His complete answer appears below and our members may reproduce and distribute it as they see fit.

�One principle of government that most people agree upon is the fundamental duty of government to provide for our safety.�Certainly during "normal" times there is no need for any of the provisions of the Model Emergency Management Ordinances and Agreements.�However, these are not designed nor intended for regular use or daily practice but are intended for those rare instances when a community experiences a catastrophic disaster or mass illegal disorder. In these situations elected leaders should have at their disposal tools they need to carry out the duties they all have sworn to uphold.�Even then, these declarations are time limited, have automatic expirations and can be terminated early by the Chief Elected Official.�

�The model ordinances and agreements are recommendations based on best practices and lessons learned of which the concepts date back to at least the early 1980s.�The language contained in the second edition of the Model Emergency Management Ordinances and Agreements published in 2011 by Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) was developed jointly with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) for use by county governments during times of disaster. They should certainly be reviewed by the county attorney, and others, prior to consideration for adoption as a regular part of the county's code of ordinances. I must say, however, having responded to many disasters in hundreds of jurisdictions in the past 15 years where local states of emergencies declared; I have never personally been involved or heard an instance when the use of emergency ordinances have been an issue or point of contention with the citizens. Many of the provisions are often used (e.g., providing shelter, activate the emergency operations plan) others I have never seen utilized or acted upon.�

I hope this sufficiently answers the question of who authored the Model Ordinances and a history of their origin.