Kansas Firefighter Recruitment & Safety Grant
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Kelly Ingold
Public Education & OutreachPhone: (785) 291-3586
The 2023 application period is now CLOSED
2023 KFRSG Award Recipients
Purpose
The Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) is providing no-match grants to volunteer/part-time fire departments across the state for personal protection equipment (PPE). This grant is possible through our budget passed by the State Legislature and signed by Governor Laura Kelly. This year, $1.2 million was made available to OSFM for this grant by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Along with $100,000 provided through our budget, the 2023 KFRSG will have a total of $1.3 million to disburse by June 30, 2023.
The PPE includes bunker or wildland gear (coat, pants, helmet, gloves, hood and boots) and new masks for Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) units for department members. Funding will be available for junior firefighter programs and physicals not covered by the individual's insurance or reimbursed by their department, as well as for the purchase of strategically placed washer-extractor machines throughout the state.
Fire departments, especially small rural volunteer departments, are struggling with the recruitment and retention of firefighters because they don’t have funding to provide safety equipment. This leaves potential volunteers with not only donating their time but faced with providing their own safety gear or doing without.
There have been several line of duty deaths from heart attacks in Kansas before and after responses and during training. The OSFM would like to provide grants to local departments to assist in paying for physicals that could identify underlying issues so that they could be treated and, ideally, decrease the number of firefighter deaths.
Eligibility
Applicants must be an established and recognized Kansas volunteer/part-time fire department in good standing with OSFM on the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). Departments must also participate in the Kansas Department of Emergency Management Comprehensive Resource Management & Credentialing System (CRMCS) and provide documentation of a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) from SAM.gov.
Grant Schedule
- September 1, 2022 - Applications are due in our office no later than 4 p.m.
- September 30, 2022 - Awards will be announced, by this date or sooner.
- October 28, 2022 - Return signed letter of agreement.
- March 31, 2023 - Requests for reimbursement due in our office no later than 4 p.m.
Eligible Expenses
Firefighter Safety Equipment Examples
- Bunker or Wildland Gear - Including coat, pants, hood, boots, gloves and helmet
- SCBA mask – based on documented need
- Washing machine (extractor) – No quote necessary - State contract
- All gear/equipment must meet or exceed current NFPA standards
- All gear/equipment would become property of the requesting department and not of the individual for who it was requested. A department cannot liquidate the equipment—such as selling it off to another department or placing in surplus for the life of the equipment.
Junior Firefighter Program
- Explorer and National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) National, Junior Firefighter programs for initiation fees up to $500 and start-up fees of $100.
- This grant opportunity is available to ALL fire departments in the state and does not require a UEI number.
Physicals
- Physical must be compliant with NFPA 1582 standards.
- Physical costs not covered by insurance or reimbursed by their department.
- This grant opportunity is available to ALL fire departments in the state and does not require a UEI number.
Application
Submission Instructions
- A completed KFRSG application must be submitted by email, fax or mail prior to the deadline and contain all required information.
- Submit by the deadline, September 1, 2022, applications are due in our office no later than 4 pm.
- Neither purchases nor verbal/written contract obligation can be made prior to the date of the grant award.
- The request must meet the stated guidelines of the grant.
Submission Checklist
- Complete entire KFRSG grant application and justification information, and submit – required.
- Submit a minimum of two vendor quotes, to include shipping, for all equipment items requested – required.
- No quotes required for extractors - State contract
- Submit documentation of Sam.gov UEI.
Reimbursement Process
Firefighter Safety Equipment
- The department orders, pays for and receives the approved equipment
- The department submits to OSFM no later than March 31, 2023:
- W-9
- DA-130 Form and proof of bank account.
- Documentation of Sam.gov UEI
- Itemized invoice(s)
- Packing Slip(s)
- OSFM reimburses the department for costs up to the approved amount
Physicals
- The firefighter receives and pays for their physical
- The firefighter submits to OSFM no later than March 31, 2023:
- W-9
- Itemized invoice(s)
- Proof their insurance did not cover the costs