The Needs of America's Volunteer Fire Service

Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, my name is Chief Phil Stittleburg and I am Chairman of the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC). The NVFC represents the interests of the nation's nearly 800,000 volunteer firefighters, who staff over 90% of America's fire departments. I have served in the volunteer fire service for the last 30 years and have been the Chief of the LaFarge Volunteer Fire Department in Wisconsin for the last 25 years. I have had experiences in all phases of the first responder community, including chemical and hazardous materials incidents, information management, EMS, rescue and fire.

In addition to serving as NVFC Chairman, I have represented the NVFC on a variety of standards-making committees, including ones that set industry standards on firefighter health and safety. I also serve on the National Fire Protection Association's Board of Directors and I am an adjunct instructor for the National Fire Academy. I earn my livelihood as an attorney, which includes serving as an Assistant District Attorney on a half-time basis for the last 28 years. These positions give me an excellent opportunity to work in emergency services in both the law enforcement and fire service professions. On behalf of the volunteer fire service, I appreciate the opportunity to comment on our needs and the challenges we face.

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), nearly 75% of all firefighters are volunteers. In most years more than half of the firefighters that are killed in the line of duty are volunteers. In addition to the obvious contribution that volunteer firefighters lend to their communities as the first arriving domestic defenders, these brave men and women represent a significant cost saving to taxpayers, a savings sometimes estimated to be as much as $60 billion annually.

September 11, 2001 is a date that will be long remembered for the horrible losses our nation suffered, including the loss of so many of our brothers and sisters in the emergency services. September 11th will also be remembered for the heroics of those brave men and women who ran into the World Trade Center to render aid to their fellow New Yorkers, those who valiantly fought the raging fire at the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, and the fire companies who responded to the Somerset County, PA plane crash. Volunteer fire, rescue, EMS, and technical specialty teams answered and responded on that fateful day at Somerset and the Pentagon incidents and provided backup support to many departments who responded to the World Trade Center. Finally, September 11th will be remembered for ushering in America's new all out war against terrorism at home and abroad.

The September 11th tragedies in New York, Arlington, Virginia and Southwestern Pennsylvania made it clear to all Americans that the fire service is the first responder to all terrorist attacks this country may face. Administration officials and Members of Congress continue to warn Americans of a "clear and present danger" of follow-up terrorist attacks. The question now is when and where, not if, the next terrorist attack will occur. As America's domestic first responders, the fire service will be on the front lines of any incident and must be prepared to respond to and defend our citizens from the ravages of terrorist attacks using conventional weapons or weapons of mass destruction. This expands our normal services beyond the delivery of fire, EMS, rescue, and technical specialty services to our citizens. These services already have time and training demands that are escalating annually.

America's fire and emergency services are in need of your assistance and you, as Members of the United States Senate, can make a difference by partnering with the fire service to give America's domestic defenders the tools they need to help fight this new war.

One of the largest problems faced by America's volunteer fire service is funding. Many volunteer fire departments struggle to provide their members with adequate protective clothing, safety devices and training to protect their communities, as mandated by regulations and standards. These fire companies, in towns across America, are being asked to respond to emergency calls involving hazardous materials, structural fire suppression, search and rescue, natural disasters, wildland fires, emergency medical services, and terrorism.

Many of these emergencies occur at federal facilities and buildings and on federal lands. In addition, these incidents can damage America's critical infrastructure, including our interstate highways, railroads, bridges, tunnels, financial centers, power plants, refineries, and chemical manufacturing and storage facilities. We as a fire service are sworn to protect these critical facilities and infrastructure.

In these difficult times, while volunteer fire departments are already struggling to handle their own needs and finances, they are now forced to provide more services. Often, local governments are unable to afford the extensive training and specialized equipment that these activities require.

The funding problems in America's volunteer fire service are not just limited to rural areas. As suburbs continue to grow, so does the burden on the local fire and EMS department. Even though many of these departments have the essentials, they are unable to gain access to new technologies. At no other time have advances been greater in equipment to protect them and make their jobs safer. Yet because the newer technology is so expensive, many volunteer fire departments are forced to forgo the purchase of the new technology or use outdated equipment.

Long before the terrorist attacks of September 11th, the national fire service organizations began working together to enhance readiness and increase funding levels for programs related to America's fire departments. Many Members of Congress have been with us since day one and have fought hard for improvement in the fire service. Unfortunately, it has taken a horrible tragedy for all of America to fully appreciate the risks our firefighters and EMS personnel take on a daily basis and the level to which they need to be prepared.

The following are the funding priorities of America's volunteer fire service:

First and foremost, Congress needs to fully fund the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. Thanks to your leadership Mr. Chairman, and the leadership of many of your colleagues in both Houses and on both sides of the aisle, Congress took a giant step in addressing the needs of America's fire service by creating this grant program and funding it at the $100 million level in FY 2001. Every fire department across the country was eligible for funding for safety and firefighting equipment, apparatus, training, prevention, and wellness and fitness programs.

In the first year of the program, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) and FEMA received 31,295 grant applications from 18,915 fire departments totaling $2.99 billion in requests. In the end, USFA/FEMA awarded 1,855 competitive grants to local fire departments, including 1,375 to volunteer and combination fire departments. In addition, 1,379 grants totaling $55,377,798 were awarded in communities with populations below 20,000 people. Many of these were rural volunteer fire departments that struggle the most to provide their members with adequate protective gear, safety devices and training to protect their communities.

Again, thanks to your leadership Chairman Byrd, the funding for the program was increased to a total of $360 million in fiscal year 2002 and the application period for this year's grants closed on April 5. This increase in funding has allowed FEMA to add fire department based emergency medical services (EMS) as an eligible category this year. EMS calls continue to be the fastest growing burden on local fire departments and these new grants will help to ease that burden and prepare local departments for a terrorist event. Late last year, Congress also passed a reauthorization of the FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program for $900 million for each of the fiscal years 2002 through 2004.

This direct grant program has proved to be the most effective program to date in providing local volunteer and career fire departments not only with the tools they need to perform their day-to-day duties, but it has also enhanced their ability to respond to large disasters as well. As we move to prepare for terrorist incidents at home, we must first make sure that local fire departments have the basic tools they need to do their jobs on a daily basis, before we can ask them to be fully prepared to respond to terrorist incidents. In addition, this program has been successful because it is the only federal program that provides funding directly to fire departments. Far too often federal funds intended to aid fire departments are diverted to other uses by state and local officials.

Although the fire service is very pleased that the President's fiscal year 2003 budget request includes over $3.5 billion to assist our nation's first responders, we are concerned that the budget recommendation would negatively impact the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. The administration has proposed to consolidate this grant program into a completely new state-based block grant initiative called the First Responder Initiative.

We wholeheartedly appreciate the Administration's commitment to provide training, equipment, and planning to the nation's firefighters through the First Responder Initiative. We look forward to working with the Administration to assure that this new counter-terrorism initiative is successful and positively impacts local fire departments in suburban and rural communities. However, we believe that it would be counterproductive for the new First Responder program to replace the valuable and proven Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program.

Therefore, on behalf of America's volunteer fire service, I strongly urge Congress to fully fund the vital Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program at the full authorized level of $900 million and keep it as a separate and distinct program under the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Terrorism and hazardous materials response training and equipment are of vital importance to America's fire service. Even the best-prepared localities lack adequate resources to respond to the full range of terrorist threats this country faces. Many jurisdictions, especially those in rural and suburban areas protected by volunteers, have little or no capability to respond to terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction.

As I mentioned, the Administration has proposed a program called the First Responder Initiative, which will spend $3.5 billion in fiscal year 2003 to dramatically enhance the homeland security response capabilities of America's local fire, EMS, and police departments. This program, which would be administered through FEMA's Office of National Preparedness, will allocate approximately $105 million for planning, $2 billion for equipment, $1.1 billion for training, and $245 million for exercises. The National Volunteer Fire Council fully supports the financial commitment the Administration has made in its budget for first responders and we ask Congress to do the same.

However, the NVFC is concerned about the possibility that a large portion of this new funding for equipment and training will get bogged down in state agencies and will not get down to the local fire departments that need it most. In addition, although we understand the special needs and concerns of America's large metropolitan areas, Congress and FEMA cannot forget smaller communities, whose fire, rescue and EMS personnel also need the basic training and equipment to recognize and respond to these incidents. While these communities may not seem to be prime terrorist targets, it is this very perception that makes them especially vulnerable.

In a March 27 speech in Greenville, South Carolina, President Bush said, "homeland security in the heartland is just as important as homeland security in the big cities." We fully agree with the President and we look forward to working with the Congress and FEMA to ensure that these concerns are addressed and that this program is a success.

Our nation's forests and wildlands are a critical part of America's infrastructure. The volunteer fire service, in cooperation with our Federal and State partners, plays a key role in fire suppression in communities adjacent to federal and state lands. The U.S. Forest Service's Volunteer Fire Assistance Program and the Department of Interior Rural Fire Assistance Program focus on building the community's capacity to lessen local vulnerability to risks associated with wildland fires and should be supported by Congress.

The Volunteer Fire Assistance Program provides assistance, through the states, to volunteer fire departments to improve communication capabilities, increase wildland fire management training, and purchase protective fire clothing and firefighting equipment. The 50/50 matching grants are for fire departments that protect populations fewer than 10,000 people. The administration has proposed $13.3 million for this program in FY 2003 and the NVFC fully supports funding at this level.

The Department of Interior Rural Fire Assistance Program is aimed at enhancing the fire protection capabilities of rural fire districts in the wildland-urban interface and around Department of Interior lands. The program assists with training, equipment purchase, and prevention activities, on a 90/10 cost-share basis. The rural fire department must serve a community with a population of 10,000 or less. The Administration has proposed $10 million for this program in FY 2003 and the NVFC fully support this request.

Another critical need in America's volunteer fire service is the recruitment and retention of volunteer personnel. Over the past 20 years the volunteer fire service has seen its ranks decrease by nearly 15%. Major factors contributing to the problem of recruiting and retaining volunteers include but are not limited to constant fundraising demands, increase in emergency calls, more rigorous training standards, and people working further away from the communities in which they live.

In the President's State of the Union address, he encouraged all Americans to commit to service of their neighbors and their nation by becoming volunteers. He also laid out a plan to create a new Citizen Corps, as part of the First Responder Initiative, which would utilize volunteers to identify threats and respond to emergencies, including much-feared biological or chemical attacks. The Citizen Corps will enable Americans to volunteer to participate directly in homeland security efforts in their own communities. Community-based Citizen Corps Councils will help drive local involvement in Citizen Corps, developing community action plans, assessing possible threats, identifying local resources and coordinating other Citizen Corps programs. These Councils will include leaders from fire and emergency medical services, law enforcement, businesses and other community-based institutions.

The volunteer fire service and the NVFC look forward to playing a large role in this program and we hope that the Citizen Corps will serve as a strong recruitment tool for local volunteer fire departments. The Bush Administration has proposed more than $230 million in funding in their fiscal year 2003 budget for this program and the NVFC encourages Congress to support this funding.

When I began my testimony today, I stated that the fire service is in need of your assistance and that you, as Members of the United States Senate, could make a difference with the necessary funding. I hope that I have painted a picture that illustrates that the need is real and that the continued support of the fire service by Congress is indeed a national concern.

Mr. Chairman, I thank you for your time and your attention to the views of America's fire service, and I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Chief Philip C. Stittleburg
National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) Chairman

Chief Phil Stittleburg joined the volunteer fire service in 1972 and has served as Chief of the LaFarge (WI) Fire Department for 25 years. In addition to serving as the NVFC Chairman, Phil is also legal counsel to the NVFC, the LaFarge Fire Department, and the Wisconsin State Firefighters Association. Phil has represented the NVFC on numerous National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards making committees, including ones that set industry standards on firefighter health and safety. He served as the NVFC Foundation President for twelve years and is a current member of the NFPA Board of Directors. Phil is an adjunct instructor at the National Fire Academy and a regular contributor to Fire Chief Magazine.

Phil earns his livelihood as an attorney, which includes serving as an Assistant District Attorney on a half-time basis for the last 28 years. These positions give him an excellent opportunity to work in emergency services in both the law enforcement and fire service professions.





    

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