In disaster-impacted communities, economic development organizations often lead economic recovery efforts by helping local businesses respond to impacts on their employees, their facilities, and their customer and supply networks. All too often, economic recovery becomes a piecemeal reaction, rather than a planned response, when disaster strikes. The key is to take steps ahead of time to ensure your organization can stay in touch with local businesses after any type of major incident and to set up a plan of action for disaster response and recovery. This manual provides information designed to get your communities started in the pre-planning process for economic recovery. Communities that have a plan in place prior to a disaster can start on the road to recovery immediately and have a better chance of economic recovery.