The Role of Regional Consortia
The National Infrastructure Protection Plan establishes a robust partnership framework that engages government and private sector representatives within and across each of the CIKR Sectors. It augments this sector-based structure with a networked approach that values the expertise of state, local, tribal, and territorial governments and the contributions of established regional entities.
The engagement of regional coalitions or consortia is a force multiplier. It provides the ability to mobilize hundreds of thousands of participants in the infrastructure protection effort. It promotes the integration of critical infrastructure protection as a new or enhanced focus of regional groups formed for a variety of purposes, like: multi-state economic development agencies; law enforcement or emergency response networks; or any public-private partnership that crosses jurisdictional, sector, or international boundaries.
What Regional Consortia Can Do
Regional consortia can play an important role in protecting the nation’s CIKR by taking the following actions:
★ Consider critical infrastructure protection in your community and business planning
★ Assess and manage risk using the strategic framework contained in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan
★ Engage in information sharing with the Department of Homeland Security, Government Coordinating
Councils, Sector Coordinating Councils, state, local, tribal, and territorial entities, other regional consortia, and private sector organizations
★ Participate in exercises.
★ Provide training to your members, employees and community partners in critical infrastructure protection
How Regional Consortia Can Benefit
You and other members of your regional organization can benefit from active participation in critical infrastructure protection through:
★ Access to current threat information
★ Assistance in assessing and managing risk
★ Use of training and educational programs, including best practices and lessons learned
★ Involvement in the development of federal and state critical infrastructure and key resources initiatives and policies
★ Enhanced security and business continuity practices
★ Contribution to national and homeland security mission
Regional Consortium Coordinating Council
The Partnership Model outlined in the NIPP encourages formation of Sector Coordinating Councils (SCCs) and Government Coordinating Councils (GCCs) for each sector, as well as cross-sector councils for government and private sector engagement. These include councils to coordinate the perspectives of state, local, tribal, and territorial governments and regional initiatives. The Regional Consortium Coordinating Council (RCCC) provides the final piece of the partnership. It was established in 2008 to bring together established regional entities into a unified forum for coordination with DHS and the established CIKR sector framework. RCCC Goals include:
★ Promoting and fostering protection and resilience efforts
★ Developing a national policy framework for regional infrastructure protection, prevention, deterrence, response, recovery, and longer-term restoration
★ Providing the foundation for regional cross-sector collaboration
★ Fostering the development of risk-based protection and mitigation measures to enable measurable progress towards robust security and disaster resilience
★ Enhancing the education and awareness of critical infrastructure interdependencies