Teams of trained and certified local government professionals working in partnership could provide fast and effective assistance to disaster-stricken communities. Despite the country's experience with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the U.S. still operates with an outmoded command and control approach to emergencies that lacks speed and flexibility. Federal, state, and local governments must bring a greater sense of urgency to the critical objective of improving our emergency preparedness and response system. ICMA's Governmental Affairs and Policy Committee released this white paper, "A Networked Approach to Improvements in Emergency Management," that urges changes at the national level and fleshes out a new model.