$25 million fire department fund accepting applications
Photo – Assemblyman Billy Jones holds a press conference to announce his volunteer fire department capital fund bill at Beekmantown Volunteer Fire Department on October 13, 2022.
Assemblyman Billy Jones (D-Chateaugay Lake) recently announced that the Volunteer Fire Department Capital Fund that originated from one of his bills is now accepting applications. The $25 million capital fund was included in the budget last year.
There are two funding options available. $20 million was allocated for construction, renovation, and/or facility purchase projects. $5 million was allocated for allowable fire service equipment projects. Applications are due on April 30, 2024 by 5 p.m.
Since Jones was elected in 2016, he has visited almost every fire department in his district to hear firsthand about their struggles with funding for capital projects and recruiting volunteers. That is why he introduced legislation in 2022 to support volunteer fire departments, including A4929 to create this capital fund for volunteer fire departments that was ultimately included in last year’s budget. He also introduced legislation to create a volunteer firefighter training fund, which was included in last year’s budget (A3242).
“Our volunteer fire departments are always there for us in our time of need and the state must do more to help these struggling departments,” said Jones. “That is why I have pushed for this volunteer fire department capital fund and more resources for recruiting and training. So many local fire departments have reached out to me since this funding was included in the final budget, which shows that this funding is truly needed in our region and across the state. I will push to extend this funding next year so that our volunteer fire departments are able to continue to answer the call during emergencies.”
More information on the program is available here- https://www.dhses.ny.gov/state-funded-programs.
Posted: December 20th, 2023 under Fire Department News, General News, Northern NY News, State Government News, State Legislator News.