Records of the Office of Emergency Preparedness
(Record Group 396)
1951-73
Table of Contents
- 396.1 Administrative History
- 396.2 Records of the Office of Emergency Preparedness 1951-73
- 396.3 Records of OEP Regional Offices 1951-72
- 396.4 Records of the Interdepartmental Materials Advisory Committee (IMAC) 1953-73
Established: In the Executive Office of the President (EOP) by an act of October 21, 1968 (82 Stat. 1194).
Predecessor Agencies:- National Security Resources Board (1947-49)
- Defense Production Administration (1951-53)
- National Security Resources Board (1949-53)
- Office of Defense Mobilization (1950-53)
- Office of Defense Mobilization (1953-58)
- Office of Defense and Civilian Mobilization (1958)
- Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization (1958-61)
- Office of Emergency Planning (1961-68)
Functions: Advised and assisted the President in the coordination and determination of federal emergency preparedness policy.
Abolished: By Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1973, effective July 1, 1973.
Successor Agencies:Office of Telecommunications Policy, EOP (1970-78, emergency telecommunications systems)
Office of Science and Technology Policy, EOP (1978-79, emergency telecommunications systems)
Office of Preparedness, General Services Administration (GSA, 1973-75, emergency preparedness planning)
Federal Preparedness Agency, GSA (1975-79, emergency preparedness planning)
Federal Disaster Assistance Administration, Department of Housing and Urban Development (1973-79, disaster assistance)
Federal Emergency Management Agency (1973- , emergency preparedness planning, emergency telecommunications systems, and disaster assistance)
Security-Classified Records: This record group may include material that is security-classified.
Related Records:Record copies of the publications of the Office of Emergency Preparedness in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government.
Records of the Federal Preparedness Agency in RG 269, General Records of the General Services Administration.
Records of the Federal Property Resources Service, RG 291.
Records of the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, RG 304.
Records of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, RG 311.
Records of the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency, RG 397.
396.2 Records of the Office of Emergency Preparedness
1951-73
History: Emergency preparedness planning functions initially vested in National Security Resources Board (NSRB), established by the National Security Act of 1947 (61 Stat. 499), July 26, 1947, as an independent agency to advise the President on mobilization coordination. NSRB transferred to the Executive Office of the President by Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1949, effective August 20, 1949, and abolished by Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1953, effective June 12, 1953, with its functions transferred to the Office of Defense Mobilization (ODM). ODM had been established by EO 10193, December 16, 1950, to direct federal mobilization activities. ODM absorbed functions of the Defense Production Administration, established by EO 10200, January 3, 1951, to exercise general control of the defense production program, and abolished by EO 10433, February 4, 1953.
ODM consolidated with the Federal Civil Defense Administration (see RG 397) to form Office of Defense and Civilian Mobilization (ODCM), with responsibility for civil defense and emergency mobilization coordination, by Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1958, effective July 1, 1958. ODCM renamed Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization (OCDM) by an act of August 26, 1958 (72 Stat. 861). Civil defense functions of OCDM transferred to the Office of the Secretary of Defense by EO 10952, July 20, 1961. OCDM redesignated Office of Emergency Planning (OEP) by an act of September 22, 1961 (75 Stat. 630). OEP coordinated emergency preparedness activities, principally in areas of resource utilization, civil defense, economic stabilization, postattack rehabilitation, and government organization and continuity. Redesignated Office of Emergency Preparedness, 1968. See 396.1.
Textual Records: Records of the Director, 1951-73. Records of the National Interagency Drought Committee, 1971. Records of the Disaster Study Group, 1971-72. Records of the Disaster Study Task Force,1972-73. Records relating to the administration of President Nixon's economic stabilization program of 1971 (Phase I), 1971-73. Papers and other background material accumulated by Dr. Harry B. Yoshpe, OEP historian, 1969-73, while preparing Stemming Inflation, The Office of Emergency Preparedness and the 90-day Freeze, 1972, and New Dimensions of Civil Emergency Preparedness, 1973 (in Nixon Presidential Materials).
396.3 Records of OEP Regional Offices
1951-72
History: Eight regional offices established under Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, 1958. Continued under Office of Emergency Planning, 1961, and Office of Emergency Preparedness, 1968, with jurisdictions and headquarters as follows:
| Region | Headquarters | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harvard, MA (1958-69) | CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT |
| Maynard, MA (1969-72) | ||
| 2 | Olney, MD | DE, DC, KY, MD, OH, PA, VA, WV |
| 3 | Thomasville, G | AL, CZ, FL, GA, MS, NC, PR, SC, TN, VI |
| 4 | Battle Creek, MI | IL, IN, MI, MO, WI |
| 5 | Denton, TX | AR, LA, NM, OK, TX |
| 6 | Denver, CO | CO, IA, KS, MN, NE, ND, SD, WY |
| 7 | Santa Rosa, CA | AS, AZ, CA, GU, HI, NV, UT |
| 8 | Everett, WA (1958-69) Bothell, WA (1969-72) |
AK, ID, MT, OR, WA |
PR and VI from Region 3 to Region 1, 1960. KY from Region 2 to Region 3, OH from Region 2 to Region 4, and MT from Region 8 to Region 6, 1971.
System expanded to 10, 1972, with jurisdictions and headquarters as follows:
| Region | Headquarters | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|---|
| I | Boston, MA | CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT |
| II | New York NY | PR, NJ, NY, VI |
| III | Philadelphia, PA | DE, DC, MD, PA, VA, WV |
| IV | Atlanta, GA | AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN |
| V | Chicago, IL | IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI |
| VI | Dallas, TX | AR, LA, NM, OK, TX |
| VII | Kansas City, MO | IA, KS, MO, NE |
| VIII | Denver, CO | CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY |
| IX | San Francisco, CA | AZ, CA, GU, HI, NV |
| X | Seattle, WA | AK, ID, OR, WA |
Terminated upon abolishment of Office of Emergency Preparedness, 1973.
396.3.1 Records of OEP Region 5
Textual Records (in Fort Worth): Emergency planning files, 1951- 71.
396.3.2 Records of OEP Region 6
Textual Records (in Denver): Administrative records, 1961-62. Correspondence between the United States and Canada concerning emergency planning, 1962-67.
396.3.3 Records of OEP Region 8
Textual Records (in Seattle): Emergency planning files, 1966. Regional Preparedness Committee files, 1960-72. General files relating to Canada, 1951-71.
396.4 Records of the Interdepartmental Materials Advisory
Committee (IMAC) 1953-73
History: Established in the ODM by Defense Mobilization Order-V- 1, November 13, 1953, to coordinate federal policies and programs with respect to stockpiling of critical defense materials. Transferred with ODM to become part of ODCM, later OCDM, 1958. Transferred to the Office of Emergency Planning, 1961, and to the Office of Emergency Preparedness (OEP), 1968. Abolished by OEP Circular 1200.10a, Change 2, April 27, 1973.
Textual Records: Records of IMAC meetings, 1953-73.
Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States. Compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.
3 volumes, 2428 pages.
This Web version is updated from time to time to include records processed since 1995.
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