A message for all FPAM members from FCAM President Chief Nardelli:

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For those overseeing SAFE and Senior SAFE funds; the change from calendar to fiscal is problematic. With the delays in A&F releasing funds it makes programs this fall nearly impossible. 

 

This timeline problem continues each subsequent year.  By the time funds are dispersed, deposited, and approved for spending within each municipality, the window to pay for Fire Safety Month programs may have closed.

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It is requested that any departments that have concerns regarding these issues to request that heads of departments to send notification letters to Marshal Davine outlining their specific issues with the current program constraints effecting their departments specifically. A sample letter outline is attached which may be used as a guide but should be placed on their own department letterhead and tailored specific department needs:

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Subject: Request to Maintain Calendar-Year Funding for the Massachusetts S.A.F.E. Program.

 

State Fire Marshal

Jon M. Davine

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I am writing to express my strong support for the Massachusetts Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) Program and to respectfully ask Massachusetts leadership to reconsider the timing of S.A.F.E. grant funding.

The S.A.F.E. Program is one of the Commonwealth’s most important investments in fire prevention. Firefighters and Fire Life Safety Educators across Massachusetts are committed to educating children and preventing emergencies before they occur. The concern I am raising is not with the program or those who administer it, but with a funding timeline that does not align with the school year in which this education is delivered.

The FY26 S.A.F.E. grant application opened on February 5, 2026, and closed on March 5, 2026. The Commonwealth subsequently announced $1.8 million in FY26 S.A.F.E. and Senior S.A.F.E. funding. For many local fire departments, however, FY26 funding was not available to us until mid-June 2026. By then, the 2025–2026 school year was essentially over.

FY27 has now begun, yet the FY27 S.A.F.E. application process has not been made available. This creates uncertainty at precisely the time Fire Life Safety Educators are preparing to return to classrooms. Schools are establishing their calendars, teachers are planning their programs, and students are returning. The need for fire and life safety education does not begin when a grant application opens. It begins when the school year begins.

This timing creates a practical challenge for local fire departments. Educators need time to schedule programs, coordinate with schools, purchase materials, and plan their educational activities. Without knowing when funding will be available, departments must decide whether to delay programming, use local operating funds while waiting for grant funding, or reduce the number of schools and students they can serve. These are not simply administrative inconveniences. They directly affect our ability to provide consistent fire and life safety education to Massachusetts children.

The disruption caused by COVID-19 makes consistency even more important. Between approximately 2020 and 2023, traditional classroom-based fire and life safety education was significantly reduced or interrupted. Fire Life Safety Educators have worked hard to rebuild school relationships and address educational gaps created during those years. We cannot recover those lost opportunities overnight. We can, however, ensure that today's students receive consistent education moving forward. Fire safety education is most effective when it is repeated and reinforced throughout a child's education. Lessons introduced in kindergarten and elementary school build upon those provided in middle and high school, from recognizing smoke alarms and practicing evacuation to understanding cooking safety, fire behavior, emergency preparedness, lithium-ion battery safety, and responsible decision-making. When that progression is interrupted, the educational foundation is weakened. Consistency creates relationships. Relationships create access. Access creates education. Education creates safer behavior. The Commonwealth has already recognized the value of this approach. The Massachusetts Fire Incident Reporting System's 2023 annual report identified consistent, comprehensive, statewide, school-based fire safety education through S.A.F.E. as an important factor in improving fire safety for children. After more than 30 years of successful programming, we should ensure that our funding structure supports—not unintentionally interferes with—that success.

For these reasons, I respectfully urge Massachusetts leadership to maintain a calendar-year funding model for the S.A.F.E. Program rather than moving to a fiscal-year funding model. A calendar-year funding structure better reflects how S.A.F.E. education is actually delivered. It gives local fire departments greater predictability when planning school-year programming and allows Fire Life Safety Educators to coordinate with schools before students arrive, rather than waiting months into the academic year to determine what resources will be available. This is not a request for special treatment, nor is it a criticism of those who administer the program. It is a request for a funding structure that allows a successful prevention program to operate as effectively as possible. The S.A.F.E. Program provides something emergency response cannot: an opportunity to prevent an emergency before it occurs. Firefighters are exceptionally good at responding when the alarm sounds. Our Fire Life Safety Educators are working every day to make sure fewer alarms ever need to sound. We cannot go back and provide the missed lessons to the children who needed them during the pandemic years. But we can make sure today's students receive the education they need. We can close educational gaps, strengthen partnerships with our schools, and ensure that S.A.F.E. remains one of Massachusetts' strongest investments in prevention. The S.A.F.E. Program is not simply a grant. It is an investment in children, families, prevention, and ultimately, saving lives. That is the promise of S.A.F.E. Thank you for your consideration, your continued support of the S.A.F.E. Program, and your commitment to the safety of Massachusetts children and seniors.

Respectfully,

Chief Brian F. Nardelli

Brockton Fire Department

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