What activities may I apply for under the SAFER Program?

The SAFER Program is separated into two activities:

• Hiring Activity: Provides federal financial assistance to help fire departments hire new, additional firefighters (or change the status of part-time or paid-on-call firefighters to full-time firefighters) and to rehire laid off firefighters or retain firefighters facing imminent layoff. National, regional, state, local, tribal, and nonprofit interest organizations are not eligible to apply for funding under the Hiring Activity.

• R&R Activity: Assists volunteer and combination fire departments and national, regional, state, local, federally recognized tribal, and nonprofit interest organizations with the recruitment and/or retention of volunteer firefighters who are involved with or trained in the operations of firefighting and emergency response. Career fire departments are not eligible to apply for funding under the R&R Activity.