What is a critical function of the finance section during an incident?

The finance section plays a vital role during an incident by managing the time and costs associated with the operation. This involves tracking expenditures, monitoring resource allocation, and ensuring that financial resources are effectively utilized throughout the response to the incident. By overseeing budgets and costs, the finance section provides crucial information that allows incident commanders to make informed decisions about resource allocation and operational sustainability. This is essential not only for effective incident management but also to ensure accountability and transparency in spending.

While drafting operational strategies, providing logistical support, and communicating with the public are important functions in their own right, they fall under other sections of incident management rather than the finance section. The focus on financial oversight distinguishes the finance section's critical contributions to successful incident response and recovery efforts.