National Incident Management System

Homeland Security Outlines NIMS Requirements For FY 2005

In a Sept. 8, 2004, letter to the nation's governors, the Secretary of Homeland Security outlined the minimum requirements for states and territories to comply with the new National Incident Management System (NIMS).

NIMS is the first-ever standardized approach to incident management and response. Developed by the Department of Homeland Security and released in March 2004, it establishes a uniform set of processes and procedures that emergency responders at all levels of government will use to conduct response operations.

•  NIMS Implementation Letter to the Governors, Sept. 8, 2004 (98 KB)
•  Text Alternative (13 KB)

NIMS

Developed by the Secretary of Homeland Security at the request of the President, the National Incident Management System (NIMS) integrates effective practices in emergency response into a comprehensive national framework for incident management.

The NIMS will enable responders at all levels to work together more effectively and efficiently to manage domestic incidents no matter what the cause, size or complexity, including catastrophic acts of terrorism and disasters.

Federal agencies also are required to use the NIMS framework in domestic incident management and in support of state and local incident response and recovery activities.

The benefits of the NIMS system will be significant:

• Standardized organizational structures, processes and procedures;
• Standards for planning, training and exercising;
• Personnel qualification standards;
• Equipment acquisition and certification standards;
• Interoperable communications processes, procedures and systems;
• Information management systems with a commonly accepted architecture;
• Supporting technologies – voice and data communications systems, information systems, data display systems, specialized technologies; and
• Publication management processes and activities.
  

Related Information
	DHS Establishes NIMS Integration Center
	DHS Secretary Approves NIMS
	NIMS Fact Sheet
	Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-8
	Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-5