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USFA Administrator Touts Non-Competitive Grants

ppeluso0 — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:27:09 +0000

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Fire departments in impoverished areas may soon get a leg up in the grant process.

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BY PAUL PELUSO

Firehouse.com News

The head of the U.S. Fire Service wants to give departments in "high-risk and economically deprived" communities a leg up in the grant process.

While speaking at the annual VCOS symposium in Clearwater, Fla. on Nov. 6, USFA Administrator Kelvin Cochran said he hopes to offer non-competitive grants as soon as next year to communities that don't have the money or the resources needed to obtain them.

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D.C. FD Exceeds Overtime Budget Again

cygnus — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 05:14:06 +0000

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Melanie Ciarrone

The Washington Examiner

The District's fire chief is spending money on overtime at such a rate that he will blow through his overtime budget halfway through the fiscal year, a D.C.

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LexisNexis

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http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/DataFeed?Action=ReportRoyalty&orgid=534&doc...

Cost Sharing Requirement Waived in SAFER Grant

Ed Ballam — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:49:56 +0000

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Application period opens Nov. 16 and closes at 5 p.m. EST on Dec. 18.

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Ed Ballam

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Firehouse.com News

Communities applying for federal Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grants will not have any out of pocket or cost share expenses this year, the Department of Homeland Security announced today.

The guidelines for the 2010 Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) annual SAFER grant program were released today and the application period will run from Nov. 16 to 5 p.m.

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2009 SAFER Guidance Document

SAFER Application Period Announced

Heather Caspi — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:51:46 +0000

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Firehouse.com News

The application period for the FY2009 SAFER Grants will open on Nov. 16 at 8 p.m. (EST) and close on Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. (EST), according to a FEMA press release.

The program guidance document will soon be posted on the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program Web site.

This year's SAFER program has approximately $210 million available for grants.

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Report: FEMA Meeting Most Requirements for Awarding FIRE Act Grants

Heather Caspi — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:40:00 +0000

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Firehouse.com News

A Government Accountability Office review released Oct. 30 found that FEMA is meeting most requirements for awarding FIRE Act funds, but that more can be done to improve the grant process.According to the GAO report, the agency met seven of eight statutory requirements and two of three established program requirements for distributing fiscal years 2007 and 2008 FIRE Act grants.

The report also stated the agency has taken actions to ensure that its fire grants award process is accessible and clear to grant applicants.

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Government Accountability Office Report

Rural N.D. Depts. Continue to Struggle

cygnus — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 13:51:47 +0000

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BY BEN RODGERS

The Jamestown Sun (North Dakota)

MERRICOURT, N.D. -- Merricourt used to have its own fire department. Now fires in and around the town are fought by fire departments in Ellendale, N.D., and Edgeley, N.D.

Merricourt, a town of less than five people about 50 miles south of Jamestown, lost its fire department about three years ago because its fire chief retired and no one took over, said John Elstad, deputy fire marshal for the central region of North Dakota.

"It's never a good thing when a fire department has to close up," Elstad said.

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Staffing Concerns After N.Y. FF Trapped

cygnus — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:34:51 +0000

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BY HUMBERTO MARTINEZ

Albany Times Union, N.Y.

TROY, N.Y. -- It seemed like it would be a routine maneuver: firefighter Ray Littlejohn would go up to the second floor, whip the hose around and douse the flames consuming the Troy home on Saturday morning.

But it was only a matter of seconds -- not even long enough for him to realize -- before he had fallen through the blaze-weakened staircase and been trapped in the basement.

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TRIBUNE

Baltimore Firefighters OK Unpaid Furloughs

cygnus — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:26:02 +0000

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BY FRANK D. ROYLANCE

The Baltimore Sun

Baltimore's 1,600 firefighters and fire officers voted overwhelmingly Wednesday night to take five unpaid furlough days before June in order to help the city close a $60 million budget gap.

The city's agreement with the two unions also calls for a pay freeze in the next fiscal year, but union members will be spared threatened pay cuts. The deal is worth $2.9 million to the city.

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Chiefs Call for Creativity in Funding

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:24:19 +0000

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Ed Ballam

Firehouse.com

ATLANTA, Ga. -- It would be a safe bet that there's no fire department or EMS provider in the nation that would say it has plenty of funding and doesn't need another penny.

It would also be safe to say many of same emergency services providers have no clue how to improve their financial status.

Two gentlemen from the Chesterfield County (Va.) Fire and EMS Department were on hand Wednesday at Firehouse Central and EMS Expo in Atlanta to give attendees some information on alternative funding opportunities for emergency service organizations.

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Congress Ups SAFER, Cuts FIRE Act Funding

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:33:46 +0000

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Susan Nicol Kyle

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Firehouse.com News

As expected, a bill that increases SAFER funding and cuts FIRE Act money is headed to President Barack Obama for his signature.

On Thursday, the Senate passed the House Resolution that funds the Department of Homeland Security through Sept. 2010.

The bill earmarks $420M for SAFER compared to $210M funded last year.

However, money for FIRE Act grants went from $565M to $390M.

Funding for Emergency Management Performance grants and Emergency Operations Centers was increased.

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