ABSTRACT
The National Response Framework (NRF) is an important document in the U.S. response system. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, under the direction of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, created the first edition of the NRF in 2008 and the second edition in 2013. The purpose of the NRF is to have consistent policies and procedures for every response actor across the nation to achieve an integrated and collaborative national response in the event of a domestic incident regardless of size, location, cause, or complexity. Although the NRF is an improvement over previous response documents—the Federal Response Plan and the National Response Plan—and was successfully applied during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, there is a need for constant improvements. After all, planning is a continuous process.
