Grand Junction Fire Department has been awarded a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant (SAFER) through FEMA. The grant will provide $5.9 million over three years to cover the salary and benefits for 21 firefighters that will be hired in 2022 for Fire Station 8. These positions were budgeted as a part of the First Responder Tax, and continued revenue from the tax will cover these costs moving forward in 2025 when the grant ends.
SAFER was created to provide funding directly to fire departments to help increase or maintain the number of trained, "front line" firefighters available in their communities. The goal of SAFER is to enhance the local fire departments' abilities to comply with staffing, response and operational standards established by the National Fire Protection Association.
In this year’s grant period, the FEMA SAFER Program will award a total of $355 million dollars to fire departments across the nation. The award for GJFD is the largest of six awarded in Colorado.
Grand Junction was previously awarded this grant in 2015 for $515,000 to cover the salary and benefits of three additional Firefighter-Paramedic positions. For more information on this award contact the Community Outreach Office at (970)549-5800 or by email at GJFirePIO@gjcity.org.