Grants by the Numbers

With this year's AFGP and SAFER grants application periods over, it is time to start planning for next year. Everyone seems to think about grants about the time the application period starts, but taking a look at this year's statistics can help you plan for next year. You may find that good planning and fund allocation in the year prior to your grant application may assure your success on future grants.

Here's an example. Departments regularly contact me asking how to get a grant for their new firehouse. The short answer is, you cannot get funds for capital improvements or creation of a new firehouse. AFGP specifically states that it will not fund capital projects with exception of minor changes to accommodate other funding priorities.

While these are the hard facts about grant applications, there are other ways to raise funds for your department. Every year the AFGP has had the stated purpose of increasing firefighter safety. If you apply for safety related grants, such as SCBAs, you can then take the funds you would have spent on the SCBAs can be used for your capital improvements. The same theory could go for apparatus purchases, but as you will see by the numbers apparatus is not the area to apply for.

I am going to do an analysis of the stats available at http://www.firegrantsupport.com/appresults.aspx Each year the statistics are made public to help departments and to help justify next year's funds. We'll start with the AFGP grant statistics. Volunteers fire departments account for approximately 90% of the departments in the US. Therefore it makes sense that 84% of the applications were from volunteer or combination departments. The interesting fact to me is that there were a total 20,972 applications in 2005, and by most people's statistics, there are around 31,000 departments in the US. This means that approximately one third of the departments in the US did not apply for a grant in 2005.

There was a $650,000,000 grant appropriation for AFGP this year. That was broken down into $412,750,000 for Operations and Safety and 159,250,000 for Vehicles. (This is only for Fire, EMS is separate.) This means 63% of the money went to Operations and Safety and 24.5% for Vehicles. There were 14,158 applications for Operations and Safety and 6,814 for vehicles. (67.5% and 32.4% respectively)

While the application percentages may seem to fit the program's break down, the amount applied for is completely off. There were $1,336,943,342 in Operations and Safety applications and $1,341,031,728 in Vehicles. This means that there is $412 million in grants for $1.3 billion in applications for Operations and Safety, and $159 million for $1.3 billion in Vehicles. That means you have a 12% chance to get a vehicle and a 31% chance to get an Operations and Safety grant. With those numbers, you tell me which one you should apply for. I know I'd rather apply for Operations and Safety and get almost 3 times the chances as vehicles.

Lets add this to the requirements that AFGP has set for Vehicles. The priorities are for basic services and to increase firefighter safety. This means you should primarily apply for Engines or basic Ladder Trucks. The additional requirement is that they should have over 100,000 miles. So when you add all the facts together, Vehicles is the category to stay away from. Yet still departments continue to apply for vehicles and think I'm crazy when I say to not waste your application on vehicles.

I haven't even looked at rural, suburban, or urban break downs, but the key facts are there. You can't change the location you serve but you can change the area you apply for.

SAFER had so few applications, its amazing. There were only 2,954 applications for SAFER grants in 2005. This means that less then 10% of the departments in the US applied in 2005. Last time I checked, most departments could use more members. My question is, why didn't they apply?

I received an interesting email from someone who asked not to be named, and here was his look at the SAFER requirements: “I found a very interesting requirement in the new SAFER Act grant applications, however, that we (as I hope everyone) will be watching. If you print out the guidelines and look at page 9, "Narrative Statement for Hiring of Firefighters Activity", there are six requirements that must be met. Number SIX is very VERY interesting. it states a statement must be included as follows: "A statement regarding how the applicant plans to meet the requirement to ensure that firefighter positions filled under SAFER grants ARE NOT DISCRIMINATED AGAINST, OR PROHIBITED FROM, engaging in volunteer activities in another jurisdiction on off duty hours." I read that as union departments need not apply..... "

I have to say I would read number six as the same thing, but that doesn't explain the lack of applications. If you look at the applications that were placed, hiring beat recruitment and retention 4 to 1. Looks like the Volunteer community missed out on this one. I don't know why, but departments missed the opportunity this year to fix their recruitment and retention program.

Next year will most likely be the same numbers and format as this year. Since we know the way the numbers are, and where they will be, it is time to plan for how your department fits within them. We prepare and drill to fight fires, why not prepare to fund the department?