This guidance was developed in coordination with Federal, State, tribal, and local Public Information Officers (PIOs). The goal of this publication is to provide operational practices for performing PIO duties within the Incident Command System (ICS). It offers basic procedures to operate an effective Joint Information System (JIS).

During an incident or planned event, coordinated and timely communication is critical to effectively help the community. Effective and accurate communication can save lives and property, and helps ensure credibility and public trust.

This Basic Guidance for Public Information Officers provides fundamental guidance for any person or group delegated PIO responsibilities when informing the public is
necessary.

The guidance also addresses actions for preparedness, incident response, Joint Information Centers (JICs), incident recovery, and Federal public information support. The guidance material is adaptable to individual jurisdictions and specific incident conditions.

The guidance outlined in this document is based on the Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) -5, the National Incident Management System (NIMS), and the National Response Framework (NRF). All of these elements are integrated with and supported through the Federal Emergency Support Function (ESF) #15 structure (see
chapter 6).