SAFER Funding, FEMA Reform Pass Congress 

October 2, 2006 – Just prior to breaking for the November elections, the U.S. Congress passed a spending bill that increased funding for the SAFER and FIRE grant programs. The bill also included major reforms to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) which the IAFF played an instrumental role in crafting.

As approved by the Congress, the Homeland Security spending bill for 2007 increases funding for the SAFER grant program to $115 million, and increases funding for the FIRE grant program to $547 million. The President’s budget for 2007 threatened to cut funding for the FIRE grant program by 60%, while completely eliminating SAFER.

“I applaud the Congress for working within this year’s tight budget to provide increases for the SAFER and FIRE grant programs,” said IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger. “The needs of the fire service are greater than ever; these increases will help better staff, equip and train fire departments nationwide.”

The bill also contains language to reform FEMA. Several proposals to overhaul the federal government’s emergency management system have been considered since FEMA failed to adequately respond to Hurricane Katrina last year. The final compromise, which the IAFF helped craft, strengthens FEMA, and grants it clear lines of authority during times of major disasters. The legislation also retains FEMA as an independent agency within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which assures that FEMA and the U.S. Fire Administration will continue to play an integral role in the federal government’s homeland security efforts.

The bill also requires FEMA to use an all-hazards approach to emergency management, ensures that FEMA will be headed by a experienced emergency manager, and reunites DHS’s disaster preparedness and response functions under FEMA.

Finally, the bill establishes systems to ensure that fire fighters are properly utilized during disasters. Confusion during Hurricane Katrina led some fire fighters to be assigned paper work duties, while people without adequate training were performing emergency response functions. The legislation addresses this problem by establishing a credentialing system to be used by State emergency managers who deploy fire fighters to major incidents.

The IAFF worked closely with Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), and Representatives Peter King (R-NY), Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Dave Reichert (R-WA) and Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) to craft the FEMA reform proposal.