SAFER Grants Are About to Open!

FEMA recently announced that the FY 2015 Staffing and for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant application period will open Monday, 2/22/2016. Applications will be due Friday, 3/25/2016. A total of $340,000,000 is available and is expected to fund about 300 awards. FEMA states, “The goal of the SAFER Grant Program is to assist local fire departments with staffing and deployment capabilities in order to respond to emergencies, and assure that communities have adequate protection from fire and fire-related hazards.” The program has two funding categories: Hiring of Firefighters and Recruitment and Retention of Volunteer Firefighters.

Project periods will begin 6/30/2016 and can run 12-48 months in length. Eligible applicants are as follows (quoted from pages 3 and 4 of the Notice of Funding Opportunity):

• Volunteer fire departments and combination fire departments may apply for funding under both the Hiring of Firefighters category and the Recruitment and Retention of Volunteer Firefighters category. Separate applications must be completed for each category. Applicants are limited to one application per category, per application period. If an applicant submits two applications for the same category during a single application period, both applications will be disqualified.
• Career fire departments may apply for funding only under the Hiring of Firefighters category. Applicants are limited to one application per application period. If an applicant submits two applications, both applications will be disqualified.
• Municipalities and fire districts may submit applications on behalf of fire departments lacking the legal status to do so, such as those under the support of the municipality or district. The municipality or fire district may submit only one application for hiring per application period for each eligible fire department within the municipality or fire district.
• National, state, local, or tribal organizations representing the interests of volunteer firefighters and individual fire departments (volunteer or combination) may only apply for funding under the Recruitment and Retention of Volunteer Firefighters category. Applicants are limited to one application per application period. If an applicant submits two applications, both applications will be disqualified.

Matching is not required, and award ranges are undefined. No annual limits are placed on grant-funded salaries, leaving awardees free to compensate as needed for their localities.

The Notice of Funding Opportunity can be accessed at http://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/1455644730889-1856450d66491b2137fafdc07a5707cc/FY15_SAFER_NOFO.pdf.

The FAQs can be accessed at https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/1455740082967-8a61e97579d9fe3feb94f8c611a99a5b/FY_2015_SAFER_FAQs_updated_2.17.16.pdf.

All program information is available at https://www.fema.gov/staffing-adequate-fire-emergency-response-grants.