Hayward better prepare for disasters and sustain emergency systems during incidents.
NEXT STEPS
If Council approves this item, the Hayward Fire Department will implement the updated CEMP and use the document to inform the City’s emergency preparedness, EOC trainings, and tabletop exercises.
Prepared by: Ashkon Mogharei, Management Fellow
Recommended by: Ryan Hamre, Fire Chief
Approved by:
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Jennifer Ott, City Manager