[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 212 (Friday, November 1, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65678-65688]
[FR Doc No: 2013-26024]

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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency

[Docket ID FEMA-2013-0028]

Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability of grant application and application
deadline.

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SUMMARY: This Notice describes the grant application process and the
criteria for awarding grants in the fiscal year (FY) 2013 AFG Program
and announces the grant application deadline. It explains the
differences, if any, between these guidelines and those recommended by
representatives of the Nation's fire service leadership during the
annual Criteria Development meeting, which was held December 13-14,
2012. The application period for the FY 2013 AFG Program year will be
held November 4, 2013, through December 6, 2013, and will be announced
on the AFG Web site (www.fema.gov/firegrants), www.grants.gov, and U.S.
Fire Administration Web site (www.usfa.fema.gov).
    The AFG Program makes grants directly to fire departments,
nonaffiliated emergency medical services (EMS) organizations, and state
fire training academies for the purpose of enhancing the abilities of
first responders to protect the health and safety of the public as well
as that of first-responder personnel facing fire and fire-related
hazards. It is anticipated that approximately 10,000 to 15,000
applications will be submitted electronically, using the online
application submission form and process available at https://portal.fema.gov. Before the application period, the ``FY 2013 AFG
Funding Opportunity Announcement'' will be published on the AFG Web
site (www.fema.gov/firegrants). Additional information to assist
applicants will be provided on the AFG Web site, including a list of
frequently asked questions, a ``Get Ready Guide,'' and a ``Quick
Reference Guide,'' and a list of ``Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).''
In addition, the authorizing statute requires that a minimum of 10
percent of available funds be expended for fire prevention and safety
grants to be made directly to local fire departments and to local,
regional, State, or national entities recognized for their expertise in
the fields of fire prevention and firefighter safety research and
development.

    Authority:  15 U.S.C. 2229.

DATES: Grant applications for the Assistance to Firefighters Grants
will be accepted electronically at https://portal.fema.gov, from
November 4, 2013, beginning at 8 a.m. Eastern Time, and will conclude
on December 6, 2013, at 5 p.m., Eastern Time.

ADDRESSES: Assistance to Firefighters Grants Branch, DHS/FEMA, 800 K
Street NW., MS 3620, Washington, DC 20472-3620.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Catherine Patterson, Chief, Assistance
to Firefighters Grant Branch, 1-866-274-0960.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the Assistance to
Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program is to provide grants directly to fire
departments, nonaffiliated emergency medical services (EMS)
organizations, and State Fire Training Academies (SFTAs) 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. The authorizing statute requires that each year DHS
publish in the Federal Register the guidelines that describe the
application process and the criteria for grant awards.
    It is anticipated that approximately 10,000 to 15,000 applications
for AFG funding will be submitted electronically, using the application
submission form and process available at the AFG e-Grant application
portal: https://portal.fema.gov. Specific information about the
submission of grant applications can be found in the ``FY 2013
Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Funding Opportunity
Announcement,'' which is available for download at www.fema.gov/firegrants under Docket ID FEMA-2013-0028.
    Paper applications will not be accepted due to the inherent delays
with processing them and because they lack the applicant ``help''
features that are built into the electronic application.

Appropriations

    Congress appropriated $320,330,025 for the FY 2013 AFG pursuant to
the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2013, Public
Law 113-6. From this amount, $288,828,075 will be made available for
AFG awards. Funds appropriated for the FY 2013 AFG will be available
for obligation and award until September 30, 2014.
    From the approximately 10,000 to 15,000 applications that will be
submitted to request assistance, FEMA anticipates that it will be able
to award approximately 4,000 grants with the grant funding available.
    Congress directed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to
administer the appropriations with the following requirements:
     Career (fire department): Not less than 25 percent of
available grant funds.
     Volunteer (fire department): Not less than 25 percent of
available grant funds.
     Combination (fire department) and departments using paid-
on-call firefighting personnel--not less than 25 percent of available
grant funds.
     Open Competition: Career, volunteer, and combination fire
departments and fire departments using paid-on-call firefighting
personnel--not less than 10 percent of available grant funds awarded.
     Emergency Medical Services Providers: Fire departments and
nonaffiliated EMS organizations; not less than 3.5 percent of available
grants funds awarded, with nonaffiliated EMS providers receiving no
more than 2 percent of the total available grant funds.
     State Fire Training Academies (SFTAs): No more than 3
percent of available grant funds shall be collectively awarded to state
fire training academy applicants, with a maximum of $500,000 to be
awarded per applicant.
     Vehicles: Not more than 25 percent of available grant
funds may be used for the purchase of vehicles; 10 percent of the total
vehicle funds will be dedicated to fund ambulances. The allocation of
funding will be distributed as equally as possible among urban,
suburban, and rural community applicants. The remaining Vehicle
Acquisition funds will be awarded competitively without regard to
community classification.
     Micro Grants (MGs): This is a voluntary funding limitation
choice made by the applicant for requests submitted for Operations and
Safety Grant Component Program; it is not an additional funding
opportunity. MGs are awards that have a federal participation (share)
that does not exceed $25,000. Only fire departments and nonaffiliated
EMS organizations are eligible to choose MGs, and the only eligible MG
activities are Training, Equipment, PPE, Wellness and Fitness, and
Modification to Facilities. Applicants that select Micro Grants as a
funding opportunity may receive additional consideration for award. If
an applicant selects MGs in their application, they will be limited in
the total amount of funding their organization can be awarded; if they
are requesting funding in excess of $25,000 federal participation, they
should not select Micro Grants.

Background of the AFG Program

    DHS awards the grants on a competitive basis to the applicants that
best address the AFG Program's priorities and provide the most
compelling justification. Applications that best address the Program's
priorities will be reviewed by a panel composed of fire service
personnel.

Award Criteria

    All applications for grants will be prepared and submitted through
the AFG e-Grant application portal (https://portal.fema.gov). DHS again
will have a separate application period devoted solely to FP&S Grants,
which is projected to occur in the fall or winter of 2013.
    DHS awards the grants on a competitive basis to the applicants that
best address the AFG Program's priorities and provide the most
compelling justification. Applications that best address the Program's
priorities will be reviewed by a panel composed of fire service
personnel. The panels will review the applications and score them using
the following criteria areas:

 Proposed project and the project budget
 Cost benefits
 Financial need
 The extent to which the grant would enhance daily operations
 Evaluation by the Peer Reviewers relative to the critical
infrastructure the applicant protects
 For joint/regional host applications only, a list of all the
participating eligible organizations and ineligible benefitting
organizations.
 Critical infrastructure systems or key resources that, if
attacked, would result in catastrophic loss of life or catastrophic
economic loss. Critical infrastructure includes the following:

    [cir] Public water
    [cir] Power systems
    [cir] Major business centers
    [cir] Chemical facilities
    [cir] Nuclear power plants
    [cir] Major rail and highway bridges
    [cir] Petroleum and/or natural gas transmission pipelines
    [cir] Storage facilities (e.g., chemical storage)
    [cir] Telecommunications facilities
    [cir] Facilities that support large public gatherings, such as
sporting events or concerts
Eligible Applicants
    The following organizations are eligible to apply for and receive
an AFG award of direct financial assistance:
     Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations
operating in any of the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands,
Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any federally
recognized Indian tribe or authorized tribal organization, or an
Alaskan native village, Alaska Regional Native Corporation, or the
Alaska Village Initiatives. Nonaffiliated EMS organizations are defined
by 15 U.S.C. 2229(a)(7).
     Any State Fire Training Academy operating in any of the 50
states plus the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Ineligibility
     FEMA considers two or more separate fire departments or
nonaffiliated EMS organizations sharing facilities as being one
organization. If two or more organizations share facilities, and each
organization submits an application in the same program area, FEMA may
deem all of those program area applications to be ineligible to avoid
any duplication of benefits.
     Fire-based EMS organizations are not eligible to apply as
nonaffiliated EMS organizations. Fire-based EMS training and equipment
must be requested by a fire department under the AFG component program
Operations and Safety.

Statutory Limits to Funding

    Congress has enacted statutory limits to the amount of funding that
a grantee may receive from the AFG Program in any single fiscal year
(15 U.S.C. 2229(c)(2)) based on the population served. Awards will be
limited based on the size of the population protected by the applicant,
as indicated below. Notwithstanding the annual limits stated below, the
FEMA Administrator may not award a grant in an amount that exceeds one
percent of the available grants funds in such fiscal year, except where
it is determined that such recipient has an extraordinary need for a
grant in an amount that exceeds the one percent aggregate limit.
     In the case of a recipient that serves a jurisdiction with
100,000 people or fewer, the amount of available grant funds awarded to
such recipient shall not exceed $1 million in any fiscal year.
     In the case of a recipient that serves a jurisdiction with
more than 100,000 people but not more than 500,000 people, the amount
of available grant funds awarded to such recipient shall not exceed $2
million in any fiscal year.
     In the case of a recipient that serves a jurisdiction with
more than 500,000 but not more than 1 million people, the amount of
available grant funds awarded to such recipient shall not exceed $3
million in any fiscal year.
     In the case of a recipient that serves a jurisdiction with
more than 1 million people but not more than 2,500,000 people, the
amount of available grant funds awarded to such recipient shall not
exceed $6 million for any fiscal year.
     In the case of a recipient that serves a jurisdiction with
more than 2,500,000 people, the amount of available grant funds awarded
to such recipient shall not exceed $9 million in any fiscal year.
     FEMA may not waive the caps on the maximum amount of
available grant funds awarded based upon population.
    The cumulative total of the federal share of awards in Operations
and Safety and Vehicle Acquisition will be considered when assessing
award amounts and any limitations thereto. Applicants may request
funding up to the statutory limit on each of their applications.
    For example, an applicant that serves a population of less than
500,000 people may request up to $2 million on their Operations and
Safety Application and up to $2 million on their Vehicle Acquisition
Request. However, should both grants be awarded, the applicant would
have to choose which award to accept if the cumulative value of both
applications exceeds the statutory limits.
    Applications for Joint/Regional Projects will not be included in
the host organization's funding limitations detailed above. However,
Joint/Regional applicants will be subject to their own limitation based
on the total population the joint/regional project will serve. For
example, a Joint/Regional Project serving a cumulative population
greater than 100,000 but less than 500,000 people will be limited to $2
million.

Cost Sharing and Maintenance of Effort

    Grantees must share in the costs of the projects funded under this
grant program as required by 15 U.S.C. 2229(k)(1) and in accordance
with 44 CFR 13.24 and 2 CFR 215.23, but they are not required to have
the cost-share at the time of application nor at the time of award.
However, before a grant is awarded, FEMA will contact potential
awardees to determine whether the grantee has the funding in hand or if
the grantee has a viable plan to obtain the funding necessary to
fulfill the cost-sharing requirement.
    In general, an eligible applicant seeking a grant shall agree to
make

available non-Federal funds equal to not less than 15 percent of the
grant awarded. However, the cost share will vary as follows based on
the size of the population served by the organization:
     Applicants serving areas with populations above 20,000 but
not more than 1 million shall agree to make available non-Federal funds
equal to not less than 10 percent of the total project cost.
     Applicants that serve populations of 20,000 or less must
match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal
to 5 percent of the total project cost.
    The cost share of State fire training academies and joint/regional
projects will be based on the entire region, not the population of the
host organization.
    On a case by case basis, the AFG may allow grantees that already
own assets (equipment or vehicles) to use the trade-in allowance/credit
value of those assets as ``cash'' for the purpose of meeting the cost-
share obligation of their AFG award. In-kind cost-share matches are not
allowed.
    Grantees under this grant program must also agree to a maintenance
of effort requirement as required by 15 U.S.C. 2229(k)(3) (referred to
as a ``maintenance of expenditure'' requirement in that statute). A
grantee shall agree to maintain during the term of the grant the
applicant's aggregate expenditures relating to the activities allowable
under the Funding Opportunity Announcement at not less than 80 percent
(80%) of the average amount of such expenditures in the two (2) fiscal
years preceding the fiscal year in which the grant amounts are
received.
    In cases of demonstrated economic hardship, and on the application
of the grantee, the Administrator of FEMA may waive or reduce a
grantee's cost share requirement or maintenance of expenditure
requirement. The Administrator of FEMA shall establish and publish
guidelines for determining what constitutes economic hardship.
    Prior to the start of the FY 2013 AFG application period, DHS will
conduct applicant workshops and/or Internet webinars to inform
potential applicants about the AFG Program. In addition, DHS will
provide applicants with online information at the AFG Web site
(www.fema.gov/firegrants) to help them prepare quality grant
applications. The AFG also will staff a Help Desk throughout the
application period to assist applicants with navigation through the
automated application as well as assistance with any questions they
have. Applicants can reach the AFG Help Desk through a toll-free
telephone number (1-866-274-0960) or electronic mail
(firegrants@dhs.gov).

Application Process

    Organizations may submit one application per application period in
each of the three AFG Program areas, e.g., one application for
Operations and Safety, one for Vehicle Acquisition, and/or a separate
application to be a Joint/Regional Project host. If an organization
submits more than one application for any single AFG Program area,
e.g., two applications for Operations and Safety, two for Vehicles,
etc.; either intentionally or unintentionally, FEMA will deem all
applications submitted by that organization for the Program to be
ineligible for funding.
    Applicants will be advised to access the application electronically
at https://portal.fema.gov. The application also will be accessible
from the U.S. Fire Administration's Web site (http://www.usfa.fema.gov)
and the grants.gov Web site (http://www.grants.gov). New applicants
will be required to register and establish a username and password for
secure access to their application. Applicants that applied to any
previous AFG funding opportunities will be required to use their
previously established usernames and passwords.
    In completing the application, applicants will be asked to provide
relevant information on their organization's characteristics, call
volume, and existing capabilities. Applicants will be asked to answer
questions about their grant request that reflect the AFG funding
priorities, which are described below. In addition, each applicant will
have to complete four separate narratives for each project or grant
activity requested. These narratives will address statutory competitive
factors: Project description and budget, cost benefit, financial need,
extent to which the grant will benefit the organization's daily
operations, and additional information. The electronic application
process will permit the applicant to enter and save the application
data. The system does not permit the submission of incomplete
applications. Except for the narrative textboxes, the application will
use a ``point-and-click'' selection process or require the entry of
data (e.g., name and address, call volume numbers, etc.) Applicants
will be encouraged to read the ``AFG Funding Opportunity Announcement''
for more details.

National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standards

    Courtesy of the NFPA (and at no cost during the AFG application
period), relevant standards that should be referenced in your
applications may be viewed at http://www.nfpa.org/nfpaafg2013.

Criteria Development Process

    Each year, DHS convenes a panel of fire service professionals, or
subject matter experts (SMEs) to develop the funding priorities and
other implementation criteria for AFG. The Criteria Development Panel
is comprised of representatives from nine major fire service
organizations, who are charged with making recommendations to FEMA
regarding the creation of new funding priorities and the modification
of existing funding priorities as well as developing criteria for
awarding grants. The nine major fire service organizations represented
on the panel are:

 Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI)
 International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI)
 International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC)
 International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF)
 International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI)
 National Association of State Fire Marshals (NASFM)
 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
 National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC)
 North American Fire Training Directors (NAFTD)

    The FY 2013 criteria development panel meeting occurred December
13-14, 2012. The content of the ``FY 2013 AFG Funding Opportunity
Announcement'' reflects the implementation of the Criteria Development
Panel's recommendations with respect to the priorities, direction, and
criteria for awards. All of the funding priorities for the FY 2013 AFG
are designed to address the following:

 Protecting the public
 First responder safety
 Enhancing national capabilities
 Risk
 Interoperability

Changes for FY 2013

    Application Prescores. Each application receives an electronic
prescore that measures how closely the request aligns with the stated
funding priorities. The Criteria Development Panel recommended
adjusting some of the weighted scores to more closely reflect changes
to national standards, firefighter health and safety issues, and other
industry trends. These changes are

minor in nature and do not constitute a material change to the
application.

 FY 2013 AFG Funding Opportunity Announcement

Operations and Safety Program

    (1) New Eligible Applicant--State Fire Training Academies: In
accordance with the AFG statutory reauthorization at 15 U.S.C. 2229,
and in addition to the Criteria Development Group's recommendation,
``State fire training academies'' are now eligible to apply for AFG
funding. State fire training academies (SFTA) are eligible to apply
only for equipment, personal protective equipment, and vehicles.
Furthermore, eligible SFTA applicants must act as the primary grantee;
no subgrantee arrangements are permitted under the terms and conditions
of any AFG Program. Regardless of a State's mechanism(s) for funding
their SFTAs, no AFG award made to a SFTA can be reduced, revised,
redirected, or withheld by the SFTA's State or any authorized entity of
the State. The Criteria Development Panel recommended that SFTA
grantees receive no more than $500,000 per award.
    (2) Changes to Application Questions: Some department
characteristics and demographic questions were added or modified to
capture more pertinent data and allow for more informed reviews of
applications. The purpose is to help ensure that funds are awarded to
the departments with the greatest need of support.
    (3) Availability of Micro Grants (MG): In FY 2013, applicants will
have the option of requesting a micro grant, which is an award for
which the federal share does not exceed $25,000. Only fire departments
and nonaffiliated EMS organizations are eligible to choose MGs, and the
only activities that are eligible MGs are Training, Equipment, PPE,
Wellness and Fitness, and Modification to Facilities. MGs are not an
additional funding opportunity, but MGs applicants may receive
additional consideration for an award. The purpose of the MGs is to
streamline the scoring and review of the MG applications and to
facilitate FEMA's ability to quickly award MG funding.
    (4) New Terms for EMS Providers and New Category: FEMA is
incorporating into the FY 2013 AFG application the changes made to the
titles of EMS providers by the United States Department of
Transportation under the ``National EMS Scope of Practice Model.''
These changes are shown below:
    [ssquf] ``First Responder'' is changed to ``Emergency Medical
Responder.''
    [ssquf] ``EMT-B'' is changed to EMT.
    [ssquf] ``EMT-I'' is changed to ``EMT Advanced.''
    [ssquf] ``EMT-P'' is changed to ``Paramedic.''
    [ssquf] New category of EMS provider--Community Paramedics (EMT-Ps
or paramedics with Primary Care certification).
    (5) Permanent or Fixed Trailers Now Eligible: Mobile trailers that
are used to train firefighters have long been an eligible activity. The
Criteria Development Panel recommended that permanent or fixed trailers
used for training also be eligible for funding provided they can be
installed without any construction costs.
    (6) Face pieces for Firefighter Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus
(SCBA): The replacement of firefighter face pieces for SCBAs was made a
high priority for funding. This change coincides with the introduction
and implementation of the 2013 NFPA standard for Self-Contained
Breathing Apparatus.
    (7) PPE Eligibility. Several minor changes were recommended to
ensure that fire departments and EMS organizations can more easily
obtain PPE grants for members who do not have PPE currently, or have
PPE that does not fit properly, both of which create safety hazards.
    (8) Firefighter personal escape systems: These are now eligible for
funding under the PPE activity.
    (9) Metro Department Definition: For FY 2013, a metro fire
department is defined as one that has a minimum staffing of 350 paid/
career members. NOTE: AFG collects this information for statistical
purposes only; the status of metro department is not a factor in
scoring or funding.

Vehicle Acquisition Program

    (1) In accordance with the AFG statutory reauthorization, and in
addition to the Criteria Development Group's recommendation, ``State
fire training academies'' are eligible to apply for AFG vehicle
funding.
    (2) Of the total AFG funds available for vehicle awards, 10 percent
will be allocated to funding ambulances.
    (3) New Standard for Ambulances: Ambulances requested must meet
NFPA 1917: Standard for Automotive Ambulances, Edition 2013.
    (4) Distribution of Awards by Community. To further ensure the
equitable distribution of vehicle grants funds between community types,
the Criteria Development Panel recommended that funds be awarded evenly
among rural, suburban, and urban community types, to the extend this is
possible.

Joint/Regional Grant Program

    (1) The title of the grant program was changed from ``Regional
Grant Program'' to ``Joint/Regional Grant Program.''
    (2) Both fire department applicants and nonaffiliated EMS
applicants are eligible to apply for vehicle funding and all vehicle
acquisition activities under the Joint/Regional Grant Program.

System for Award Management (SAM)

    In 2012, SAM.gov replaced the Central Contractor Registry (CCR).
Per 2 CFR 25.200, all grant applicants and awardees are required to
register in SAM.gov, which is available free of charge. They must
maintain validated information in SAM that is consistent with the data
provided in their AFG grant application and in the DUNS database. AFG
will not accept any application, process any awards, or consider any
payment or amendment requests, or consider any amendment until the
applicant or grantee has complied with the requirements to provide a
valid DUNS number and an active SAM registration with current
information. The banking information, employer identification number
(EIN), organization/entity name, address, and DUNS number provided in
the application must match the information that provided in SAM.gov.

Excess Funds

    The amount of excess grant funds (funds remaining after all grant-
funded items have been purchased) that grantees may spend without
obtaining AFG program preapproval was raised to $10,000.

Revised Environmental and Historical Review Screening Form

    FEMA's Environmental and Historic Preservation (EHP) Screening Form
was revised and made available for download from the AFG application
portal. AFG-funded projects that involve the installation of equipment
(including but not limited to antennas, sprinklers, alarm systems,
generators, vehicle exhaust systems, air improvement systems, permanent
mounted signs, or renovations to facilities) are subject to FEMA's EHP
screening process.

National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)

    Although NFIRS reporting is strongly encouraged, NFIRS reporting is
not a requirement to apply for or be awarded a grant within any AFG
component program. However, any fire-based organization(s) that
receives an AFG

award must be reporting to NFIRS prior to the beginning of their period
of performance. Any grantee that stops reporting to NFIRS during their
grant's period of performance is subject to having their award(s)
modified or withdrawn.

Changes to Criteria Development Panel Recommendations

    DHS must explain any differences between the published guidelines
and the recommendations made by the criteria development panel and
publish this information in the Federal Register prior to making any
grants under the Program. For FY 2013, DHS accepted and is implementing
all of the Criteria Development Panel's recommendations.

Application Review Process and Considerations

    The governing statute requires that each year DHS publish in the
Federal Register a description of the grant application process and the
criteria for grant awards. This information is provided below.
    DHS will review and evaluate all AFG applications submitted using
the funding priorities and evaluation criteria described in this
document, which are based on recommendations from the AFG Criteria
Development Panel. FEMA will rank all submitted applications based on
how well they match the funding priorities for the type of community
served. Answers to the application's activity-specific questions
provide information used to determine each application's ranking
relative to the stated priorities.

Preliminary Review Process

    DHS will evaluate all applications received first through an
automated preliminary review process to determine which projects best
address the AFG Program's announced funding priorities. The automated
preliminary review will evaluate and score the applicants' answers to
the activity-specific questions in terms of the funding priorities and
the evaluation criteria described in this document.
    The projects that best meet the AFG Program priorities as
determined by the preliminary review will be deemed to be in the
``competitive range'' and will be forwarded for the second level of
application review, which is the peer review process. Once the
competitive range is established, DHS will review the list of
applicants that were not included in the competitive range to determine
if any are responsible for protecting DHS-specified critical
infrastructure or key resources.

Peer Review Process

    All projects that are deemed to be in the competitive range after
the preliminary review process will be subjected to a second level of
review by a technical evaluation panels (TEP) of peer reviewers. The
TEPS are made up of individuals from the fire service, including, but
not limited to, firefighters, fire marshals, and fire training
instructors.
    A panel of at least three peer reviewers will evaluate each project
in the competitive range using the project narratives, along with
answers to the general questions and the activity-specific questions.
Panelists will provide a subjective but qualitative judgment on the
merits of each request. They will review and score projects based on
the following evaluation criteria:

 The proposed project description and budget
 Financial need
 Cost benefits
 The extent to which the grant would enhance daily operations
 How the grant will positively impact the regional ability to
protect life and property
 For joint/regional host applications, the list of all the
participating eligible and ineligible benefitting organizations.
 Evaluation by the peer reviewers relative to the critical
infrastructure the applicant protects within its first-due area of
response
 Critical infrastructure includes systems or key resources
that, if attacked, would result in catastrophic loss of life or
catastrophic economic loss. Examples include the following:
    [cir] Public water
    [cir] Power systems
    [cir] Major business centers
    [cir] Chemical facilities
    [cir] Nuclear power plants
    [cir] Major rail and highway bridges
    [cir] Petroleum and/or natural gas transmission pipelines
    [cir] Storage facilities (such as chemicals)
    [cir] Telecommunications facilities
    [cir] Facilities that support large public gatherings, such as
sporting events or concerts
 Additional information provided by the applicant

    Each project will be judged on its own merits and not compared to
other projects. As part of the cost-benefit review, the panelists will
consider all expenses budgeted, including the individual costs of the
items requested as well as the extraneous costs, such as warranties or
maintenance costs, administrative costs, and/or indirect costs.
Panelists may object to costs that are requested but not fully
explained in the application.
    The panelists will evaluate and score each project individually and
then discuss the merits and shortcomings of each application in an
effort to reconcile any major discrepancies. However, a consensus among
reviewers on the scores is not required. The project's total peer
review score will be an average of the individual peer reviewers'
scores. The projects receiving the highest scores during the peer
review process will be deemed in the fundable range.
    The total peer review score will be combined with the score earned
from the preliminary review, with each score representing 50 percent of
the total project score. Projects will be ranked according to the total
project scores with DHS considering the highest-scoring projects for
awards.

Technical Review Process

    Projects receiving the highest scores then will undergo a technical
review by a subject matter specialist to assess the technical
feasibility of the project and a programmatic review to assess
eligibility and other factors.
    DHS generally makes funding decisions using rank order resulting
from the panel evaluation. However, DHS may deviate from rank order and
make funding decisions based on the type of department (career,
combination, or volunteer) and/or the size and character of the
community the applicant serves (urban, suburban, or rural) to the
extent it is required to satisfy statutory provisions.
    After the completion of the technical reviews, DHS will select a
sufficient number of awardees from this application period to obligate
all of the available grant funding. It will evaluate and act on
applications within 90 days following the close of the application
period. Award announcements will be made on a rolling basis until all
available grant funds have been committed. Awards will not be made in
any specified order, i.e., awards will not be made by State, program,
etc. DHS will notify unsuccessful applicants as soon as it is feasible.

State Strategy and Communications Technical Review

    Each state will provide a SMS to the AFG Program Office to conduct
a Technical Review of Peer reviewed applications from the state's
perspective. This state review will focus on requests for CBRNE
requested equipment and training. This state review will focus on
requests for

communications systems equipment and related training that should
conform to the state's Statewide Communication Interoperability Plan
(SCIP).

Funding Priorities

    The funding priorities described in this Notice have been
recommended by a panel of representatives from the Nation's fire
service leadership and have been accepted by DHS for the purposes of
implementing the AFG. These rating criteria provide an understanding of
the AFG Program's priorities and the expected cost-effectiveness of any
proposed project(s). The activities listed below are in no particular
order of priority.
(1) Operations and Safety Funding Priorities
(i) Training Activities
     Priorities for Fire Departments and Joint/Regional Hosts.
Due to inherent differences among urban, suburban, and rural
firefighting needs, AFG has different priorities for Training for fire
departments and joint/regional applicants that serve different types of
communities, e.g., urban, suburban, or rural. These are described below
and in the ``FY 2013 AFG Funding Opportunity Announcement.''

                             Fire Department and Joint/Regional Training Priorities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Training                              NFPA No.      Urban       Suburban      Rural
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NFPA 1001 (firefighter I, II)...............................         1001            H            H            H
NFPA (instructor)...........................................         1041            H            H            H
NFPA 472 (Hazmat operations)................................          472            H            H            H
NFPA 1581 (infection control)...............................         1581            H            H            H
Confined space (awareness)..................................         1670            H            H            H
Wildland firefighting (basic)...............................         1143            H            H            H
Wildland firefighting certification (red card)..............    1051/1143            H            H            H
Rapid intervention training.................................         1407            H            H            H
NFPA (officer)..............................................         1021            H            H            H
Emergency medical responder.................................         1710            H            H            H
Firefighter safety and survival.............................         1407            H            H            H
Safety officer..............................................         1521            H            H            H
Driver/operator.............................................         1002            H            H            H
Fire prevention.............................................   1/909/913/            H            H            H
                                                                     1035
Fire inspector..............................................         1031            H            H            H
Fire investigator...........................................         1033            H            H            H
Fire educator...............................................         1041            H            H            H
NIMS/ICS....................................................         1561            H            H            H
Firefighter physical ability program........................         1583            H            H            H
Emergency scene rehab.......................................         1584            H            H            H
Critical Incident debriefing................................    1500/1583            H            H            H
Any training to a National/State or NFPA standards..........                         H            H            H
Compliance with federal/state-mandated program..............                         H            H            H
NFPA (rescue technician)....................................    1006/1670            H            H            H
Paramedic...................................................                         H            H            H
Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)..........................                         H            H            H
Vehicle rescue..............................................         1670            H            H            H
Other officer...............................................         1021            H            H            M
NFPA (ARFF).................................................    1003/402/            H            H            M
                                                              403/408/409/
                                                              410/412/414/
                                                                      415
Weapons of Mass Destruction (awareness, other/specialized)..          472            H            H            L
Telecommunications dispatcher (if employed by the fire               1061            H            H            L
 department)................................................
Mass casualty...............................................                         H            H            L
Weapons of Mass Destruction (operations)....................          472            H            H            L
Weapons of Mass Destruction (technician)....................          472            H            H            L
Hazmat (technician).........................................          472            H            H            L
Training to address a local risk............................                         M            M            M
Maritime Firefighting.......................................                         M            M            M
Instructor-led training that does not lead to certification.                         L            L            L
Self-taught courses.........................................                         L            L            L
Training not elevated to a national or state standard.......                         L            L            L
Training that addresses a specific operational capability...                         L            L            L
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Additional Considerations. Factors such as whether multiple
departments will be trained, instructor-led vs. media-led training, and
the number of firefighters to be trained. Large departments with a high
number of active firefighters also will receive additional
consideration.
     Priorities for Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations. Since
training is a prerequisite to the effective use of EMS equipment, FEMA
has determined that it is more cost-effective to enhance or expand an
existing EMS organization by providing training or equipment than it is
to create a new service. Therefore, communities attempting to initiate
EMS services will receive the lowest competitive rating.
    AFG provides training grants to meet the educational and
performance requirements of EMS personnel. Training should align with
the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration (NHTSA), which designs and specifies a National Standard
Curriculum for EMT training and the National Registry of Emergency
Medical Technicians (NREMT), a private, central certifying entity whose
primary purpose is to maintain a national standard (NREMT also provides
certification information for paramedics who relocate to another
state).
    Higher priorities for training are shown below. They are based on
the time and cost of upgrading a nonaffiliated EMS organization's
response level.
    (1) Organizations seeking to elevate the response level from EMT
Advanced (EMT-I) to Paramedic (EMT-P)l
    (2) Organizations seeking to elevate the response level from EMT
(EMT-B) to EMT Advanced (EMT-I); and
    (3) Organizations seeking to train a high percentage of the active
EMR's will receive additional consideration when applying under the
Training Activity.
    Lower training priorities due to the time and cost of upgrading an
organization's response level are
    (1) Organizations seeking to upgrade from Emergency Medical
Responder (First Responder) to EMT (EMT-B); and
    (2) Organizations seeking to upgrade from EMT (EMT-B) to Paramedic
(EMT-P).
    (3) The lowest priority for EMS training is to fund Emergency
Medical Responder (First Responders).
    (4) Organizations seeking training in rescue or Hazmat operations
will receive lower consideration than organizations seeking training
for medical services.
(ii.) Equipment Acquisition
     Fire Departments, Joint/Regional Hosts, SFTAs, and
Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations. Grants are available for equipment to
enhance the safety and effectiveness of firefighting, rescue, and fire-
based and nonaffiliated EMS emergency medical functions. Equipment
requested must meet all mandatory requirements, as well as any
voluntary consensus standards or national and/or state or DHS-Adopted
Standards. The equipment requested should improve the health and safety
of firefighters and protect the public.
Priority Equipment Types
    (1) Priority 1--Basic, communications, EMS/rescue. The only
eligible AFG acquisition activity for interoperable communications
equipment is the purchase of P25-compliant equipment. Grantees
purchasing P25 equipment must obtain documented evidence from the
manufacturer that the equipment has been tested and passed the entire
applicable, published, normative P25 Compliance assessment test
procedures for performance, conformance, and equipment requested,
particularly decontamination and interoperability.
    (2) Priority 2--Hazmat, Specialized. Hazmat equipment will only be
funded to the current level of an organization's operational
capabilities.
    (3) Priority 3--Investigations, CBRNE.
    Additional Considerations for Equipment: Fire Departments, Joint/
Regional Hosts, and SFTAs. Additional consideration may be given to
equipment requests based on the following factors:

[ssquf] Equipment that has a direct effect on firefighters' health and
safety
[ssquf] Age of equipment that will be considered for replacement has
changed from 10 to 15 years
[ssquf] Equipment that benefits other jurisdictions
    [ssquf] Equipment that brings the department into compliance with a
national recommended standard, (e.g., NFPA) or statutory compliance
(e.g., Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA)) will receive
the highest additional consideration.

  Equipment Request Priorities--Fire Departments, Joint/Regional Hosts,
                                and SFTAs
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                        Reason for request
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  First-time purchase (never owned by
                                applicant) to support existing mission
                                and/or replace obsolete, broken/
                                inoperable equipment.
M............................  Increased capabilities within the
                                department's existing mission or to meet
                                a new risk.
L............................  Requesting items for a new mission to
                                meet an existing risk and/or request
                                additional supplies or reserve
                                equipment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Funding Priorities for Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations.
Nonaffiliated EMS organizations are eligible for Equipment Activities
that are not specific or unique to structural/proximity firefighting,
such as but not limited to P25 radios or traffic signal preemption
systems. All of the factors in the table below are considerations in
prescoring and panelist review.
    Additional Considerations for Equipment--Nonaffiliated EMS. All of
the following are considerations in prescoring and panelist review of
equipment requests from nonaffiliated EMS organizations.

      Equipment Request Priorities--Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                        Reason for request
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  Departments requesting to upgrade service
                                from Basic Life Support (BLS) to
                                Advanced Life Support (ALS).
M............................  Departments requesting to expand current
                                service.
L............................  Departments requesting new service or
                                replacing used or obsolete equipment.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

                  Priorities for EMS Levels of Response
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                            EMS level
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  Advanced Life Support (ALS).
H............................  Basic Life Support (BLS).
L............................  Hazmat operations/technicians.
L............................  Rescue operations/technicians.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

(iii.) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Acquisition
    AFG Funds are primarily used to acquire OSHA-required and NFPA-
compliant PPE for firefighting and EMS personnel of fire departments,
joint/regional hosts, nonaffiliated EMS organizations, and State fire
training academies. Equipment requested should have the goal of
increasing firefighter safety. When requesting to replace old or
obsolete equipment, applicants will be asked to provide the age of the
equipment being replaced. In order for SCBA/PPE to be considered
obsolete, it must be a minimum of two NFPA cycles or 10 years of age or
older.
    Information on the relevant NFPA standards can be obtained from the
organization's Web site at www.NFPA.org/nfpaafg.2013. If requesting
training for any items in this section, please list it in the Other
section under Additional Funding for each item for which training is
needed.
     Funding Priorities for Fire Departments, Joint/Regional
Hosts, and SFTAs. The highest priorities for funding will be requests
from departments to buy new PPE for the first time, to replace or
update obsolete PPE to the current standard, and to replace torn,
tattered, or damaged PPE. (Obsolete is defined as any PPE that is 10
years or older or is outdated by two NFPA cycles.) The medium priority
for funding will be requests to replace contaminated PPE or to address
a new risk. A low priority for funding will be requests to replace new
or used PPE, replace worn but usable PPE that is not compliant to the
current edition of the NFPA standard, to meet a new mission, or to
increase current inventory. The table below shows the priorities for
PPE requests that will be considered during prescoring and peer
panelist reviews.

Priorities for PPE Requests From Fire Departments, Joint/Regional Hosts,
                                and SFTA
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                      Reason for PPE request
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................   Departments requesting new PPE
                                for the first time.
                                Replacing torn, damaged, or
                                obsolete PPE to the current standard.
                                Personal Safety/Rescue Bailout
                                Systems.
                                Members without gear (Member
                                can't be outfitted from current
                                inventory).
M............................   Requesting PPE for a new risk.
L............................   Worn but usable PPE that is not
                                compliant to the current edition of the
                                NFPA standard, and/or to handle a new
                                mission or increase current inventory.
                                Used PPE.
                                Replacing New PPE.
                                New Mission.
                                Increase Supplies.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Funding Priorities for Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations.
Nonaffiliated EMS organizations are eligible for PPE activities that
are not specific or unique to structural/proximity firefighting, such,
as but not limited to, ``NFPA1999: Standard on Protective Clothing for
Emergency Medical Operations,'' or ``NFPA 1981: Standard on Open-
Circuit Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) for Emergency
Services.''

    Priorities for PPE Requests From Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations
[Training on Use of Requested Equipment: Applicants must indicate grant-
   purchased equipment will be operated by sufficiently trained staff.
    Failure to meet this requirement will result in ineligibility for
                                funding]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                      Reason for PPE request
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................   Departments requesting new PPE
                                for the first time.
                                Replacing torn, damaged, or
                                obsolete PPE to the current standard.
                                Personal Safety/Rescue Bailout
                                Systems.
                                Members without gear (Member
                                can't be outfitted from current
                                inventory).
M............................   Requesting PPE for a new risk.
L............................   Worn but usable PPE that is not
                                compliant to the current edition of the
                                NFPA standard and/or to handle a new
                                mission, or increase current inventory.
                                Replace new PPE.
                                New mission.
                                Increase supply.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Self-contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) Priorities.
Awards for all SCBAs will be based on number of seated riding positions
in the department's or organization's vehicle fleet and the age of
existing SCBAs, limited to one spare cylinder (unless justified
otherwise in the Request Details narrative for the PPE activity). New
SCBAs must have automatic-on or integrated Personal Alert Safety System
(PASS) devices and be CBRNE-compliant to the current edition of the
NFPA 1981 standard. Applicants will be required to provide the age of
the PPE being replaced. All requests must be justified in the Request
Details narrative for the PPE activity.

 Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) Priorities for Requests From
  Fire Departments, Joint/Regional Hosts, SFTAs, and Nonaffiliated EMS
                              Organizations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                         Items requested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  Replacing SCBA compliant with NFPA 1981,
                                pre-2002 Edition.
M............................  Replacing SCBA compliant with NFPA 1981,
                                2007 Edition (must be justified in the
                                PPE Narrative).

L............................  Replacing SCBA compliant with NFPA 1981,
                                2012 Edition (must be justified in the
                                PPE Narrative).
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Additional Considerations for PPE Requests: Fire Departments, Joint/
Regional Hosts/SFTAs
     Obsolete is defined as any SCBA/PPE that is 10 years or
older or two NFPA cycles.
     Applicants with the oldest PPE and/or trying to bring the
department into 100 percent NFPA compliance, or the number of
firefighters who will have compliant gear.
Additional Considerations for PPE Requests: Nonaffiliated EMS
Organizations
 Percent of firefighters/EMS personnel served
 Age of equipment
 Obsolete equipment--defined as any SCBA/PPE that is 10 years
or older, or two NFPA cycles.
(iv.) Wellness and Fitness Activities
    Only fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations are
eligible to apply for grants for Wellness and Fitness Activities.
Wellness and Fitness Activities are intended to strengthen first
responders so their mental, physical, and emotional capabilities are
resilient to withstand the demands of emergency services response. To
be eligible for FY 2013 AFG funding in this activity, fire departments
and nonaffiliated EMS organizations must offer, or plan to offer, all
four of the following:

(1) Periodic health screenings
(2) Entry physical examinations
(3) Immunizations
(4) Behavioral health programs

     Funding Priorities. Applicants must have all four Priority
1 Activities already in place (or request funding for any missing
Priority 1 Activities), or they will be unable to request funding for
any Priority 2 Activities.
    Priority 1: Below are the four activities required to offer a
complete Wellness and Fitness Program:

(1) Initial medical exams
(2) Job-related immunization
(3) Annual medical and fitness evaluation
(4) Behavioral health

    Priority 2: You may only apply for Priority 2 items if you offer or
are requesting a combination of the four activities required under
Priority 1. Departments that have some of the Priority 1 programs in
place must apply for funds to implement the missing Priority 1 programs
before applying for funds for any additional program or equipment. In
addition, funded medical exams must meet current NFPA 1582, as required
by DHS Standards.

 Simultaneous requests for Priority 1 and Priority 2 activities
will receive a lower funding consideration than requests that complete
the bundle of the four (4) Priority 1 Activities.
 Candidate physical ability evaluation
 Formal fitness and injury prevention program/equipment
 Injury/illness rehabilitation
 IAFF or IAFC peer fitness trainer program(s)
(v.) Modifications to Facilities
    Only fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations are
eligible to apply for Modifications to Facilities grants. FY 2013 AFG
Grants may be used to modify and retrofit existing fire stations and
other facilities or structures built before 2003. Eligible projects
under this activity must have a direct effect on the health and safety
of firefighters. New fire station construction is not eligible for
funding. To be eligible, the modification must not change the structure
footprint or profile. If requesting multiple items in this activity,
total funding for all project and activities cannot exceed $100,000 per
fire station.
    FEMA is legally required to consider the potential impacts of all
grant-funded projects on environmental resources and historic
properties through an environmental and historic preservation (EHP)
review. Any project with the potential to impact natural resources or
historic properties cannot be initiated until FEMA has completed the
required FEMA EHP review. Grantees that implement projects before
receiving EHP approval from FEMA risk having grant funds deobligated.
Modification projects that must undergo EHP reviews include but are not
limited to the installation of equipment; ground-disturbing activities,
such as building a concrete pad for a station generator; communications
tower installations, or the modification or renovation of existing
buildings and structures. Any project not specifically excluded from a
FEMA EHP review must undergo such a review, per the Grant Programs
Directorate's (GPD) Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA). For
more information, see GPD Information Bulletin No. 345. Grantees must
comply with all applicable EHP laws, regulations, and Executive Orders
(EOs) to draw down their FY 2013 AFG funds.
     Funding Priorities. Highest priority for funding will be
requests to install modifications such as sole/at source capture
exhaust systems (SSCES), sprinkler systems, or smoke/fire alarm
notification systems in stations, including maritime and air operations
facilities, that are occupied 24/7 and offer sleeping quarters. An
SSCES is a system where exhaust gases from a vehicle are captured via a
conduit that attaches to/over the end of the vehicle's exhaust system
at the tailpipe. The captured exhaust gases are expelled through the
attached conduit via mechanical/pneumatic means to the exterior of the
building. Medium priority will be given to requests for air quality
systems and/or emergency generators from departments that may or may
not offer sleeping quarters. Low priority will be given to requests to
modify facilities that are not occupied 24/7 and do not offer sleeping
quarters, and for training facilities.
    All of the following information is considered during prescoring
and panelist review:

                 Modifications to Facilities Priorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                         Requested items
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  Sole/at source capture exhaust systems
                                (SSCES), sprinkler systems, or smoke/
                                fire alarm notification systems
                                requested by stations with sleeping
                                quarters, including maritime/air
                                operations facilities, that are occupied
                                24/7.
M............................  Air quality systems and/or emergency
                                generators, requested by organizations
                                with or without sleeping quarters.

L............................  Items from the High or Medium priority
                                list (above) requested by organizations
                                whose facilities are not occupied 24/7
                                and do not have sleeping quarters; also
                                training facilities and air quality
                                systems (AQS).
------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Priorities by Level of Facility Occupancy:

H Full-time (24/7)
M Daily (part-time or selected coverage; not on a regular basis)
L Occasionally (no schedule coverage; volunteers respond to the
station.)

    Additional Considerations will be given for the age of the
building, with older facilities receiving higher priority. If
requesting multiple items in this activity, funding cannot exceed a
maximum of $100,000 per station.
    (2) Joint/Regional Host Organizations. Only fire departments and
nonaffiliated EMS organizations are eligible to apply for Joint/
Regional Host grants. The ``host'' organization submits the Joint/
Regional application in its own name and on behalf of itself and at
least one (1) other identified and AFG eligible participating entity.
To apply for a regional project, the host organization must agree, if
awarded, to be responsible for all aspects of the grant. This includes,
but is not limited to, accountability for the assets and all reporting
requirements in the regional application; the host will be required to
describe the characteristics of the entire region that will be affected
by the project(s). The host organization never functions as a pass-
through organization and the participating partners are never
subgrantees; the host only distributes grant-funded assets or
contracted services and never distributes grant funds to participating
organizations.
    Joint/Regional Host applicants have restricted acquisition
activities under Operations and Safety--they may only apply for
Training, Equipment, and PPE. Beginning in FY2013, Joint/Regional
applicants also may request all activities in the Vehicle Acquisition
Program.
    A Joint/Regional Applicant (the host organization) is not prevented
from also submitting an application on behalf of their own organization
for any of the AFG component programs (Vehicle Acquisition and/or
Operations and Safety); however, duplicative requests are not allowed.
(3) Vehicles Acquisition Program
    Not more than 25 percent of available grant funds may be used for
the purchase of vehicles. Of the 25 percent set aside for vehicle
funding, 10 percent will be dedicated to fund ambulances. The
allocation of vehicle funding will be distributed as equally as
possible among urban, suburban, and rural community applicants. The
remaining Vehicle Acquisition funds will be awarded competitively
without regard to community classification.
    In FY 2013, fire departments, joint/regional hosts, nonaffiliated
EMS organizations, and SFTAs may apply for more than one vehicle.
Requests cannot exceed the financial cap based on population listed in
the application. If a department submits multiple types of
applications, and more than one of those requests are approved, the
department will be held to the same financial cap based on the
population listed in the application.
(i) Compliance With Standards
     New vehicles purchased with AFG Funds must be compliant
with NFPA 1901 (``Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus) or NFPA 1906
(Standard for Wildland Fire Apparatus'') for the year ordered/
manufactured.
     Used fire apparatus must be compliant with NFPA 1901 or
1906 standards for the year the vehicle was manufactured.
     Ambulances must meet ``NFPA 1917: Standard for Automotive
Ambulances, Edition 2013.''
     Applicants must certify that unsafe vehicles will be
permanently removed from service if awarded a grant. Acceptable uses of
unsafe vehicles include farm, nursery, scrap metal, salvage,
construction, etc.
     Refurbished vehicles must meet current NFPA 1912
standards.
     Funds may be used to refurbish a vehicle the department
currently owns, but it will be eligible only if the vehicle was
designed originally for firefighting. Refurbished vehicles must meet
current NFPA 1912 standards.
    When requesting more than one vehicle, the applicant will be asked
to fill out a separate line item and answer all the questions including
a separate Narrative for each vehicle. For example, if requesting to
replace three ambulances, the applicant must fill out the age and
vehicle identification number (VIN) of each vehicle being replaced. The
same VIN cannot be used in each line item.
    Applicants may request funding for a driver training program in the
Vehicle Acquisition section but must add the request in the Additional
Funding area in the Request Details section of the application. Driver
training program(s) must be in place prior to the delivery of the
vehicle. Applicants requesting vehicles that do not have drivers/
operators trained to NFPA 1002 or equivalent, and are not planning to
have a training program in place by the time the vehicle is delivered,
will not receive a vehicle award.
(ii) Vehicle Funding Priorities
    Inherent differences exist between urban, suburban, and rural
firefighting conventions. For this reason, DHS has developed different
priorities in Vehicle Acquisition for departments that serve different
types of communities. The U.S. Census Bureau's urban--rural
classifications are fundamentally a delineation of geographical areas.
The FY2013 demographics for determining urban, suburban, and rural are
shown in the table below.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Factors                          Urban                   Suburban                  Rural
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Population Size......................  >3,000/sq. mi. or        1,000-2,999/sq. mi. or   0-999/sq. mi. or
                                        50,000+ population.      25,000-50,000            <25,000 population.
                                                                 population.
Water Supply.........................  75-100% hydrants         50-74% hydrants........  <50% hydrant.
                                        (municipal water).
Land Use.............................  <25% for agriculture     25-49% used for          50% used for
                                        (based on zoning)        agriculture (based on    agriculture (based on
                                        industrial and           zoning) industrial and   zoning) industrial and
                                        commercial combined      commercial combined      commercial combined
                                        >50%.                    >25-49%.                 <25%.

Number of Stations per square mile...  <3 sq. mi. per station.  3-9 sq. mi. per station  >10 sq. mi. per
                                                                                station.
Number of Occupancies................  >100...................  11-100.................  0-10.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Fire Department, Joint/Regional, and SFTA Priorities. Fire
departments, joint/regional applicants, and SFTAs are eligible to
request funding for the Vehicle Acquisition activities and funding
priorities shown below, but they are not limited to these Vehicle
activities. The funding priorities for firefighting vehicles--High (H),
Medium (M), or Low (L)--are organized by community type. Within each
separate funding priority, the vehicles listed have equal value. The
chart below delineates the priorities for firefighting vehicles for
each type of community.

                Vehicle Acquisition Priorities--Fire Departments, Joint/Regional Hosts, and SFTAs
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Priority                   Urban communities       Suburban communities      Rural communities
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
H....................................   Pumper........   Pumper........   Pumper.
                                        Ambulance.....   Ambulance.....   Ambulance.
                                        Aerial........   Aerial........   Brush-Attack.
                                        Rescue........   Tanker-Tender.   Tanker-Tender.
                                                                 Rescue........   Aerial.
M....................................   Command.......   Hazmat Command   Command.
                                        Hazmat........   Light/Air Unit   Hazmat.
                                        Light/Air Unit   Brush-Attack..   Rescue.
                                        Rehab.........   Rehab Unit....   Light/Air
                                                                                Unit.
L....................................   Aircraft         ARFF..........   Foam Truck.
                                        Rescue and
                                        Firefighting Vehicle
                                        (ARFF).
                                        Brush-Attack..   Foam Truck....   Highway Safety
                                                                                Unit.
                                        Foam Truck....   Highway Safety   ARFF.
                                                                 Unit.
                                        Fire Boat.....   Fire Boat.....   Rehab.
                                        Tanker-Tender.  .......................   Fire Boat.
                                        Highway Safety
                                        Unit.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Nonaffiliated EMS Organizations Vehicle Priorities. They
are eligible for Vehicle Acquisition Activities that are not specific
or unique to structural/proximity firefighting.

               EMS Vehicle Acquisition Program Priorities
------------------------------------------------------------------------
           Priority                           Vehicle type
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H............................  Ambulances or transport units to support
                                EMS functions (capped at $150,000).
M............................  Non-transport (vehicles that do not
                                transport a patient).
------------------------------------------------------------------------

(iii) Additional Considerations
 Automatic aid agreements, mutual aid agreements, or both
 Replacement of vehicles with open cab/jump seat configurations
 Age of the vehicle being replaced; older equipment receive
higher consideration
 Age of the newest vehicle in the department's fleet that is
similar to the vehicle to be replaced
 Average age of the fleet; older equipment within the same
class
 Converted vehicles not designed or intended for use in the
fire service
(4) Administrative Costs
    Panelists will assess the administrative costs requested in each
application and determine whether the request is reasonable and in the
best interest of the Program.

    Dated: October 24, 2013.
W. Craig Fugate,
Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency.
[FR Doc. 2013-26024 Filed 10-31-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-78-P


[Federal Register: November 23, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 224)]
[Notices]
[Page 61202-61203]
[DOCID:fr23no09-111]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

Agency Information Collection Activity Seeking OMB Approval

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The FAA invites public comments about our intention to request
the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) revision of a current
information collection. The Federal Register Notice with a 60-day
comment period soliciting comments on the following collection of
information was published on September 8, 2009, vol. 74, no. 172, page
46292. FOQA is a voluntary program for the routine collection and
analysis of digital flight data from airplane operations.

DATES: Please submit comments by December 23, 2009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carla Mauney at<EMAIL_ADDRESS>
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

    Title: Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) Program.
    Type of Request: Extension without change of a currently approved
collection.
    OMB Control Number: 2 120-0660. Forms(s) There are no FAA forms
associated with this collection.
    Affected Public: An estimated 30 Respondents.
    Frequency: This information is collected on occasion.
    Estimated Average Burden Per Response: Approximately 1 hour per
response.
    Estimated Annual Burden Hours: An estimated 360 hours annually.
    Abstract: FOQA is a voluntary program for the routine collection
and analysis of digital flight data from airplane operations. The
purpose is to enable early corrective action for potential threats to
safety. 14 CFR 13.401 codifies protection from punitive enforcement
action based on FOQA information and requires operators with FAA
approved FOQA programs to provide aggregate FOQA data to the FAA.
Aggregate FOQA information

provided to the FAA is protected from public release tinder 14 CFR part
193.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on
the proposed information collection to the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget. Comments should be
addressed to the attention of the Desk Officer, Department of
Transportation/FAA, and sent via electronic mail to oira_
<EMAIL_ADDRESS>or faxed to<PHONE_NUMBER>, or mailed to the
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington,
DC 20503.
    Comments are invited on: Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the Department, including whether the information will have practical
utility; the accuracy of the Department's estimates of the burden of
the proposed information collection, ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents,
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on November 16, 2009.
Carla Mauney,
FAA Information Collection Clearance Officer, IT Enterprises Business
Services Division, AES-200.
[FR Doc. E9-27942 Filed 11-20-09; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910-13-M


[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 96 (Tuesday, May 19, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28735-28737]
[FR Doc No: 2015-12062]

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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-74947; File No. SR-NYSEArca-2015-39]

Self-Regulatory Organizations; NYSE Arca, Inc.; Notice of Filing
and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change Amending the NYSE
Arca Equities Schedule of Fees and Charges for Exchange Services To
Reduce Fees for Routing Certain Retail Orders to Away Market Centers

May 13, 2015.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) \1\ of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (the ``Act'') \2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\3\ notice is hereby
given that, on April 30, 2015, NYSE Arca, Inc. (the ``Exchange'' or
``NYSE Arca'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II,
and III below, which Items have been prepared by the self-regulatory
organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit
comments on the proposed rule change from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 15 U.S.C. 78a.
    \3\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change

    The Exchange proposes to amend the NYSE Arca Equities Schedule of
Fees and Charges for Exchange Services (``Fee Schedule'') to reduce
fees for routing certain retail orders to away market centers. The
Exchange proposes to implement the changes on May 1, 2015. The text of
the proposed rule change is available on the Exchange's Web site at
www.nyse.com, at the principal office of the Exchange, and at the
Commission's Public Reference Room.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the self-regulatory organization
included statements concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the
proposed rule change and discussed any comments it received on the
proposed rule change. The text of those statements may be examined at
the places specified in Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared
summaries, set forth in sections A, B, and C below, of the most
significant parts of such statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and the
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange proposes to amend the Fee Schedule to reduce fees for
routing certain retail orders to away market centers. The Exchange
proposes to implement the changes on May 1, 2015.
    The Exchange currently charges $0.0029 per share for all orders in
Tape A Securities that are routed outside the Book to the NYSE; and
$0.0035 per share for all orders in Tape B Securities and Tape C
Securities that are routed outside the Book to any away market center.
    The Exchange proposes to reduce the fees for certain orders, i.e.,
for Primary Until 9:45 Orders \4\ and Primary After

3:55 Orders \5\ that are designated as retail orders and meet the
requirements of Rule 7.44(a)(3), but which are not executed in the
Retail Liquidity Program \6\ (``Retail Orders''). Under Rule
7.44(a)(3), a Retail Order is an agency order or a riskless principal
order that meets the criteria of Financial Industry Regulatory
Authority, Inc. Rule 5320.03 that originates from a natural person and
is submitted to the Exchange by a Retail Member Organization
(``RMO''),\7\ provided that no change is made to the terms of the order
with respect to price or side of market and the order does not
originate from a trading algorithm or any other computerized
methodology. An ETP Holder may designate an order a Retail Order either
(1) by designating certain order entry ports at the Exchange as
``Retail Order Ports'' and attesting, in a form and/or manner
prescribed by the Exchange, that all orders submitted to the Exchange
via such Retail Order Ports are Retail Orders; or (2) by means of a
specific tag in the order entry message.\8\
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    \4\ A Primary Until 9:45 Order is an Order entered for
participation on the primary market until 9:45 a.m. Eastern Time
(6:45 a.m. Pacific Time) after which time the order is cancelled on
the primary market and entered on the NYSE Arca Book. The Primary
Until 9:45 Order may be Day only and may not be designated as GTC or
GTD. Orders that return to the NYSE Arca Book after routing to the
primary market retain their original order attributes. See NYSE Arca
Equities Rule 7.31(f)(2).
    \5\ A Primary After 3:55 Order is an Order entered for
participation on the Exchange until 3:55 p.m. Eastern Time (12:55
p.m. Pacific Time) after which time the order is cancelled on the
Exchange and an order is entered for participation on the primary
market. The Primary After 3:55 Order may be Day only and may not be
designated as GTC or GTD. Orders that route to the primary market at
3:55 p.m. Eastern Time retain their original order attributes. See
NYSE Arca Equities Rule 7.31(f)(2) [sic].
    \6\ The Retail Liquidity Program is a pilot program designed to
attract additional retail order flow to the Exchange for NYSE Arca-
listed securities and securities traded pursuant to unlisted trading
privileges (``UTP Securities'') while also providing the potential
for price improvement to such order flow. See Rule 7.44. See
Securities Exchange Act Release No. 71176 (December 23, 2013), 78 FR
79524 (December 30, 2013) (SR-NYSEArca-2013-107).
    \7\ ``RMO'' is defined in Rule 7.44(a)(2) as an ETP Holder that
is approved by the Exchange to submit Retail Orders. However, an
order designated as a Retail Order of an RMO for purposes of the
Retail Liquidity Program is separate from the designation of an
order as a Retail Order for purposes of existing pricing tiers in
the Fee Schedule. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 71722
(March 13, 2014), 78 [sic] FR 15376 (March 19, 2014) (SR-NYSEArca-
2014-22) (``Arca Retail Approval Order'' [sic]). The proposed rule
change solely concerns Retail Orders outside the Retail Liquidity
Program that are currently defined in the Fee Schedule as ``Retail
Orders''.
    \8\ See, e.g., Securities Exchange Act Release No. 68322
(November 29, 2012), 77 FR 72425 (December 5, 2012) (SR-NYSEArca-
2012-129). ETP Holders designating orders as Retail Orders by using
a tag in the order entry message are required to have written
policies and procedures reasonably designed to assure that it only
designates orders as Retail Orders if all requirements of a Retail
Order are met. The written policies and procedures require the ETP
Holder to (i) exercise due diligence before entering a Retail Order
to assure that entry as a Retail Order is in compliance with the
requirements specified by the Exchange, and (ii) monitor whether
orders entered as Retail Orders meet the applicable requirements. If
the ETP Holder represents Retail Orders from another broker-dealer
customer, the ETP Holder's supervisory procedures must be reasonably
designed to assure that the orders it receives from such broker-
dealer customer that it designates as Retail Orders meets the
definition of a Retail Order.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Specifically, the Exchange proposes to charge a fee of $0.0010 per
share for all Primary Until 9:45 Orders and Primary After 3:55 Orders
that are designated as Retail Orders and that are routed to the primary
listing market. The Exchange proposes to include this fee in three
places in the Basic Rates section of the Fee Schedule for each of Tape
A, Tape B, and Tape C securities by adding text following the existing
rate for routing orders that provides ``except that Primary Until 9:45
Orders and Primary After 3:55 Orders that are designated as Retail
Orders and routed to the primary listing market will be charged $0.0010
per share (fee).''
    The proposed changes are not otherwise intended to address any
other issues, and the Exchange is not aware of any problems that ETP
Holders would have in complying with the proposed changes.
2. Statutory Basis
    The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with Section 6(b) of the Act,\9\ in general, and furthers the
objectives of Sections 6(b)(4) and (5) of the Act,\10\ in particular,
because it provides for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues,
fees, and other charges among its members, issuers and other persons
using its facilities and does not unfairly discriminate between
customers, issuers, brokers or dealers.
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    \9\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
    \10\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4) and (5).
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    The Exchange believes that the proposed fee changes are reasonable
as they are designed to attract additional retail order flow to the
Exchange that include an instruction to route to the primary listing
market at designated times. In addition, the proposed fees are
equitable and not unfairly discriminatory because they will apply
uniformly to all similarly situated ETP Holders.
    The Exchange notes that a significant percentage of the orders of
individual investors are executed over-the-counter.\11\ While the
Exchange believes that markets and price discovery optimally function
through the interactions of diverse flow types, it also believes that
growth in internalization has required differentiation of retail order
flow from other order flow types. The proposed new fee is set at a
level to incentivize ETP Holders to continue to direct a subset of
Retail Orders to the Exchange, rather than to an over-the-counter
market. The Exchange believes that, because Retail Orders are likely to
reflect long-term investment intentions, they promote price discovery
and dampen volatility. Accordingly, the presence of Retail Orders on
the Exchange, or if routed, on the primary listing market for those
securities, has the potential to benefit all market participants. For
this reason, the Exchange believes that the proposed pricing is
equitable and not unfairly discriminatory and would continue to
encourage greater retail participation on the Exchange and other
registered exchanges.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\See Concept Release on Equity Market Structure, Securities
Exchange Act Release No. 61358 (January 14, 2010), 75 FR 3594
(January 21, 2010) (``Concept Release'') (noting that dark pools and
internalizing broker-dealers executed approximately 25.4% of share
volume in September 2009). See also Mary Jo White, Focusing on
Fundamentals: The Path to Address Equity Market Structure (Speech at
the Security Traders Association 80th Annual Market Structure
Conference, Oct. 2, 2013) (available on the Commission's Web site)
(``White Speech''); Mary L. Schapiro, Strengthening Our Equity
Market Structure (Speech at the Economic Club of New York, Sept. 7,
2010) (available on the Commission's Web site) (``Schapiro
Speech''). In her speech, Chair White noted a steadily increasing
percentage of trading that occurs in ``dark'' venues, which appear
to execute more than half of the orders of long-term investors.
Similarly, in her speech, only three years earlier, Chair Schapiro
noted that nearly 30 percent of volume in U.S.-listed equities was
executed in venues that do not display their liquidity or make it
generally available to the public and the percentage was increasing
nearly every month.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The pricing proposed herein is not designed to permit unfair
discrimination, but instead to promote a competitive process around
retail executions such that retail investors would receive better
prices. The proposed change is also equitable and not unfairly
discriminatory because it would contribute to investors' confidence in
the fairness of their transactions and because it would benefit all
investors by deepening the Exchange's liquidity pool, supporting the
quality of price discovery, promoting market transparency and improving
investor protection.
    Finally, the Exchange believes that it is subject to significant
competitive forces, as described below in the Exchange's statement
regarding the burden on competition. For these reasons, the Exchange
believes that the proposal is consistent with the Act.

B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    In accordance with Section 6(b)(8) of the Act,\12\ the Exchange
believes that the proposed rule change would not impose any burden on
competition that is not necessary or appropriate in furtherance of the
purposes of the Act. Instead, the Exchange believes that the proposed
fees would increase competition for retail order flow among execution
venues and encourage additional execution opportunities on the Exchange
and other registered exchanges. The Exchange believes the proposed fee
change also would not impose any burden on competition among market
participants. To the contrary, because Primary Until 9:45 Orders and
Primary After 3:55 Orders are designed to route to the primary listing
market during designated times, the Exchange believes that the proposed
fee would promote inter-exchange competition by proving an incentive
for ETP Holders to route such orders to the Exchange, which would also
benefit the primary listing markets that would receive the orders when
routed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(8).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Exchange notes that it operates in a highly competitive market
in which market participants can readily favor competing venues. In
such an environment, the Exchange must continually review, and consider
adjusting, its fees and credits to remain competitive with other
exchanges. For the reasons described above, the Exchange believes that
the proposed rule change promotes a competitive environment.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    No written comments were solicited or received with respect to the
proposed rule change.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action

    The foregoing rule change is effective upon filing pursuant to
Section 19(b)(3)(A) \13\ of the Act and subparagraph (f)(2) of Rule
19b-4 \14\ thereunder, because it establishes a due, fee, or other
charge imposed by the Exchange.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \13\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \14\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(2).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    At any time within 60 days of the filing of such proposed rule
change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend such rule
change if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary or
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors, or
otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act. If the Commission
takes such action, the Commission shall institute proceedings under
Section 19(b)(2)(B) \15\ of the Act to determine whether the proposed
rule change should be approved or disapproved.
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    \15\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(2)(B).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. Comments may be submitted by any of
the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an email to<EMAIL_ADDRESS>Please include
File Number SR-NYSEArca-2015-39 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Robert W. Errett,
Deputy Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSEArca-2015-39. This
file number should be included on the subject line if email is used. To
help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently,
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on
the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for Web site viewing and
printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of
10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Copies of the filing will also be available
for inspection and copying at the principal office of the Exchange. All
comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does
not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-NYSEArca-2015-39 and should
be submitted on or before June 9, 2015.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets,
pursuant to delegated authority.\16\
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    \16\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
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Robert W. Errett,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-12062 Filed 5-18-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8011-01-P


[Federal Register: October 12, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 196)]
[Notices]
[Page 62530]
[DOCID:fr12oc10-62]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. EG10-48-000; EG10-51-000; EG10-52-000; EG10-53-000; EG10-
54-000; EG10-55-000; EG10-56-000]

Eagle Creek Hydro Power, LLC; Laredo Ridge Wind, LLC; RRI Energy
West, Inc.; Goshen Phase II LLC; Solar Partners I, LLC; Solar Partners
II, LLC; Solar Partners VIII, LLC; Notice of Effectiveness of Exempt
Wholesale Generator Status

October 1, 2010.
    Take notice that during the month of September 2010, the status of
the above-captioned entities as Exempt Wholesale Generators became
effective by operation of the Commission's regulations. 18 CFR
366.7(a).

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-25509 Filed 10-8-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P