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FY 2018 Assistance to Firefighter Grants (AFG)

Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG)Enhance the safety of the public and firefighters

Grant Website

Grant Guidelines

Application Period: Mon., Sept. 24, 2018, 8 a.m. EST — Fri., Oct. 26, 5 p.m. EST

$315,000,000 available for Fire Service Organizations

The purpose of the AFG Program is to enhance the safety of the public and firefighters
with respect to fire and fire-related hazards. The program provides direct financial
assistance to eligible fire departments, nonaffiliated emergency medical service (EMS)
organizations, and State Fire Training Academies (SFTA). The funds provide critically
needed resources that equip and train emergency personnel to recognized standards,
enhance operational efficiencies, foster interoperability, and support community
resilience.

What this grant does for your agency

The AFG Program also addresses the following “Core Capabilities” of the National
Preparedness Goal:

  • Fire Management and Suppression
  • Environmental Response/Health and Safety
  • Threats and Hazards Identification
  • Public Health, Healthcare, and Emergency Medical Services
  • Operational Coordination
  • OperationalCommunications
  • Mass Search and Rescue Operations
  • Community Resilience
  • Long-term VulnerabilityReduction

Agencies awarded the FY 2018 Assistance to Firefighter Grants (AFG) receive fire grants to help them enhance the safety of the public and firefighters with respect to fire and fire-related hazards.

2,500 awards are projected to be awarded (but this number is only an estimate).

Application resources and materials

The application assistance tools below can help you understand the AFG program and prepare your application:

  • 2018 AFG Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)
  • 2018 AFG Cost Share Calculator
  • 2018 AFG Narrative Get Ready Guide – Application
  • 2018 AFG Narrative Get Ready Guide – Narrative
  • 2018 AFG Self Evaluation Vehicle Acquisition
  • 2018 AFG Self Evaluation Operations Safety
  • 2018 AFG Application Checklist

AFG resources at FEMA.gov

Kurt says…

First Responder Grants Senior Consultant Kurt Bradley has helped fire service organizations nationwide win hundreds of millions of dollars in AFG funds. Here are his tips for 2018 AFG:

  • Review the NOFO carefully 2-3 times. I cannot emphasize this enough. The #1 reason grants are rejected is failure to read and follow directions.
  • Read the questions several times. Then answer the questions, being careful to take full credit for the answer you give.
  • High priority items only. Do not bother going after anything that is marked as medium or low priority. AFG will only fund high priority items, and that high priority is set by AFG, not you.
  • Requesting funds for turnout gear? If going after turnout gear, you need to be replacing at least 50% of your department’s gear. The gear being replaced also needs to be at least 13-14 years of age to get any priority at all.
  • Choose your answers carefully. Be careful about your selection for why you are replacing equipment or PPE. Read all choices clearly before selecting. There are new choices this year, so read the NOFO carefully before selecting your answer. The wrong answer can cause your request to be instantly rejected. This was a top reason for grants being rejected by computer last year.
  • Vehicle acquisitions? Even though only about 100 fire trucks are given away per year, apparatus is AFG’s most requested item. Even if you have the strongest need, trucks are a roll of the dice. AFG only funds about 10-15 trucks over the $500,000 mark per year. Have a plan B in mind to replace trucks. Also, be sure your request is “reasonable” in cost, no bells or whistles.
  • Check your math. Be sure numbers that you put down in answer boxes add up correctly to totals listed elsewhere. They should also agree with what you are stating in your narratives. Inconsistencies are cause for rejection.
  • Don’t procrastinate. Get your application done, make sure it’s rock solid, and submit it as soon as possible. Don’t wait till a week before it’s due. Start now: get it composed, proof-read, entered, and submitted.
  • Structure micro-grants to new funding limits. Micro-grants now have a $50,000 maximum, so make sure your micro-grant is specific and keeps under that limit.

Need help with your AFG application?

Contact Kurt today

Grant Eligibility

For full eligibility details, see the Grant Guidelines:

Fire Departments
Fire departments operating in any of the 50 states, as well as fire departments in the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal organization. A fire department is an agency or organization having a formally recognized arrangement with a state, territory, local, or tribal authority (city, county, parish, fire district, township, town, or other governing body) to provide fire suppression to a population within a geographically fixed primary first due response area.

Nonaffiliated EMS organizations
Nonaffiliated EMS organizations operating in any of the 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any federally recognized Indian tribe or tribal organization. A nonaffiliated EMS organization is an agency or organization that is a public or private nonprofit emergency medical service entity providing medical transport that is not affiliated with a hospital and does not serve a geographic area in which emergency medical services are adequately provided by a fire department.

State Fire Training Academies
A State Fire Training Academy (SFTA) operates in any of the 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Applicants must be designated either by legislation or by a Governor’s declaration as the sole fire service training agency within a state, territory, or the District of Columbia. The designated SFTA shall be the only agency/bureau/division, or entity within that state, territory, or the District of Columbia.

About the FEMA

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Grant Deadline

Grant applications are due no later than Fri., Oct. 26, 5 p.m. EST.

Apply

Funding Opportunity Number: DHS-18-GPD-044-00-99. Apply for the FY 2018 Assistance to Firefighter Grants (AFG)