Colorado § 24-33.5-708 - Establishment of interjurisdictional emergency management service area.

§ 24-33.5-708. Establishment of interjurisdictional emergency management service area.

(1) If the governor finds that two or more adjoining counties would be better served by an interjurisdictional arrangement than by maintaining separate emergency management agencies and services, the governor may delineate by executive order an interjurisdictional area adequate to plan for, prevent, or respond to and recover from disasters in that area and direct steps to be taken as necessary, including the creation of an interjurisdictional relationship, a joint emergency management plan, mutual aid, or an area organization for emergency planning and services.

(2) A finding of the governor pursuant to subsection (1) of this section shall be based on one or more factors related to the difficulty of maintaining an efficient and effective disaster prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery system on a separate basis, such as:

(a) Small or sparse population;

(b) Limitations on public financial resources severe enough to make maintenance of a separate emergency management agency and services unreasonably burdensome;

(c) Unusual vulnerability to disaster as evidenced by a past history of disasters, topographical features, drainage characteristics, disaster potential, and presence of disaster-prone facilities or operations;

(d) The interrelated character of the counties in a multicounty area; and

(e) Other relevant conditions or circumstances.

(2.5) Nothing in this section limits a county's authority to enter into an interjurisdictional arrangement with one or more adjoining counties without action by the governor.

(3) If the governor finds that a vulnerable area lies only partly within this state and includes territory in another state or territory in a foreign jurisdiction and that it would be desirable to establish an interstate or international relationship or mutual aid or an area organization for disaster, the governor shall take steps to that end as desirable. If this action is taken with jurisdictions that have enacted the interstate civil defense and disaster compact, any resulting agreements may be considered supplemental agreements pursuant to article VI of such compact.

(4) Repealed.

Source: L. 2012: Entire part RC&RE with relocations, (HB 12-1283), ch. 240, p. 1082, § 10, effective July 1. L. 2018: (1) and (2)(b) amended, (2.5) added, and (4) repealed, (HB 18-1394), ch. 234, p. 1469, § 13, effective August 8.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 24-32-2108 as it existed prior to 2012.