Morgan County OEM Seeks Public Input on Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan

The Jacksonville/Morgan County Office of Emergency Management opened a public comment period and held a public forum to gather community input on a draft Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan, with the comment window closing March 7, 2014 at the Jacksonville/Morgan County Emergency Services and Disaster Agency office.

Plan development was led at the staff level by Bob Fitzsimmons, Director of the Jacksonville/Morgan County Emergency Services and Disaster Agency. Fitzsimmons oversaw a multi-step process that moved from public engagement through state and federal review before final submission to the county and participating jurisdictions for adoption.

At the public forum, attendees received a two-page handout summarizing the planning process and a separate comment sheet for each draft Plan that could be used to provide written feedback. Copies of both materials are preserved in Appendices G and H of the plan document. A citizen questionnaire was also distributed through the offices of participating jurisdictions across Morgan County to gauge public perceptions about natural hazards; six completed questionnaires were returned to the Planning Committee, filled out by residents of several participating municipalities.

After the forum, the draft remained available for public review and comment through March 7, 2014 at the ESDA office. Residents were encouraged to submit comments electronically, by mail, or through representatives of the Planning Committee.

Comments gathered through that public involvement phase were incorporated into the draft Plan before it was submitted to the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and FEMA for review and approval. Comments subsequently received from IEMA and FEMA were incorporated into the final Plan, which was then submitted to the county and participating jurisdictions for adoption. The Plan assigns ongoing responsibilities to monitor, evaluate, and update its contents, and calls for a full review and update every five years.