Assistance to Firefighters Grant (ARRA)
To provide financial assistance in the construction, upgrading or rehabilitation of fire stations.
The Department of Homeland Security has three primary missions: Prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce America's vulnerability to terrorism and minimize the damage from potential attacks and natural disasters.
The Assistance to Firefighters Grants are administered from the FEMA Headquarters Office.
FEMA also has 10 regional offices which house Fire Program Specialists who may be contacted for information on the program.
Program Accomplishments
Not Applicable.
Uses and Use Restrictions
Fire station construction.
(Public Law 111-5 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Section 1511); Eligible Uses: new station construction, existing station upgrading or rehabilitation; up to 5 percent shall be for program administration and no grant shall exceed $15,000,000.
Restrictions: certification as cited below in “083 Credentials/Documentationâ€ÂÂÂÂ; funded only under Public Law 111-5.
Eligibility Requirements
Applicant Eligibility
Local (includes State-designated lndian Tribes, excludes institutions of higher education and hospitals: Civil Defense/Disaster Prevention and Relief/Emergency Preparedness
Beneficiary Eligibility
Local; Anyone/general public
Credentials/Documentation
Each applicant must certify: (1) that they are an eligible applicant, i.e., a fire department as defined above; (2) as to the characteristics of their community, i.e., Urban, Suburban, or Rural; (3) to the population size of the community served; and (4 ) to the type of department, i.e., volunteer/combination or career. Public Law 111-5 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Section 1511 Certifications: With respect to covered funds made available to State or local governments for infrastructure investments, the Governor, mayor, or other chief executive, as appropriate, shall certify that the infrastructure investment has received the full review and vetting required by law and that the chief executive accepts responsibility that the infrastructure investment is an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars. Such certification shall include a description of the investment, the estimated total cost, and the amount of covered funds to be used, and shall be posted on a website and linked to the website established by section 1526 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. A State or local agency may not receive infrastructure investment funding from funds made available in this Act unless this certification is made and posted. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-87.
Aplication and Award Process
Preapplication Coordination
Preapplication coordination is not applicable.
Environmental impact information is not required for this program.
This program is excluded from coverage under E.O.
12372.
Application Procedures
This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-102. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110. Application deadline and other information are contained in the application/program guidance.
Award Procedures
Applications or plans are peer reviewed, and reviewed by DHS program and administrative staff. Any issues or concerns noted in the application will be negotiated with the successful applicant prior to the award being issued.
Deadlines
Contact the headquarters or regional office, as appropriate for application deadlines.
Authorization
Public Law 111-5 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
Not Applicable.
Appeals
From 15 to 30 days. Applicants that were denied grants can request a reconsideration of the decision. Such a request may be successful if it is determined that the rating criteria were not appropriately applied, or there was a flaw in the competitive process that unfairly disadvantaged the applicant, or there was human error in the processing of the grant application. Requests for reconsideration must be submitted in writing within 30 days of the date of the notification of denial.
Renewals
> 180 Days. Grant period is 24 months for this program. In the event that the grantees are unable to fulfill their grant obligations within the 24-month grant period, they may request an extension of the performance period. Such requests will be considered and approved based on the written justification.
Assistance Considerations
Formula and Matching Requirements
This program has no statutory formula.This program has no statutory formula. This program does not have MOE requirements.
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
Refer to program guidance. Awards are subject to the Cash Management Improvement Act for payment and/or reimbursement of expenditures. See the following for information on how assistance is awarded/released: No information provided.
Post Assistance Requirements
Reports
Grantees are required to submit semi-annual financial and performance reports.
The "Progress Reports" must include a narrative statement that details the progress of each award.
Reports are due 30 days after the end of the sixth month of the performance period.
Final financial and performance reports are due 90 days after the expiration or termination of grant award.
Recovery funding reports will be submitted in the prescribed format within 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter, beginning July 10, 2009.
These reports will include the following data elements, as prescribed by the Public Law 111-5, Section 1512 and OMB Memorandum M-09-10: (1) The total amount of recovery funds received from that agency; (2) The amount of recovery funds received that were obligated and expended to projects or activities.
This reporting will also included unobligated Allotment balances to facilitate reconciliations.
(3) A detailed list of all projects or activities for which recovery funds were obligated and expended, including-- (A) The name of the project or activity; (B) A description of the project or activity; (C) An evaluation of the completion status of the project or activity; (D) An estimate of the number of jobs created and the number of jobs retained by the project or activity; and (E) For infrastructure investments made by State and local governments, the purpose, total cost, and rationale of the agency for funding the infrastructure investment with funds made available under this Act, and name of the person to contact at the agency if there are concerns with the infrastructure investment.
(4) Detailed information on any subcontracts or subgrants awarded by the recipient to include the data elements required to comply with the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-282), allowing aggregate reporting on awards below $25,000 or to individuals, as prescribed by the Director of OMB.
Financial Status Reports.
Progress Reports.
Financial Status Reports.
Progress Reports.
Audits
In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations," nonfederal entities that receive financial assistance of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133. In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular A-133 (Revised, June 27, 2003), "Audits of States, Local Governments, and Nonprofit Organizations," nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $500,000 or more in Federal awards (or receive pr
Records
Grant records shall be retained for a period of 3 years from the day the recipient submits its final expenditure report. If any litigation, claim, negotiation, audit, or other action involving the records has been started before the expiration of the 3-year period, the records must be retained until completion of the action and resolution of all issues which arise from it, or until the end of the regular 3-year period, whichever is later. Grant records include financial and program/progress reports, support documents, statistical records, and other documents that support the activity and/or expenditure of the recipient or sub-recipient under the award.
Financial Information
Account Identification
70-0567-0-1-999 - TAFS: 70 0567.
Obigations
(Project Grants) FY 08 $0; FY 09 est $210,000,000; FY 10 est $0
Range and Average of Financial Assistance
Refer to program guidance.
Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature
The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974, 15 U.S.C. 2229 et seq. In addition, the program guidance, the FAQs, an applicant tutorial, and other program information can be found on the program s website at www.firegrantsupport.com. OMB Memorandum M-09-10 Subject: Initial Implementing Guidance for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Information Contacts
Regional or Local Office
See Regional Agency Offices. The Assistance to Firefighters Grants are administered from the FEMA Headquarters Office. FEMA also has 10 regional offices which house Fire Program Specialists who may be contacted for information on the program.
Headquarters Office
DHS/FEMA/Grant Programs Directorate Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, Tech World Bldg - South Tower 5th Floor, 500 C Street, SW, Washington 20472 Email: firegrants@dhs.gov Phone: 866-274-0960
Criteria for Selecting Proposals
Refer to the program guidance for information on criteria for selecting proposals.
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