HomeMy WebLinkAboutHomeland Security - Firefighters Grant Program - 1/9/2006 Alyt_� /�_ C/
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness
United States Fire Administration
2005 ASSISTANCE TO FIREFIGHTERS GRANT PROGRAM
The Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program(AFGP)awards one-year grants directly to
fire departments to support the nation's firefighters and the services they deliver. For the
2005 program, Congress appropriated, and President Bush signed into law, $650 million
in direct assistance to firefighters to improve the effectiveness of firefighting operations,
firefighter health and safety programs, and to establish or expand fire prevention
programs throughout the United States. The Department of Homeland Security's Office
of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness (SLGCP) administers the
program, in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration.
There was little change to the 2005 AFGP from previous years'programs.All AFGP
application materials and program guidance resources are automated and available online
along with other useful information. Each of the program areas and activities eligible for
funding last year were available again for FY 2005 funding. Grantees were invited to
submit an application for assistance in only one of the program areas listed below. In
FY2005, the Congress added award eligibility for EMS Organizations not affiliated with
a hospital or fire department. The program areas in which EMS organizations could
apply are identical to those for fire departments.
• Operations and Firefighter Safety Program. Includes training, equipment,personal
protective equipment,wellness and fitness,and modifications to fire stations and
facilities.
• Firefighting Vehicles Acquisition Program. Includes pumpers, brush trucks,
tankers/tenders, rescue vehicles, ambulances, quints, aerials, foam units, and
fireboats.
The applicatiori.period closed in early April 2005. SLGCP received approximately
21,000 applications for approximately$2,916,784,410. These requests include the non-
federal share,which totaled approximately $2,677,979,630 from all departments.Funding
priorities for each of the activities were established based on recommendations from nine
major national fire service organizations. The applications that most closely complied to
program priorities were reviewed and scored by peer review panels from mid April
through completion in early May. Awards will be announced on a weekly basis beginning
in June 2005,with the competitive funds obligated by the end of December 2005 or
sooner.
Applicants had to demonstratefinancial need and articulate the benefits to be derived
from the grant funds in their applications. The grants are intended to supplement a fire
department's current budget rather than supplant it. To this end, grantees must agree to
maintain expenditures in the selected grant category at the department's average spending
rate as determined by previous two years.
Volunteer and combination departments must receive a proportion of the total grant
funding that is at least equal to the proportion of the population those firefighting
departments protect. According to the statistics provided by the National Fire Protection
Association (NFPA),volunteer and combination departments protect 55%of the
population.
Grantees share in the cost of the funded project at a percentage based on the population of
their respective jurisdictions. Grantees that serve jurisdictions of 20,000 or fewer
residents are required to provide a non-Federal cost-share of 5%; grantees that serve
jurisdictions of between 20,000 and 50,000 provide a 10%cost-share; and jurisdictions
over 50,000 share 20%of the cost of the project. The match must be in cash without the
use of in-kind contributions. The maximum amount of federal funds that an applicant can
be awarded also varies, depending on the population size of the jurisdiction: $2.75M
over 1,000,000, $1.75M between 1,000,000 and 500,000, and $1M for all others.
A complete list of applications, financial information, and fire department data is
available for each state at: www.firegrantsupport.com. Fire departments with questions
about the Assistance to Firefighters Grant program, can reach the fire grants help desk
toll free 1-866-274-0960 or by writing to firegrants@dhs.gov.
For the most current information regarding the 2005 Assistance to Firefighter Grant
Program, visit www.firegrantsupport.com or enroll in the USFA email distribution list
serve for the most current news releases from the USFA.
Summary of 2005 Applications by Program Area
•Fire Operation and Firefighter Safety, 14,158 applications or 67.5%of the total
submitted; and
•Firefighting Vehicles, 6,814 applications or 32.5%
Summary of 2005 Requested Funding By Department Type
•All Volunteer Departments, 57%of all funds requested totaling $1.53 billion in requests
•Combination Paid/On-Call Departments, 29%totaling $768 million in requests
•All Paid/Career Departments, 14%totaling $379 million in requests
On March 1, 2003, the Office for Domestic Preparedness(now SLGCP) became apart of
the Department of Homeland Security. SLGCP has been designated as the principal
Federal agency responsible for the preparedness of the United States for acts of
terrorism, including coordinatingpreparedness efforts as the Federal level, and working
with all State, local, tribal,parish, and private sector emergency response providers on
all matters pertaining to combating terrorism, including training, exercises, and
equipment support. To support this mission, SLGCP administers a number of programs
that provide a wide array of support to our nation's emergency preparedness and
response community.
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