By Vicki Terwilliger (Staff writer This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )
Published: July 6, 2010

Editor's note: This is the first in a series about fire company funding. Today's article looks at statewide efforts. Next week: How local fire departments meet the bottom line.

Like most households trying to make ends meet, volunteer fire companies operate like families. They struggle to balance the needs of those within the family, or communities they serve, with the money available to safely do so.

"When you're trying to raise that kind of money, that's a lot of chicken barbecue," said Ed Mann, Pennsylvania state fire commissioner.

Mann, first appointed by the Ridge administration, has served as the state's fire commissioner for the last 10 years. He's also a volunteer firefighter. Part of his job entails traveling across the state, helping fire companies obtain grants.

Costs

Mann said the "everyday" operation of a fire department involves paying utility and fuel bills, which can vary depending on the size of each facility.

Add to that the expense of proper protection for firefighters: A single firefighter's ensemble, or protective clothing, can cost $1,500 to $2,000; $150 to $350 for a helmet; $89 to $95 for gloves; $35 to $40 for a flash hood, and $3,500 to $4,500 for self-contained breathing apparatus. Multiply those costs by the number of volunteers, and the expense soars. Engine trucks are about $350,000 unequipped, and aerial equipment can run from $800,000 to $1 million.

In addition to the costs, many fire departments are operating with fewer members, meaning companies still need to do what they were doing before, but with fewer personnel to spread out the duties.

While summer is traditionally the season for fire department carnivals and street fairs, many departments are no longer hosting the annual fundraisers. Mann said that's because volunteer numbers have dropped but the work involved is the same. After five days of operating a carnival, some companies are make less than $5,000, and members are asking if all the work involved is worth it.

A few fire departments in Dauphin and Schuylkill counties still host carnivals and have managed to keep the summertime events running, Mann said, but, across the state, many others have closed.

Mann said there are fewer carnivals held than there were 10 years ago.

"That's the thing I hear. The cost is not worth the benefit anymore," Mann said.

Grants

The Volunteer Fire Company and Volunteer Ambulance Grant Program, a state grant, first became available in 2000-01. But no funding was available again until 2007, when five-year legislation was approved, Mann said.

In 2006, the state's gaming industry took off. As a result, Mann said, $25 million is taken from the gaming industry to fund the firefighters' grant. The state law enacted to use those funds is valid until June 30, 2012, and Mann said officials will begin negotiating with legislators to renew it by 2012.

Meanwhile, federal funds available to fire companies are very competitive. Those funds are overseen through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Three federal grants available are the Assistance to Fire Grant Program, Fire Prevention and Safety Program and the Safer Grant.

The Safer Grant enables fire departments who have paid firefighters to hire additional people, and it also gives money to volunteer departments so they can recruit more volunteers.

Historically, Pennsylvania has been finishing at the top in obtaining the Assistance to Fire Grant Program grants, Mann said.

Workshops

Mann said his office has recently conducted 25 workshops on funding fire departments across the state, sending out adjunct instructors to train fellow trainers. A workshop in the Allentown area a few weeks ago drew 50 people.

In a 3 1/2-hour PowerPoint program, Mann reviews loan and cost-saving programs that fire departments can apply for. He also assists companies with the tedious process of writing their narratives, or requests for the grants. Many members of the state General Assembly have requested Mann hold a workshop in their districts for their constituents and local departments.

Spreading the word on how to get funding has enabled more departments to learn about the options available to them, Mann said.

Process

When a department submits its application, the initial review is done by a computer. Then the application paperwork is sent for a peer review.

The U.S. fire administrator solicits volunteers to act as reviewers. These volunteers review the narratives and each group has a "table boss" who makes sure there is no "funny business," according to Mann.

Whether a fire department is from a rural, urban or suburban area, each department will be reviewed fairly, Mann said. The peer review scores whether a fire company is going to receive a grant.

Future

As companies look toward grants to help bolster their bottom lines, others are targeting assistance from local municipalities.

When the new smoking law went into effect, many of the crowds at local fire companies' bingo games took a dive, according to Mann. Some companies only host monthly bingo now, he said. In turn, fire departments are searching for local contributions.

"In a lot of our communities, local governments don't do as much as they could to assist fire departments. Creating or initiating a tax to pay for fire protection is not popular, but there has to be some trade-off somewhere," Mann said.

Some fire departments provide protection to multiple municipalities. Those communities that don't have a fire department of their own sometimes do not contribute anything to the fire company's upkeep. Some community leaders believe they don't have the tax base, or number of volunteers to support a local fire company.

In Derry Township, Mifflin County, where Mann serves as an assistant chief and fire company secretary, there is a 1-mill fire tax in the township. That 1 mill generates $75,000 annually for each of the three fire departments in the community.

Previously, Mann said, his fire company's yearly appropriation from the township was about $52,000. The fire company used to send out a mass mailing, soliciting funds from residents. The company agreed to stop the mailed solicitations if the township could donate more, which it did. The fire company then provides an itemized accounting of how the township funds are being used.

Fire companies that have to rely on a donation from their municipalities face an unreliable amount of cash flowing into their department each year, depending on factors such as if a terrible winter or street repairs ate up the township's funds, for instance. However, the fire tax is dedicated to fire protection and, the fire department is better able to plan from one year to the next with the secured funding.

Based on assessed property tax value, a fire tax could go up to 3-mills without seeking a referendum, said Mann.

Giving firefighters a break on their own tax bills was also an idea generated to encourage more people to volunteer. In the 2008 tax year, a $100 tax credit was given to volunteer firefighters, and it was paid in 2009. However, the tax relief program for firefighters was not funded in last year's budget.

Mann said when the economy straightens out, the idea may be reinstituted and may increase the tax credit to $300 a year for volunteers.

For more information on fire funding, visit the websites www.firegrantsupport.com and the office of state fire commissioner at www.osfc.state.pa.us