On Wednesday, May 28, 2014, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security approved a Fiscal Year 2015 funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The $39.2 billion spending bill is a slight decrease from the Fiscal Year 2014 spending level, but is an $888 million increase above the White House’s request for the department.
Included in the spending bill is funding for a number of important fire service programs. The Assistance to Firefighters (FIRE) grant program and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program are each funded at $340 million, the same amount as in the current fiscal year. The White House had requested $335 million for each program in its FY2015 budget proposal. Additionally, the United States Fire Administration (USFA) maintains its current level of funding at $44 million. The White House had recommended cutting USFA’s funding to $41.407 million.