Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program Frequently Asked Questions

You will be able to review or edit the entire application prior to submission. However, if you would like to edit or change your application after submission, you will have to withdraw the application from consideration of award to edit. Then, the application must be resubmitted to FEMA to be considered for an award.

It is FEMA policy that actions initiated and/or completed without fulfilling the specific EHP requirements will not be considered for funding.

Applicants should consider the impact of the EHP process on the proposed period of performance. A project that involves clearing vegetation or trimming trees may take many months to be reviewed by EHP due to required consultation with local groups, such as conservancy, fish and wildlife, and Indian tribes. These applicants may wish to request a 24-month period of performance to ensure that the project can be completed on time.

Please see FEMA's EHP Screening form and instructions at EHP Screening Form. EHP policy guidance can be found at Preparedness Grants EHP Compliance webpage. Recipients will be notified of their EHP responsibilities in the grant award package.

If you have information about instances of fraud, waste, abuse, or mismanagement involving FEMA programs or operations, you should contact the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General Hotline at 1-800-323-8603; by fax at 202-254-4297; or online. All procurement activity must be conducted in accordance with Federal Procurement Standards at 2 C.F.R. §§ 200.317 – 200.326.

The AFG application is only available online in the FEMA GO (FEMA Grants Outcomes) application portal at FEMAGO - Login.

Registering and applying for an award under this program is a multi-step process and may take up to 4 weeks to complete.

To apply for an award under this program, all applicants must:

• Apply for, update, or verify their Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number and Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the Internal Revenue Service;
• Have an account with login.gov;
• Register for, update or verify their SAM account and ensure the account is active before submitting the application;
• Register in FEMA GO, add the organization to the system, and establish the Authorized Organizational Representative. The organization’s electronic business point of contact (eBiz POC) from the SAM registration may need to be involved in this step. For step-by-step instructions, see Grants Management Modernization (GMM) FEMA GO Startup Guide;
• Submit the complete application in FEMA GO; and
• Continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which the organization has an active federal award, or an application or plan under consideration by a federal awarding agency. As part of this, applicants must also provide information on an applicant’s immediate and highest-level owner and subsidiaries, as well as on all predecessors that have been awarded federal contracts or federal financial assistance within the last three years, if applicable.

M&A costs are administrative expenses that are incurred during the administration of an AFG award. Applicants may apply for M&A costs if the costs are directly related to the implementation of the program for which they are applying. M&A costs and activities are directly related to the management and administration of the AFG award funds, such as financial management and monitoring.

No more than 3% of the federal share of AFG Program funds awarded may be expended by the recipient for M&A for purposes associated with the AFG award.

M&A expenses should be based only on actual expenses or known contractual costs. Requests that are simple percentages of the award, without supporting justification or adequate documentation, will not be allowed, or considered for reimbursement.