What is the origin of the Fusion Liaison Officer (FLO) program?

What is a Fusion Liaison Officer (FLO)?

The Louisiana State Analytical & Fusion Exchange (LA-SAFE), i.e., Louisiana’s Fusion Center, launched the Fusion Liaison Officer (FLO) Program throughout Louisiana to strengthen information sharing and enhance multi-jurisdiction partnerships, which involves five disciplines:

• Law Enforcement
• Fire
• Emergency Medical Services (EMS)
• Emergency Management agencies and
• Critical Infrastructure/Key Resources (CI/KR)

The FLO Program creates an expansive statewide network of personnel by combining the resources of these five disciplines, which links to state and federal assets to provide an effective and viable two-way flow of information.

The FLO is a specially trained individual within his respective discipline to be responsible for coordinating the all-crimes/all-hazards approach from his local agency to LA-SAFE. The FLO position was specifically created to be that physical conduit to facilitate the mutual exchange of information between his agency, local agencies and LA-SAFE.

The FLO Program mirrors the LA-SAFE Program and was developed to provide a platform of local representatives to share information involving all-crime/all-hazard incidents and its affect on their community, Louisiana and the country.

Goals and Objectives

• The FLO is the direct point of contact for LA-SAFE at the local level and will serve as the point of contact within their area-of-responsibility (AOR) and specific discipline.
• The FLO participates in this program by assisting with the following:
  • Improving the quality and efficiency of information exchange between the local agencies and LA-SAFE by collecting and reporting relevant field information from their areas
  • Disseminate information to field officers during roll call or team meetings
  • Disseminate information to field units
  • Provide intelligence briefings to agency executive staff
  • Provide intelligence briefing to regional representatives
  • Expand awareness of the intelligence cycle and its foundation’s philosophy
  • Increase communication and out-reach to local agencies that do not have a fusion liaison officer, regarding LA-SAFE’s activities
  • Assist with terrorism awareness training

Are there requirements to become a FLO?

A FLO candidate must be:

• A full time employee within one of the five disciplines
• Have tenure within their department with the ability to be mobile and interactive with agency personnel
• Have accessibility to the chief administrator of their department along with a comfort in interrelating with upper command personnel
• Good communication skills, a passion for learning about the threats of terrorism, and ways to protect our community
• A wiliness to reach-out, to push information and to teach what has been learned

How can your agency join the FLO Program?

All agencies within the five disciplines are welcome, and encouraged, to participate in the FLO program by contacting the LA-SAFE’s FLO Coordinator-in-Charge for more information.

E-Mail: lafusion.center@la.gov