The Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center (HSOAC) conducts research and analysis for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in two program areas, the Acquisition and Development Program, and the Strategy, Policy, and Operations Program.
This brief summarizes findings and recommendations from a study of the prevalence and characteristics of sexual harassment, gender discrimination, racial/ethnic harassment, and racial/ethnic discrimination at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Researchers assessed the prevalence and characteristics of sexual harassment, gender discrimination, racial/ethnic harassment, and racial/ethnic discrimination at FEMA. They surveyed FEMA employees about these civil rights violations and about workplace climate. This report documents the survey results.
This report provides analysis to help the U.S. Virgin Islands accelerate its recovery from 2017's Hurricanes Irma and Maria by identifying recovery goals, recovery accomplishments, and challenges. The authors focused on crosscutting capacities needed for implementation, infrastructure, and the economy and public services and provide 76 recommendations to enhance recovery efforts, including steps to support implementation.
Researchers worked to improve the understanding of state and local financial risk management practices and the role that the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Public Assistance program plays in them. They also examined several approaches for state and local governments to increase insurance coverage and the trade-offs associated with those approaches. This report documents the authors' methods, findings, and recommendations.
This report summarizes the strategic planning process in support of the government of Puerto Rico in its development of a congressionally mandated recovery plan. Nearly 300 potential recovery actions were developed that Puerto Rico could take to repair damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria and address longer-term economic recovery needs.
Hurricanes Irma and Maria stressed and destroyed significant areas of Puerto Rico's natural resources, many of which were already strained by anthropogenic effects. This report presents information on the benefits of these resources, hurricane damage, and 25 recommended courses of action for restoring natural resources, managing solid waste, renewing parks, and improving economic opportunities.
Puerto Rico's housing sector was hit hard by Hurricanes Irma and Maria and needs a big fix. In this detailed and comprehensive analysis of the housing damage caused by the 2017 hurricanes, the authors make informed recovery recommendations for policymakers so they can repair and rebuild safe and affordable housing in Puerto Rico and create a modernized housing infrastructure that is more resilient to future natural hazards and code-compliant.
The government of Puerto Rico submitted a recovery plan to Congress in 2018 describing a strategic approach to recover from the 2017 hurricane destruction. HSOAC input provides a summary of damage to public buildings and the basis for 12 courses of action to repair hurricane damage and modernize the public building infrastructure to increase resilience to natural hazards, improve energy efficiency, and improve functionality and user experience.
To support development of Puerto Rico's short- and long-term recovery and resilience plan, experts conducted a comprehensive assessment of the commonwealth's challenges and the damage caused by the 2017 hurricanes. They identified short- and longer-term needs for Puerto Rico to recover and to build resilience to future storms; economic, social, and environmental trends; and ongoing governance challenges. This report summarizes their work.
This report describes the work done on estimating the costs of, and identifying potential funding sources for, Puerto Rico's economic and disaster recovery plan. Total estimated cost is $139 billion. Up to $94 billion of funding from the federal government and private insurance claims is estimated to be available. Sources to fill the gap include the Puerto Rico government, the private sector, public-private partnerships, and philanthropies.
In Puerto Rico's post-hurricane reconstruction, the 78 municipal governments will be responsible for an estimated $4 billion in reconstruction funds and will need to manage complex projects while coordinating with the government of Puerto Rico and federal government. The authors recommend ways to target federal and Puerto Rico government technical assistance where it is needed most to help the municipalities in their reconstruction efforts.
The authors analyze how effective supply-chain management and recovery governance have worked in postdisaster settings in four countries, providing positive and cautionary lessons and good practices that may be applied to Puerto Rico's recovery from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Field research was conducted to assess recovery challenges and recommend measures to restore lives and livelihoods, while also improving resilience to future disasters.
Puerto Rico's seaborne logistics capacity is assessed in the context of the anticipated increase in imported materials used in recovery projects following Hurricane Maria. Key constraints at ports and on roads are identified. This analysis shows that the increased traffic from implementing the recovery plan can be supported with existing infrastructure using modest mitigation actions.
The 2017 hurricanes damaged Puerto Rico's water infrastructure and its water resources. This damage was attributed to existing vulnerability of infrastructure, direct hurricane damage, and indirect disruption stemming from damage in other sectors. The water sector recovery plan involves not only repairing hurricane-damaged structures and systems but also fixing the many legacy challenges in the water sector's operations and governance.
Puerto Rico's cultural resources are integral to its sense of place, to community well-being, to tourism, and to the economy. Many of those resources were devastated in Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The authors present an overview of the island's cultural resources, storm-damage assessment findings, and detail recovery actions proposed in Puerto Rico's recovery plan.
The Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center was tasked with developing a long-range recovery plan for the damage caused in Puerto Rico by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. This report provides a comprehensive evaluation of the transportation sector and includes a description of prestorm transportation conditions; descriptions of damage and estimated costs to repair them; and 22 proposed courses of action across all transportation modes.
A strategic goal of the post-hurricane recovery plan for Puerto Rico is developing a modern workforce. Authors describe a course of action for a workforce development system that addresses workforce shortages and brings longer-term benefits to individuals, the community, and the economy. This system includes strong K through postsecondary education and career pathways, and aligns training with the evolving labor market and local business needs.
Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center experts assessed Hurricanes Irma and Maria's effect on Puerto Rico's municipalities' ability to govern, deliver services, and recover from the damage they incurred. They created a framework for assessing municipalities' recovery and developed courses of action to address damage and improve municipal capacity.
Hurricane Maria magnified Puerto Rico's fragile system for delivering social, behavioral, and environmental health services, which were evidenced by chronic disease burdens, demographic transitions, and unmet health needs. The recovery plan outlines action strategies for building a robust health infrastructure, strengthening the health care workforce, expanding social service capacity, and investing in healthy communities.
The authors review Puerto Rico's economic history and compare observed economic indicators following the storms to counterfactual estimates to assess the real net impacts of the 2017 hurricanes. This analysis provides the context for the recovery plan for rebuilding a sustainable and healthy economic sector and whole of Puerto Rico.
Focusing on the communications and information technology (IT) sector, the authors assess the damage caused in 2017 by Hurricanes Irma and Maria and present 33 courses of action that will both help the sector (and, more broadly, Puerto Rico) recover in a sustainable and resilient manner and support a digital transformation of Puerto Rico.
Presenting a strategic approach to aid Puerto Rico's recovery from Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the report details prestorm conditions, assesses damage and recovery needs, and describes courses of action for the Education sector. Analyses and discussions with local education stakeholders and subject-matter experts informed the development of 13 courses of action to support Puerto Rico's recovery plan and efforts to transform the education system.
The authors describe Puerto Rico's communities in terms of population characteristics, community and individual preparedness, and economic pressures leading up to Hurricanes Irma and Maria. They detail the storms' impact in terms of damage, community stress, and migration. The researchers developed courses of action to improve capacity for emergency preparedness, coordination, communication, recovery planning, and research and training.
The U.S. Coast Guard employs some gaming and gaming-adjacent approaches for such activities as concept development, strategic planning, engagement, and training. But conducting gaming more formally could help the service expand its analytic, training, and engagement tool sets. In this Perspective, the authors discuss what more the service might do to employ gaming, and why.
RAND authors analyzed responses from 2,389 survey respondents about public safety, election integrity, and preparedness of local officials to manage the November 2020 election in the pandemic context. Responses indicate that although most voters say they believe that voting will be safe and that their vote will be counted despite the pandemic, those who question election safety and some who question election integrity appear less likely to vote.
