Regional Catastrophic Planning Team (RCPT) Charter Guidelines

REGIONAL CATASTROPHIC PLANNING TEAM (RCPT)
FY 2009 CHARTER REQUIREMENTS

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OVERVIEW
As part of the Regional Catastrophic Preparedness Grant Program (RCPGP), the Regional Catastrophic
Planning Team (RCPT) for each site must establish a formal governance structure and develop a charter
(or other standard operating procedure (SOP) document). Each site is required to submit an updated copy
of the RCPT Charter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as part of the FY 2009 Grant
Application Package.

RCPT CHARTER REQUIREMENTS
The RCPT Charter should be developed in Microsoft Word and must address, at a minimum, the
following topics:
• Purpose of the RCPT
• Goals and objectives for the RCPT (e.g., enhance collaboration between Public Health and
Emergency Management)
• Membership (to include, at a minimum, a list of members, their associated jurisdictions, and
disciplines)
• Expectations of members (e.g., time commitment, providing timely responses)
• Membership attendance policy
• Frequency of meetings (e.g., bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, etc.)
• Governance structure (e.g., which members have the authority for what)
• Voting rights (e.g., how decisions will be made)
• Grant management and administration responsibilities (e.g., who will be responsible for grant
management and administration and how the funds will be allocated)

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Methodology for determining project priorities (e.g., how agreement will be reached on project
priorities)
Documentation and sharing of decisions (e.g., how decisions made at RCPT meetings will be
documented and shared with RCPT members)
Process for making changes to the charter

The RCPT Charter must be available to all RCPT members prior to submission to DHS to promote
transparency in decision making related to RCPGP. Additionally, a new copy of the charter must be
submitted to DHS after any updates.
RCPT Charters must be submitted as part of the Grant Application Package using grants.gov no later than
11:59PM DST on March 20, 2009. Charters should be written and submitted in Microsoft Word using
12 pt. Times New Roman font and must address all criteria required above.