PREPARED BY: JAMES LAUGHTER DATE OF MEETING: 11/03/2025
SUBJECT:
TITLE
CONSIDER ADOPTING RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVING AND ADOPTING THE CITY OF SAN PABLO’S REVISED COMPREHENSIVE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PLAN
CEQA: This proposed action is not a project as defined by CEQA.
Label
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Adopt Resolution
Body
Compliance statements
Create Community-Inclusive Emergency Preparedness and Recovery Plans under the Enhance Community Resilience Policy Area are adopted policy item under the FY 2025-27 City of San Pablo Council Priority Workplan, effective April 7, 2025.
BACKGROUND
The City of San Pablo is located in the western portion of Contra Costa County, approximately 18 miles northeast of San Francisco, and is surrounded by the City of Richmond and unincorporated areas of the County. Encompassing 2.58 square miles at an elevation of 50 feet, San Pablo is home to 32,127 residents, more than 300 businesses, a casino, six elementary schools, one middle school, and a thriving community college.
The City faces a range of potential disaster risks due to its location and environment, including proximity to major earthquake faults such as the northern Hayward and San Andreas faults; the presence of critical transportation corridors like Interstate 80, rail systems, and bridges; nearby industrial facilities including refineries and underground pipelines; flood risks from dam failure, severe weather, or overflowing creeks; and heightened vulnerability to public health emergencies due to its dense population within a small geographic area.
Overview of the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan
The Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP), adopted by City Council resolution in 1999 and last revised in 2012, provides guidance for the City of San Pablo’s coordinated response to major emergencies and disasters, whether natural, man-made, or technological. It focuses on large-scale incidents rather than routine day-to-day operations and establishes the framework for managing emergency response and recovery efforts.
Developed in accordance with the Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) and the National Incident Management System (NIMS), the CEMP is an all-hazards preparedness document designed to be reviewed, understood, and exercised before an emergency occurs. Its goal is to help the City protect life, property, and the environment through effective use of available resources and interagency coordination.
City departments are responsible for maintaining internal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), resource lists, and checklists that support the implementation of the CEMP.
The CEMP is organized into three components:
• Part I - Basic Plan: Outlines emergency management structure, operational concepts, emergency declarations, continuity of government, Emergency Operations Center (EOC) functions, hazard mitigation, and threat assessments.
• Part II - Functional Annexes: Includes topic-specific annexes for alert and warning, mass care and shelter, volunteer management, evacuation, damage assessment, and recovery.
• Part III - Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs): Internal departmental and EOC procedures, with supporting documents and checklists to be used in conjunction with the plan.
The revised CEMP ensures the City of San Pablo remains prepared and compliant with state and federal emergency management standards.
July 2025 CEMP Revisions
The Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) was updated in July 2025 (Exh. A) to include the following updates and enhancements:
• Updated demographic information to reflect 2020 U.S. Census data, including a population of 32,127 residents and 9,941 residential unit.
• Revised Emergency First Response Personnel section to include current addresses and business information.
• Updated list of Essential Facilities throughout the City.
• Revised Emergency Operations Center (EOC) location to reflect the new Police Department Headquarters.
• Enhanced Resource Tracking procedures to incorporate WebEOC capabilities
• Updated Communications section to reflect the new radio system consortium and dispatch center located at Pinole Police Department.
• Added reference to Satellite Phone communications for redundancy in emergency operations.
• Updated Public Alert and Warning Systems to include social media platforms and Nixle, and removed outdated references to the EDIS website.
• Revised Threat Assessment 6 - Public Health Emergency to incorporate COVID-19 pandemic lessons learned and recent public health response history.
• Updated Threat Assessment 8 - Terrorism to align with current Homeland Security protocols and the National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) threat matrix.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with the approval and adoption of the revised CEMP.
PUBLIC SAFETY STANDING COMMITTEE
On October 1, 2025, staff presented the update to the City of San Pablo’s Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan to the Public Safety Standing Committee (Vice Mayor Pabon-Alvarado & Councilmember Xavier). The Standing Committee reviewed and received the presentation.
ATTACHMENTS
Att. A - Resolution
Exh. A - Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (July 2025)