ORDINANCE
[To Repeal Chapter 22 Article II. Emergency Preparedness, and all its Amendments and Replace it with Chapter 22 – Article I. – Emergency Management: Civil Defense; Disaster and Emergency Preparedness 22-1 through 22-19, Inclusive.]
BE IT ORDAINED by the City Council of the City of Prattville that Chapter 22, Article II., Emergency Preparedness, City of Prattville Code of Ordinances is hereby repealed.
BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED by the City Council that Chapter 22, Article I. Emergency Management: Civil Defense; Disaster and Emergency Preparedness, of the City
of Prattville Code of Ordinances is hereby established as follows:
Sec. 22-1. Definitions.
The following definitions shall apply in the interpretation of this chapter:
- Emergency Management, in its broad meaning, is to carry out the basic government
functions of maintaining the public peace, health, and safety during a disaster, as defined herein. This shall include plans and preparations for protection from, and relief, recovery and rehabilitation from, the effects of an attack upon the City by the forces of an enemy nation or the agents thereof, and it shall also include such activity in connection with disaster as defined herein. It shall not, however, include any activity that is the primary responsibility of the military forces of the United States.
(2) Attack shall mean a direct or indirect assault against the City of Prattville, its government, its environs, or of the nation, by the forces of a hostile nation or the agents thereof, including assault by bombing, radiological, chemical or biological warfare, or sabotage.
(3) Disaster includes, but is not limited to, actual or threatened enemy attack, sabotage, natural, man-made or technological occurrences, epidemic or other impending or actual calamity endangering or threatening to endanger health, life or property or constituted government.
(4) Emergency management forces shall mean the employees, equipment, and facilities of all City departments, boards, institutions and commissions; and, in addition, it shall include all volunteer personnel, equipment, and facilities contributed by, or obtained from, volunteer persons or agencies and any personnel, equipment, and facilities obtained through contract or agreement.
(5) Volunteer shall mean contributing a service, equipment or facilities to the emergency management organization without remuneration.
(6) Emergency management volunteer shall mean any person duly registered, identified and appointed by the Mayor or his designee.
(7) Director shall mean the Mayor or any person designated by the Mayor.
(8) Regulations shall include plans, programs and other emergency procedures deemed essential to emergency management.
(9) Curfew shall mean a prohibition against any one or more persons walking, running, loitering, standing, motoring, or being present or remaining upon any alley, street, highway, public property, or vacant premises within the City or any portion thereof, except persons officially designated to duty with reference to a disaster or attack.
Sec. 22-2. Organization.
(a) The Mayor of the City is hereby authorized and directed to utilize to the fullest extent the existing agencies within this City to comprise an organization for emergency management, and, as executive head of the municipal government, shall be responsible for their organization, administration and operations.
(b) The City’s emergency management organization shall consist of the following:
(1) The employees, equipment and facilities of all City departments, boards, institutions and commissions. Duties assigned to a City department, board, institution or commission shall be as directed by Mayor.
(2) Volunteer persons and agencies offering service to, and accepted by, the City.
(c) In order that there will always and at all times be an executive head of government in charge of the City, there shall be included in the emergency management operational survival plan a chain of command for succession to the office of Mayor, and this chain of command shall be utilized whenever the Mayor is unavailable or unable to exercise direction and control of City forces in the event of an emergency.
State law reference(s)—Local organizations, Code of Ala. 1975, § 31-9-10.
Sec. 22-3. Emergency powers and duties of the Mayor.
(a) The Mayor may, in the event of a disaster as defined in this chapter, exercise the emergency power and authority necessary to fulfill his general duties, as defined elsewhere in this Code, or applicable state law. The council may convene to perform its legislative and administrative powers as the situation demands, and shall receive reports relative to emergency management activities. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as abridging or curtailing the powers or authority of the council as defined elsewhere in this Code, or other appropriate authorities.
(b) During any period when disaster threatens or when the City has been struck by disaster, within the definition of this chapter, the Mayor may promulgate such regulations as he deems necessary to protect life and property and preserve critical resources. Such regulations may include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) Regulations prohibiting or restricting the movement of vehicles in order to facilitate the work of emergency management forces, or to facilitate the mass movement of persons from critical areas within or without the City.
(2) Regulations pertaining to the movement of persons from areas deemed to be hazardous or vulnerable to disaster.
(3) Such other regulations necessary to preserve the public peace, health and safety.
(4) Regulations promulgated in accordance with the authority above will be given
widespread circulation by proclamations published and uttered by newspaper, City
website(s) and radio.
(c) The Mayor may order emergency management forces to the aid of other political subdivisions of the state when required, in accordance with the statutes of the state, and he may request the state, or a political subdivision of the state, to send aid to the City in case of disaster when conditions in the City are beyond control of the City, as determined by the Mayor.
(d) The Mayor may obtain vital supplies, equipment and other properties found lacking and needed for the protection of health, life and property of the people, and bind the City for the fair value thereof.
(e) The Mayor may require emergency services of any City officer or employee. If regular City forces are determined by the Mayor to be inadequate, he may require the services of such other personnel as he can obtain that are available, including citizen volunteers. To the extent provided or allowed by law, all duly authorized persons rendering emergency services shall be entitled to any privileges and immunities as may be provided by state law and City ordinances for regular City employees, and other registered and identified emergency management and disaster workers, and in the case of other than citizen volunteers, may receive appropriate compensation for their emergency employment.
(f) The Mayor will cause to be prepared the “Emergency Management Operational Survival Plan” herein referred to. This plan shall provide for the effective utilization of all resources, both public and private, of the City.
State law reference(s)—Authority of Mayor to close firearm shops and places of amusement, Code of Ala. 1975, §§ 11-43-82, 11-51-102; authority to appoint director of civil defense, Code of Ala. 1975, § 31-9-10(a).
Sec. 22-4. Emergency management and disaster plan.
(a) As heretofore provided, a comprehensive emergency management and disaster plan may be adopted and maintained by resolution of the council upon the recommendation of the Mayor. In the preparation of this plan as it pertains to City organization, it is the intent that the services, equipment, facilities and personnel of all existing and future departments and agencies shall be utilized to the fullest extent. When approved, it shall be the duty of all municipal departments and agencies to perform the functions assigned them by the plan and to maintain their portion of the plan in a current state of readiness at all times.
(b) Each department head assigned responsibility in the basic plan will be responsible for carrying out all duties and functions assigned therein. Duties will include the organization and training of assigned City employees. Each department head may formulate an operational plan for his service, which, when approved, shall be an annex to and a part of the basic plan. In addition, each department head shall designate and include as part of his annex a list of at least two (2) persons as successors to his position. The list will be in order of succession and will as nearly as possible designate persons best capable of carrying out all assigned duties and functions.
(c) Such changes in the basic plan which may be necessary after its original adoption by the commission board shall be presented by the Mayor to the board and become effective upon approval by the council.
(d) When a required competency or skill for a disaster function is not available within the City government, the Mayor is authorized to seek assistance from persons outside City government. When such persons are assigned duties of a supervisory nature, these persons assigned are authorized to carry out these duties prior to, during, and after the occurrence of a disaster. Such services from persons outside City government may be accepted by the City on a volunteer basis. Such citizens shall be enrolled as emergency management volunteers in cooperation with the heads of City departments affected.
(e) The emergency management and disaster plan shall be updated at the beginning of each calendar year.
Sec. 22-5. No municipal or private liability.
(a) Neither the City nor its agents and representatives, or, except in cases of willful misconduct, gross negligence, or bad faith, any individual, receiver, firm, partnership, corporation, association, or trustee, or any of the agents thereof, in good faith carrying out, complying with or reasonably attempting to comply with any order, rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, shall be liable for any damage sustained to persons or property as a result of such activity. The provisions of this Section shall not affect the right of any person to receive benefits to which he would otherwise be entitled under the Workmen’s Compensation Law, Pension Law, and Acts of Congress.
(b) Any person owning or controlling real estate or other premises who voluntarily and without compensation grants the City the right to inspect, designate and use the whole or any part or parts of such real estate or premises for the purpose of sheltering persons during an actual, impending or practice enemy attack, or disaster as defined in this chapter, shall not be civilly liable for the death of, or injury to, any persons on or about such real estate or premises under such license, privilege or other permission, or for the loss of or damage to the property of such person.
Sec. 22-6. Violation of regulations.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to violate any of the provisions of this chapter, or of the regulations or plans issued pursuant to the authority contained herein, or to willfully obstruct, hinder or delay any member of the emergency management organization as herein defined, in the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter or any regulation or plan issued thereunder.
Sec. 22-7. Severability.
Should any provision of this chapter be declared invalid for any reason, such declaration shall not affect the validity of other provisions, or of this chapter as a whole, it being the legislative intent that the provisions of this chapter shall be severable and remain valid notwithstanding such declaration.
Sec. 22-8. Penalty.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any provision of this chapter, or any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as set out in
Sections 1-8 of the Code of Ordinances.
Sec. 22-9. Repealer.
This chapter shall supersede any and all previous provisions relating to civil defense, and all provisions in conflict with this chapter, or relating to the subject of civil defense, are
hereby repealed.
Sec. 22-10. Reserved.
Sec. 22-11. Curfew.
(a) After an official proclamation of a disaster in writing by the Mayor, or in the event of an attack or impending attack, the Mayor shall have the power and authority to issue a written order of curfew applicable to geographical areas of the City which are or will be impacted by the disaster or attack, or to the City as a whole as he deems advisable. The curfew shall be applicable for a specified period of hours of the day and/or night as he deems necessary in the interest of the public safety and welfare.
The curfew shall remain in effect for the time period stated in the order and in no event shall it exceed one hundred twenty (120) hours or the next regularly scheduled City council meeting whichever shall occur first. The City council may extend or terminate any order of curfew by ordinance duly enacted.
(b) In the event that the Mayor orders a curfew, it shall be unlawful for any person to violate the curfew order, except for persons who are officially designated to duty with reference to the disaster or attack.
(c) This grant of Mayoral power and authority is pursuant to Code of Alabama 1975, §§ 11-45-1 and 31-9-10, which confers upon municipal corporations and political subdivisions the power and authority to provide for the health and safety of persons and property, which is an exercise of police powers.
Secs. 22-12 – 22-19. – Reserved.
Article II. Reserved
Secs. 22-20 – 22-51. – Reserved.
THIS Ordinance shall become effective upon its passage and execution as provided by law.
ADOPTED THIS 16TH DAY OF JULY, 2024.
By: Lora Lee Boone, President
Prattville City Council
AUTHENTICATED THIS 16TH DAY OF JULY, 2024.
By: Paula G. Barlow
City Clerk
APPROVED:
By: Bill Gillespie, Jr.
Mayor
ORDINANCE BOOK 2024, PAGE 013
