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ALBANY, NY — Today, Congressman Paul D. Tonko announced the awarding of 13 federal grants totaling more than $5.45 million in funding for 11 Capital Region fire departments and EMS squads. The funding announced today comes from two Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant programs for Fiscal Year 2024 — the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program and the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) program.

The following 5 departments will receive the following amounts of funding from the FY2024 SAFER program to support the hiring of new firefighters and bolster recruitment and retention:

·         City of Schenectady Fire Department: $2,008,304

·         Rotterdam-Princetown Fire District #5: $821,192

·         Halfmoon Hillcrest Volunteer Fire Department: $635,886

·         S.W. Pitts Hose Company of Latham, NY: $426,838

·         City of Rensselaer Fire Department: $237,090

The following 8 departments will receive the following amounts of funding from the FY2024 AFG program to support improvements in equipment, operations, and safety:

·         Round Lake Fire Department: $295,428

·         Albany Fire Department: $266,181

·         City of Schenectady Fire Department: $201,933

·         Ravena Rescue Squad: $191,428

·         Halfmoon Hillcrest Volunteer Fire Department: $137,142

·         Glenville Fire District #2: $124,936

·         Cohoes Fire Department: $85,714

·         Voorheesville Fire Department: $27,450

Taken together, these significant grant awards will help recipients hire more firefighters, support essential training courses, improve recruitment and retention efforts, and purchase vital equipment like new turnout gear and personal protective equipment (PPE), turnout washer/dryer/extractors, Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) face masks, and more. Last December, Congressman Tonko submitted letters to FEMA in support of the City of Schenectady Fire Department and Voorheesville Fire Department’s requests for federal funding.

“Throughout my time in Congress, I’ve made it a top priority to ensure that our Capital Region firefighters and EMS squads have the resources, equipment, and support to continue serving our communities safely and effectively,” Congressman Tonko said. “These brave men and women put their lives on the line every single day to keep our families safe, and it is up to us as elected officials to make certain they are properly equipped to safely face the monumental challenges of their jobs. I’m proud to celebrate this significant federal investment in our local emergency responders, and I look forward to continuing my efforts to ensure our local fire departments and EMS squads have the tools and training they need to succeed.”

Each year, Congressman Tonko and his staff assist numerous local fire departments and EMS organizations by writing letters of support and helping to prepare their applications for these critical grants. Today’s announcement marks the completion of the competitive rounds of Fiscal Year 2024 SAFER and AFG funding, delivering a total of $5,459,522 for our Capital Region emergency responders.

Earlier rounds of AFG funding for Fiscal Years 2021, 2022, and 2023 delivered nearly $3 million for departments in Albany, Ballston Lake, Burnt Hills, Colonie, Glenville, Greenfield, Latham, Menands, North Greenbush, Saratoga Springs, Schenectady, Scotia, South Glens Falls, Troy, and Watervliet.

In total, the Fiscal Year 2024 AFG and SAFER programs distributed 1,885 awards totaling $615.6 million in competitive grants for fire departments, non-affiliated EMS organizations, and state fire training academies nationwide.

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