Definition and Overview
The leadership of the District of Columbia, the State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia, area local governments, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office for National Capital Region Coordination (NCRC) are working in partnership with non-profit organizations and private sector interests to reduce the vulnerability of the National Capital Region (NCR) from terrorist attacks.
These partners have established a governance structure to guide homeland security work in the NCR. Several of the key committees are pictured below. Click on a committee for more detail.
The regional working group and regional emergency support function (R-ESF) committees work together to advance preparedness in the region. As the State Administrative Agent for the metro area, the District of Columbia provides management of many of the grant funds allocated to the area. The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) is the coordination point for many of these activities.
Region
For federal planning purposes, the NCR region is defined as the jurisdictions represented on the map at right. These include:
- The City of Alexandria
- Arlington County
- The District of Columbia
- Fairfax County
- Loudoun County
- Montgomery County
- Prince George's County
- Prince William County
and all inclusive municipalities. The National Capital Region was created pursuant to the National Capital Planning Act of 1952 (Title 40, U.S.C., Sec. 71).

