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CC - Acceptance of $1,543,122 in Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program Funds Awarded to the City of Culver City.
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Meeting Date: October 14, 2019
Contact Person/Dept: David White/Fire Dept.
Phone Number: (310) 253-5915
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [] Attachments: []
Commission Action Required: Yes [] No [X]
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (10/09/19);
Department Approval: David L. White (09/26/19)
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RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council accept $1,543,122 in Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program funds to hire six new firefighters.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) administers the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program. The purpose of the SAFER Grant Program is to provide funding directly to fire departments to assist in increasing the number of firefighters to help communities meet industry standards and to fulfill missions of fire departments.
On June 25, 2018, City Council approved the Culver City Fire Department’s FY 2018-19 work plan to apply for the SAFER Grant. Department staff submitted the grant application on March 4, 2019 requesting federal financial assistance to create and fill six new firefighter positions. On June 24, 2019, City Council approved the City’s FY 2019-20 budget, which includes the addition of six new firefighter positions, along with one-time capital costs to purchase equipment to deploy a third rescue ambulance in Culver City. On September 18, 2019, the Department of Homeland Security approved the Department’s application in full.
The addition of six new firefighters will improve the staffing and deployment capabilities of the Fire Department, achieve responses that are more efficient for the Culver City community, and provide safer incident scenes for Culver City firefighters. The SAFER grant has a three-year performance period and does not allow time extensions. If the City accepts the grant, the performance period will begin on March 11, 2020 and will end on March 10, 2023. There is no employee retention requirement when the grant performance period ends. However, the Fire Department must maintain the suppression staffing level for the entire grant performance period.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
The SAFER grant is a matching grant program. The Department of Homeland Security awards a portion of the total project cost and the City must provide a match. The cost match is 25% in years one and two, followed by a 65% match in year three. The total cost of hiring six firefighters for a three-year period of performance is $2,502,360. The grant will pay $1,543,122 of the total cost. A local match of $959,238 over three years is required of the City’s General Fund.
The City budgeted $540,000 in the FY 2019-20 under the SAFER Grant Fund (41445909) and has accounted for increases to personnel-related costs.
ATTACHMENTS
None.
MOTION
That the City Council:
Accept $1,543,122 in Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant Program funds awarded to the City of Culver City.