EMAP, the Emergency Management Accreditation Program, is a national voluntary assessment and accreditation process for state and local government programs that are responsible for coordinating prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery activities for natural and human-caused disasters.



EMAP grew out of a 1997 conference of the National Emergency Management Association (NEMA). EMAP's purpose is to provide quality standards and a verified assessment process, in order to strengthen the capabilities and demonstrate the accountability of emergency management programs throughout the United States.

EMAP is a tax-exempt, non-profit organization. It is an affiliate of The Council of State Governments (CSG), with headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky.

All U.S. state, territorial, and local government emergency management programs can seek EMAP accreditation. The accreditation process assesses emergency management programs in 15 areas including planning, resource management, training, exercises, evaluations and corrective actions, and communications and warning.

The steps in the accreditation process include self-assessment and documentation; on-site assessment by a team of trained, independent assessors; committee review and recommendation; and accreditation decision by an independent commission.

Once a program or individual has registered with EMAP, they can use the EMAP Online Assessment Tool, a web-based self-assessment and documentation tool, to prepare for the on-site assessment.

The EMAP Online Assessment Tool, which is accessible only to registered programs or individuals, provides a mechanism to walk through the EMAP standards in order to determine if their emergency management/preparedness program is compliant with each EMAP standard. The tool also provides a mechanism to list documentation, or ?proofs of compliance? to demonstrate or document the program's compliance. As an improvement planning tool, the tool also offers registered programs or individuals a means of tracking steps that their program may need to take to reach compliance.

Accreditation is based on compliance with national standards that are based on the NFPA 1600 Standard on Disaster/Emergency Management and Business Continuity Programs, 2004, which was developed with input from emergency managers and state and local government officials, and published by the National Fire Protection Association. Accreditation is valid for five years from the date the EMAP Commission grants accreditation.

As of February 2006, nine jurisdictions had achieved EMAP accreditation. The jurisdictions are the states of Arizona, Florida, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Illinois and Montana; the District of Columbia; and the consolidated city/county government of Jacksonville/Duval County in Florida. The East Baton Rouge Parish of Louisiana was conditionally accredited.