FY 2011 SAFER Grant application period open January 30 thru February 24

January 26, 2012 – The FY 2011 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant application period will open on Monday, January 30, 2012 and run until Friday, February 24, 2012 at 5:00 P.M. EST.  Congress has approved $742.5 million in SAFER funding to rehire and retain fire fighters, in addition to hiring additional personnel. The SAFER program has already put more than 5,000 fire fighters back to work, giving a much-needed boost to public safety in countless struggling communities.

Municipalities with fire departments facing reduced emergency response capabilities in particular should apply for SAFER funding. The IAFF urges affiliates to work with their fire chiefs and local lawmakers to file for the grants. City management must submit the application, but the IAFF is available to assist your community in applying for the grants. 

The FY 2011 SAFER grant Guidance and Application Kit is posted on the Assistance to Firefighters web site. All SAFER applicants should read the new Guidance to fully understand the FY 2011 award criteria, funding priorities and important special application instructions for completing the application.

Highlights of the FY 2011 SAFER grant program include: 

• Salary limits: There are no annual salary limits.
• Grantee cost share: There is no prescribed cost-share.
• No retention commitment: Grantees that are hiring fire fighters — whether they be rehires, new hires or retained fire fighters — do not have to commit to retaining the SAFER-funded fire fighters beyond the period of performance. However, no fire fighter layoffs are permitted — of either SAFER-funded or non-SAFER fire fighters — during the grant's period of performance. 
• Period of performance: For the Hiring of Firefighters Category grants, the period of performance has been reduced to two years. 
• Attrition of fire fighters: FY 2011 grantees who are unable to back-fill fire fighting positions that are vacated due to documentable economic hardship may petition the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for a waiver of staffing maintenance requirements. To qualify for this waiver, the economic hardship must affect the entire public safety sector in the jurisdiction and not only the fire department. 
• Hiring of Firefighters Category: The priorities for funding will be as follows: 
1. First priority: Rehiring laid-off fire fighters 
2. Second priority: Retention of fire fighters who face imminent layoff or filling positions vacated through attrition but not filled due to economic circumstances 
3. Third priority: Hiring new fire fighters 

For more information or instructions, the SAFER Help Desk and Fire Program Specialists will be available throughout the application period to answer questions about the SAFER program Guidance and the online grant application. The Help Desk can be contacted at 1-866-274-0960 or at firegrants@dhs.gov. The Help Desk hours of operation during the application period are from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. All times listed are eastern daylight times. 

The grant application process requires a significant amount of time to properly complete, therefore, the IAFF recommends that affiliates submit a draft version of their grant application to the IAFF Grants Department well in advance of the application deadline. 

For more information, contact the Grants Administration Department at (202) 824-8631 or email grants@iaff.org.