Consideration and Approval of Intergovernmental Agreement:  Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the City of Flagstaff and the Greater Flagstaff Region (GFR) partnering agencies (Summit Fire District, Highlands Fire District and Ponderosa Fire District)

Approval of the IGA will enable the City of Flagstaff to partner in the utilization of AFG grant funding for the regional training of All-Risk incidents within the region.

Expenditures and revenues related to this grant are budgeted within the Fire Grants Section. There is a 10% match for this grant that is split up based on the number of employees being trained by each department listed in the IGA (See IGA Exhibit A).

COUNCIL GOALS:
  4) Develop and implement guiding principles that address public safety service levels through appropriate staff levels
11) Ensure that we are as prepared as possible for extreme weather events
REGIONAL PLAN:
Partnerships - PF.1.4
Preparedness and Emergency Response - PF.1 
Public Safety - PF.3

No.

Approve the IGA between the City and the GFR partners.  Reject the IGA between the City and the GFR partners.

This IGA will allow the use of FEMA Assistance to Firefighters (AFG) funding and collaboration of training within the regional Fire Departments and FPD dispatchers assigned to work All-Risk incidents.  The primary goal of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) is to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. Since 2001, AFG has helped firefighters and other first responders to obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources needed to protect the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards.

By approving this IGA, the Greater Flagstaff Region (GFR) would benefit greatly though the grant funding by certifying senior instructors as train-the-trainers (T-t-T) to educate and certify command staff and operations personnel (94) in a recognized all-hazard incident ICS program. Funding also provides for purchasing the equipment for a comprehensive portable incident simulator training center. This training would meet the requirements of NIMS as directed by HSPD-5: Management of Domestic Incidents, NFPA 1500 standard on fire department occupational safety, health program and NFPA 1561: Standard on Emergency Incident Management System and Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) 29CFR1910.120(q)(3)(i) Procedures for handling emergency response. Certification in ICS and the simulator will enhance day to day operations, accountability, and safety of firefighters. To meet the goal outlined in this grant request, we would first send 8 instructor qualified personnel (Inst./Eval. NFPA 1041) to be certified by the third party vendor. Qualified instructors would then utilize the Blue Card Program to deliver the command training and certification programs to our organization; after which, we would deliver the program to the partnering organizations. The T-t-T course includes 50 hours of on-line training and 64 hours of classroom to teach instructors how to deliver the command simulation training and evaluate students. Instructors then receive the resources to deliver the program customized with local and regional building, hazards, maps and critical infrastructure to develop realistic and relevant incident simulations using ICS. Travel and lodging to attend the courses at the command training center are included. Next, is the request for operational and communications personnel to complete the 50 hour on-line training and 24 hour instructor-led ICS simulation, training and Blue Card certification. Students in this course will be certified by the instructors outlined above as NIMS local type-4 and 5 incident commanders. The course consists of students running all-hazard incident simulations in various ICS positions from division/group supervisor to command and general staff as they would as part of their daily response duties. The final component of the grant request is for a portable incident command training simulator that will provide the required system and tools instructors need to certify trainees. The kit includes 9 iPads with incident simulation software, a communications component, carrying cases, and accessories to present realistic scenarios. This comprehensive ICS training certification and incident simulator will provide GFR personnel the required basic level of training and realistic simulation experience that will give them skills to effectively implement ICS on daily responses, elevated alarms, as well as local and regional manmade and natural disasters. This training is a necessary adjunct to Federal Emergency Management Agency NIMS ICS 100-400 courses.

The total grant is for $186,395 of which 90% is Federal funding ($169,450) and the additional 10% ( $16,645) is split up between GFR departments with the City of Flagstaff's total commitment being $9,727 (See IGA Exhibit A).  This includes all training for Fire and PD dispatchers, equipment, TLM for train the trainers and OT for backfill purposes to attend the regional classroom trainings.

By supporting this IGA we will have better efficiency on working incidents amongst partners in the region which will create safer scenes for the community we serve.  This allows for better collaborative efforts between resource limited agencies in the region and will assist in sharing of qualified command and operational staff personnel for mitigation purposes.

Inform the Council, Fire Boards and public on the grant application and corresponding IGA to allocate funds.

Approve IGA as recommended.  2. Reject the IGA with the City and GFR partners which will make the City of Flagstaff ineligible for the grant (due to it being awarded by AFG as a regional grant).