[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 157 (Tuesday, August 16, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48170-48176]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-16309]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY


Office of State and Local Government Coordination and 
Preparedness, Office for Domestic Preparedness; Assistance to 
Firefighters Grant Program

AGENCY: Office for Domestic Preparedness, Office of State and Local 
Government Coordination and Preparedness, Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: Notice of guidance.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security is publishing this Notice 
to provide details and guidance regarding the 2005 program year 
Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. The program makes grants 
directly to fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical 
services organizations for the purpose of enhancing first-responders' 
ability to protect the health and safety of the public as well as that 
of first-responder personnel facing fire and fire-related

[[Page 48171]]

hazards. As in prior years, this year's grants will be awarded on a 
competitive basis to the applicants that best meet the program's 
criteria. This notice contains the guidance and competitive process 
descriptions that have been provided to applicants and also provides 
information on where and why the Department deviated from 
recommendations of the criteria development panel.

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 2229, 2229a.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Cowan, Director, Fire Grants 
Program Office, Office of State and Local Government Coordination and 
Preparedness, 810 Seventh Street, NW., Washington, DC 20531.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Appropriations

    For fiscal year 2005, Congress appropriated $650,000,000 to carry 
out the activities of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG 
program). The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is authorized to 
spend up to $32,500,000 for administration of the AFG program (five 
percent of the appropriated amount). In addition, DHS has set aside no 
less than $32,500,000 of the funds (five percent of the appropriation) 
for the Fire Prevention and Safety Grant Program in order to make 
grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, 
national, State, local or community organizations or agencies, 
including fire departments, for the purpose of carrying out fire 
prevention and injury prevention programs. This leaves approximately 
$585,000,000 for competitive grants to fire departments and 
nonaffiliated EMS organizations, with nonaffiliated emergency medical 
service (EMS) organizations' awards limited to two percent of the 
appropriation or $13,000,000.

Background

    The purpose of the AFG program is to award grants directly to fire 
departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations to enhance their 
ability to protect the health and safety of the public, as well as that 
of first-responder personnel, with respect to fire and fire related 
hazards. DHS will award the grants on a competitive basis to the 
applicants that first address the AFG program's priorities then provide 
the best narrative. Applicants whose requests best address the 
program's priorities will be reviewed by a panel made up of fire 
service personnel. The panel will review the narrative and assess the 
application with respect to the clarity of the project to be funded, 
the organization's financial need, the benefit to be derived from their 
project, and the extent to which the grant would enhance the 
applicant's daily operations and/or how the grant would positively 
impact the applicant's ability to protect life and property.
    The AFG Program for fiscal year 2005 generally mirrors previous 
years' programs with two significant changes. See http://www.firegrantsupport.com/docs/2004AFGNOFA.pdf (2004 Notice of Funds 
Availability). See also 68 FR 12533 (March 14, 2003) (Notice of Funds 
Availability, FY2003 guidance). See generally 68 FR 12544 (March 14, 
2003) (final rule). The first significant change, as noted above, is 
the allowance of nonaffiliated EMS organizations (i.e., non-fire based 
EMS organizations) as eligible applicants for as much as two percent of 
the appropriated funds. The other change is the segregation of the Fire 
Prevention and Safety Grant (FP&S) program from the AFG. DHS will have 
a separate application period devoted solely to Fire Prevention and 
Safety in the 4th Quarter of Fiscal Year 2005. The AFG Web site (http://www.firegrantsupport.com) will provide updated information on this 
program. Nonaffiliated EMS organizations will not be eligible for the 
FP&S program.
    There are limits as to the amount of funding that a grantee may be 
awarded from the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program in any fiscal 
year. These limits are based on population served. A grantee that 
serves jurisdiction with 500,000 people or less may not receive grant 
funding in excess of $1,000,000 in any fiscal year. A grantee that 
serves a jurisdiction with more than 500,000 but not more than 
1,000,000 people may not receive grants in excess of $1,750,000 in any 
fiscal year. A grantee that serves a jurisdiction with more than 
1,000,000 people may not receive grants in excess of $2,750,000 in any 
fiscal year. DHS may waive these established limits to any grantee 
serving a jurisdiction of 1,000,000 or less if DHS determines that 
extraordinary need for assistance warrants the waiver; however, no 
grantee, under any circumstance, may receive in excess of $2,750,000 in 
any fiscal year.
    Grantees must share in the costs of the projects funded under this 
grant program. Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations 
that serve populations of less than 20,000 must match the Federal grant 
funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to five (5) percent of 
the total project cost. Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS 
organizations serving areas with a population between 20,000 and 
50,000, inclusive, must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of 
non-Federal funds equal to ten (10) percent of the total project cost. 
Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations that serve 
populations of over 50,000 must match the Federal grant funds with an 
amount on non-Federal funds equal to twenty (20) percent of the total 
project costs. All non-Federal funds must be in cash, i.e., in-kind 
contributions are not eligible. No waivers of this requirement will be 
granted except for applicants located in Insular Areas as provided for 
in 48 U.S.C. 1469a.
    Under the provisions of 15 U.S.C. 2229a, DHS must ensure that fire 
departments that have either all-volunteer forces of firefighting 
personnel or combined forces of volunteer and career firefighting 
personnel receive a portion of the total grant funding that is not less 
than the proportion of the United States population that those 
departments protect. According to a 2004 survey by the National Fire 
Protection Association (NFPA), volunteer and combination departments 
protect 55 percent of the population of the United States and career 
departments protect 45 percent of the population. Therefore, DHS will 
ensure that no less than 55 percent of the funding available for grants 
will be awarded to volunteer and combination departments. Assuring this 
minimum level of funding for volunteer and combination departments has 
not been a problem in the past as over 90 percent of applicants are 
volunteer or combination departments. There is no minimum funding level 
for career departments.
    After the panel evaluation's preliminary determination, DHS will 
make award decisions using rank order. DHS may deviate from rank order 
and make funding decisions based on the type of department (career, 
combination, or volunteer), and the size and character of the community 
the applicant serves (urban, suburban, or rural).

Fire Prevention and Safety Grant Program

    In addition to the grants available to fire departments in fiscal 
year 2005 through the competitive grant program, DHS will set aside no 
less than $32,500,000 of the funds available under the Assistance to 
Firefighter Grant Program in order to make grants to, or enter into 
contracts or cooperative agreements with, national, State, local or 
community organizations or agencies, including fire departments, for 
the purpose of carrying out fire prevention and injury prevention 
programs.

[[Page 48172]]

    In accordance with the statutory requirement to fund fire 
prevention activities, support to Fire Prevention and Safety Grant 
activities will concentrate on organizations that focus on the 
prevention of injuries to children from fire. In addition to this 
priority, DHS is also placing an emphasis on funding innovative 
projects that focus on protecting children under fourteen, seniors over 
sixty-five, and firefighters. Since the victims of burns experience 
both short- and long-term physical and psychological effects, DHS is 
also placing a priority on programs that focus on reducing the 
immediate and long-range effects of fire and burn injuries, and 
primarily those affecting children.
    A Notice of Funds Availability will be issued to announce the 
pertinent details of the Fire Prevention and Safety Grant portion of 
this program.

Application Process

    The application period for the AFG grants opened on March 7, 2005, 
and closed on April 8, 2005. Approximately 20,972 applications were 
received. These applications were evaluated in the preliminary 
screening process to determine which applications best addressed the 
program's established priorities. This preliminary screening was based 
on the applicants' answers to the activity-specific questions. Each 
activity within an application was scored and applications that had 
multiple activities will have had the scores prorated based on the 
amount of funding requested for each activity.
    The best applications as determined in the preliminary step were 
deemed to be in the ``competitive range.'' All applications in the 
competitive range were subject to a second level review by a technical 
evaluation panel made up of individuals from the fire service 
including, but not limited to, firefighters, fire marshals, and fire 
training instructors. The panelists assessed the application's merits 
with respect to the clarity and detail provided in the narrative about 
the project, the applicant's financial need, and the project's 
purported benefit to be derived from the cost.
    Using the evaluation criteria included herein, the panelists 
independently scored each application before them and then discussed 
the merits and shortcomings of the application in an effort to 
reconcile any major discrepancies. A consensus on the score was not 
required. The assigned score reflects the degree to which the 
applicant: Clearly related their proposed project including the 
project's budget; demonstrated financial need; detailed a high benefit 
to cost value of the proposed activities; and demonstrated significant 
enhancements to the daily operation of the organization and/or how the 
grant would positively impact the applicant's ability to protect life 
and property. The highest scoring applications resulting from this 
second level of review were then considered for award.
    DHS will select a sufficient number of awardees from this one 
application period to obligate all of the available grant funding. 
Awards will be announced over several months as the decisions are made. 
Applicants that are not to receive funding will be notified as soon as 
feasible throughout the process. Awards will not be made in any 
specified order, i.e., not by State, or by program, or any other 
characteristic.

Criteria Development Process

    Each year, the appropriate office in the Department of Homeland 
Security conducts a criteria development meeting to develop the 
program's priorities for the coming year. DHS brings together a panel 
of fire service professionals representing nine major fire service 
organizations. The organizations that are represented include the 
International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the International 
Association of Firefighters (IAFF), the National Volunteer Fire Council 
(NVFC), the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), the National 
Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM), the International 
Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI), the North American Fire 
Training Directors (NAFTD), and the Congressional Fire Service 
Institute (CFSI). The criteria development panel is charged with making 
recommendations to the grants program office regarding the creation 
and/or modification of program priorities as well as development of 
criteria and definitions as necessary.
    The 2005 reauthorization of the AFG requires that the program 
office publish each year in the Federal Register the guidelines that 
describe the process for applying for grants and the criteria for 
awarding grants. DHS must also include an explanation of any 
differences between the published guidelines and the recommendations 
made by the criteria development panel. The guidelines and the 
statement on the differences between the guidelines and the criteria 
development panel recommendations must be published in the Federal 
Register prior to making any grants under the program. Public Law 108-
375, sec. 3602, 118 Stat. 2195 (Oct. 28, 2004). We first present below 
the specific recommendations not incorporated into the formal rating 
criteria, followed by the rating criteria the Department will use.
    DHS modified or did not adopt the criteria development panel's 
recommendations as follows:
     In the vehicle acquisition program, DHS disagreed with 
recommendations made by the criteria development panel for the 2005 
program, and kept the panel's input from the 2004 program in place. DHS 
believes the recommended changes for the 2005 program would have been 
too restrictive in that they did not offer enough latitude and 
diversity in the selections of vehicles. DHS believes that the 
recommended priorities downplayed the diversified needs of urban and 
suburban departments while favoring the needs of rural departments.
     For the ``modifications to facilities'' activity, the 
criteria development panel provided DHS with a directory of initiatives 
that they would like DHS to consider as eligible under this activity. 
DHS has elected to stay with a relatively shorter list of eligible 
initiatives (vehicle exhaust extraction systems, sprinkler systems, 
smoke/fire alarm systems, and emergency generators). DHS has limited 
the number of initiatives to those focused on protection and safety for 
the firefighting and emergency responders, versus providing a more 
comfortable working environment. DHS has limited the number of eligible 
initiatives because certain modifications to facilities may have to 
undergo a historic and/or environmental review and DHS is in the 
process of establishing procedures to assure that all Federal 
regulations are followed in this respect.
     DHS placed more value on projects that affect regional 
benefits than the criteria development panel recommended. If, for 
example, two projects achieved similar scores, but one represented a 
regional effort, DHS would be more likely to fund that project, to 
further encourage regional efforts, as such efforts tend to improve 
interoperability.
     Wherever the program priorities took call volume into 
consideration, DHS elected to develop and use its own matrix, rather 
than the criteria panels, to provide more diversity in the possible 
scoring levels.
     The criteria panel wanted to require training as a pre-
requisite for any grant. DHS determined that this requirement would be 
impracticable, as there was no guidance from the criteria panel as to 
what types(s) of training would satisfy each and every eligible use of 
funds under this broad program.
     The criteria panel recommended that DHS double the number 
of thermal

[[Page 48173]]

imaging cameras that departments may apply for. DHS has declined to 
implement this recommendation because there are no empirical data to 
indicate that the current allowance is insufficient.

Review Considerations

Fire Department Priorities

    Specific rating criteria for each of the eligible programs and 
activities follow below. These rating criteria will provide an 
understanding of the grant program's priorities and the expected cost 
effectiveness of any proposed projects.
    (1) Operations and Firefighter Safety Program.
    (i) Training Activities. DHS believes that the most benefit is 
derived from training that is instructor-led, hands-on, and leads to a 
nationally sanctioned or State certification. Training requests that 
include Web-based home study or distance learning and the purchase of 
training materials, equipment, or props are a lower priority. 
Therefore, applications focused on national or State certification 
training, including train-the-trainer initiatives, will receive a 
higher competitive rating. Training that involves instructors, in which 
students must demonstrate their grasp of knowledge of the training 
material via testing and is integral to achieving a certification will 
receive a high competitive rating, but not to the extent of training 
that would lead to State or national certification. Neither training 
that is instructor-led but does not lead to a certification nor self-
taught courses will be afforded a high priority.
    Applications were rated more highly for those proposed programs 
that benefit the highest percentage of applicable personnel within a 
fire department or those proposed programs that will be open to other 
departments in the region. Training that brings the department into 
statutory (e.g., OSHA) compliance will receive the highest 
consideration. Training that brings a department into voluntary 
compliance with national standards will also receive a high competitive 
rating, but not as high as the training that brings a department into 
statutory compliance. Training that does not help to achieve statutory 
compliance or voluntary compliance with a national standard will 
receive a low competitive rating.
    Due to the inherent differences between urban, suburban, and rural 
firefighting characteristics, DHS has developed different priorities in 
the training activity for departments that service these different 
types of communities. However, chemical / biological / radiological / 
nuclear / explosives (CBRNE) awareness training has a high benefit and 
will receive the highest consideration regardless of the type of 
community served.
    For fire departments serving rural communities, DHS believes that 
funding basic, operational-level firefighting training, operational-
level rescue training, driver training, or first-responder EMS, EMT-B, 
and EMT-I training (i.e., training in basic firefighting and rescue 
duties) has greater benefit than funding officer training, safety 
officer training, or incident-command training. In rural communities, 
after basic training, there is a greater cost-benefit to officer 
training than for other specialized types of training such as mass 
casualty, HazMat, advance rescue and EMT, or inspector training for 
rural departments.
    Conversely, for departments that are serving urban or suburban 
communities, DHS believes there is a higher benefit to be gained by 
funding specialized training, such as mass casualty, HazMat, advance 
rescue and EMS, or inspector training than the funding of officer 
training, safety officer training, or operations training, which in 
turn has a higher benefit than basic-, operational-, or awareness-level 
activities. Training designated to enhance multi-jurisdictional 
capabilities will be afforded a slightly higher rating.
    (ii) Wellness and Fitness Activities. DHS believes that to have an 
effective wellness/fitness program, fire departments must offer 
periodic health screenings, entry physical examinations, and an 
immunization program. Accordingly, applicants for grants in this 
category must currently offer or plan to offer with grant funds all 
three benefits to receive consideration and funding for any other 
initiatives in this activity. After entry-level physicals, annual 
physicals, and immunizations, high priority is given to formal fitness 
and injury prevention programs. Lower priority is given to stress 
management, injury/illness rehabilitation, and employee assistance.
    DHS believes the greatest benefit will be realized by supporting 
new wellness and fitness programs, and therefore, applications that 
reflected them were accorded higher competitive ratings than those 
applicants that already employ a wellness/fitness program. Finally, 
since participation is critical to achieving any benefits from a 
wellness or fitness program, applications that include them are given 
higher competitive ratings to departments whose wellness and fitness 
programs mandate or provide incentives for participation.
    (iii) Equipment Acquisition. As appropriated by Congress, the 
stated purpose of this grant program is to protect the health and 
safety of firefighters and the public from fire and fire-related 
hazards. As such, DHS believes that this grant program will achieve the 
greatest benefits by providing funds to fire departments purchasing 
basic firefighting equipment before any other non-firefighting 
equipment. Equipment that has a direct effect on firefighters' health 
and safety will receive a higher competitive rating than equipment that 
has no such effect. Equipment that promotes interoperability with 
neighboring jurisdictions may receive additional consideration in the 
cost-benefit assessment if the application makes it into the 
competitive range.
    DHS believes this grant program will achieve the greatest benefits 
if DHS provides funds to fire departments purchasing basic 
firefighting, rescue, EMS, and CBRNE preparedness equipment that they 
have never owned prior to the grant or to replace used or obsolete 
firefighting equipment. The second priority will be to fund departments 
that are seeking to expand into new mission areas, and therefore those 
departments will receive a lower competitive rating than departments 
seeking reserve equipment. Additionally, among departments that serve 
similar types of communities, those that have high call volumes will be 
afforded a higher competitive rating than those that have low call 
volumes; in other words, those departments that are required to respond 
more often will receive a higher competitive rating then those that 
respond infrequently.
    The purchase of equipment that brings the department into statutory 
(e.g., OSHA) compliance will provide the highest benefit and therefore 
will receive the highest consideration. The purchase of equipment that 
brings a department into voluntary compliance with national standards 
will also receive a high competitive rating, but it will not be as high 
as for the training that brings a department into statutory compliance. 
Equipment that does not have an effect on statutory compliance or 
voluntary compliance with a national standard will receive a lower 
competitive rating.
    (iv) Personal Protective Equipment Acquisition. One of the stated 
purposes of this grant program is to protect the health and safety of 
firefighters and the public. To achieve this goal and maximize the 
benefit to the firefighting community, DHS believes that it must fund 
those applicants needing to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) 
to a high percentage of their

[[Page 48174]]

personnel. Accordingly, the highest competitive rating in this category 
is given to fire departments where a large percentage of their active 
firefighting staff does not have any PPE. A high competitive rating is 
given to departments that wish to purchase enough PPE to equip 100 
percent of their active firefighting staff, or 100 percent of their on-
duty staff, as appropriate. Also, a high competitive rating is given to 
departments that are purchasing the equipment for the first time as 
opposed to departments replacing obsolete or substandard equipment 
(e.g., equipment that does not meet current NFPA and OSHA standards), 
or purchasing equipment for a new mission. For those departments that 
are replacing obsolete or substandard equipment, the condition of the 
equipment to be replaced will be factored into the score with a higher 
priority given to replacing equipment that is damaged, torn, and/or 
contaminated.
    Due to safety benefits afforded firefighters, for applications that 
include a request for personal alert safety system (PASS) devices, DHS 
will only consider funding applications that are requesting equipment 
that meets current national standards, i.e., integrated and/or 
automatic or automatic-on PASS. Finally, the number of fire response 
calls that a department makes in a year will be considered with the 
higher priority going to departments with higher call volumes, while 
applications from departments with low call volumes will be afforded 
lower competitive ratings. The call volume of rural departments will be 
compared only to other rural departments, suburban departments will be 
compared only to other suburban departments, and urban departments will 
be compared only to other urban departments.
    (v) Modifications to Fire Stations and Facilities. The stated 
purpose of this grant program is to protect the health and safety of 
firefighters and the public. As such, eligible projects under this 
activity are designed to directly protect the health and safety of 
firefighters. DHS believes that more benefit would be derived from 
modifying fire stations than would be realized by modifying fire-
training facilities or other fire-related facilities. Facilities that 
would be open for broad usage and have a high occupancy capacity would 
receive a higher competitive rating than facilities that have limited 
use and/or low occupancy capacity. The frequency of use would also have 
a bearing on the benefits to be derived from grant funds. The frequency 
and duration of a facility's occupancy have a direct relationship to 
the benefits to be realized from funding in this activity. As such, 
facilities that are occupied or otherwise in use 24-hours-per-day/
seven-days-a-week would receive a higher competitive rating than 
facilities used on a part-time or irregular basis.
    (2) Firefighting Vehicle Acquisition Program. Due to the inherent 
differences between urban, suburban, and rural firefighting 
conventions, DHS has developed different priorities in the vehicle 
program for departments that service different types of communities. 
The following chart delineates the priorities in this program area for 
each type of community.

                                           Vehicle Program Priorities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Priority                   Urban communities       Suburban communities      Rural communities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Priority One.........................   Aerial, Quint (Aerial   Pumper, Aerial Quint     Pumper, Brush/Attack,
                                        < 76'), Quaint (Aerial   (Aerial < 76'), Quint    Tanker/Tender, Quint
                                        76' or >), Fire Boat     (Aerial 76' or >),       (Aerial < 76')
                                        Rescue.                  Fire Boat, Brush/
                                                                 Attack.
Priority Two.........................  Command, HazMat, Light/  Command, HazMat,         HazMat, Rescue, Light/
                                        Air, Rehab.              Rescue, Tanker/Tanker.   Air, Aerial, Fire
                                                                                          Boat, Quint (Aerial
                                                                                          76' or >)
Priority Three.......................  Foam Truck, ARFFV,       Foam Truck, ARFFV,        Foam Truck, ARFFV,
                                        Brush/Attack, Tanker/    Rehab, Light/Air,        Rehab, Command,
                                        Tender, Ambulance.       Ambulance.               Ambulance
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Regardless of the type of community served, DHS believes that there 
is more benefit to be realized by funding fire departments that own few 
or no vehicles of the type they are seeking than there would be by 
providing vehicle funding to a department with numerous vehicles of 
that same type. When assessing the number of vehicles a department has 
within a particular class, all vehicles with similar functions are 
included. For example, the following can be classified in the 
``pumper'' category: pumpers, engines, pumper/tankers, (with less than 
1,250 gallon capacity), rescue-pumpers, quints (with aerials less than 
76 feet in length), and urban interface vehicles such as Type I, II or 
III. Pumpers with water capacity in excess of 1,250 gallons would be 
considered a tanker/tender.
    A higher competitive rating in the apparatus category is given to 
fire departments that own few or no firefighting vehicles relative to 
other departments serving similar types of communities. Also a higher 
competitive rating is given to departments that have an aged fleet of 
firefighting vehicles, and to those with old, high-mileage vehicles. A 
higher competitive rating is also given to departments that respond to 
a significant number of incidents relative to other departments 
servicing similar communities.
    No competitive advantage has been assigned to the purchase of 
standard model commercial vehicles versus custom vehicles, or the 
purchase of used vehicles versus new vehicles in the preliminary 
evaluation of applications. It has been noted that depending on the 
type and size of department, the technical evaluation panelists often 
prefer low-cost vehicles when evaluating the cost-benefit section of 
the project narratives. Panelists may be provided with guidance for use 
in their evaluation of the reasonableness of vehicle costs. DHS 
reserves the right to instill funding limits on requests for vehicles 
whose costs DHS deems excessive or otherwise not in the best interest 
of the program. Finally, DHS will allow each fire department to apply 
for only one vehicle per year.
    (3) Administrative Costs. Panelists assess the reasonableness of 
the administrative costs requested in each application and determine if 
it is reasonable and in the best interest of the program.

Nonaffiliated EMS Organization Priorities

    DHS may make grants for the purpose of enhancing the provision of 
emergency medical services for nonaffiliated EMS organizations. Funding 
for these organizations is limited to no more than two percent (2%) of 
the appropriated amount. DHS believes that it is more cost-effective to 
enhance or expand an existing emergency medical service organization by 
providing training and/or equipment than it would be to create a new 
service. As such, communities that do not

[[Page 48175]]

currently offer emergency medical services but are turning to this 
grant program to initiate such a service will receive the lowest 
competitive rating because DHS does not believe there is sufficient 
benefit to be derived from such an investment in communities that do 
not currently support such a service. Specific rating criteria and 
priorities for each of the grant categories are provided below 
following the descriptions of this year's eligible programs. The rating 
criteria, in conjunction with the program description, provides an 
understanding of what standards are used for evaluation.
    (1) EMS Operations and Safety Program.
    There are five different activities available for funding under 
this program area: EMS training, EMS equipment, EMS personal protective 
equipment, wellness and fitness, and modifications to facilities. 
Requests for equipment and training to prepare for response to 
incidents involving CBRNE are available under the applicable equipment 
and training activities.
    (i) Training Activities. DHS believes that the most benefit would 
be realized by upgrading a service that currently meets a basic life 
support capacity to a higher level of life support. Therefore, a higher 
competitive rating is given to nonaffiliated EMS organizations that are 
planning on going from first responder to EMT-B level. Since training 
is a pre-requisite to the effective use of EMS equipment, organizations 
whose request is more focused on training activities will receive a 
higher competitive rating than organizations whose request is more 
focused on equipment. The second priority is to elevate emergency 
responders' capabilities from EMT-B to EMT-I or higher.
    (ii) EMS equipment acquisition. Since training is a pre-requisite 
to the effective use of EMS equipment, organizations whose request is 
more focused on training activities will receive a higher competitive 
rating than organizations whose request is more focused on equipment. 
Organizations who are requesting equipment to the EMT-B level and are 
requesting the basic support equipment will receive a higher priority. 
The second priority is requests seeking assistance to purchase 
equipment to support advance level EMS services. Items that are 
eligible but a lower priority include tents, shelters, generators, 
lights, and heating and cooling units.
    (iii) EMS personal protective equipment. One of the stated purposes 
of this grant program is to protect the health and safety of the public 
and of first responders. To achieve this goal and maximize the benefit 
to the EMS community, DHS believes that it must fund those applicants 
needing to provide PPE to a high percentage of their personnel. 
Accordingly, the highest competitive rating is given in this category 
to organizations where a large percentage of their active EMS staff 
does not have adequate PPE. A high competitive rating is given to 
organizations that wish to purchase enough PPE to equip 100 percent of 
their active EMS staff, or 100 percent of their on-duty staff, as 
appropriate. A high competitive rating is given to organizations that 
are purchasing the PPE for the first time as opposed to organizations 
replacing obsolete or substandard equipment (e.g., equipment that does 
not meet current NFPA and OSHA standards), or purchasing equipment for 
a new mission. For those organizations that are replacing obsolete or 
substandard equipment, the condition of the equipment to be replaced 
will be factored into the score, with a higher priority given to 
replacing equipment that is damaged, torn, and/or contaminated.
    (iv) Wellness and Fitness Activities. DHS believes that to have an 
effective wellness/fitness program, nonaffiliated EMS organizations 
must offer periodic health screenings, entry physical examinations, and 
an immunization program. Accordingly, applicants for grants in this 
category must currently offer or plan to offer with grant funds all 
three benefits to receive consideration and funding for any other 
initiatives in this activity. After entry-level physicals, annual 
physicals, and immunizations, high priority is given to formal fitness 
and injury prevention programs. Lower priority is given to stress 
management, injury/illness rehabilitation, and employee assistance.
    (v) Modification to EMS stations and facilities. DHS believes that 
more benefit would be derived from modifying an EMS station than would 
be realized by modifying an EMS-training facility or other EMS 
facility. Requests involving facilities that would be open for broad 
usage and have a high occupancy capacity would receive a higher 
competitive rating than those involving facilities that have limited 
use and/or low occupancy capacity. The frequency of use would also have 
a bearing on the benefits to be derived from grant funds. The frequency 
and duration of a facility's occupancy have a direct relationship to 
the benefits to be realized from funding in this activity. As such, 
facilities that are occupied or otherwise in use 24 hours per day, 7 
days per week will receive a higher competitive rating than facilities 
used on an irregular or part-time basis.
    (2) EMS Vehicle Acquisition Program.
    Due to the inherent benefits of an ambulance or any transport 
vehicle to an EMS service provider, DHS deems these types of vehicles 
to be the highest priority. Due to the costs associated with obtaining 
and outfitting non-transport rescue vehicles, DHS believes non-
transport rescue vehicles should have a lower competitive rating than 
transport vehicles. Vehicles that have a very narrow function, such as 
aircraft, boats, and all-terrain vehicles, will receive the lowest 
competitive rating. Due to the very limited funding for EMS vehicle 
awards, DHS anticipates that this program will be very competitive. As 
such, it is unlikely that DHS will fund any vehicles that are not 
listed as a ``Priority One'' this year. The following chart delineates 
the priorities in this program area.

                         EMS Vehicle Priorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Priority one               Priority two       Priority three
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ambulance or transport unit to    First responder     Helicopters/planes
 support EMT-B needs and           non-transport      Command vehicles
 functions.                        vehicles.          Rescue boats (over
                                  Special operations   13 feet in
                                   vehicles.           length)
                                                      Hovercraft
                                                      Other special
                                                       access vehicles
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    While there are many inherent differences between urban, suburban, 
and rural communities, DHS has not differentiated priorities in this 
year's EMS vehicle program for different types of communities.
    Along with the priorities illustrated above, DHS believes that 
there is more benefit to be realized by funding

[[Page 48176]]

applicants that own few or no vehicles of the type they are seeking 
than there would be by providing vehicle funding to an organization 
with numerous vehicles of that same type. When assessment of the number 
of vehicles an organization has within a particular class is done, it 
will include all vehicles with similar functions. For example, 
transport vehicles would be considered the same as ambulances. A higher 
competitive rating is given to applicants that have an aged fleet of 
emergency vehicles, and to those with old, high-mileage vehicles. A 
higher competitive rating is given to applicants that respond to a 
significant number of incidents relative to other organizations 
servicing similar communities.
    (3) Administrative Costs. Panelists will assess the reasonableness 
of the administrative costs requested in each application and determine 
if it is reasonable and in the best interest of the program.

    Dated: August 12, 2005.
Matt A. Mayer,
Acting Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 05-16309 Filed 8-15-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-10-P