a. The Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended, section 710(e), authorizes the President to establish and train a nucleus Executive Reserve. This section is reproduced in Appendix A. b. Executive Order 11179, dated September 22, 1964, as amended, provides for the establishment and administration of the National Defense Executive Reserve (NDER). It is reproduced in Appendix B. c. The NDER is a Federal Government program that provides a reserve of highly qualified individuals from industry, organized labor, professional groups, the academic community, and, to some extent, within Government, to serve in executive positions in the Federal Government in time of national emergency. d. This manual explains the basic purpose and policies of the NDER and prescribes standards and procedures for administration of the program. 2. Nature and scope of the NDER. 8. The NDER is a select group of civilians qualified on the basis of managerial, professional, and technical skills, highly expert in their fields, and otherwise eligible for appointment as Reservists. b. The NDER exemplifies the cooperation between the public and private sectors of our society. Reservists give part of their time on a voluntary Their employers basis preparing to serve the Nation in time of crisis. agree to the standby appointments and to their participation in the program. a. The Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), (hereinafter called the Director), is charged with developing policies for the NDER and with its adnistration. This includes the provision of appropriate standards for recruitment and monitoring of the activities of NDER units. The NDER program shall be coordinated by an NDER Coordinator on the FEMA staff. b. Under section 3 of Executive Orde 11179, the Director may use the services of other departments or agencies to maintain membership rosters and develop training programs and materials. c. An Interagency NDER Committee, corposed of representatives of the heads of departments and agencies that Sponsor NDER units and chaired by FPC-24 Attachment A April 4, 1980 FEMA, will advise the Director on matters concerning the NDER program. d. The head of any department or agency with emergency preparedness responsibilities under Executive Order 11490, as amended, may establish a unit of the Executive Reserve in that department or agency, after receiving concurrence from the Director. The following criteria shall apply in the establishment and maintenance of NDER units: (1) NDER units shall be established for the purpose of performing functions in time of a national emergency. These functions shall be defined by the department or agency head with the Director's concurrence. (2) Functions justifying the use or employment of Reservists in an emergency shall be directly related to one of the following: advice or assistance in the making of executive decisions of the department or agency, direction of a necessary emergency public program of the department or agency, and performance or assistance in the performance of a highly difficult or crucial program or task arising out of the emergency. (3) The expected functions of members of the NDER unit shall be described by an emergency organizational chart, functional descriptions, and staffing tables related, as appropriate, to the existing department or agency organization and augmentation plans. These documents must be approved by the head of the department or agency. In preparing them, agencies should follow the principle that Reservists should not be assigned to positions filled by regular employees. (4) Each NDER unit shall be directed by a department or agency official designated responsible for it by the head of the agency. The name of the designated official shall be furnished to FEMA. f. NDER units may be disestablished by the department or agency head concerned. This action must be reported to the Director. 4. Membership requirements. The following standards apply to selection and designation of Reservists: a. Candidates shall be U.S. citizens. b. There shall be no discrimination in selecting members because of race, color, religion, sex, age, or national origin. Positive steps shall be taken to ensure the realization of this policy as an extension of the Government's equal employment opportunity program. c. People with military reserve or national guard obligations and Federal, State and local government officials with emergency assignments shall not be considered for NDER membership. Similarly, people campaigning April 4, 1980 FPC-24 for or elected to public office shall not be considered or appointed in the NDER because of the obligation they have (or would have if elected) to their constituencies. d. Prospective members must possess the qualifications required to perform their planned emergency assignments. 5. Procedures for designating members. The following steps shall be taken in designating members of the NDER: a. The sponsoring department or agency shall ask the NDER Coordinator to check the Central Register maintained by FEMA to see if a prospective member's name is already listed and provide FEMA at that time with the name and birth date of the candidate. b. Upon initial name clearance, the sponsoring department or agency shall ask the candidate to complete FEMA Form 85-3, National Defense Executive Reserve Personal Qualifications Statement. A copy of the form is at Appendix C. c. The sponsoring department or agency shall then complete a security name check on each candidate. d. Upon completing the security name check, the sponsoring department or agency shall complete its part of the FEMA Form 85-3 and submit it to the NDER Coordinator. e. The NDER Coordinator shall review the form to ensure that the candidate meets all basic membership qualifications. If so, the NDER Coordinator will enter the data on the form into the NDER Central Register and return the form to the department or agency indicating action taken. f. The sponsoring department or agency shall ask the candidate to complete all other necessary forms, such as security forms and the Statement of Understanding, FEMA Form 13-3, which appears in Appendix D. The form must be completed by the candidate and the candidate's employer. 8. When the candidate returns the completed forms, the sponsoring departBent or agency shall conduct a security investigation of the candidate in accordance with its current security regulations. h. When the sponsoring department or agency has fully approved the candidate, the head of that department or agency shall issue a Certificate of Membership and a letter to the candidate informing him or her of the designation. A copy of the letter of designation shall be sent to the NDER Coordinator. FPC-24 Attachment A April 4, 1980 Procedures 1. Terms of designation of members shall not exceed 3 years. for redesignating members for additional terms of service are given in paragraph 11 of this manual. 6. Reservists' assignment instructions. Reservists shall be assigned to specific emergency positions included in staffing tables and functional descriptions that are approved by the head of the sponsoring department or agency and that are in turn based on emergency functions. Reservists shall also be assigned to specific offices, with consideration given to the proximity of the office to the member's home or place of business to facilitate reporting for training or for duty. a. Reservists are not subject to any conflict-of-interest provisions of law during training periods because they are not considered officers or employees of the Federal Government during those times. b. As conflict-of-interest provisions may apply when Reservists are called to full-time Federal employment, sponsoring departments and agencies shall inform their Reservists of the provisions of the following: Conflictof-Interest Statutes (18 USC 201-209), the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, and the Office of Personnel Management Post Employment Conflict-of-Interest regulations. A copy of the latter document is at Appendix E. If sponsoring departments or agencies know of specific legislation concerning the financial interest of their employees, they should also inform their Reservists of these provisions. C. In informing Reservists of these provisions, departments and agencies may note that in a national emergency the Director plans to request action to waive them. Specifically, waivers would probably be requested with respect to 18 USC 208 (activities of Federal employees) and 18 USC 207 (postgovernment employment). d. Inquiries about conflict-of-interest and the Ethics in Government Act should initially be referred to the sponsoring department or agency's Ethics Counselor. 8. Orientation and training. 2. NDER program officials shall give each newly designated Reservist a thorough orientation covering the overall NDER program, the specific role of his or her unit or assignment, and the emergency functions of the sponsoring department or agency. b. Reservists should also be kept abreast of their expected duties and of developments in the unit and the department or agency preparedness programs by correspondence and by attendance at formal training programs at least annually. The following activities would be suitable for these formal April 4, 1980 FPC-24 training programs. (1) Briefings on current policies, plans, and programs of the Government relating to national security; (2) Reports of current department or agency programs bearing on the Reservist's assigned emergency responsibilities; (3) Current instructions on Reservists' assignments, reporting requirements, and similar matters; (4) Seminars to stimulate discussion and exchanges of ideas between Reservists and department or agency representatives in their professional fields; and (5) Exercises and tests involving actual experience by the Reservists in the types of actions they would be called on to perform in an emergency. 9. Activating Reservists. a. In a national emergency, the Director is responsible for advising the President as to whether Reservists should be called to duty. Therefore, departments and agencies seeking to activate their Reservists should present their recommendations to the Director. b. Authority for appointing Reservists to positions after they have been activated by the President in a national emergency may be found in the Federal Personnel Manual, Part 910-9. Appointments in the event of an attack on the United States are addressed in the Federal Personnel Manual Supplement 990-3, Part M-333. Both documents appear in Appendix F of this manual. 10. Non emergency employment of Reservists. Departments and agencies wishing to appoint individual Reservists as Federal employees or consultants at any time other than a national emergency must follow established Office of Personnel Management procedures applying to all prospective Federal employees. 11. Redesignation, transfer, and termination. a. Only Reservists who have attended at least one training session during the term that is ending or who have otherwise demonstrated tangible support of the program will be redesignated. b. Sponsoring departments or agencies wishing to redesignate a Reservist must inform the NDER Coordinator and give the NDER Coordinator the following information: (1) The Reservist's name, home address, and home telephone (including ZIP and area codes); and, |