I am a big believer in the need to understand where we came from if we’re going to understand where we’re going. And while our traditional origin story takes us back to the days of Benjamin Franklin and the Philadelphia Union Fire Company, today I would like us to consider the creation of the U.S. Fire Administration in order to better understand how the sweeping changes currently underway across the federal government will ultimately impact our local fire service and the communities we serve.
USFA origin story
In 1974, legislation creating the National Fire Prevention Control Administration (NFPCA) and the National Fire Academy was signed into law. The NFPCA became what we know today as the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). But in 1974, NFPCA was a cabinet-level agency with the fire administrator in the line of presidential succession. The law establishing NFPCA was a culmination of the work started by President Harry Truman in 1947, when he convened the first “Conference on Fire Prevention” – an effort to address the fire safety problem plaguing the United States.
In 1979, the USFA was moved, nested under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), one tier below cabinet level. Then in 2003, FEMA was moved and nested under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which was stood up in response to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. While not necessarily meaningful to the average firefighter at the time, this move placed the USFA two tiers under cabinet-level significance. Regardless of these changes, which demonstrate an expansion of government and suggests a change in priorities over the years, the USFA has led the efforts toward significant policy changes, safety improvements, and advances in fire prevention nationwide.
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A shared mission – firefighter support
The NFPCA/USFA as a federal agency carried the proverbial torch at the highest levels of government for the non-federal efforts of the much-older NFPA. The nonprofit NFPA was established in 1896 as a Boston fire code organization, and its mission has since grown to international significance, with staff supported by more than 10,000 volunteers serving on technical committees.
Bringing us closer to today, the USFA has continued its mission of fire safety through both administration efforts and the training programs coordinated at and through the National Fire Academy (NFA). The USFA has been responsible for stewarding over $15 billion in Fire Act grant funds to local fire departments across the United States since that program’s inception. While the org-chart significance may have been reduced over time, the USFA’s integration with the boots on the ground support has grown exponentially.
Fire department budgets and FEMA support
Having served as a fire/emergency services chief for three organizations, I was always keenly aware of the bottom line at each – $800,000 in West Virginia, $7 million in Highlands County, Florida, and $200 million in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Regardless of the department size, coming in under budget was not just a priority, it was a mandate. Over-budget expenditures for natural disaster response have been accepted in each of those states because FEMA would provide reimbursement, as long as we prepared and submitted documentation on a defined schedule. Other over-budget expenditures meant being called to the carpet and adjusting priorities to balance the budget.
The federal government has not held itself to the same balanced-budget standard that local fire chiefs have been held to for as long as I can remember. In the past 55 years, only four years – 1998 through 2001 – saw a balanced federal budget. President Bill Clinton was successful in overseeing the development of and presenting those balanced budgets, even surpluses – quite a feat for any president or political party.
DOGE’s impact on the fire service
Inching closer to our present-day situation, think back just a few months to the many hot button issues in the 2024 presidential campaign. One in particular stands to directly and indirectly affect the fire service. Specifically, one of President Trump’s campaign promises was to identify and eliminate “government waste,” with the goal of achieving a reduced federal deficit – maybe even a balanced budget. Trump tapped Elon Musk as an advisor to lead the effort through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
As of this writing, exactly one month into Trump’s second term, the efforts to identify problem areas and eliminate “waste” have been swift. Whether focused on education or regulatory agencies, the messages have been clear – “less regulation” and “the states can handle it better.” While swift, the process has been nothing less than chaotic for many. In one case, some nuclear safety employees were terminated before someone realized that the nuclear workers’ jobs were unique and related to national security. As of this writing, the government was attempting to rehire the employees.
The federal employee terminations have apparently been widespread. I say apparently because official documentation has been sparce. Media outlets have reported upwards of 200,000 federal employees have been let go. In addition to those 200,000, another 75,000 have reportedly accepted early retirement buyouts. FEMA and other allied agencies have collectively lost thousands of employees in a matter of weeks. Without some retooling, rehiring and/or reprocessing, these terminations will surely have a direct impact on the fire service.
Here is a partial list of federal job losses from agencies that will have direct and indirect impacts on the fire service:
- Department of Homeland Security: 405 (200 from FEMA alone)
- Department of Interior: 2,000 (firefighters were spared, maintenance and conservation workers were not)
- Centers for Disease Control: 1,300, including 16 from the World Trade Center Health Program, more from the firefighter cancer registry program, and NIOSH, which runs the Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program.
- Environmental Protection Agency: 388
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid: Unknown number as of this writing, but cuts will certainly impact fire-based EMS agencies
I have read numerus firsthand reports from impacted NIOSH and NFA workers, all of whom asked to remain anonymous. While I recognize we will all have to share in the pain of budget balancing, I’m quite confident that cutting firefighter safety and training programs to the bone will not resonate well nor result in positive outcomes. The NIOSH, National Firefighter Registry and NFA cuts will impact firefighter safety for years to come. With respect to NIOSH’s firefighter safety staff alone, they are now reportedly down to two investigators to perform investigations for the agency’s trauma team.
Further evidence of the policy upheavals manifests in program cancellations that appear to be related to the Executive Order directing agencies to remove all references and programs that may be considered DEI initiatives. For example, the U.S. Fire Administration’s National Fire Academy announced cancellation of the National Weekend, sponsored by Women in Fire, which had been scheduled for May 17 and 18, 2025, at the National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Additionally, the U.S. Forest Service announced cancellation of the annual spring bootcamp for women who are interested in becoming wildland firefighters.
Whether it is training, grants management, wildland management, disaster response, CMS funding and management, firefighter death investigations or any number of other support functions, the consequences of these terminations is yet to be determined. I can assure you, however, that the local fire service will bear the brunt of the impact.
We MUST contact our elected officials to ensure that they understand the impacts we are facing. Additionally, I recommend that chiefs take steps now to guard against the trickle down that will surely be coming. It’s not rocket science, although through the fog of the chaos, some of it feels like tea-leaf-reading. The bottom line: Fewer staff and less money available to support your fire department will result in either or both of these outcomes:
- Delayed results for everything (or anything) related to training, significant event/injury/death investigations, and grants.
- Less money for previously programmed or expected expenditures/support.
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Not all states are equal
The notion that states can handle things better speaks to the principles of home rule governance, essentially pushing responsibility to a lower level. With respect to emergency management (fires, natural disasters, EMS, etc.), and the idea of resources crossing state borders, I immediately think about trying to get cats and dogs to play together. While there are cases where the concept works nearly flawlessly (the National Capitol Region), this is not the norm.
I’d love to see an environment where the states have equal capacity to handle their own affairs. I know from working in three different states that they do not have that equal capacity, nor appetite. States and localities have different priorities, legal processes, liability concerns and, ultimately, different solutions for their problems.
It doesn’t take much imagination to understand how reductions in federal funds to states will adversely affect states that don’t have enough cushion to absorb the cuts. Simply to demonstrate how likely federal financial cuts will affect most states, here’s a look at a budget analysis for the three states where I’ve worked with the fire service. (I recognize the devil is always in the details, but these are current apples-to-apples comparisons.)
Maryland state budget
- $3 billion deficit
- Federal general fund contributions to Maryland in 2024 equal $24 billion, about 36% of Maryland’s total budget
West Virginia
- $400 million deficit
- Federal general fund money in 2024 at $9.6 billion, over 50% of West Virginia’s total budget
Florida
- $17 billion surplus
- Federal general fund contributions to Florida in 2024 equal $37.9 billion, about 32% of Florida’s total budget
The disparity of states in this financial glimpse is mirrored in the firefighter training requirements across the states. The states where I’ve recently taught classes – Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Iowa – each have widely varying training requirements for entry-level firefighters to join service. While the NFPA standards spell out requirements in detail, states have different needs and outlooks. Despite all those differences, fires, floods and other natural and manmade disasters don’t know state borders. It has been my experience that fires burn the same in Maryland as they do in Florida or any other state. Only the environment differs. We will undoubtedly need to continue leaning on each other.
I don’t doubt there is a need for streamlining within FEMA and some other federal agencies. I’ve seen the processes, and like many of you, I’ve scratched my head in disbelief at some of the labyrinth of process and government-speak. Regardless, the need for a robust coordinating effort across state borders is crucial to the safety of our communities.
Moving forward
The near-daily Executive Orders are addressing many of the promises made during the election cycle. While that in and of itself IS refreshing (a politician keeping promises), the process has been very much like the idiom “throwing the baby out with the bathwater.” I find myself constantly asking, what’s the plan? Is anyone at the upper levels of government looking at the big picture and how these changes will impact public safety?
It has taken us over 20 years to amass a $1.8 trillion (FY2024) federal budget deficit. I suspect we all want to see a balanced federal budget, and I applaud a push to get us there. However, a slash-and-burn process built on political promises with little strategic analysis will be a recipe for failure in any business, and the fire service will not be immune. Are you ready?
Final thoughts
Despite all of the politics, I have never heard a 911 caller ask for one party or the other. Callers uniformly ask for help, and they expect and deserve the service we are sworn to provide. Similar to any of these federal agencies, the less money and people you have will directly reduce your capacity and ability to provide the same level of service.
I recognize that promises are only as good as results delivered. The question as we are experiencing it daily really is whether this is an idiom or an exorcism. These are interesting times that will test even the most seasoned firefighter. While firefighters typically live, eat and breathe in chaotic environments, our mission must focus on bringing calm to the chaos.
