WASHINGTON, DC -- On September 10, the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) Foundation officially released its Cost Savings Study and Calculator at the National Associations of Towns and Townships conference in Washington, DC. The study, which was conducted by the Public Safety and Environmental Protection Institute at St. Joseph's University with the assistance of VFIS, found that it would cost American taxpayers $37.2 billion annually if we had to replace all volunteer firefighters nationwide with career staffing.
Besides determining the national savings that volunteers provide, the NVFC Foundation developed tools that will determine the local cost savings of the volunteer fire service. Local departments can use the cost-savings calculator and PowerPoint presentation to then educate their city/town council, fire department boards, local groups, etc. regarding the value of their department provides to the community. Furthermore, these cost-savings figures can help make the case for the need for local, state and Federal investment in the volunteer fire service.
St Joseph's Public Safety and Environmental Protection Institute, located in Philadelphia, offers a Master's Degree in Public Safety. All of the students and faculty who participated in the project are volunteer firefighters. The study was made possible by a grant from UBS, through the efforts of Mr. David Rogers.
Cost Savings Calculator
Click here to download Calculator (Excel Format)
To use the NVFC Cost-Savings Calculator enter in all of the fields that are in bold writing
- Area - enter in the number of square miles that your fire service protects
- Population - enter in the number of residents that live within the area protected
- Residences - enter the number of households protected in protected area
- Operating Expense - enter in the amount it currently costs your department to function
- Stations - enter in the number of fire stations within the area protected
- Active Volunteers - this is split into three categories:
- Fire Ground Operations - enter the number of fire fighters involved with fire ground activities
- Fundraising - enter in the number of people helping with fundraising activities
- Administrative - enter in the number of people who help with administrative work (Accounting, Budgeting, Secretarial, etc.)
- Number of Apparatus - enter in the number of each truck type your Area currently operates (if you do not have a particular truck enter in zero)
- Starting Salary - enter in the average yearly amount that paid personal would earn in the vicinity (include benefits that they would receive: pension, health insurance, etc.)
Stop Entering Numbers at the Dotted Line, Numbers Will be calculated at the bottom.
Model Powerpoint Presentation to use with Elected Leaders or Public Groups
The PowerPoint Presentation is a basic template for what yours will look like. To complete the template you can transfer the numbers from the Excel Model as well as add in other points of interest. Using the PowerPoint template will help to present the cost savings to city officials, community groups, etc. You can also add your own charts to help emphasize the points you want to make.
Click here to download Model Presentation (PowerPoint Format). Make sure you save it to your computer in order to make the changes necessary to customize it to your department.
Economic Impact of the Volunteer Fire Service Study
Click here to download Complete Study (Microsoft Word Format)
