SAFER Grant Firefighter Staffing

At a glance

Based on auto-generated captions; dollar figures are partly garbled.

What: a federal SAFER (FEMA) grant of about $3.03 million to fund 12 additional firefighters over several years, with a July 1, 2027 hiring date. The town applied after a Council vote in June 2026.
Where it stands: on 2026-10-13 the Council voted 4-5 against accepting the award, so the grant was not accepted that night.
Why it matters: the fire department says a station serving about one-third of town is unstaffed roughly 75% of the week. Opponents say the town's share rises to about $2 million or more a year by year four.
Next: unclear whether the Council will revisit; fire department leaders and the fire commission urged acceptance. Check the next agendas.

For: slower south-side response times, falling volunteer numbers (about 28 volunteers), strong federal and state delegation support, and a possible 4-year runway to find offsets such as an insurance-recovery ordinance.
Against: a federal salary cap (about $102,000 per firefighter) means the town pays more than first projected; year-one cost cited around $87,000 rising to about $2.45 million in year four before overtime savings; competing budget pressures; and effects on other departments and union negotiations.

Motion: Michael DelSanto; second: Joshua Serafino.
Yes (4): DelSanto, Serafino, Jennifer Clock, Chaplinsky.
No (5): Kristen Guida, Jim Morelli, Tony Morrison, Christopher Palmieri, David Zoni.
2026-07-14 - Town Council - Public comment questioned the grant request; the Fire Commission chair reported another firefighter resignation (from auto-captions).

2026-10-13 - Town Council (Council meeting video; 44:40-54:05, 1:10:13-1:14:37, 1:24:16-2:15:15)
Finance department cost analysis was in the Council packet (not read directly).

About 65 minutes across 1 meeting (from transcript timestamps; approximate).

Meeting	Minutes
2026-10-13 - Town Council	65

2026-10-13 - Town Council — Presentation by the town manager and fire department leaders, public comment, long debate, and a 4-5 vote against accepting the grant.
2026-09-28 - Town Council — The Fire Commission chairman announced the SAFER grant was approved and thanked the Council; the fire department called it a first step.
2026-07-29 - Board of Finance — The chair asked that a fire commission liaison role be restored on the Board of Finance, citing the SAFER grant application and a fire company building in a flood zone (from auto-captions).