The Department of Homeland Security's Office for Domestic Preparedness has posted online program guidance for the 2006 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grants program. The SAFER program provides direct grants to help career, volunteer and combination fire departments with staffing shortages. Specifically, the grants provide federal funding for hiring firefighters and incentives for volunteer recruitment and retention.

The program guidance document — available as a PDF — provides a summary of the priorities for funding of the 2006 SAFER grants. The document also explains how to apply, what information will be requested, and how applications will be evaluated.

A tutorial offered on the grant program’s Web site at www.firegrantsupport.com provides answers to frequently asked questions. Together, these online resources provide the information necessary to complete the online application. The online application will be available on or about May 30.