The terrorist attack of September 11, 2001, and the natural disasters of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita demonstrated the challenges that governments face in initial response and recovery efforts. This book details the important steps that governors and mayors have initiated to address the serious problems illustrated by these recent disasters. The innovative solutions include developing more reliable communications, creating public–private partnerships to supplement public emergency services, establishing fusion c- ters that interpret information, and creating joint operations centers to manage the response to the event. There are important lessons to be learned from the managerial and technological innovations that the governors and mayors describe in this book. As the Mayor of Philadelphia and now as the Governor of Pennsylvania, I have contributed to three books on best practices of state and local governments. I am pleased to participate in the efforts of the Center for Competitive Government of the Fox School at Temple University to address the important issues faced by governments. This book makes an important contribution to the public discussion on the public and private sectors’ role in homeland security. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell vii Acknowledgement The editors would like to acknowledge Dr. M. Moshe Porat, Dean of the Fox School at Temple where the Center for Competitive Government is located. His strong c- tribution and support for the Mayors’ Summits is most appreciated. Many chapters for our books including this one emanated from these Summits.
This book brings together the technological and managerial innovations suggested and applied by the nation’s leading governors and mayors in their own words. It includes models for public-private partnerships to improve preparation for, response and recovery from major natural disasters and terrorist attacks. These leaders in innovation point out how the 9/11 communication problems that contributed to the catastrophe have been addressed, including the use of volunteer agencies and volunteers to supplement governmental efforts, which is a recurring theme of the book. The book makes specific recommendations of services usually provided by public emergency agencies that are private in nature and could be shed by government while often being provided by the private sector. The book further suggests public services that are under the responsibility of governments but could be delivered more efficiently by contracting them out under competitive conditions and highlights incentives for greater involvement of the private sector in the delivery of emergency services.
