(a) The AuxComm unit is established in the VITEMA. The Director shall act as the manager of the AuxComm Unit and shall set policy, qualify, credential, coordinate, and direct the AuxComm activities.
(b) Jointly with the Director, the Section Manager shall establish programs for the training and credentialing of Auxiliary Communicators to ensure they are suitably qualified to conduct AuxComm missions. Auxiliary Communicators are limited to individuals certified by the Director as meeting the applicable training and credentialing requirements. By being credentialed to participate in AuxComm missions, Auxiliary Communicators are authorized to transmit and receive radio communications on any radio frequency licensed to any agency of the Virgin Islands Government, as well as install, operate, remove, program, adjust, or otherwise maintain any communications equipment, including ancillary equipment within the scope of their assignment, owned by any participating Virgin Islands governmental agencies.
(c) Auxiliary Communicators shall assume all the duties and possess all the authority and responsibilities of the RACES 47 CFR 97.407 within the territory. Any reference to RACES in any territorial law, regulation, or disaster plan refers to the AuxComm Unit. No other individual, entity, association, or government agency may represent that it is a RACES organization in the territory.
(d) The VITEMA shall recognize that Auxiliary Communicators are volunteers and that they are responsible for securing the safety and welfare of their respective families before fulfilling any activities for the AuxComm Unit.
(e) Auxiliary Communicators shall cooperate with the VITEMA and shall perform tasks related to the primary AuxComm mission of auxiliary communications and such other reasonable duties as may be defined by the Director, the Section Manager, or their designees.
(f) Auxiliary Communicators may not be asked to undertake any task that a VITEMA employee in a comparable position would not typically perform.
(g) The Director shall determine the priority, order, and capacity in which other Virgin Islands governmental agencies are served with AuxComm Unit resources.
(h) The Section Manager shall advise the Director regarding the availability, assignment, and capability of AuxComm resources.
(i) Upon completion of acceptable application information, the Director shall issue Auxiliary Communicators curfew passes or similar credentials recognized throughout the territory for granting access to public roads, Government facilities, emergency operations centers, incident command posts, disaster scenes, and other VITEMA specified locations.