Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP)

The goal is to provide guidance and exercise design and conduct training to local jurisdictions, coordinate and lead statewide exercises, develop a consistent multi-year training and exercise plan focusing on an all hazards, multi-jurisdictional approach.

The Local Exercise Direct Support Program delivers assistance to local governments by providing direct support for exercise design, development, conduct, evaluation, and improvement planning. The Local Exercise Direct Support Program funding may be requested to assist with most exercise-related costs. All funding assistance is provided on a reimbursement basis. Local Exercise Direct Support Program exercises help local governments build self-sustaining exercise programs, demonstrate an understanding with the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP), and provide best practices for future exercises.

Through this program, OKOHS will provide financial and technical assistance to assist agencies in the exercise planning process.The program is a direct support application and all exercises performed with assistance from OKOHS under this program must follow the principles of the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP). Participating agencies must be NIMS-compliant to be eligible.  

Along with following HSEEP principles, each exercise must be entered into the HSEEP Toolkit online. This program helps with the planning, development and evaluation of exercises. The toolkit is designed to help you best utilize the planning time before an exercise by giving you tentative dates for planning conferences, providing a MSEL builder, suggesting a timeline for goal completion and providing adaptable Exercise Evaluator Guides (EEGS) for each Target Capability that will be evaluated.

The MEPP mission is to improve the capabilities of emergency management exercise personnel in exercise program management and in every phase of the overall exercise process. Through the improvement of the knowledge, skills, and abilities, both the quantity and quality of exercises conducted at the local, state, tribal, trust territory and federal levels of government can be improved. The MEPP goal is to increase the capabilities of MEP Candidates in mastery of the essentials of exercise program management and the overall exercise process in accordance with the policy, doctrine, practices, and tools in the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP).