FY 2006 budget negotiations on Capitol Hill started in February when the president submitted his budget proposal for the next fiscal year. While severely cutting back many domestic programs, the budget proposes a 7% increase over the enacted 2005 budget for the Department of Homeland Security, for a total of $34.2 billion.

The president proposes $500 million for the 2006 Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, the same amount he proposed in FY 2004 and FY 2003, but $150 million less than the enacted amount in FY 2005 and $250 million less than the FY 2004 appropriation.

The president proposed no funding for the Staffing for Adequate Firefighting and Response Act, a federal competitive grant program to help fire departments hire and recruit new personnel.

Chief Bob Dipoli, president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs, emphasized the president's budget is just the first step toward final appropriations for these programs.

Congress ultimately appropriated $650 million for FIRE Grants in 2005 and $750 million for the program in FY 2004. It appropriated startup funding of $65 million for the SAFER grants in FY 2005, although Bush's budget proposed zero funding.

Local fire service grants fared relatively well in comparison to Bush's budget proposals for local law enforcement grants. Grants for local law enforcement organizations, appropriated at $600 million by Congress in FY 2005, would receive $60 million under the president's 2006 budget, according to a report by Police magazine.

U.S. Fire Administrator R. David Paulison issued a statement supporting the president's budget on Feb. 11, noting that it includes a $1.3 million increase for the U.S. Fire Administration and additional funds for the National Fire Academy and the Emergency Management Institute to develop and provide critical training for first responders on the new National Incident Management System and National Response Plan.

For the Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate, the budget proposes about $3.3 billion, an increase of $175 million over FY 2005.

In addition, the president proposes $38 million in new funding to establish a DHS Homeland Security operations center, $15 million to support the implementation of the National Incident Management System through the NIMS Integration Center, $20 million to augment response capabilities for the most catastrophic terrorist attacks, and $10 million for DHS to continue to develop and maintain mobile medical treatment facilities for large-scale emergency events that would overwhelm a community.