The Region 5 Homeland Security Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) is the chief homeland security policy making body in the region and is the core membership of the Terrorism Early Warning Task Force (TEW) in Pierce County. The RCC’s planning and coordination structure is representative of the major disciplines in the region; Fire Services, Law Enforcement, Metro Parks, Ports, Public Health, Schools, and Transit.
This regional configuration was implemented to distribute federal grant funds, develop emergency responder equipment priority lists, plan and execute training exercises, create regionally based mutual aid plans, and develop volunteer infrastructure to support citizens’ involvement in homeland security initiatives. This regional structure has increased communication and collaboration, to include the sharing of best practices and resource coordination. Operations and physical resources are maintained at the local jurisdiction (county, city and tribal) level, and coordination and planning are facilitated at the regional level.