Resources
Practical guides for capital planning and funding.
Written for fire chiefs and officers, not marketers -- capital planning, apparatus and PPE replacement, federal grants, ISO/PPC, staffing, municipal budgeting, and how to present a plan to your board or council.
Funding Guides
Fire department grants and funding, explained →FEMA AFG and SAFER, USDA rural programs, state fire grants, foundation and corporate funding, and guides to funding fire trucks, SCBA, turnout gear and stations.
Capital Planning
Fire department capital improvement plans (CIP): a practical guide
What a fire department capital improvement plan includes, how to build one from a replacement schedule, and how to present it so it gets funded.
Capital Planning
How to build a fire department capital plan
A practical starting point for organizing apparatus, equipment, and facility needs into a real, multi-year plan.
Capital Planning
Apparatus replacement planning: when to start
Waiting until an apparatus fails is the most expensive way to plan a replacement. Here's a more realistic timeline.
Funding
A practical guide to federal fire-service grant programs
What AFG, SAFER, and FP&S actually fund, and how they fit into a department's broader funding strategy.
Capital Planning
ISO/PPC and why it matters beyond your insurance rates
ISO/PPC most often comes up in conversations about insurance — but the underlying data is also a capital-planning asset.
Leadership Reporting
How to present a capital plan to your board or council
The difference between a capital plan that gets funded and one that gets tabled is usually how it's presented, not what's in it.
Staffing
Where staffing fits into a capital budget conversation
Staffing is usually an operating-budget line item, not a capital one — but the two are more connected than most budget documents show.
Equipment
SCBA and PPE replacement: planning for a cost that never stops recurring
Unlike an apparatus, SCBA and turnout gear don't last decades — and that recurring cost needs its own place in a capital plan.
Leadership Reporting
How a fire department's capital request fits into the municipal budget cycle
The municipal budget cycle has its own calendar, vocabulary, and decision points — understanding them changes how a capital request should be timed and framed.