US Department of Homeland Security Fiscal Year 2007 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Program and Application Guidance October 2007 DHS Seal FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Key Changes in 2007 The content of the Program Guidance for the Fiscal Year 2007 (FY 2007) Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) grants is largely unchanged from last year’s guidance; however, some clarifications have been added with respect to the use of grant funds. • The evaluation elements and application narrative requirements for the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity have been expanded. • Research and Development applicants can propose a multi-year effort, up to a three-year period of performance, for the same study. All applications are limited to $1 million. • The list of ineligible items has been revised under the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity and under the Research and Development Activity. i U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Contents Introduction.................................................................................................................................1 Part I. Available Funding and Eligible Applicants............................................................3 Part II. Evaluation Process....................................................................................................5 Part III. Automated Application Process...............................................................................7 Appendix 1. Allowable Expenses ...........................................................................................13 Appendix 2. Other Allowable Costs .......................................................................................19 Appendix 3. Grantee Responsibilities ....................................................................................22 Appendix 4. Excess Funds.......................................................................................................24 Appendix 5. Human Subjects Research..................................................................................25 ii U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Introduction The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Preparedness Directorate is responsible for the implementation and administration of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. The purpose of the AFG is to enhance the safety of the public and firefighters with respect to fire and fire-related hazards. The National Preparedness Directorate administers the Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) grants as part of the AFG Program. FP&S offers grants in 2 categories: (1) activities designed to reach high-risk target groups and mitigate incidences of deaths and injuries caused by fire and fire-related hazards (the “Fire Prevention and Safety Activity”, and (2) activities that support firefighter safety research and development (the “Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity”). This program guidance document provides details regarding an application for financial assistance in either of these activity areas. Fire departments are responsible for sharing the project cost of fire prevention grants under a specific statutory formula (see Part 1.A. (page 3)). However, there is no cost share requirement for any other grantee under the FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety grants. The authority of the AFG Program is derived from the Federal Fire Protection and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. §§ 2229 et seq.), as amended. In FY 2007, Congress appropriated a total of $547 million to carry out the activities of the AFG Program. The governing statute includes a requirement that no less than five percent of the appropriated funds support fire prevention and safety activities. Therefore, no less than $27 million of the appropriation must be awarded for fire prevention and safety activities. However, this is a minimum amount and FEMA recognizes the importance of prevention and safety projects. Therefore, FEMA has reserved a total of $32 million for the FP&S grants. The grants under FP&S will be awarded on a competitive basis. The appropriated funds are available for obligation by FEMA until September 30, 2008. A. Federal Investment Strategy The FP&S grants are an important part of the Administration’s larger, coordinated effort to strengthen homeland security preparedness. Of particular significance are the National Preparedness Guidelines and associated work products directed by President George W. Bush in Homeland Security Presidential Directives 5 and 8. The National Preparedness Guidelines are an all-hazards framework for meeting the nation’s four homeland security mission areas: prevention, protection, response, and recovery from both terrorist attacks and catastrophic natural disasters. The National Preparedness Guidelines define a vision of what the nation needs to accomplish to enhance national preparedness and provide a set of tools to forge a unified national consensus to work together at all levels of government. First responder participation is integral to the Guidelines’ success. DHS expects its first responder partners to be familiar with this national preparedness architecture and to incorporate elements of this architecture into their planning, operations, and investments to the maximum degree practical. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants B. Criteria Development Process Each year, FEMA’s AFG Program Office convenes a panel of fire service professionals to develop the funding priorities for the coming year. The nine major fire service organizations represented on the panel include: • International Association of Fire Chiefs • International Association of Firefighters • National Volunteer Fire Council • National Fire Protection Association • National Association of State Fire Marshals • International Association of Arson Investigators • International Society of Fire Service Instructors • North American Fire Training Directors • Congressional Fire Service Institute The panel is charged with making recommendations to DHS regarding the creation and/or modification of previously established funding priorities as well as developing criteria for awarding grants. The content of this Program Guidance reflects implementation of the criteria development panel’s recommendations with respect to the priorities, direction, and criteria for awarding FP&S grants. Based on the recommendations provided by the criteria development panel, funding priority will be given to applications that effectively address the evaluation elements as outlined in Part III B.3.1. (page 9) of this document. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Part I Available Funding and Eligible Applicants There are two areas of activity that can be funded through the Fire Prevention and Safety grants: the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity and the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity. Applicants may submit only one application per application period and include either one or both activities. Applicant eligibility requirements for each activity are stated below. A. Fire Prevention and Safety Activity Eligible applicants for this activity include fire departments, and national, regional, state, local, or community organizations that are recognized for their experience and expertise in fire prevention and safety programs and activities. Both private and public non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for funding in this activity. For- profit organizations are not eligible to receive a FP&S grant award. For all grantees the Federal share of the grant is limited to $1 million per application. Fire departments that have received funding through the FY 2007 AFG Program for training, equipment, vehicles, etc., are eligible to receive funding for fire prevention and safety activities. However, in addition to the $1 million limitation on FP&S grants, the combined funding level of grant awards through the AFG and FP&S grants to any single fire department is limited by the governing statute to an amount of Federal share (shown below) for each year that is based on the population that the fire department protects. Population Size Maximum Federal Share More than one million: $2,750,000 500,000 to one million: $1,750,000 Less than 500,000: $1,000,000 Fire departments are subject to the same cost share requirements that are applicable under the AFG Program. Specifically, fire departments that serve populations less than 20,000 must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to five percent of the total project cost. Fire departments 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 percent of the total project cost. Fire departments that serve populations of over 50,000 must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to twenty 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. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Please note: There is no cost share for grants under this activity to eligible national, regional, state, local, or community organizations (other than fire departments as described above). B. Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity Eligible applicants for this activity include national, regional, state, and local organizations, such as academic, public health, occupational health, and injury prevention institutions, especially those that are recognized for their experience and expertise in firefighter safety research and development programs or whose applications demonstrate the potential to improve firefighter safety. Under the governing statute, fire departments are not eligible to apply for funding in this activity. Private and public non-profit organizations, non-Federal governmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations, are eligible to apply for funding. For-profit organizations are not eligible to receive funding under this activity. The Federal share for research and development grants is limited to $1 million per application. The performance period may be one, two, or three years, with total budget for the entire performance period of up to than $1 million. Successful studies may lead to subsequent related proposals. Subsequent proposals, however, may not be requested to continue funding for the same study. Please note: There is no cost share for grants under the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Part II Evaluation Process A. Pre-Screening Process Program staff will screen submitted applications to affirm the eligibility for award of both the applicants and projects. Ineligible applications and applicants will be removed from further consideration. National, state, and local organizations are eligible to apply under both the Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) Activity and the Firefighter Safety Research and Development (R&D) Activity on the same application. Please note that each department or organization can submit only one application per application period. Applicants that choose to apply for both the activities should do so within one application. Such applications will be scored independently against the established evaluation criteria. B. Technical Evaluation Process All eligible applications will be evaluated by a Technical Evaluation Panel (TEP). The TEP will assess each application’s merits with respect to the detail provided in the narrative on the activity including all of the evaluation elements listed in the “applicant requirements” section (see Part III. B.3.1 (page 9)) of this document. The panel of reviewers will independently score each project within the application, discuss the merits and/or shortcomings of the application and document the findings. A consensus is not required. Highest ranked applications will receive further review to assess strengths and weaknesses, how readily weaknesses may be resolved, and the likely impact of the proposed activities on the safety of the target audience. For R&D applications, a panel of scientific/clinical/engineering reviewers will be assigned with areas of expertise selected based on the subject matter of the proposal. Reviewers will assess each application’s merits with respect to the detail provided in the narrative and in the Appendices, addressing specifically each of the evaluation elements listed in the “Evaluation Criteria” section (see Part III. B.3.2.(page 11)) of this document. The panel of reviewers will independently score each application, and, if necessary, discuss the merits/shortcomings of the application in order to reconcile any major discrepancies identified by reviewers. A consensus is not required. Highest ranked applications will receive further technical review to assess strengths and weaknesses, how readily weaknesses may be resolved, and the likely impact of the R&D on the health and life safety of firefighters. C. Reasonableness of Requests U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants The TEP will consider all expenses budgeted as part of the cost-benefit determination and may recommend appropriate adjustments. Regardless of the eligibility of any costs requested or the panelists’ determination, FEMA reserves the right to reduce any requests for assistance, in whole or in part, that it deems to be excessive or otherwise contrary to the best interests of the AFG Program. D. Award Procedure Once the TEP has reviewed the applications, they are ranked according to the scores provided by the TEP. AFG program office staff will make award recommendations to the Grants Management Specialists in FEMA. The Grants Management Specialists will then contact the applicant to discuss and/or negotiate the content of the application before final award decisions are made. FEMA will select a sufficient number of awardees from this application period to obligate all of the available FY 2007 funding. Awards will be announced on a regular basis until funding is exhausted. Awards will not be made in any specified order, i.e., not by state, grant activity or type, or any other characteristic. E. Turndown Procedure The FP&S grants are competitive. Although some of the applications will not be successful, all applicants will receive a decision. For those applicants who are not successful, FEMA will prepare a letter that briefly describes the shortcomings and weaknesses of the application, as articulated by the TEP. Due to the number of turndowns that have historically been experienced for these grants, detailed debriefs for all applicants will not be possible. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Part III Automated Application Process A. Automated Application and Tutorial for 2007 Shortly before the start of the application period, a tutorial will be available for applicants at www.firegrantsupport.com to provide guidance regarding the grant application and the FP&S application requirements. All applicants are strongly encouraged to complete the applicant tutorial prior to beginning their application, even if they have successfully received previous awards from the AFG Program. The tutorial explains the eligible activities by illustrating many of the application screens. It provides tips for navigating the application screens and summarizes the changes in the FP&S grants for FY 2007. In addition, the tutorial also provides a review of the lessons learned from previous years. B. Application Process The FY 2007 FP&S application will be accessible from the AFG Website www.firegrantsupport.com), the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) Website (www.usfa.fema.gov), and the grants.gov Website (www.grants.gov). The automated application has been designed with “help screens” and “drop-down menus” to assist the applicant throughout the application process. The application can be saved and retrieved for update and revision up to the point of submittal or to the end of the application period. Please note that once an application has been completed and submitted, no changes can be made. The automated system does not allow an applicant to submit an incomplete application -- the system alerts the applicant when required information has not been entered. By submitting an application online, the applicant will automatically receive confirmation via e-mail that their application has been successfully submitted. Do not submit multiple applications. Multiple applications submitted on behalf of any one applicant will all be deemed ineligible. The online system will allow one authorized representative of an eligible organization to log on and create a user name and password. The selection of the authorized representative is at the discretion of each applicant. If you have a user name and password from a previous AFG, SAFER or FP&S application, you should use the same user name and password. Failure to use your existing user name and password could delay the processing of your application. Paper applications are available; however, they are discouraged because of the inherent delays associated with their processing. Additionally, paper applications do not have the advantage of the built-in assistance of the electronic application or the assurance that the application has been accurately completed before mailing. Applicants who wish to apply for FP&S grants by paper may request a paper application by calling the Help Desk at 1-866-274-0960. Paper applications will not be sent to prospective applicants via overnight delivery, fax, or email. All applications must be completed and submitted electronically, or postmarked on or before the close of business, by 5:00 p.m. EDT on November 30, 2007. Only electronic applications U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants submitted via the online automated grant application system will receive a confirmation of receipt. Applicants should print a copy of the confirmation for their records upon receiving verification that their application has been successfully submitted. Applicants should also record their user name and password for future access to their application. No confirmation will be issued for paper applications. Incomplete applications or applications submitted via any other electronic means, including email or fax, will automatically be deemed ineligible. Paper applications should be mailed to the following address: Department of Homeland Security/FEMA Fire Prevention & Safety Grants 5th Floor TechWorld Building Room 5056 500 C Street SW Washington, DC 20472 Applications mailed to any other address may miss the appointed closing date and will be disqualified and ineligible for funding. Applicants are allowed to hire, or otherwise employ the services of, a grant writer to assist in the application process. However, the applicant is responsible for ensuring that the information contained in their submitted application is a true and accurate reflection of their organization and represents the scope of effort being proposed and the time and cost required to achieve it. Therefore, applicants are strongly encouraged to review all work produced by grant writers, or other third parties on their behalf, prior to submission of their application. Applicants who falsify their application, or misrepresent their organization or proposal in any manner will have their application deemed ineligible by the Program Office and referred to the Office of the Inspector General for further action, as appropriate. Specific requirements with respect to the use of grant writers are outlined below (Appendix 2 (8)). B.1 DUNS Number As of October 1, 2003, all applicants applying for Federal grants are required to have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number. The DUNS number is a unique nine-character identification number provided by the commercial company Dun & Bradstreet. Applicants are encouraged to obtain the DUNS number either prior to the start of the application period or early in the application period since it may take up to 14 business days to obtain one. There is no charge for a DUNS number, which can be requested by registering online at www.dnb.com/US/duns_update/index.html or by calling 1-800-333-0505. Applicants who already have a DUNS number for the Fire Grants Program or any other Federal program should use the same number on their FY 2007 application. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants B.2 Project Period The project period for the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity is 12 months. Applicants under the Research and Development Activity can propose projects that reflect a period of performance of up to three years. B.3 Application Details All applicants are required to provide details of their projects in a written narrative as well as a specific description of the supporting budget. The narrative should correlate the proposed projects to the evaluation criteria defined below in this Program Guidance. Application narratives for the FP&S projects will be limited to a maximum of five pages per project. The narrative for the Research and Development activity will be limited to 25 pages per project. Additionally, R&D applicants can supply appendices which may include data collection instruments, data tables, illustrations and specifications for product designs. Curriculum Vitae (CV’s) for Project Investigators (PI) and lead scientists should also be included in the appendices, but are limited to a maximum of 4 pages. The sum number of pages for all appendices together is limited to 20 pages total. As the applicant enters information into the narrative text box, the applicant should click the “save” button periodically to ensure information has been stored. Please note the electronic application includes a “time-out” feature to help ensure activity usage of the servers. If no “save” activity is detected for a period of time, the “time-out” feature is activated, and all information entered, but not saved, could be lost. Therefore, it is recommended that applicants type the narrative off-line using a word processing program, such as MSWord, Word Perfect, Notepad, etc., to avoid losing any information. Once the narrative is complete, an applicant can then “cut-and-paste” their proposal narrative into the narrative block of the application. B.3.1. Evaluation Criteria for Projects under the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity The characteristics listed below will be used as the guidelines for making funding decisions. Priority is given to projects that focus on the prevention of injury to an identified vulnerable population, group, or demographic subset. The extent to which projects reflect the characteristics below will impact the likelihood that they will be funded. • Vulnerability Statement: The assessment of risk is a critical component of the FEMA risk analysis target capability. As such, the presence of a process that takes into account the characteristics of an area or jurisdiction (e.g., population features) is important in an objective or reasoned approach to addressing the fire hazard in a community, regional area, state or nation. Therefore, the applicant should summarize the vulnerability that the project will address in a concise statement including how the vulnerability was determined and how the target audience was identified. The methodology for identification of the vulnerability should be discussed in depth in the application narrative. Identification of the vulnerability that will be addressed with the proposed U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants project can be established through a formal or informal risk assessment. For the purpose of this application, formal assessments consist of the use of software programs or recognized expert analysis to assess risk trends. Informal assessments could include, for example, a manual study of fire loss, burn injuries, or loss of life over a period of time and the causative factors for each occurrence. • Implementation Plan: Projects that have an implementation plan, which clearly describes the applicant’s ability to execute the proposed project and the methods that they will use to reach the target audience, have a better chance of successful completion. Implementation information may include examples of marketing efforts to promote the project, who will deliver the project, and how materials or deliverables will be distributed. • Partnerships: Projects that incorporate partnerships with other organizations or groups to enhance the development or delivery of the project also reflect a better chance of successful completion. Effective partnerships should increase the organization’s ability to deliver the project and/or facilitate the involvement of target audience. For example, collaboration with citizen advocate groups (such as Fire Corps or Citizen Corp Councils) might facilitate or expand the reach of implementation activities. • Evaluation Plan: Projects should incorporate an evaluation of their effectiveness and identify measurable goals. Applicants seeking to carry out awareness and education projects, for example, should identify how they intend to evaluate that the proposed project leads to attitudinal or behavioral changes. Pre/post testing of the project recipients could be one method that could be planned. • Cost-Benefit: Projects will be rated on the extent to which they demonstrate a high benefit for the cost incurred and maximize the level of funding that goes directly into the delivery of the project. The costs associated with the project must also be reasonable for the target audience that will be reached. • Sustainability: Projects will be examined to determine whether the overall activity will be sustained beyond the grant performance period and whether they have a greater potential for long-term benefits. Partnerships may contribute to the longevity of the benefit realized from the project. • Financial Need: Applicants should illustrate in their narrative the need for financial assistance to carry out the proposed project. Included in the description might be other unsuccessful attempts to acquire financial assistance. • Performance: Applicants that demonstrate a proven track record for timely project completion and performance in similar projects or in other AFG and SAFER awards. • Props: Applications that request props for education campaigns must be related to a planned educational effort or an educational curriculum. Requests for props must include specific goals, measurable results, and details on the frequency for which the prop will be U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants utilized. Applicants should include information indicative of the various outreach efforts that will be conducted and/or the number of people reached through the proposed campaign. Request for funds to purchase props will be declined if the request does not contain detailed information meeting these requirements. B.3.2. Evaluation Criteria for Projects under the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity The characteristics listed below will be used as the guidelines in making funding decisions. The extent to which projects reflect these characteristics will impact the likelihood that they will be funded. • Literature Review: Literature review should include citations in the text and references at the end of the application. The review should address the nature of the problem, what is known and what remains uncertain or unknown about the problem, what evidence exists to treat or resolve it, and how the proposed study will be responsive to the state of the science/art, and with cost-benefit for the use of Federal funds. • Partnership: It is expected that projects will incorporate partnerships with other organizations or groups to enhance the development or delivery of the project. For example, an awardee conducting a cardiovascular health study could partner with the fire service for the study participants. Letters of support should be included in the Appendix (maximum three pages). • Study Design: Where appropriate, projects will utilize rigorous research design, such as randomization, control, or comparison group, to allow confidence that the research findings are due to the program activity or planned intervention. For projects where this is not appropriate or feasible, best practices may call for quasi-experimental or case methods. • Sampling: Studies may use local or regional samples, samples that are stratified on factors (such as risk), or cohorts (such as entire department); multiple methods for triangulation or other strategies for selection of elements for observation of performance or development of products. Anticipated issues of sample bias (such as may be associated with type of department; preferences to participate; range of characteristics or properties) should be discussed. Justification should address how the study’s results may be generalized to the fire service, and should discuss limitations of the study findings. • Sample Size: Size should reflect results of: (a) power calculations,(b) use of reference standards or specifications; or (c) planned iterations to include known sources of variability. The applicant must demonstrate that the sample will have sufficient power or replicability to observe the key events or outcomes, if present. • Measurement: Instruments should have strong psychometric properties, such as construct or domain validity and test-retest reliability or other indicators of measurement reliability, U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants sensitivity and specificity. Where such tests are not available or not feasible, test construction may be cal led for and test findings should be considered as part of study outcomes. • Analytic Plan: Indicate the planned approach to analysis such as ANOVA or regression analysis; reproducibility or component analysis. Specify, within that plan, what will be examined, in what sequence of steps, or with how many iterations. Projected data tables are not required but may be useful. • Human Subjects: Where applicable, describe plans for recruitment, informed consent, cohort retention (especially with multi-year study), and plans for submission to the Institutional Review Board (IRB). Generally, IRB approval should precede any major study activities. Where the proposed study involves above minimal risk activities, sample consent letters should be included in the Appendix. • Dissemination and Implementation: Indicate dissemination plans for scientific audiences (such as peer review publications) and for firefighter audiences (such as websites and conferences). Also, where applicable, indicate future steps that would support implementation throughout the fire service; these may be beyond the current study. • Timeline: Provide a timeline with milestones for each key task, area of activity, and/or product in the study. Indicate what will happen biweekly or monthly. For multi-year studies, less precision is needed for the second and third years. Additional Considerations • Financial Need: Applicants should illustrate in their narrative the need for Federal financial assistance. • Impact: Applicants need to address in their narratives the extent to which the study or effort will have an impact of the R&D on the health and life safety of firefighters, particularly in the short term. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Appendix 1 Allowable Expenses A1. Eligible Projects under the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity: While FEMA desires to provide flexibility to applicants to design innovative strategies or unique proposals that reach for a higher level of safety for the public with respect to fire and fire-related hazards, the following general categories of activities or projects will be eligible for funding: public education campaigns, arson prevention, training programs, fire prevention activities, and risk assessments. Applicants may submit only one FP&S grant application per FP&S application period. Under the FP&S Activity, the applicant may request financial assistance for as many as three projects. Applicants should formulate FP&S applications that contain multiple projects and associated budgeted items based on strategic risks and common goals. The following examples are two approaches for organizing one application. Example 1 A community has the strategic goal of reducing the number of fires caused by the use of barbecue grills on the balconies of apartments. This goal will be supported through two projects. The applicant plans to launch a public education project and strengthen code enforcement activities. In this instance, the public education items should be listed as one supporting project and code enforcement items should be listed as the second supporting project. Both projects will be included in one application. The narrative statements will explain how accomplishing these two projects will help achieve the goal. While the projects are related, each project requires a separate supporting budget and narrative statement. Example 2 A community or organization may have more than one strategic goal depending on its audience or risk. For example, a national organization may have a goal to reduce firefighter fatalities through a national outreach project. It may also have a goal to study the effectiveness of public education messages. The organization would create one project for firefighter safety initiatives and an additional project for national public education efforts. The following are examples of eligible projects. This list is not an all-inclusive list of projects that will be considered. Applicants should develop their projects based on their determined risks. Original, creative and/or new approaches to enhance the safety of the public and firefighters are encouraged. Be advised that applications should only consist of FP&S projects that can be completed within the one-year grant performance period. The following programs are not listed in order of importance: • Public Education: National or local projects that promote the reduction of injury due to fire or other safety hazards. Activities may include burn prevention, media/public relations campaigns, injury prevention or other community hazards that could be justified in the narrative. Education props (educational tools) must be part of a comprehensive and detailed public safety education campaign. Eligible items include escape planning model homes, safety trailers, or curriculum delivery tools. Please note that projects that deliver training to the public in the area of automatic external defibrillators (AED), Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) or age-appropriate fire extinguishers training U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants equipment will be considered. However, if the projects are for operational staff, these projects should be requested under the AFG Grants. • Smoke Alarms: Projects that promote the installation of smoke alarms and/or check to assure that previously installed smoke alarms are operational. Applicants who will not perform installation of the alarms should discuss in their application narrative the methodology for ensuring that the alarms will be installed. This grant promotes the use of 10-year lithium alarms/batteries. Applicants that do not plan on using 10-year alarms/batteries should address the rationale for alternatives. • Sprinkler Awareness: Projects that affect the entire community such as educating the public about residential sprinklers, promoting residential sprinklers, and demonstrating working models of residential sprinklers. Installation of sprinkler systems is only eligible if it includes an educational component. • Code Enforcement/Awareness: Projects that promote the adoption or awareness of building codes, promote code enforcement to improve engineering, or enact fire-related ordinances for new construction. Projects may also include support for conducting inspections, including personnel costs, equipment or training. • Firefighter Safety: National or regional projects that promote the reduction of line of duty deaths through national mitigation strategies. • Training: Local or regional projects to educate or train personnel in the area of public education, code enforcement and arson prevention. • Wildfire Prevention Programs: Education and awareness programs that protect lives, property and natural resources from fire in wildland/urban interface including Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPP) or Firewise programs. Fuel reduction demonstrations as part of an awareness and education effort would be considered. • Arson Prevention Programs: Arson investigation trailers, equipment and costs related to arson investigator training, arson-related surveillance equipment, personnel costs, educational materials and media equipment, and juvenile fire-setter intervention programs. • Risk Assessments: Applicants may request assistance to conduct formal or informal risk assessments. Please note: Applications that request a risk assessment are precluded from applying for additional projects. • General Prevention/Awareness: Projects that include general prevention initiatives including studies, alarm system installation, lock-box installation, address marker, etc. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants A2. Ineligible Activities and Items under the Fire Prevention and Safety Activity: • Educational props that are not a part of an educational curriculum, a planned educational effort, or lack description of these elements; • Fire suppression equipment, supplies, vehicles, firefighting training tools or equipment, personal protective gear, fitness equipment or immunizations; • AED, CPR or fire extinguisher training for operational staff; • Installation of sprinkler systems that do not include an educational component; • Fire hydrant/dry hydrant installation; • Suppression-related training including Firefighter I, Firefighter II, wildland firefighting, training exercises or drills for suppression or disasters activities; • Fuel reduction projects that are prescribed burns; • Communication equipment including portable radios, mobile data terminals (MDT) or computer-aided dispatch (CAD) systems; • Weather/disaster notification devices (sirens etc.); and • Community projects that include the use of tot finder/child finder, elderly or pet finder decals. B1. Eligible Projects for the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity: The purpose of this funding activity is to improve firefighter health and life safety through research and development projects. All projects must address injury outcomes or their surrogates such as firefighter fitness or health indicators. Applicants should consider projects that address topics known to be major causes, or related to, major causes of firefighter morbidity and mortality. For instance, the leading causes of four out of every five deaths among firefighters are overexertion/cardiovascular, being trapped, and motor vehicle crash events (Fahey, NFPA, 2006). Overexertion/strain, contact with flames or smoke, struck or assaulted, and falls, together account for about half (57 percent) of non-fatal injuries (USFA, chapter 5). Reports of near miss events include clusters of cases regarding falls, loss/trapped/disoriented firefighters, structural collapses, and power lines. Analysis points to unsafe acts that are errors (rather than violations), such as poor decision-making due to insufficient/incorrect information, preconditions such as loss of situational awareness, and supervisory practices such as lack of oversight (Near Miss Reporting System Annual Report 2006). The National Institute for Standards and Technology awarded a grant to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) to facilitate the development of a research agenda for the Nation’s Fire Service. In June 2005, NFFF hosted a working group to establish this agenda. The projects that meet the intent of the research and development agenda with respect to firefighter health and safety, as identified by this working group, will be given consideration. However, the applicant is not limited to these specific projects. All proposed projects, regardless of whether they have been identified by this working group, will be evaluated on their relevance to firefighter health and safety. A copy of the research agenda is available on the NFFF website www.firehero.org. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Three project categories are listed below, not in order of importance. This is not an all-inclusive list of the types of projects that will be considered; however, any project must address injury outcomes or provide strong justification that proposed outcomes can be readily linked to injury outcomes. (a) Database Systems: Projects involving the systematic collection of information that aims to determine predictors and correlates for incidents of near-injury, injury, and death. The focus of data collection may be about, but is not limited to: • Firefighter demographic and health factors (e.g., age, blood pressure); • Firefighter employment factors (e.g., shift, volunteer, training); • Firefighter safety behaviors (e.g., seat belt use, hydration); • Firefighting equipment; • Personal protective equipment; • Departmental/organizational safety policies and practices; • Cultural or social norms regarding injury prevention practices; • Community-based resources (e.g., hospitals, communication systems); or • Environmental factors. Proposals in this category may aim, for instance, to expand variables and data collection methods for an existing database system, expand existing sample to a broader state or regional level database system, and/or apply a database system to observe patterns before and after policy changes. (b) Social Science Studies: Foundational research may investigate the underlying risk and protective factors associated with injury outcomes. These may include individual level characteristics, departmental/organizational policies, practices, norms, and environmental factors that may be linked to incidents involving injury outcomes. Where evidence exists to move to more applied research, a study should emphasize intervention development and testing for effectiveness in the field setting. For instance, if certain tests in clinical care settings are known to identify those at risk for cardiovascular events, then the study may focus on modification (if necessary) and implementation of such tests in fire service settings using a randomized control trial, with comparison to usual care. Where effectiveness of an intervention has been established in the field setting, dissemination research may investigate strategies for widespread implementation with fidelity. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants (c) Technology Studies: Applications in this category are to develop and test new technology that can be incorporated into the Fire Service. These projects should aim to improve the safety of firefighters through an enhanced understanding of hazards posed by: • Incidents; • Buildings and building materials; and • Environmental conditions. Technology projects should address such hazards by adapting existing technologies and/or developing new ones. The following are examples of initiatives that have been funded in FY 2005 and 2006: Database: Development and testing of a model for deployment of community-level resources related to firefighter safety. Social Science: Clinical markers for cardiovascular events in fire service; alternative test methods for clinical markers; identification of physiological and psychological stressors; and fire ground rehabilitation. Technology: Locator devices; improved Personal Protective Equipment; structural stability of engineered lumbar; management of wind driven conditions; and effectiveness of thermal blankets. Multi-year projects will be considered for the R&D Activity. Applicants can propose projects with up to three years of performance requirements. Each year must include measurable goals. Subsequent year funding will be contingent upon satisfactory progress, availability of funds and continued worthiness of the project. Multi-year requests must address the following: • Overall project goals and target outcomes; • Specific goals, objectives and outcomes for each project year with particular emphasis and detail on the coming project year; • Include contingency planning with the examples of what may be key challenges and plans to address and overcome them; • Monitoring plan that identifies progress toward achieving established goals and ensures costs are monitored; and • A spending plan that corresponds with the overall project and specific-year goals and objectives. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants B2. Ineligible Activities and Items under the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity: • Activities that focus primarily on curriculum development, delivery of education or training materials; • A descriptive study about fire service (without injury or safety outcomes); • Studies with local emphasis and little or no indication of broader application to the fire service; and • Studies that emphasize funding for service delivery. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Appendix 2 Other Allowable Costs Both the FP&S Activity and the Firefighter Safety Research and Development Activity have other costs that are eligible to be included in the grant request. The combined total of Administrative, Audit, and Grant Writer costs charged to the grant shall not exceed three percent (3%) of the total grant award. (1) Administrative Costs: Administrative costs are allowable under the program areas listed above, in accordance with Cost Principles for Educational Institutions (OMB Circular A-21), Cost Principles for State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments (OMB Circular A-87), Cost Principles for Nonprofit Organizations (OMB Circular A-122) and, Contracts with Commercial Organizations (Federal Acquisition Regulation Subpart 31.2, codified at 48 CFR 31.2), as applicable. (For more information about the Circulars, go to www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars.) Administrative costs are identifiable costs that are directly associated with the implementation and management of the grant. Applicants can apply for administrative costs only if the expenses are directly related to the implementation of their proposed project and cannot exceed three percent of the award. The costs should be listed under the “other” category in the budget and explained in the project narrative. FEMA will only reimburse costs that are based on actual expenses and not on a percentage of the overall grant. Examples of eligible administrative costs include shipping, office supplies, computers, and software associated with the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) reporting requirements (see Grantee Responsibilities, below), etc. Grant writer fees, if specifically listed on your application, are eligible and can be charged to the grant as an administrative cost in accordance with the provisions outlined (see (8) below). The AFG Program Office has the option to assess the reasonableness of requested administrative costs in each application and will determine what is appropriate and in the best interest of the program. (2) Indirect Costs: An indirect cost rate is an expense based on a percentage of the overall operational costs of an organization. The rate is established by a Federal department or agency for a grantee organization that the grantee uses to compute the dollar amount they charge to the grant for indirect costs incurred during the execution of the grant project. Applicants can charge indirect costs to the grant only if they have a previously negotiated and approved indirect cost rate. Prior to submitting any claims for reimbursement of indirect costs, applicants must first submit documentation that supports the indirect cost rate to FEMA for review and approval. The appropriate documentation for an approved indirect rate is a negotiated indirect cost agreement. The indirect rate is applicable as long as it is consistent with the established terms of the agreement. For example, some indirect cost rates may not apply to capital procurements. In these cases, indirect cost rates would not apply for grant equipment. Indirect costs are those that have been incurred for common or joint objectives and cannot be readily identified within a particular final cost objective. A cost may not be allocated to an U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants award as an indirect cost if any other cost incurred for the same purpose, in like circumstances, has been assigned to an award as a direct cost. Typical examples of indirect costs for many non-profit organizations may include depreciation or use allowances on buildings and equipment, the costs of operating and maintaining facilities, general administration, and other general expenses, such as the salaries and expenses of executive officers, personnel administration and accounting. Indirect costs shall be classified within two broad categories - facilities and administration. Facilities is defined as depreciation and use of allowances on buildings, equipment and capital improvement, interest on debt associated with certain buildings, equipment and capital improvements, and operations and maintenance expenses. Administration is defined as general administration and general expenses such as the cost for the director's office, accounting, personnel, library expenses and all other types of expenditures not specifically chargeable to the grant. (3) Audit Costs: Grantees with large awards may be required to undergo an audit in accordance with OMB Circular A-133. Specifically, recipients of Federal funding that spend in excess of $500,000 of Federal funds in one year must undergo an audit. (For more information about the Circular, go to www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars). Reasonable costs incurred for such an audit would be an eligible expenditure if included in the proposal’s budget. Applicants should consider including anticipated costs of an audit if applying for a significant level of funding. FEMA does not require any other type of audit; therefore, other audit costs not related to the A-133 portion of the organizations audit are not eligible. Audit costs are considered “administrative” expenditures. See “Administrative Costs” (page 19) for additional guidance on administrative cost limitations. (4) Renovation and Equipment Installation Costs: Renovations to an existing facility are allowable only if the costs comply with the final rule as published in the Federal Register (i.e., limited to minor interior alterations costing less than $10,000). In order to be eligible, renovations must be essential to the successful completion of the grant scope of work. Activities involving equipment installation and renovations to facilities are subject to all applicable environmental and historic preservation requirements. Applicants seeking assistance to renovate their facilities or to install equipment may undergo additional screening. Specifically, DHS is required to ascertain to what degree the proposed equipment installation and renovations might affect an applicant’s facility relative to the National Environmental Policy Act, National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, National Flood Insurance Program regulations, and any other applicable laws and Executive Orders. No project can proceed – except for project planning – prior to formal DHS approval. Noncompliance with this provision may jeopardize an applicant’s award and subsequent funding. Construction costs are not eligible under the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants. Construction includes major alterations to a building that changes the profile or footprint of the structure. Note: Installation of fire suppression, fire alarms or detection systems are not considered renovations and accordingly, not subject to the limits outlined for renovation costs. The costs, however, must be reasonable and justified. Fire departments who are considering installation of suppression, fire alarm or detection systems in a fire department facility are encouraged to apply under the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program under Modification to Facilities. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants (5) Transportation Costs: Tow vehicles or other means of transport may be eligible as a transportation expense, if adequately justified in the proposal. Transportation expenses are limited to $6,000 per application. (6) Pre-award Costs: Generally, grantees cannot use grant funds to pay for products and contracted services or purchases prior to the effective date of the grant. However, expenses incurred after the application deadline, but prior to award, may be eligible for reimbursement if the expenses were justified, unavoidable, consistent with the grant’s scope of work, and specifically approved by FEMA. FEMA will consider requests for reimbursement for pre-award costs on a case-by-case basis. (7) Pre-application Costs: Expenses, obligations, commitments or contracts incurred, or entered into, prior to the application deadline are not eligible as a grant expense with the exception of grant preparation costs (see (8) below). (8) Grant Writer Fees: Fees for grant writers may be included as a pre-award or pre-application expenditure. However, fees payable on a contingency basis are not an eligible expense. For grant writer fees to be eligible as a pre-award expenditure, the fees must be specifically identified and listed in the application. In order to be eligible, the fees must also be paid prior to award, (i.e., paid within 60 days of the end of the application period). Applicants may be required to provide documentation to support these pre-award expenditures. The hiring of a grant writer, or use of any other third parties in the preparation of the application, does not eliminate the applicant’s responsibility for assuring that the information contained in the application is true and correct. Grant writer fees are considered “administrative” expenditures. See “Administrative Costs” (page 19) for additional guidance on administrative cost limitations. (9) Personnel Costs: Due to the maintenance of expenditure requirement, personnel costs are eligible as long as the personnel costs are "new" to the grantee (i.e. the costs would not be incurred if it not for the grant). For example, in a fire prevention project, the grantee might ask staff or firefighters to work overtime to deliver the project during off-duty hours. In this case, the overtime would not have been required if it was not for the fire prevention project. Another example might be hiring of a new staff person to deliver the project. The grantee would only incur this cost as a result of the fire prevention project. FEMA will not fund any existing positions, i.e., current staff reassigned to the grant. (10) Cost Share Requirement: There is no cost share requirement for the applicant for the FY 2007 FP&S grants with the exception to fire departments. Fire departments are subject to the same cost share requirements applied under the Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program. Grantees must share in the costs of the projects funded under this grant. 15 U.S.C. 2229(b)(6). Fire departments that serve populations of less than 20,000 must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to five percent of the total project cost. Fire departments 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 percent of the total project cost. Fire departments that serve populations of over 50,000 must match the Federal U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to twenty 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. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Appendix 3 Grantee Responsibilities Recipients (Grantees) must agree to do the following: (1) During the relevant period of performance, maintain annual operating expenditures (not including award or matching funds) in the areas funded by this grant activity at a level equal to, or greater than, the yearly average for those operating expenditures during the two years preceding the year in which this assistance is received. This AFG Program is meant to supplement rather than replace or supplant the applicant’s regular expenses. (2) Retain grant files and supporting documentation for three years after the closeout of the grant. (3) Grantees are required to follow their own established procurement policies to ensure that all procurement actions are conducted in a manner that provides, to the maximum extent possible, open and free competition. If the organization has no established policies, at least two quotes/bids for procurement must be obtained. Documentation of the process used must be maintained in a grant file for the period of three years. (4) Report performance progress made on your grant activities after six months. At grant closeout, applicants need to report how the grant funding was used and what benefits were realized from the award in a final report. An accounting of the funds should also be included. (5) Make grant files and all records available if requested for FEMA’s review to ensure compliance with requirements of the grant program. (6) If the applicant is a fire department, it must agree to provide information, through established reporting channels, to the U.S. Fire Administration’s National Fire Incident Reporting System for the period covered by the assistance. If a fire department does not currently participate in the incident reporting system and does not have the capacity to report at the time of the award, that grantee must agree to provide information to the system for a twelvemonth period commencing as soon as they develop the capacity to report. (7) If the applicant is a fire department, they must comply with Homeland Security Presidential Directive-5 (HSPD-5). Starting October 1, 2004, HSPD-5 requires that all recipients of Federal preparedness funding – including recipients of Federal grants and contracts – adopt the National Incident Management System (NIMS) as a condition for receipt of the Federal funds. Recipients of FY 2007 AFG funds must comply with this directive (see appendix A). AFG recipients will be considered in compliance with this NIMS requirement if the grantee has an operational knowledge of the Incident Command System (ICS) and an understanding of NIMS principles and policies. Organizations that have already been trained in ICS do not need re-training if the previous training was consistent with DHS standards. In order for FEMA to document compliance, grantees will be required to self-certify their recognition of NIMS/ICS as part of their grant closeout process. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants DHS offers ICS and NIMS training for those organizations that have not implemented the Incident Command System or those that are unfamiliar with the principles and policies of NIMS. For example, FEMA offers ICS training from introductory courses to advanced ICS training. For more information regarding ICS and NIMS training, visit the NIMS website at www.fema.gov/nims. For more information about ICS training, contact DHS’s Centralized Scheduling and Information Desk (CSID) at 1-800-368-6498, or visit the website of DHS’s Emergency Management Institute (EMI) and the National Fire Academy (NFA) at www.usfa.fema.gov. Your state emergency management training office may also be a source of information in this regard. (8) Follow the audit requirements of OMB Circular A-133, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-profit Organizations, which call for grantees who expend $500,000 or more in Federal funds in the organizations’ fiscal year (from all Federal sources) and perform a single audit. (For more information about the Circulars, go to www.whitehouse.gov/omb/circulars.) U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Appendix 4 Excess Funds Occasionally, due to successful competitive bid processes, breaks in service, etc., some grantees have funds remaining after the completion of their obligations outlined above. Grantees who have completed the approved scope of work and still have grant funds available may either close out their grant and return the funds, or submit a request to FEMA in writing for permission to use the excess funds to extend their activities in a manner consistent with the original scope of work and within the originally approved period of performance. Written requests should include a detailed accounting of the reason for the excess and a budget plan for remaining funds grantees wish to use for activity extension. Excess funds are not eligible for Administrative, Indirect, Audit, Renovation, Transportation, or Personnel Costs, and are subject to all relevant cost-share requirements. These funds shall be requested in writing via an amendment through the online system. U.S. Department of Homeland Security – FY 2007 Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Appendix 5 Human Subjects Research DHS has a responsibility to ensure that mechanisms and procedures are in place to protect the safety of human subjects in DHS-supported research. DHS requirements are set forth in Management Directive 10300, which adopts 45 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 46, Subparts A-D. A grantee must agree to meet all DHS requirements for studies using human subjects (and ensure that any sub-grantees or subcontractors meet those requirements) prior to implementing any work with human subjects. Therefore, before enrolling participants or commencing research involving human subjects, a grantee will provide a copy of the following for review and approval by the DHS Regulatory Compliance Office (RCO): • Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Federal-wide Assurance (FWA) Number [Note: The RCO will assist domestic or international institutions that do not currently have a FWA in submitting an application to HHS.] • Documentation of review by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) registered with HHS, including IRB registration number, IRB name, and notice of IRB approval or exemption of the relevant research • IRB-approved research protocol • IRB-approved informed consent document (template) or IRB waiver of informed consent. These documents may be submitted electronically to regulatorycompliance@dhs.gov. The RCO will conduct a regulatory compliance assessment and forward comments and/or concerns to the grantee. The grantee must address in writing all regulatory concerns to the satisfaction of the RCO before a letter of certification is issued and participant enrollment can begin. However, development of tools (e.g., survey instruments), protocols and data gathering approaches may proceed prior to project certification. The grantee must submit annual reports to the RCO, to include evidence of subsequent IRB reviews, amendments, and/or minor changes of protocol.