Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger issued an executive order establishing a unified framework for emergency preparedness, consolidating state agencies, first responders, and private sector partners under a coordinated governance structure. Executive Order 19 creates the Unified Readiness Framework, designed to replace siloed operations with coordinated planning and response.
The framework emerged from seven Regional Readiness Summits convened across the state this spring that involved more than 750 emergency management stakeholders. Those meetings identified coordination gaps and opportunities to strengthen information sharing and mutual aid among agencies and organizations.
Under the new structure, Virginia will integrate capabilities across five areas: operational readiness for emergency communications and planning, workforce readiness for first responder training and retention, infrastructure and technology readiness for critical infrastructure protection, community readiness for public information and volunteer coordination, and risk and security for threat identification and intelligence integration.
Governor Spanberger said the framework "breaks down operational silos and builds a stronger, more resilient Commonwealth. By bringing together our first responders, state agencies, businesses, and community partners, we are ensuring Virginia is fully equipped to anticipate, respond to, and recover from any threat."