Reps. Sherrill and Bacon Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Firefighters
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) and Congressman Don Bacon (NE-02) introduced the bipartisan PROTECT Firefighters Act, which will help keep firefighters safe in crisis situations by improving equipment, training, and staffing for departments’ emergency rescue teams. Alongside this legislation, Rep. Sherrill also sent a letter to Speaker Johnson, Leader Jeffries, Appropriations Committee Chair Cole, and Appropriations Committee Ranking Member DeLauro urging them to fully fund firefighter assistance grants and the U.S. Fire Administration.
“Firefighters risk their lives to protect our communities, often rushing into danger while others are rushing out. In recent years, we have sadly seen an increase in the number of firefighters killed while on-duty. New Jersey knows that pain all too well. The tragic loss of two Newark firefighters in July 2023 after a major fire at the Port of Newark underscored the need for additional training, equipment, and support. That’s why I was proud to work alongside Rep. Bacon and firefighters across New Jersey to craft legislation that will take concrete steps to ensure our heroes have the resources to do their jobs safely and effectively,” said Rep. Sherrill.
“Our firefighters put their lives on the line every day to keep our communities safe. As a member of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus, I'm co-leading the bipartisan PROTECT Firefighters Act with Rep. Sherrill to ensure these heroes have the proper training, equipment, and resources needed,” said Rep. Bacon. “When responding to emergencies, our firefighters deserve the best possible tools and support for a safe return home to loving families.”
Sherrill’s legislation has earned the endorsement of the New Jersey Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association, International Association of Fire Chiefs, and National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.
“As we continue to advocate for maximum funding of our Congressional grants, we still have gaps to fill,” said Eddie Donnelly, President of the New Jersey Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association. “In New Jersey, our members are called out daily to support fire suppression efforts in neighboring municipalities. Rapid Intervention Teams are needed and required to be on the scene to assist in the removal of down Firefighters. No one comes to help us – except us. The PROTECT Firefighters Act will provide for a concise study on what is fiscally needed to be sure we have every tool possible to achieve life saving results. It will also take a hard look at the specific challenges of maritime firefighting. New Jersey Firefighters will never forget our brothers in Newark, Augie and Wayne, who made the ultimate sacrifice battling a ship fire in Port Newark. We continue to urge Congress to fund our fiscal priorities and applaud Congresswoman Sherrill for her continued efforts on behalf of New Jersey's first responders.”
“Rapid Intervention Teams are a critical component to keeping firefighters safe during an emergency incident. We appreciate Congresswoman Sherrill and Congressman Bacon’s commitment to ensuring RITs have the necessary equipment, staffing, and training needed to minimize firefighter risk and injury,” said Victor Stagnaro, CEO of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.
The PROTECT Firefighters Act directs the U.S. Fire Administration to develop a comprehensive strategy to improve equipment, training, and staffing standards for firefighter Rapid Intervention Teams (RITs) – firefighting crews that serve as stand-by rescue teams at the scenes of fires and other emergencies – including RITs that respond to port facility fires.
The bill also directs the U.S. Fire Administrator to review the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program Line of Duty Death reports and provide recommendations for how Congress can address the specific causes of incidents in which a firefighter was killed in the line of duty.
Rep. Sherrill’s letter to House leadership urges them to provide maximum funding for firefighter assistance grants and the U.S. Fire Administration in this year’s appropriations process, and to fully fund the recommendations of the U.S. Fire Administration’s strategy required by the PROTECT Firefighters Act. You can read the full letter here, and below.
Dear Speaker Johnson, Minority Leader Jeffries, Chair Cole, and Ranking Member DeLauro:
I represent thousands of firefighters who put their lives at risk every day to protect families and communities across New Jersey and the nation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these heroes served on the frontline of the public health emergency and played a crucial role in delivering lifesaving assistance to those in need. While important progress has been made in improving the safety of firefighters nationwide over the past four decades, I am alarmed and saddened by the recent increase in deaths in the line of duty. In 2022, 80 firefighters were killed while on-duty, and 73 were killed in 2023. These are the highest number of deaths since 2013, and two of the three highest years since 2009. In the face of these tragedies, I urge you to provide maximum funding for firefighter assistance grants and the U.S. Fire Administration in this year’s appropriations process and to support the development of a comprehensive strategy by the U.S. Fire Administration to better protect firefighters responding to crisis situations, as laid out in the bipartisan PROTECT Firefighters Act.
Congress has a critical role to play in ensuring that state and local fire departments have the resources they need to purchase high-quality equipment and safety gear, recruit and retain firefighters to ensure needed staffing levels, and engage in advanced training initiatives. Through FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) and Staffing For Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) programs, Congress has provided over $15 billion in life-saving funding to firefighters, including $700 million in FY 2024.2 I was very proud to vote for the Fire Grants and Safety Act in May 2024 to reauthorize these critical programs through FY 2028 to ensure that they can keep providing critical equipment and training to first responders throughout the country.
As I’ve met with firefighters throughout my district this year, however, it is clear that fire departments have urgent funding needs that are not being met with current levels of federal assistance. AFG and SAFER each receive grant applications of over $2 billion each per year from fire departments, while combined funding between both programs remains considerably below $1 billion annually. This deficit means that fire departments nationwide are unable to replace outdated equipment, send their firefighters to advanced training programs, and hire enough employees to meet safe staffing levels.
In New Jersey, two Newark Fire Division firefighters were killed in the line of duty in July 2023 after a major fire at the Port of Newark. An investigation of this tragedy by the U.S. Coast Guard revealed that Newark firefighters had not received hands-on shipboard training, even though they are responsible for responding to fires at these facilities if needed. The investigation also found that the radio communications equipment used by the Newark firefighters performed poorly during the port fire response, which resulted in many of the firefighters being unable to communicate with each other adequately during the incident. In addition, the National Transportation Safety Board – in their report released on April 15th – found that a lack of training and familiarity with marine firefighting played a key role in the tragedy. Firefighters put their lives on the line every time they enter a burning building or ship, and they should have the best equipment and training available to ensure that they can remain as safe as possible. In my conversations with fire chiefs nationwide, however, cost remains a significant barrier to acquiring these life-saving resources. Local governments have significant fiscal constraints that limit funding opportunities, while the AFG and SAFER programs can fund less than a third of their annual grant requests due to limited federal appropriations.
Therefore, I strongly urge you to provide the maximum possible funding for the AFG and SAFER programs, as well as the U.S. Fire Administration, in this year’s FY 2026 appropriations process. These critical resources will allow fire departments to invest in the advanced equipment and training that will save lives in crisis situations. Each year, billions of dollars in fire departments’ grant requests remain unmet not because they are unneeded but simply due to a lack of appropriations, and it is critical that Congress now provide this life-saving assistance to firefighters nationwide.
Furthermore, I recently introduced the PROTECT Firefighters Act, which would task the U.S. Fire Administration with developing a comprehensive strategy to identify current deficiencies in equipment, training, and staffing standards for firefighter Rapid Intervention Teams (RITs) and provide recommendations for how Congress can address these issues. RITs serve as stand-by teams for the immediate search and rescue of missing, trapped, or injured firefighters and play a crucial role in ensuring the safety of firefighters across the country. This strategy will allow the U.S. Fire Administration to identify key areas where federal funding is most urgently needed to protect firefighters, with a particular emphasis on tragedies in which a firefighter was killed in the line of duty. In addition, the strategy will help to better coordinate national efforts to equip and train fire departments that respond to maritime fires, which can present unique challenges and risks to firefighters. I urge you to support this critical legislation and to ensure that federal funding is available to implement the equipment, training, and staffing recommendations provided by the U.S. Fire Administration.
I greatly appreciate the bipartisan work of this Congress to reauthorize the AFG and SAFER programs and to provide critical assistance to firefighters around the country. However, recent events have shown that the federal government must do more to ensure firefighter safety. I now urge Congressional leadership to support the development of a comprehensive strategy to protect firefighters in crisis situations, fully fund the recommendations of this strategy, and provide maximum funding for AFG, SAFER, and the U.S. Fire Administration. I look forward to staying engaged on this issue as Congress develops its appropriations package for FY 2026.
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