Title: United States Fire Administration, AFG, and SAFER Program Reauthorization Act of 2017
Policy area: Emergency Management

Summary:
United States Fire Administration, AFG, and SAFER Program Reauthorization Act of 2017
This bill amends the the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to: (1) reauthorize through FY2024 the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Program, the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants (FPSG) Program, and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant (SAFER) Program, and reauthorizes provisions regarding firefighting technology evaluation and standards development; and (2) authorize the use of AFG Program grants, instead of SAFER Program grants, to provide specialized training to first responders on how to recognize and properly intervene with individuals with mental illness.
The SAFER Program is revised to permit the use of grants to change the status of part-time or paid-on-call firefighters to full-time firefighters.
The United States Fire Administration (USFA) may develop and make widely available an electronic, online training course for members of the fire and emergency response community on matters related to the administration of AFG, FPSG, and SAFER grants. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) shall ensure that any such training is: (1) tailored to the financial and time constraints of members of the fire and emergency response community; and (2) accessible to all individuals in the career, combination, paid-on-call, and volunteer fire and emergency response community.
The USFA shall develop and implement a grant monitoring and oversight framework to mitigate and minimize risks of fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement relating to such grants programs.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4661 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4661

To reauthorize the United States Fire Administration, the Assistance to 
  Firefighters Grants program, the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants 
  program, and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response 
                 grant program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 15, 2017

Mrs. Comstock introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
              Committee on Science, Space, and Technology

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To reauthorize the United States Fire Administration, the Assistance to 
  Firefighters Grants program, the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants 
  program, and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response 
                 grant program, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``United States Fire Administration, 
AFG, and SAFER Program Reauthorization Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE UNITED STATES FIRE ADMINISTRATION.

    Section 17(g)(1)(M) of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act 
of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2216 (g)(1)(M)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``fiscal year 2017'' and inserting ``for 
        each of fiscal years 2017 through 2023''; and
            (2) by inserting ``for each such fiscal year'' after 
        ``$2,753,672''.

SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION OF ASSISTANCE TO FIREFIGHTERS GRANTS PROGRAM 
              AND THE FIRE PREVENTION AND SAFETY GRANTS PROGRAM.

    (a) Sunset.--Section 33(r) of the Federal Fire Prevention and 
Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229(r)) is amended by striking ``the 
date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of the Fire Grants 
Reauthorization Act of 2012'' and inserting ``September 30, 2024''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 33(q)(1)(B) of the 
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
2229(q)(1)(B)) is amended, in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
striking ``2017'' and inserting ``2023''.
    (c) Authorization for Certain Training Under Assistance to 
Firefighters Grants Program.--Section 33(c)(3) of the Federal Fire 
Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229(c)(3)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
                    ``(N) To provide specialized training to 
                firefighters, paramedics, emergency medical service 
                workers, and other first responders to recognize 
                individuals who have mental illness and how to properly 
                intervene with individuals with mental illness, 
                including strategies for verbal de-escalation of 
                crisis.''.

SEC. 4. REAUTHORIZATION OF STAFFING FOR ADEQUATE FIRE AND EMERGENCY 
              RESPONSE GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Sunset.--Section 34(k) of the Federal Fire Prevention and 
Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229a(k)) is amended by striking ``the 
date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of the Fire Grants 
Reauthorization Act of 2012'' and inserting ``September 30, 2024''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 34(j)(1)(I) of the 
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
2229a(j)(1)(I)) is amended, in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
striking ``2017'' and inserting ``2023''.
    (c) Modification of Application Requirements.--Section 34(b)(3)(B) 
of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
2229a(b)(3)(B)) is amended by striking ``of subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii) 
and (F)'' and inserting ``of subsection (a)(1)(F)''.
    (d) Modification of Limitation.--Section 34(c)(2) of the Federal 
Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229a(c)(2)) is 
amended by striking ``prior to the date of enactment of this section'' 
and inserting ``prior to the date of the application for the grant''.
    (e) Modification of Waiver Authority.--Section 34(d)(1)(B) of the 
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
2229a(d)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ``subsection (a)(1)(E) or 
subsection (c)(2)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(1)(E), (c)(2), or 
(c)(4)''.
    (f) Expansion of Staffing For Adequate Fire and Emergency Response 
Grant Program; Repeal of Authority for Certain Use of Grant Amounts 
Transferred to Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program.--Section 
34(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 
U.S.C. 2229a(a)(1)(B)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``or to change the status of part-time or 
        paid-on-call (as defined in section 33(a)) firefighters to 
        full-time firefighters'' after ``firefighters''; and
            (2) by striking ``and to provide'' and all that follows 
        through ``of crises''.

SEC. 5. TRAINING ON ADMINISTRATION OF FIRE GRANT PROGRAMS.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency, acting through the Administrator of the United 
States Fire Administration, may develop and make widely available an 
electronic, online training course for members of the fire and 
emergency response community on matters relating to the administration 
of grants under sections 33 and 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and 
Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2229 and 2229a).
    (b) Requirements.--The Administrator of the Federal Emergency 
Management Agency shall ensure that any training developed and made 
available under subsection (a) is--
            (1) tailored to the financial and time constraints of 
        members of the fire and emergency response community; and
            (2) accessible to all individuals in the career, 
        combination, paid-on-call, and volunteer fire and emergency 
        response community.

SEC. 6. FRAMEWORK FOR OVERSIGHT AND MONITORING OF THE ASSISTANCE TO 
              FIREFIGHTERS GRANTS PROGRAM, THE FIRE PREVENTION AND 
              SAFETY GRANTS PROGRAM, AND THE STAFFING FOR ADEQUATE FIRE 
              AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Framework.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency, acting through the Administrator of the United States Fire 
Administration, shall develop and implement a grant monitoring and 
oversight framework to mitigate and minimize risks of fraud, waste, 
abuse, and mismanagement relating to the grants programs under sections 
33 and 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 
U.S.C. 2229 and 2229a).
    (b) Elements.--The framework required under subsection (a) shall 
include the following:
            (1) Developing standardized guidance and training for all 
        participants in the grant programs described in subsection (a).
            (2) Conducting regular risk assessments.
            (3) Conducting desk reviews and site visits.
            (4) Enforcement actions to recoup potential questionable 
        costs of grant recipients.
            (5) Such other oversight and monitoring tools as the 
        Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency 
        considers necessary to mitigate and minimize fraud, waste, 
        abuse, and mismanagement relating to the grant programs 
        described in subsection (a).
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