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NCC Operating Charter
General Operating
Procedures
GENERAL
This section addresses the nature of the activities
performed by the government and/or industry National Coordinating
Center (NCC) members. The NCC responds to a broad range of NS/EP
situations, yet its authority is governed by the nature of the situation
and the applicable laws and regulations. The procedures defined
in this Charter are in no way intended to abrogate the provisions
of these laws and regulations. Rather, they describe the basic functions
to be performed by the NCC members and the operational and control
relationships necessary to adequately respond to NS/EP telecommunications
service requirements under the provisions of existing rules.
The primary site for the NCC is the National Communications
System (NCS)/Defense Communications Agency (DCA) facility at 8th
Street and South Courthouse Road in Arlington, Virginia. There,
government representatives work with industry personnel on a day-to-day
basis in developing the necessary operational plans, procedures
and guidelines to provide effective telecommunications responses
to NS/EP telecommunications service requirements. The daily operations
of the NCC consist largely of monitoring the status of the nation's
telecommunications resources, gathering and maintaining information
about them, and preparing to respond to NS/EP telecommunications
service requirements.
Since the NCC operates on a normal duty day
basis, it is necessary to develop procedures to ensure the appropriate
response to emergency situations which occur outside of duty hours.
Government and industry representatives participate fully in notification,
standby and recall activities to support this requirement. During
periods of emergency operations, the monitoring of systems will
continue but the frequency of update is expected to increase, along
with the number of requests for assistance with new NS/EP service
and to support restoration activities. In emergencies, emphasis
is placed on the execution and revision of response plans. The level
of NCC activity will increase significantly in such situations and
staffing periods will be extended. During these periods, it is anticipated
that the NCS entities would actively participate in NCC operations.
Primary NCC Activities
The following describes the activities of the NCC
under a spectrum of operational situations. These functions are
performed by either industry or government members or, where appropriate,
by both.
NORMAL DAY-TO-DAY
During the periods of time that are non-emergency,
the activities of the NCC are normally limited to operationally
sustaining functions as described below:
- Assist in coordinating the initiation or restoration
of commercially-provided NS/EP telecommunications service requirements
when requested as authorized in Scope of Operations (see Background
and Purpose).
- Develop and maintain an accurate inventory of resources
(both government-owned and industry owned), including transportable
equipment, for use during NS/EP service initiation or restoration.
- Develop and exercise NCC procedures for emergencies,
major disasters, and Section 706 situations.
- Receive and document status and situation reports.
The exact nature of status monitoring is defined by the government
entity through memoranda of agreement. Each industry entity will
establish individual internal company notification and reporting
procedures regarding government NS/EP telecommunications service
problems. These memoranda and procedures will include the capability
for operations centers to respond to the NCC on a 24 hour-a-day
basis.
- Identify industry and government points-of-contact
and maintain current names, addresses, and telephone numbers.
- Develop and maintain a current list of telecommunications
companies willing to participate in providing NS/EP telecommunications
service but who are not currently resident in the NCC. To the
maximum extent practicable, the Manager, NCC, will also involve
such companies in the other normal day-to-day NCC activities.
EMERGENCIES AND MAJOR DISASTERS
During emergencies, major disasters or crisis
situations, the NCC has the authority to respond only as described
in Scope of Operations (see Background
and Purpose). In these cases, the following procedures are in
effect.
- Affected government/industry entities report damage,
service outages and estimates of restoration capabilities to the
NCC.
- The Manager, NCC, prioritizes Federal Government
NS/EP telecommunications service requirements for initiation or
rest oration.
- The Manager, NCC, confers with industry/government
NCC representatives on Federal Government NS/EP telecommunications
services outages and proposed courses of action for initiation
or restoration.
- Industry representatives suggest alternative measures
for initiation or restoration.
- The Manager, NCC, selects one or more of the alternatives
and forwards it to the involved government entity(ies). The affected
government entity(ies) makes the final procurement decision and
issues the necessary service orders.
- At the request of a government entity or the Manager,
NCC, the NCC coordinates the Federal Government's NS/EP telecommunications
service requests and requirements to expedite new orders by government
contracting officers.
- Individual industry entities respond to properly
validated government service orders.
SECTION 706
After invocation of Section 706 of the
Communications Act, the Director, OSTP, is given the authority to
direct the restoration and reconstitution of the national telecommunications
system. Under applicable Federal law, regulations and plans, the
Manager, NCS, will provide substantial assistance to the Director,
OSTP, in the execution of that authority. Both the industry and
government members of the NCC may assist the Manager, NCS, by providing
a central contact and an effective mechanism by which the Manager,
NCS, can assist the Director, OSTP, in directing the use of national
telecommunications resources in order to meet NS/EP telecommunication
service requirements. In the event that Section 706 is not invoked,
the NCC will act in accordance with the section Emergencies and
Major Disasters in this charter.
Other Activities
The industry and/or government representatives in
the NCC also participate in a wide variety of NS/EP-related telecommunications
operations and activities such as those listed below. These activities
must be consistent with applicable law, assignments of responsibilities
within the Federal Government, and applicable Federal NS/EP telecommunications
plans and procedures.
Planning. NCC representatives
participate in the development of comprehensive service restoration
and network configuration plans. The government contingent ensures
that plans are appropriately coordinated and reflect government
entity concerns.
Contingencies.
NCC representatives jointly prepare to respond to contingencies.
Specific plans will be developed for significant events, such as
a major California earthquake, with generic plans for geographic
isolations. The government personnel identify likely areas where
emergency telecommunications support may be required (e.g., flood,
earthquake or tornado prone areas) and develop specific and/or generic
response plans as appropriate. Plans will also be developed to facilitate
emergency communications response under a nuclear scenario.
Exercises. NCC
representatives will assist in developing scenarios for exercises
to ascertain the adequacy of telecommunications plans and resources
to support NS/EP requirements. These exercises will evaluate communications
management, information retrieval, communications assets, timeliness
of response and overall coordination between commercial entities
and various Federal and regional entities with emergency communications
responsibilities.
Telecommunications Evaluations.
NCC representatives participate, as requested, in evaluating the
response to communications emergencies, results of telecommunications
exercises or responses to other emergencies and major disasters.
These activities may include the analyses of emergency situations
which impact domestic or international telecommunications services.
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