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�� � � � � Request for Council Action Date: June 13,2005 Item Number: 3,g Department Approval Mana,�er Appr�a3r�] Agenda Section �� x' Item Description: Approval to apply for the United States Department of Homeland Security Staffing for Adequate Fire a�d Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant. Background: The United States Department of Homeland Security has announced the availability of the SAFER grant to be awarded directly to volunteer, cambinatian and career fire departments to help the departments increase their cadre of firefighters. The goal is for SAFER grantees to enhance their ability to attain 24-hour staffing and thus assure their communities have adequate protection from fire and fire-relatedhazards. The hiring of firefighters activity involves a five-year grant to assist fire departments pay a portion of the salaries of newly hired firefighters. These newly hired positions must be in addition to authorized and funded active firefighter positions. Grantees must do everything in their power to maintain the number of authorized and funded positions throughout the period of performance (five years). Grantees that fail to maintain this level of staffing risk losing all or a portion of their grant. Volunteer, combination, and non-profit fire departments are all eligible to apply for assistance in hiring new firefighters. These grants require the awardee to match an increasing proportion of the salary over a four-year period; in the �"iitl�. year of the grant, the awardee must absorb the entire cost of any positions awarded as a result of the grant. The long-nature of the eligible activities under these grants mal{es it essential that an applicant's local governing body be involved in the application process. As such, each applicant will certify that their governing body be informed of the applicant's intention to s�binit a SAFER grant application and that the local governing body acknowledges the commitment under the grant and that appropriate financial support will be secured for the applicant's cost-sharing obligations. The Federal share of salaries and associated benefits is limited to a total of $100,000 per position over the course of the performance period and will be distributed as follows: Year One: 90 percent of the actual costs or $36,000 Year Two: 80 percent of the actual costs or $32,000 Year T'hree: 50 percent of the actual costs or $20,000 Year Four: 30 percent of the actual costs or $12,000 Year Five: No Federal share — all costs borne by grantee Applications for SAFER grants will be accepted May 31, to June 28,2005.