July 3, 2014
*WASHINGTON* – *U.S. Senators Barbara A. Mikulski* and *Ben Cardin **(both D-Md.) * today announced that the Maryland State Fireman’s Association (MSFA), in partnership with the Maryland Fire Chiefs Association (MFCA) will receive $2,254,670 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response (SAFER) program to enhance volunteer firefighter recruitment and retention efforts across Maryland. As Chairwoman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Mikulski fights each year to increase federal funding for the fire grants program. Senator Cardin is a member of the Finance Committee.
“I know how important this funding is to Maryland communities – often it’s the difference between life and death. First responders protect our homes and communities, and the federal government has a responsibility to protect them by providing them with the tools they need to do their jobs safer and smarter,” *Senator Mikulski* said. “Every day when our first responders report for duty, they don’t know what they will face. That’s why I fight every year for the equipment, training, and staffing our protectors and communities deserve.”
“Ensuring that we have the first responders in place to protect Marylanders has always been a priority for me,” *Senator Cardin* said. “From fires to natural disasters to possible terrorist threats, communities cannot shoulder this burden alone. It is important that the federal government give local communities the resources they need recruit and retain the first responders that are needed to protect us from harm.”
MSFA and MFCA will use this federal funding to implement a four-year project to develop and deliver marketing programs that demonstrate the value of volunteer fire responders to local community safety initiatives, and to provide incentive programs to aid in the recruitment and retention of volunteer fire and emergency responders. The programs will permit local fire companies to address volunteer recruitment and retention challenges unique to their respective communities. The funding will also enable the MSFA and MFCA to create scholarships for volunteer responders to attend higher education training programs and national level training conferences. The programs developed with this funding will be jointly managed by the MSFA and MFCA with the assistance of a statewide coordinator.
The goal of any SAFER grant is to enhance the ability of grantees to attain and maintain 24-hour staffing. The objective of the program is to award grants directly to volunteer, combination, and career fire departments to help the departments increase the number of frontline firefighters, and to rehire firefighters who were laid off due to the economy.
Since 2001, Maryland fire departments and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) units have received over $137 million in fire grant funding.