If a fire department or non-affiliated EMS organization submits multiple applications, as allowed in the 2007 Program Guidance, will the scores of all the applications be combined or averaged, potentially hurting the department, or does each application stand alone?
Any applicant that submits multiple applications will find that each of their applications will be scored separately in all phases of the evaluation. The score applied to one application will not affect the score(s) of any other application(s).
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Advance payment bonds are a new requirement in 2007 for vehicle grants. What are advance payment bonds and where can I get one?
An advance payment bond is like an insurance policy that protects you in the event that the manufacturer with whom you contracted to build your vehicle cannot fulfill the contract, i.e., cannot finish building your vehicle for any reason. An advance payment bond is a financial tool used to guarantee that , in the event of manufacturer/contractor default, funds will be available to finish the construction of your vehicle and ensure its proper operation. From the vehicle grantee's point of view, the insolvency of a contractor during the construction of a vehicle will most likely result in delayed completion of the vehicle, additional expenses for a different manufacturer/contractor to finish the work, or even loss of grant funds. For this reason, we now require manufacturers/contractors to provide a bond from an independent bank, insurance company or bonding agency so that the vehicle grantees can recover damages they may sustain if the manufacturer/contractors default during the construction of a vehicle. The amount of the bond should be equal to, or greater than, the sum of any payments, compensation and/or consideration provided prior to the delivery of the vehicle.
If no down payment is required, an advance payment bond is not required. Regardless of whether a performance bond is obtained, each vehicle purchase contract must include a performance clause. The performance clause stipulates a certain date when the vehicle will be delivered by the vendor. If the vendor does not deliver the vehicle by the date stipulated in the performance clause, penalties are administered to the vendor. These penalties should be of a severity sufficient to provide the vendor with incentive to deliver the vehicle at the earliest possible date but no less than $100 per day.
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Is there any difference in qualifying for a vehicle award this year with respect to training?
Yes. If you request a vehicle, you must certify that personnel who will drive and operate the requested vehicle meet or exceed the national standards for drivers/operators (fire vehicles NFPA 1002, EMS DOT or KKK standards). This training may be accomplished via an established in-house training program or with grant funds added to the vehicle request. If you do not have an established driver training program, and do not have a plan to obtain the training via this grant program or some other source, your application will not be eligible for funding.
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What are the priorities for awarding applications for thermal imager cameras now that there are no limitations on the number of units that can be requested?
There are no specific criteria for awarding thermal imaging cameras (TICs). TICs will be evaluated in the same manner as any other piece of equipment in the equipment activity. The following evaluation criteria priorities are used for the equipment activity:
- Effectiveness of the request to address basic firefighting missions.
- Frequency of use.
- Effect on firefighters' health and safety.
- Equipment that promotes interoperability with neighboring jurisdictions.
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What is the policy for reporting to NFIRS (National Fire Incident Reporting System) for fire departments or EMS organizations who apply as regional applicants?
As the official grantee, only the regional host is responsible for adhering to any and all grant requirements. However, we strongly encourage any fire department participants to report incident data to NFIRS during the period of performance.
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For Regional applications, are all of the benefiting organizations required to be NIMS compliant or just the host applicant?
We expect all departments that receive equipment or services from a regional project grant to be compliant with all local edicts regarding NIMS.
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We would like to remodel the chief's office and the reception area in our fire station. Can we use grant funds for remodeling?
No. Grant funds may be used for remodeling, but only if the remodeling is relative to other grant activities and has a direct impact on the accomplishment of the grant activities. For example, we will allow for remodeling of a room in a station to accommodate training if training is also a grant activity.
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I want to buy radio equipment that all of my neighboring departments use, and there is only one vendor that sells those radios. Do I have to seek other bids or may I use the vendor as a sole source?
Sole-source and interoperability are justifications for selection of a vendor but CANNOT be used as justification to avoid obtaining other bids from other sources. You must seek to ensure that “all procurement actions are conducted in a manner that provides, to the maximum extent possible, open and free competition,” and document your choice of vendors in your grant files. Refer to the “Grantee Responsibilities” Section, item (5), on page 41 of the Program Guidance.
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Is there a penalty for returning funds or excess funds?
No, there is no penalty for returning funds. However, it is our preference that grantees expend all awarded funds on eligible expenditures, including fire prevention activities.
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If our department was contacted by the Program Office during the approval process and negotiated to a lower number of a particular item, but then after purchasing everything, had additional funds, can we purchase the original "pre-negotiated" number of items?
No. If the program office negotiated a lower number of items, it was because the Program Office Subject Matter Specialists determined that the original request contained either excessive or duplicative equipment. Saving funds does not eliminate the rationale for the reduction in items. For example, a department with 10 active members sought 20 sets of turnout. The Program Office reduced the request to 10 because purchasing a second set of gear is a poor use of limited grant funds when so many other departments have unmet needs. If this department received quotes sufficient to purchase 20 sets of gear, we would only pay for 10, based on the negotiated agreement. The only exception to this situation would be the use of excess funds. Grantees are allowed discretion in their use of up to $5,000 in excess funds. See the Program Guidance for more details on the eligible uses of excess funds.
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If I negotiated a lower number of a particular item – as in the above scenario where gear was reduced from 20 sets to 10 sets because, at the time of application, I only had 10 active members – can I buy more than the negotiated number of items or equipment for new members?
Many applicants' situations change between the submittal of their application and the ultimate award. Unfortunately, we cannot take these changing conditions into consideration when making award decisions. We can only consider the information contained in the original proposal. If we allow one applicant to update their application to reflect current conditions, we would have to allow ALL applicants to do the same. So, in this scenario, we would only allow the grantee to purchase equipment for the number of members listed in their application. The only exception to this situation would be the use of excess funds. Grantees are allowed discretion in their use of up to $5,000 in excess funds. See the Program Guidance for more details on the eligible uses of excess funds.
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Are organizations or agencies normally considered ineligible for an AFG grant, eligible to be included as a beneficiary of a regional application?
Yes. Law enforcement, public works, or the local emergency management offices could be beneficiaries of Assistance to Firefighters grants. For example, local law enforcement could be users of a new dispatch system funded by the grant program or the emergency management staff could be issued radios by the grantee in order to foster interoperability.
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If I decline an award, will that be held against me in the event that I apply for future funding?
An applicant that declines to accept a grant during negotiation would not be penalized for declining the award. However, we would consider a grantee to be a poor performer if they accepted an award and subsequently returned that award because they cannot fulfill the grant requirements. This does not mean that the poor performing grantees would be precluded from applying for future assistance; it merely means that past performance would be taken into account prior to awarding any new grants. Prior performance has always been a consideration for funding.
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Is there any difference in qualifying for a vehicle award this year with respect to training?
Yes. If you request a vehicle, you must certify that personnel who will drive and operate the requested vehicle meet or exceed the national standards for drivers/operators (fire vehicles NFPA 1002, EMS DOT or KKK standards). This training may be accomplished via an established in-house training program or with grant funds added to the vehicle request. If you do not have an established program and are not requesting training fund with your application, your grant will be ineligible for funding.
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I'm planning to submit an application as a host for a regional project. When I answer the questions in the Department Characteristics section of the online application, do I use the statistics for the entire region that will be affected by the project, or do I use my department's local statistics?
When applying as a host of a regional project, you will provide statistics for the entire region. The statistics provided may affect the level of the cost-share obligation.
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I'm applying as the host for a regional project, but I also need some equipment for my own department. Can I submit a second application for my own department's needs?
Yes. In 2007, you may submit a separate application for your own department's needs.
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It has been the AFG policy to allow up to 50 percent of the grant funds to be used for a down payment. Is that the case for this year's program?
To encourage better cash management practices, grantees may only request 25 percent for down payments.
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I've noticed several vendors that claim their product is "FEMA Fire Act Approved." Do you have a list of products that are "Approved?"
No. The Federal government (FEMA, ODP, SLGCP, or DHS) does not approve, endorse, promote, sanction or otherwise support any specific products or services and purchasers should be wary of any vendor that makes such claims. For the AFG program, we require that any product or service purchased with grant funds comply with applicable national standards.
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What are the meanings of the terms new mission and new risk? What do they mean in terms of funding priority?
New Mission
A department takes on a "new mission" when it expands its services into areas not previously offered, such as a fire department seeking funding to provide EMS for the first time.
New Risk
A "new risk" is when a department is forced to address risks that have materialized in the department's area of responsibility; for example, construction of a plant that uses significant levels of chemicals could constitute a "new risk."
Funding Priority
Organizations taking on "new risks" will be afforded much higher consideration than an organization taking on a "new mission."
New missions receive a lower priority due to the danger that an applicant will not be able to financially support and sustain the new mission beyond the grant performance period.
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