Getting the Most out of Your 2013 AFG Application

Getting the Most Out of Your 2013 AFG Application

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Getting the Most Out of Your 2013 AFG Application

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Presenters


Michael Paddock CEO

Eric Sheets Regional Grant Manager

• Team of Regional Grant Managers for direct support

• Grant education/training and funding research services

• Feedback on applicant eligibility and project competitiveness

• Consult on post-funding project implementation

• Keep in Mind for AFG… What is your project and challenges you face?

Currently how are you conducting your required training?

How is your interoperability between different agencies, networks, and device types?

Cisco Grant Strategy Team (GST)


Grants Administered by the AFG Program Office

Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER)

Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S)

Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG)


2013 Estimated Amounts Available

Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency

Response (SAFER) $350 million (est.)

Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) $35 million (est.)

Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) $350 million (est.)


Assistance to Firefighters (AFG)

• Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

• $337.5 million available in FY2012

• 12 month performance period

• Supplement NOT Supplant

• 20,000 applications each year on average w/ roughly 4,000 funded as the “best fits”

• 2012 Deadline Date was July 6, 2012

• Awards can be monitored at www.fema.gov/firegrants/afggrants/awards.shtm


http://www.fema.gov/firegrants/afggrants/awards.shtm

FY2013 Changes

• National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 (P.L. 112-239) reauthorized the US Fire Administration’s Grant Programs

• Encourages the AFG Program Office to divide funding for AFG and SAFER equally (“Sense of Congress”)

• Increases the number of population categories

• Provides for a small amount of funding each year to state fire training academies


Procurement Integrity

• Competition – Should be promoted

• Documentation – Document EVERYTHING

• Specifications – Clearly describe the requirements of the product to be purchased or

contracted

• Conflicts of Interest – Eliminate unfair competitive advantages


AFG Eligibility

Non-affiliated EMS organizations - a public or private nonprofit emergency medical services organization that provides direct emergency medical services, including medical transport, to a specific geographic area on a first-due basis but is not affiliated with a hospital and does not serve a geographic area where emergency medical services are adequately provided by a fire department.

Fire departments - an agency or organization that has 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 fixed geographical area on a first-due basis.


Population-based Maximum Awards

Up to 100,000 $1,000,000

100,000 to 500,000 $2,000,000

500,000 to 1

million

$3,000,000

1 million to 2.5 million $6,000,000

Over 2.5 million

$9,000,000


Matching Requirements

Under 20,000 population 5%

20,000 – 1 million population 10%

Over 1 million population 15%

1) Total Project Cost x % AFG will cover = Total AFG amount will award 2) Total Project Cost - Total AFG will award = YOUR MATCHING AMOUNT

Example – You have a population of 20,001 people and you need $75,000 for the project 1) $75,000 x 90% = $67,500 2) $75,000 – $67,500 = $7,500 (10% match)


3 Application Categories

Each eligible applicant may submit one application in each of the following program areas:

1. Operations and Safety (61.1%*)

2. Vehicle Acquisition (36%*)

3. Regional Application (2.9%*) *based on information made available previously by USFA


1) Operations and Safety

1) Training • AFG has had a strong emphasis on increasing the training

2) Equipment • Highest priority to those applications that are proposing the replacing the

oldest equipment

3) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) • Highest priority is given to applicants who need to purchase PPE for the

first time for new firefighters

4) Wellness and Fitness • Activities must include offering periodic health screenings, entry physical

examinations, and immunizations

5) Modifications to Stations and Facilities • No new construction; Structure must be built prior to 2003


2) Vehicle Acquisition

• New Firefighter Vehicles (NFPA 1901 or 1906 standards)

• Used fire apparatus originally designed for firefighting (NFPA compliant*)

• Refurbishing a department owned vehicle (originally designed for firefighting)

• Applicants who serve urban or suburban communities can apply for more than one vehicle (awards limited to one vehicle per station)

• Applicants who service rural communities can apply for only one vehicle

• Applicants awarded vehicle grants under AFG in previous years are eligible for another vehicle award this program year


Firefighting Vehicle Program Priorities – Possible Matrix Configuration

H=High, M=Medium, L=Low


EMS Vehicle Program Priorities – Possible Matrix Configuration

H=High, M=Medium, L=Low


3) Regional (“Joint”) Applications

• Fire department or nonaffiliated EMS organization may act as “host applicant” for a regional project

• Multiple organizations serving more than one local jurisdiction

• Directly benefit from the activities implemented with the grant funds

• Physical distribution of equipment

• Must have a region-wide impact on communication interoperability or standardization of training

• Match will be based on the total population of the applicant’s region


Application Review

50 percent of the final score will be from the electronic prescore, and 50 percent will be from an average of the Peer Review Panelists’ scores

•Funding priorities and criteria for evaluating AFG applications are established based on recommendations from the Criteria Development Panel. FEMA will rank all submitted applications based on how well they match the funding priorities for the type of community served. •A panel of at least three peer reviewers will evaluate each project in the competitive range using the project narrative, along with answers to the general questions and the activity-specific questions.


Keep in mind…

• Submit with Care

• 5 Page Narrative limit

• Will not fund firefighter positions

• Grant writing fees can be paid for through the program

• Do not use brand names, model numbers or part numbers in your application

• Online tutorials are available at www.fema.gov/firegrants/


http://www.fema.gov/firegrants/

Cisco “Solutions”

• Interoperable Communication - Cisco IPICs

• Information Sharing – VX Tactical

• Training – Cisco TelePresence

Follow us on Twitter

Remote Firefighter Training – City of Aurora and Naperville, IL

• Cities of Aurora and Naperville, IL work together in a number of areas together. They had the foundation of a solid relationship in the beginning. The City of Aurora took the lead in developing the project. Both cities have a central training location where firefighters were coming in to come to do both cognitive and didactic training. These two cities shared resources and would travel back and forth to conduct training.

• Much of the Fire and Paramedic training conducted does not require

hands on instruction. In these cases the Cisco Telepresence solution has proven to be instrumental in allowing units to provide coverage in their district while they receive training. In addition, both agencies conduct meetings and after action reviews with their personnel. The Cisco Telepresence solution has allowed for better and more accurate information dissemination and after action reviews with all personnel following a High Angle Technical Rescue and Structure Fires.

• Firefighters are required to participate and complete multiple hours of training throughout the year.

• Firefighters have to travel to a central training site to participate in the training.

• Firefighters have easier access to required trainings

• Decreased time taken out of the field and in transportation to attend trainings

Solution

Benefits

Challenges


Special Guests: Ted Beck – City of Aurora, IL: Chief Technology Officer Robert Bush – City of Naperville, IL: Bureau Chief of Technical Services

Other Funding Avenues to Consider

• State Homeland Security Grant Program (DHS) - www.fema.gov/government/grant/hsgp/index.shtm

• Community Facilities (USDA) - www.rurdev.usda.gov/HCF_CF.html

• Rural Fire Assistance (DOI) - www.nifc.gov/rfa/update.html

• State-specific offerings (varies)

• Foundations: – Firefighters Charitable Foundation - www.ffcf.org/grants.html – Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation - http://firehousesubs.com/Foundation-

Overview.aspx – FM Global Fire Prevention Grant Program -

www.fmglobal.com/page.aspx?id=01060200


http://www.fema.gov/government/grant/hsgp/index.shtm

http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/HCF_CF.html

http://www.nifc.gov/rfa/update.html

http://www.ffcf.org/grants.html

http://firehousesubs.com/Foundation-Overview.aspx

http://firehousesubs.com/Foundation-Overview.aspx

http://www.fmglobal.com/page.aspx?id=01060200

Contact Information and Resources

• AFG Regional Representative: www.fema.gov/firegrants/program/contact.shtm

• AFG Program helpdesk - Phone: 1-866-274-0960

- E-mail: [email protected]

• To sign up for AFG Program Newsletter: www.fema.gov/firegrants/program/newsletter.shtm

• FEMA Web Site – www.fema.gov/firegrants/

• Public Safety .Info- www.publicsafety.info

Replay this and other publicsafetygrants.info Webcasts! 2013 Homeland Security Funding: Bringing IT Home Getting a Handle on 2013 Funding for Public Safety Initiatives


http://www.fema.gov/firegrants/program/contact.shtm

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.fema.gov/firegrants/program/newsletter.shtm

http://www.fema.gov/firegrants/

http://www.publicsafety.info/

For more information, contact your Cisco representative. If you do not know who your Cisco representative is, email [email protected] call (219) 766-0821.


Health & Medicine

Getting the Most out of Your 2013 AFG Application