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State Fire Marshal

A Division of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety
 

Service Planning Grant Update

​By Tate Mills
Fire service specialist

The State Fire Marshal Division (SFMD) received $150,000 from the Fire Safety Account for the fiscal year 2020-2021 Service Planning Grant Program. 

Service Planning Grants can be used for information gathering and a variety of studies or for implementing certain recommendations or plans previously outlined in studies. Those studies can examine everything from call response improvement to sharing training needs, administrative costs, personnel and equipment, to full consolidation of departments. If a department has an idea, the SFMD wants to hear it.

The FY20-21 Service Planning Grant Program includes two grant categories:
  1. Implementation (50 percent of available funds).
  2. Planning study (50 percent of available funds).
Implementation Grants
Grants must be used for administrative standardization between two or more fire departments,  standardization of firefighter life safety equipment between two or more fire departments, station modifications (hardship circumstances only), or regional/county-wide equipment purchases.
Implementation grants will be scored by the committee with the following priorities:
  • Priority No. 1: Administrative standardization costs.
  • Priority No. 2: Standardization of firefighter life safety equipment.
  • Priority No. 3: Station modification (hardship circumstances only).
  • Priority No. 4: Regional/county-wide equipment purchases.
  • Priority No. 5: Applicants that have previously received an SFMD Implementation Grant.
Planning Study Grants
Grants are for cities or towns that want to improve emergency fire services to their areas. Grants can also be used for studies to explore future needs of fire service areas.
The study must identify how the participating fire departments/cities/townships will more efficiently plan for future service improvements in the areas of (but not limited to):
  • Training, department administration, personnel, equipment or department consolidation.
  • Analysis of the efficiency and effectiveness of emergency response and benefit to the population served.
Planning Study Grants will be scored by the committee with the following priorities:
  • Priority No. 1: First-time legacy Shared Services/Service Planning Grant applications.
  • Priority No. 2: Returning applicants.
More information
Don’t delay. Applications are due Dec. 31.
Visit the SFMD website at sfm.dps.mn.gov. You can also contact your regional fire service specialist:

Central Minnesota Region
Tate Mills
320-333-2817

Northeast Minnesota Region
John Ehret
651-323-7134

Southern Minnesota Region
Jared Rozeboom
507-456-0907

Northwest Minnesota Region
Steve White
218-579-0128
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