SAFER 2009 Gets posted....

The much anticipated SAFER 2009 has been announced with an opening date of 16 Nov 2009 at 0800. Since the federal government has made changes to this years program through stimulus funding and rules changes make sure that your agency is prepared to review the Program Guidance that will be released as this grant opens for submissions.

There are several key things to remember when applying for funding under this grant program. Although the rules have changed, your agency and community must be prepared to handle funding for the additional personnel as well as the continuation of recruitment and retention programs once the grant funding has expired.

Remember, the SAFER grants are designed to fund two primary purposes. These two purposes are 1) hiring new firefighters to attain compliance with NFPA and OSHA regulations and 2) recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters.

Part one can be obtained by any fire department that meets the minimum requires such as having a DUNS number. You can find information at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/duns_num_guide.pdf to obtain your DUNS number if you do not have one currently. Part 2 of the program can be obtained by Volunteer or Combination departments. For the purposes of this grant, combination departments are classified as those agencies who are made up of more than 50% volunteers on their rosters.

Many people place their funding in peril because they do not follow the regulations for the entire grant process. Prior grant guidance documents for this program have mentioned that the grants administrators can require your agency to provide documentation from your governing organization prior to the awarding that they are committed to the entire 5 year process.

We wish you well in this endevour and hope that you are able to use this wonderful asset to grow your organization to a point they are able to increase the level of service provided to the public, and most of all as a method to ensure our safety as firefighters and that each and every firefighter, EMT, paramedic, and police officer are able to return home after their shift.

Stay Safe...