Firefighting activities are traditionally the responsibility of states and local communities. As such, funding for firefighters is provided mostly by state and local governments. During the 1990s, shortfalls in state and local budgets, coupled with increased responsibilities (i.e., counterterrorism) of local fire departments, led many in the fire community to call for additional financial support from the federal government. While federally funded training programs existed (and continue to exist) through USFA's National Fire Academy, and while federal money has been available to first responders for counterterrorism training and equipment through the Department of Justice, there did not exist a dedicated program, exclusively for firefighters, which provided federal money directly to local fire departments to help address a wide variety of equipment, training, and other firefighter-related needs. During the 106 th Congress, many in the fire community asserted that local fire departments require and deserve greater support from the federal government. In response, H.R. 1168 , the Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act, was introduced on March 17, 1999, by Representative Pascrell. The bill authorized the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) "to make grants to fire departments for the purpose of protecting the public and firefighting personnel against fire and fire-related hazards." In the Senate, the FIRE Act was introduced by Senator Dodd ( S. 1941 ) and Senator Campbell ( S. 1899 ). Ultimately, FIRE Act language was agreed to in the Senate by unanimous consent as an amendment offered by Senator Dodd to the FY2001 National Defense Authorization Act ( P.L. 106-398 , signed into law on October 30, 2000). Title XVII of P.L. 106-398 amended the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act ( P.L. 93-498 ) to establish a new office in FEMA to administer grants to fire departments and fire prevention organizations for a variety of purposes, including hiring and training personnel, prevention programs, equipment and facilities, and public education. The law stipulated that volunteer departments receive a proportion of the total grant funding that is not less than the proportion of the U.S. population that those departments protect. Meanwhile, FEMA was directed to conduct an 18-month study (in conjunction with the National Fire Protection Association) on the need for federal assistance to state and local communities to fund firefighting and emergency response activities. The study, entitled, A Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service , was released in January 2003 and found that many fire departments—particularly volunteer companies in rural communities—report shortfalls in facilities, equipment, and training of personnel. For firefighter assistance, P.L. 106-398 authorized $100 million for FY2001 and $300 million for FY2002. However, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the Senate amended the FY2002 Department of Defense Authorization Act ( S. 1438 ) to include language providing increased authorization levels for the Assistance to Firefighters Program. An additional increase was inserted during the House-Senate conference on the defense authorization bill, authorizing the program at $900 million per year through FY2004, and expanding the scope of the grants to include equipment and training to help firefighters respond to a terrorist attack or an attack using weapons of mass destruction. The bill was signed into law ( P.L. 107-107 ) on December 28, 2001. With the authorization of the fire grant program expiring on September 30, 2004, the 108 th Congress took up fire act reauthorization legislation. On April 1, 2004, Representative Boehlert introduced H.R. 4107 —the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Reauthorization Act of 2004. H.R. 4107 sought to extend the authorization through FY2007. The USFA Administrator was specifically designated as the entity who shall administer the program. Additionally, H.R. 4107 sought to increase the current award caps for grant recipients, while reducing required cost-sharing nonfederal matches. Of perhaps greatest controversy was a provision which would prohibit grant recipients from discriminating against or prohibiting firefighters from engaging in volunteer firefighting activities in other jurisdictions during off-duty hours. The House Committee on Science held a hearing on H.R. 4107 on May 12, 2004. On May 11, 2004, the Senate version of the fire grant reauthorization was introduced by Senator Dodd. S. 2411 , the Assistance to Firefighters Act of 2004, sought to authorize the fire grant program through FY2010 and designate the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security as the program's administering authority. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation held a hearing on S. 2411 on July 8, 2004. Unlike the House bill, S. 2411 did not contain a provision on volunteer firefighter discrimination. On June 17, 2004, the text of S. 2411 was adopted as an amendment (offered by Senator Dodd) to the FY2005 National Defense Authorization Act ( S. 2400 , Division D, Sections 4001-4013). On June 23, 2004, S. 2400 was passed by the Senate and incorporated into the House Defense Authorization bill ( H.R. 4200 ). On October 9, 2004, the House and Senate approved the Conference Agreement on H.R. 4200 ( H.Rept. 108-767 ). Title XXXVI of H.R. 4200 (Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2004) reauthorized the fire grant program at $900 million for FY2005, $950 million for FY2006, and $1 billion for each of the fiscal years 2007 through 2009. Award caps were raised, nonfederal matching requirements were lowered, eligibility was extended to include nonaffiliated emergency medical services (i.e. ambulance services not affiliated with fire departments), and the scope of grants was expanded to include firefighter safety R&D. H.R. 4200 did not contain the provision on volunteer firefighter discrimination. The reauthorization legislation designated the USFA Administrator as the administering authority of the fire grant program. H.R. 4200 was signed into law ( P.L. 108-375 ) on October 28, 2004. Section 3603 of P.L. 108-375 directed USFA, in conjunction with the National Fire Protection Association, to assess the needs and capacity of fire departments and to measure the impact of the fire grant program in meeting the needs of the fire service. In October 2006, the USFA released two studies addressing these issues. A related issue is the role of the federal government in assisting fire departments to hire personnel. In the 108 th Congress, Congress enacted the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Firefighters (SAFER) Act as Section 1057 of the FY2004 National Defense Authorization Act ( P.L. 108-136 ). The SAFER Act authorizes federal grants of over $1 billion per year through 2010 directly to fire departments for the hiring of firefighters and recruitment and retention of volunteer firefighters. From FY2001 through FY2003, the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program (as part of USFA/FEMA) received its primary appropriation through the VA-HUD-Independent Agencies Appropriation Act. In FY2004, the Assistance to Firefighters Program began to receive its annual appropriation through the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Homeland Security. The program received an appropriation of $100 million in FY2001 (its initial year), $360 million in FY2002, $745 million in FY2003, $746 million in FY2004, $650 million in FY2005, $539 million in FY2006, $547 million in FY2007, and $560 million in FY2008. Table 1 shows recent appropriated funding for firefighter assistance. The Administration proposed $300 million for fire grants in FY2008, a 45% cut from the FY2007 level. No funding was proposed for SAFER grants. The total request for firefighter assistance was 55% below the FY2007 level for fire and SAFER grants combined. The FY2008 budget proposal would have eliminated grants for wellness/fitness activities and modifications to facilities for firefighter safety. The budget justification requested funding for "applications that enhance the most critical capabilities of local response to fire-related hazards in the event of a terrorist attack or major disaster." The budget justification also stated that the requested level of funding is "an appropriate level of funding given the availability of significant amounts of funding for first responder preparedness missions from other Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant programs which are better coordinated with state and local homeland security strategies and, unlike AFG, are allocated on the basis of risk." The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008 ( P.L. 110-161 ) provided $560 million for fire grants and $190 million for SAFER grants, a total of $750 million for firefighter assistance in FY2008. As stated in the Joint Explanatory Statement accompanying P.L. 110-161 , $3 million was made available for foam firefighter equipment used in remote areas, to be competitively awarded. GAO was directed to review the application and award process for fire and SAFER grants, and FEMA was directed to peer review all grant applications that meet criteria established by FEMA and the fire service. The Administration proposed $300 million for fire grants in FY2009, a 46% cut from the FY2008 level of $560 million. No funding was proposed for SAFER grants. The total request for firefighter assistance was 60% below the FY2008 level for fire and SAFER grants combined.