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Never Forget 343
Gave It All On
 9-11-2001





















  

REGIONAL APPLICATIONS

A regional project is one in which multiple organizations serving more than one local jurisdiction benefit directly from the activities implemented with the grant funds.  Connectivity is a key characteristic of a project that affects interoperability. Standardization does NOT necessarily equate to interoperability.  Regional projects are based on the total population of all of the partners involved in the regional project.

WINNING NARRATIVES and FAQ - BELOW

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What you need to do to prepare

The first and most obvious step is to get approval from your governing authority to be the host or a partner in this regional project.  If you are the host you will have to sell this concept to all of the potential partners so you need some facts and data. In the case of a communications application, the items below need to be considered.
  • What is the State Radio Boards plan and time lines for your county so your plan meshes correctly?
  • How many and what type of radios (mobiles, portables, repeaters, base stations, accessories) does your project require for each community?
  • How much will this cost EACH community in match dollars?
  • Are the radios on the Statewide Approved Subscriber Equipment list?
  • Are the radios you are looking for listed under Minnesota Contract?
  • Who’s gonna maintain the equipment? 
  • When a radio falls off a truck on the way to an incident, who replaces the radio? 
  • How does the host believe the equipment will be disposed of?
Be prepared to fully explain how the proposed project will enhance the department’s operations, and predict any potentially negative impact to the department’s operations if a potential partner chooses not to go along with the project.
Your budget should include all costs associated with the project’s implementation: equipment, accessories, additional training if required, etc.

Contact your prospective partners to get their buy in to the project and pass a resolution that binds them to the match dollars and the project

NEW FOR 2009

  • •Eligible applicants may act as a host for a regional application.
  • Regional projects are designed to facilitate interoperability and efficiency among participants.
  • Standardization does NOT necessarily equate to interoperability.
  • The following activities are eligible for Regional Grant Applications:
    • Communications
    • Training
  • SCBA is not an eligible project under a regional application!  As stated earlier, standardization is not considered to be a viable regional activity.
  • Any regional communications plan must comply with your Statewide Communications Interoperability Plan (SCIP) and the SCIP must have been approved by DHS.
    • All States’ SCIPs have been approved.  Any funding for communications must comply with the approved plan
    • Statewide Radio Board
      Scott Wiggins, Director
      Division of Emergency Communication Networks
      (ARMER/9-1-1 Programs)
      444 Cedar Street, Suite 137
      St. Paul, MN 55101
      Office:  651-201-7546
      Cell:  651-983-9306
  • The State radio Board has a system standard that all radios operated on the 800 trunked system have to be tested and approved before we allow them on the system. This was required since the trunked radios actually send messages back and forth to the system controllers and interface with the system in order to operate on the trunked system. Therefore only 800 MHz radios have been tested and listed on the Statewide Approved subscriber list.
  • A regional project is one in which multiple organizations serving more than one local jurisdiction benefit directly from the activities implemented with the grant funds.  Connectivity is a key characteristic of a project that affects interoperability.
  • Regional projects are based on the total pop of the region.

FAQ Additional FAQ on the AFG Website

QUESTION: What is the definition of interoperability?

ANSWER: Interoperability is described as fire department technology, equipment, programs, and/or procedures that give the department the capability of operating with a variety of other departments and/or communities within a region, and/or with Federal and State agencies.


QUESTION: Can a Regional FD hosted application for radios include a hospital based ambulance service as a recipient of radios or a law enforcement agency?

ANSWER: We’ve allowed non-eligible entities to be a “by-product” beneficiary of communications projects, i.e., for a dispatch system, the sheriff’s department or the local cops can also be dispatched from the AFG purchased equipment. But we have not allowed not-eligible applicants to be a direct beneficiary, i.e., to have and to hold an AFG purchased radio.


QUESTION: Are organizations or agencies normally considered ineligible for an AFG grant, eligible to be included as a beneficiary of a regional application?

ANSWER: Yes. Law enforcement, public works, or the local emergency management offices could be beneficiaries of Assistance to Firefighters grants. For example, local law enforcement could be users of a new dispatch system funded by the grant program or the emergency management staff could be issued radios by the grantee in order to foster interoperability.


QUESTION:  A fire department wants to apply for a regional radio project. The county decides they will help pay for the required match.  The FD figures they do not need to contact each individual city within the county for agreements because the county pays the match. Can we or should we do this?

ANSWER:  The match is only one piece of the “agreement” between the host and the participants.  Who’s gonna maintain the equipment?  When a radio falls off a truck on the way to an incident, who replaces the radio?  How does the host believe the equipment will be disposed of?  They should have an agreement with each participants.



QUESTION: Can a county GIVE dollars to a city so they have the match dollars for the cities portion of the project?

ANSWER: We don’t care where the cash comes from as long as the funds are not from the Federal Gov. via another grant or Federal source. Example: if the city gave the FD $$ for a match and the city was supposed to use the money to build a Federally funded library, then the city is in trouble, not the FD. The FD has no knowledge of the source of funds.


QUESTION: Regional applications this year in the equipment category, only communications equipment will be allowed. Is this correct? 

ANSWER:  Any equipment that is interoperable and/or where interoperability is enhanced with the use of the equipment is eligible.  Generally, communications equipment is the epitome of interoperability, thus it is the overwhelming request under a regional request.  I’ve seen applicants request LDH under a regional and we may have even awarded one or two, but it is a much harder sell.


QUESTION:  Regional training this year what will be allowed as far as types of training?

ANSWER:   Any basic FF training would be considered under a regional request.  Case must be made, as always.



Regional Projects

For the purposes of this program, applications for regional projects will not be included in the host applicant’s funding limitations detailed above. Regional applications will be considered independent of, and unrelated to, any other applications that the host applicant may submit and thus will not be included when assessing the host applicant’s Federal funding limits. Regional applications, however, will be subject to their own limitation based on the total population that the regional project will serve. For example, a regional project that serves a population of fewer than 500,000 people will be limited to $1,000,000.

Regional projects’ cost-share will be based on the total population and demographics of the entire region – not the population of the host applicant. All non-Federal match funds must be in cash; in-kind contributions are not acceptable. No waivers of this requirement will be granted except for applicants located in Insular Areas as provided for in 48 U.S.C. § 1469a (which limits the waiver to grants under $200,000).

In FY 2009, you may submit one application per application period in each of the program areas, (i.e., one application under Operations and Safety, one under Vehicle Acquisition, and/or a separate application as a regional host).

3. Regional Projects

Any eligible applicant, whether a fire department or a nonaffiliated EMS organization, may act as a “host applicant” and apply for large-scale or regional projects on behalf of itself and any number of organizations in neighboring jurisdictions. A regional project is one in which multiple organizations serving more than one local jurisdiction benefit directly from the activities implemented with the grant funds. A county fire department applying for a countywide communications system is NOT a regional project because it does not benefit multiple “seats-ofgovernment.”

Regional projects are designed to facilitate interoperability and efficiency among the participating jurisdictions. As such, the only activities available for application under a regional project are training and equipment acquisition (such as communications equipment) that positively affect interoperability between jurisdictions. Purchase of turnouts, SCBA, wellness and fitness, modification to facilities, and vehicle acquisition activities are not eligible as
regional projects.

Regional projects require one eligible applicant to act as the “host” for the project. Regional applications may only include activities that are meant to address the identified regional risk. Regional applications cannot include the purchase of resources or any activities meant solely for the host applicant. As in last year’s program, host applicants in FY 2009 may apply for funding to address their own needs beyond the scope of the regional project in a separate application(s). The “host” will be responsible for fulfilling all grant requirements such as reporting to NFIRS, control of and accounting for the funds, and distribution and control of the
property.

Additionally, the host is responsible for assuring that the cost share is met. The cost share for regional projects is based on the total population and demographics of the entire region.

DHS has the discretion to waive the legislatively established funding limits under AFG. In order to encourage interest and participation in this critical strategy to address interoperability, DHS may exercise that discretion if the funding of a regional application is at risk of exceeding statutory funding caps, (i.e., the funding of the regional request combined with other AFG awards would cause the host applicant to exceed the legislatively established funding limits).

In general, equipment purchased as a result of a regional project will be physically distributed to all the departments that are beneficiaries of the project. This physical distribution of the equipment to other first responder organizations is the single characteristic that distinguishes eligible regional projects from projects that are not regional in nature but may have an impact on a region via mutual aid. For example, a project that would not be considered to have an affect on interoperability (and thus would not be considered a regional project) would be an
application for an air compressor or a hazardous materials (HAZMAT) response vehicle. In this example, the assets would be shared with neighboring departments under mutual or automatic aid agreements, but physically located in the awardee’s department and not disseminated among the participants; as such, this project would not qualify as a regional project.

Examples of viable regional projects would be a multi-jurisdictional communications system or standardization of training. As stated above, regional projects should be designed to address issues of communications or equipment interoperability among multiple jurisdictions.

In order to apply for a regional project, the host organization must:
1) be an eligible applicant, (i.e., either a fire department or a nonaffiliated EMS organization – a county, county association, city, or an emergency management organization is not eligible and could not apply for a regional project), and

2) agree, if awarded, to be responsible for all aspects of the grant including, but
not limited to, accountability for the assets and all reporting requirements.

In the regional application, the host organization will be required to describe the characteristics of the entire region that will be affected by the project (i.e., the population of the affected region, not the applicant’s “first-due” population). The applicant must provide detailed information in the project narrative describing the nature of the project including the project’s budget, the effect the project will have on the region, and the need for the project. This includes a detailed description of the following:
  • The proposed project and the project budget.
  • The financial need for the project.
  • The benefits that would result.
  • The extent to which the grant would enhance daily operations.
  • How the grant will positively impact the regional ability to protect life and property.
In addition, the applicant must include a list of all the participating organizations that will benefit from the regional project, if the project is approved. Fire departments or nonaffiliated EMS organizations that will benefit from a regional project may also apply for funding under AFG, as long as they are not requesting the same items as the host applicant for the regional project. For example, if a host applicant applies for a multi-jurisdictional communications project, a
participating organization that will receive some of the communications equipment can apply for other needs as long as it does not apply for duplicative communications equipment.

Host applicants MAY NOT apply for items to address other needs beyond the regional project on the regional application; but, as indicated above, a host applicant may submit a request to meet its own, non-regional needs in a separate application.

When evaluating the benefits of any regional project, we will take into account the other partners that will be involved in the project, whether they are other fire departments, nonaffiliated EMS organizations, or other public service organizations. We will also take into consideration the extent to which the non-fire/EMS partners will contribute to the overall costs of the regional project.

B. Grantee Responsibilities

(2) Share in the costs of the projects funded under this grant program. Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations serving populations of over 50,000 or more must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to 20 percent of the total project cost. Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations serving populations between 20,000 and 50,000 must agree to match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to 10 percent of the total project cost. Fire departments and nonaffiliated EMS organizations serving areas with a population of 20,000 or fewer must match the Federal grant funds with an amount of non-Federal funds equal to 5 percent of the total project cost. Regional project cost-share will be based on the total population and demographics of the entire region. All non-Federal match funds must be in cash; in-kind contributions are not acceptable. No waivers of this requirement will be granted except for applicants located in Insular Areas as provided for in 48 U.S.C. § 1469a.


OMB Circular A-133, Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations (06/24/1997) (includes revisions published in Federal Register 06/27/2003) HTML or PDF (33 pages, 127 kb)

-- March 2008 Compliance Supplement
-- March 2007 Compliance Supplement
-- March 2006 Compliance Supplement
    -- Appendix A: Data Collection Form (Form SF-SAC)

REGIONAL WINNING NARRATIVES

  • Narrative - 2008 - Regional Radio Project, $404,706.00 for a regional interoperable
          • radio project 6 departments 6 base radios,
          • 34 single head mobile radios, 10 dual mobile radios, 64 handheld portables, 155 Motorola Minitor V Pager, 12 Accessories Headset, Dual Ear Muff, Behind Head, with PTT,Training
  • Narrative - 2007 - Regional Radio Project: 190 Portable (Handheld) Radios, 
          • 87 Mobile Radios, 12 Base Units, Installation/Accessory Fees, Training, Total $1,011,595 
  • Narrative - 2006 - Regional Training Project FF1, FF2, NIMS Incident Command System

  • Narrative - 2005 -  Regional Radio Project,  Mobiles, Portables and Headsets

  • Narrative - 2004 - Regional Radio Project, 800 MHz Radios, Portables, Base
          • stations, Accessories

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