The justice department’s recent announcement that they are going to actively enforce the much-ignored PS Prep law (Private Sector Preparedness law) that was passed in 2009 has left many small businesses confused. What exactly is this law? How does it affect small businesses? What steps do I need to take to be compliant? Will it make it more difficult to operate? These are all common questions.
PS Prep is a collection of standards for companies to follow to ensure business continuity in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. Currently, the PS Prep law requires business continuity and continuity of operations planning for all businesses with more than 100 employees, and it will soon apply to companies of all sizes. So even if you’re a small business will only 20 employees, if you receive any federal funding, federal contracting, or have an SBA loan, you will need to meet PS Prep certification.
However, if you’re a small business and don’t receive federal funding, federal contracting, or have an SBA loan, you likely won’t need to meet PS Prep certification…but you may actually want to anyway.
First, realize that regulation isn’t always a bad thing. PS Prep was designed to be a benefit to small business, and it does offer great opportunity for small businesses, as long as you’re proactive about it. Unfortunately, soon after the law was passed in 2009 we had a recession and the H1N1 flu pandemic, so much of the attention and funding that was supposed to go to the SBA to make small businesses aware of PS Prep was diverted to other areas. So if you weren’t in the disaster preparedness business, you likely didn’t hear much about PS Prep…until now.
As you learn more about the law and how it affects you and your small business, here are some points to keep in mind.
- Get voluntary PS Prep accreditation now.
For those small business owners who are good at following online directions, you can go to SBA.gov and go through an online PS Prep accreditation process. This is completely voluntary and designed for companies with fewer than 100 employees—hence, it’s an accreditation, not a certification (what the big companies must get). In any event, when you’re done with the online process you’ll receive a certificate that shows you meet the PS Prep criteria and have been voluntarily accredited. Then, because you ultimately receive the same certificate as the big companies who are mandated to be PS Prep certified, those larger companies are more likely to do business with you. In this respect, the certificate of accreditation becomes the carrot on the end of the stick for more business.
- Promote your PS Prep accreditation heavily.
If you’re going to become familiar with and learn all the “government speak” about PS Prep, you might as well get the voluntary accreditation. But don’t stop there. You also have to tell the business community about your new accreditation. That means announcing it on your website, Tweeting about it, posting it on Facebook and LinkedIn, and of course, hanging the certificate on your office wall. When the large companies learn about your accreditation and see your certificate—the same certificate they had to jump through hoops to get—you look like a genius and a company they’ll want to do business with.
- Strive to be number two.
For many large companies, being PS Prep certified means they must have a second supplier for key things in their supply chain, or they must have a completely redundant supply chain. This is a great opportunity for small businesses, as they can now become part of the second supply chain in those industries that are federally mandated to have two. So while the big companies used to do business exclusively with the one big name supplier in their area, now they have to take another look at you and what your small business offers. Additionally, soon PS Prep certified businesses will only be able to do business with other companies who are PS Prep certified or voluntarily accredited. Therefore, get your accreditation and get it soon.
PS Prep Is For You
Fortunately, once you get PS Prep accredited, you don’t have to reapply when the rules for certification/accreditation change (and yes, they will change over time). You’ll be “grandfathered” in under your original accreditation, so you won’t have to recertify—no matter how radically the guidelines change. And if by chance you do have to recertify, history tells us that the early adopters will have access to a fast-track pathway rather than have to start the accreditation process from scratch.
Ultimately, embracing the PS Prep law not only helps your company be prepared should a disaster occur, but it also opens new markets for you. So this is one case where more regulation can actually help your company succeed and profit for the long term.
Griffin Works offers Pawsitive Interactions with Service Dogs During Response Operations©, an audience-customized training that breaks down barriers by offering hands-on handling training and demonstrations with working service dogs for fire departments, EMS agencies, and public safety organizations.
Part of the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium and home to the National Emergency Response and Recovery Training Center, TEEX has been leading homeland security training since 1998. The major TEEX programs include fire and rescue, infrastructure and safety, law enforcement, economic and workforce development, and homeland security. As a member of The Texas A&M University System, TEEX is unique in its ability to access a broad range of emerging research and technical expertise. Beginning with course design and development all the way through hands-on instruction and national certification testing, TEEX delivers comprehensive training through both classroom and hands-on instruction and as online courses.
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) was created by Congress in 2000 as part of the Children’s Health Act to raise the standard of care and increase access to services for children and families who experience or witness traumatic events. This unique network of child-serving professionals, caregivers and young adults, researchers, and national partners is committed to changing the course of children’s lives by improving their care and moving scientific gains quickly into practice across the U.S. The NCTSN is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and coordinated by the UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress (NCCTS).
The Emergency Management Institute (EMI) is part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The EMI provides national leadership in developing and delivering training to ensure that individuals and groups having key emergency management responsibilities possess the requisite skills to effectively perform their jobs.
The High Alert Institute maintains a list of reviewed courses provided by governments, universities and professional organizations. This list is geared towards the non-emergency management person who participates in disaster planning, preparedness, response, recovery or mitigation as part of their job responsibilities.
The High Alert Institute has partnered with Shutterstock to distribute stock images from the nature images donated by our supporters. For eligible stock images, Shutterstock will donate a portion of the royalty to the High Alert Institute. There is no cost to charitable organizations or to Shutterstock customers.
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Koi need forever homes, too! For pond enthusiasts, freshwater exotic and ornamental fish may not be available through pet stores or rescues in their area. The High Alert Institute Aquatic Pet Shelter Rehoming Program will be happy to assist you in stocking your new pond or adding a new finned friend to your school. Coming soon – when you adopt a Koi from the High Alert Institute Aquatic Pet Shelter Rehoming Program, we can arrange for delivery to your door anywhere in the continental United States.
Have you always wanted a Koi pond but don’t have the space one? Sponsor a Koi in our community shelter pond and we send you photos of your sponsored animal. Coming soon are live Koi Cameras above and below the water to enjoy your sponsored Koi anytime.
Dumping of freshwater non-native species and exotic aquatic pets into wild habitats is a man-made disaster that is truly preventable. The Institute’s Aquatic Pet Welfare Partnership works to raise awareness and reduce the impact on healthy ecosystems through education, as well as rescue and rehoming. Joined by champions of animal welfare and environmental stewardship, this association of aquatic pet rescue operations and aquatic pet shelters across the United States aims to save our finned friends and preserve our waterways together.
Want to share our cause with family, friends, and colleagues? Looking for a non-traditional way to celebrate a birthday or honor someone special? Support the Institute by starting your own Peer-to-Peer fundraising challenge! Let your contacts know why our mission is important to you and what they can do to support your cause. START YOUR OWN FUNDRAISER for the High Alert Institute.
From the staffing pool to the shelter ponds, from the boardroom to the classroom, and from reading the science to writing the analyses, High Alert Institute programs and services benefit from the experience, expertise, and generosity of our volunteers. Put your talents to use for good and to good use – VOLUNTEER TODAY.
Make your donation twice as nice by rehoming aquatic pets and providing a rehabilitation companion pet to a deserving person, family, or facility. Sponsor part or all of a Joy of Koi Program pond installation – complete with rehomed koi – and give the gifts of love and recovery.
Professional photographers, amateurs, and legal copywrite holders are all welcome to participate in the High Alert Institute Nature Photo Donation Program. Sales of the images benefit the Institute and donors are eligible for tax deductions equivalent to the fair market value of their photos. Landscapes, seascapes, animals, flowers – all may be accepted – whether new or vintage images. People may be included in the photo but only if unidentifiable (i.e., blurred figures at a distance).
Did you know that unused patents and copyrights can be donated to charity? Intellectual Property (IP) just sitting on a shelf will lose value as it becomes obsolete. The High Alert Institute IP Donation Program seeks to rescue stranded, technology-related IP with the potential for development into marketable products. Once accepted by the program, the owner/inventor is eligible for a tax deduction equivalent to the fair market value of the IP. The Institute receives the patent licensing fees or revenue from the sale of the IP to businesses, helping us to fund our mission. In turn, businesses are able to advance their markets and create jobs for less money than starting a project from scratch.
Disasters are defined as situations in which needs exceed or overwhelm available resources. Some disasters affect an entire community, while other disasters impact individuals and families. Crises of physical or psychological health can be very personal disasters.
The therapeutic value of pets during illness, trauma, and recovery is well established. And Koi fish may be well suited for people who are not able to provide verbal pet commands or physically care for pets like dogs and cats. Koi ponds are also a source of beauty and peace, providing an ideal setting for quiet reflection or meditation.
We are working to partner with pond installers and aquatic pet rescues/shelters to offer free or reduced-cost ponds with rehomed Koi fish to people seeking this type of pet therapy.
Disasters disrupt life and impact our sense of personal, family, and community safety. Survivors and responders alike often are not aware of the emotional, psychological or spiritual challenges that they may face from disaster onset through recovery. With two decades of experience training responders and communities to prepare for the behavioral health aspects of disasters, we will continue to provide education and a curated list of resources to groups or individuals.
Non-medical factors that impact overall health are termed Social Determinants of Health or SDoH. Noise pollution, poor air quality, and poor water quality are three environmental factors known to have a strong link to overall health. And the same environmental factors that impact humans impact their pets and other animals in their care. We continue to assist in advocacy, education, and technology development to mitigate the impact of SDoH on humans and animals alike.
Our efforts in shelter and rescue are the main focus of our environmental stewardship, reducing the environmental impact of non-native aquatic animals being dumped into public waterways. The High Alert Institute also assists innovators with the design, development, and evaluation of green and renewable energy technologies. Reducing the carbon footprint associated with disaster preparedness, response, and recovery furthers our continued mission to mitigate risk and improve resilience.
We partner with public and private organizations, sharing resources and fostering partnerships to improve disaster preparedness, response, and recovery, and mitigation.
The High Alert Institute team has over a century of combined research experience in medical, nursing, behavioral health, and disaster sciences. Our team provides support to researchers and technology developers through comprehensive literature searches and reviews, as well as failure mode database searches and adjudicated reviews.
When disaster strikes, most aquatic pet owners have limited options to secure the safety of their pets. Sheltering in place may not be possible if there is no power to provide aeration and “pet-friendly” shelters do not include ponds or aquariums. Our goal is to provide an option for aquatic pet owners in need of rescue and shelter for their finned friends.
Our goal is to share our two decades of disaster readiness experience with animal welfare organizations, shelters, caretakers, and pet owners, as they implement contingency plans for natural and manmade disasters.
