Wildfire Season Staffing Grant

Eligibility

1. Must be one of Oregon’s local fire agencies with an assigned FDID or tribal ID, or a non-FDID fire response agency that contributes to local and county mutual aid response systems.
2. Priority will be given to agencies whose annual property tax income does not exceed $2 million.
   1. This information can be found through your tax assessor’s office.
   2. This is the portion that your agency receives.
   3. This is not your annual operating budget, capital outlay budget, funding received from any grant sources, or reserve accounts.
3. The maximum award per agency (with no carryover) is $35,000.
4. Agencies with an approved carryover from prior award years will be limited to what their maximum request amount is. Those agencies will receive an individualized eligibility email. The criteria to determine their eligibility is:
   1. Those who spent 50% or less of their 2025 award will not be eligible for a new award in 2025. They must first spend down their 2025 carry over.
   2. Those who spent 51–84% of their 2025 award are allowed to request up to the max of their 2025 spend or their average spend (whichever is greater) less any carryover.
   3. Those who spent 85% or more of their 2025 award are allowed to request up to $35,000, less any carryover.
5. Fire Incident Reporting Compliance
   1. For the 2026 season, the Oregon State Fire Marshal is pausing this requirement as fire agencies get established and familiarize themselves with NERIS+.
6. If your agency received an out-of-compliance communication for the 2025 Wildfire Season Staffing Grant or any other OSFM grant, your agency may be ineligible.
7. If your agency has not completed reporting requirements of the 2025 Wildfire Season Staffing Grant or any other OSFM grant, your agency may be ineligible.
8. If it is the intent of two agencies to operate as one entity and they have a legal agreement like an IGA, for the purposes of the grant, the agencies will be treated as one entity, making them eligible for one application.

Allowable Costs

1. Personnel costs that increase the availability of firefighters, including paying for:
   1. Students/interns who need minimal training
   2. Volunteers who need minimal training
   3. Seasonal firefighters who need minimal training
   4. Extra shifts of part-time career firefighters
   5. Overtime shifts of full-time career firefighters
   6. Employer required expenses such as workers compensation
2. Administrative costs, including management, payroll, and supplies associated with payment of personnel up to 10% of the current season’s award amount.

Unallowable Costs

1. Hiring permanent personnel.
2. Supplanting existing personnel or other budgets (i.e., using funds to cover personnel costs your agency already has budgeted for to allow other activities not budgeted for).
3. Paid leave expenses (i.e., vacation or sick leave).
4. Purchasing equipment or equipment maintenance.
5. Purchasing supplies or PPE.
6. Fuel or engine maintenance.
7. Raises or bonuses.
8. Costs associated with training, conferences, or other travel-related expenditures.
   1. Paying of personnel time for minimal in-district training is allowed.
9. Costs reimbursed via other OSFM funds (e.g. pre-position, immediate response, conflagration).

Application Form, Process, and Awarding

1. Applications will be submitted on the new grant management system and must be received by 11:59 p.m. Sunday, April 12, 2026
   1. Link: https://osfm.wizehive.app/program/wildfire-season-staffing/info
2. The OSFM reserves the right to ask follow-up questions in response to your application.
3. Applicants with a property tax income of less than $2 million will be reviewed on a first come, first served basis throughout the application period.
4. Applicants with a property tax income greater than $2 million will be considered after the application period closes, dependent on available funding.
5. Successful applicants must respond to all OSFM correspondence in a timely manner.
6. Successful applicants must sign and return their agreement for disbursements to be processed.

Important Grant Dates

• Applications Open: Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 8:00 a.m.
• Applications Due: Sunday, April 12, 2026, 11:59 p.m.
• Notice of Award: Monday, April 20, 2026
• Funding Allocated: Initiated upon completion of agreement
• Mid Report Due: September 11, 2026
• Final Report Due: November 13, 2026

Grant Award Payment

1. Grantees will be awarded a one-time, lump sum to be spent across the grant period (May 1, 2026 – October 31, 2026).

Reporting Requirements

1. Grantees shall provide the OSFM with a mid-report due Friday, September 11, 2026.
2. Grantees shall provide the OSFM with a final report due Friday, November 13, 2026.
3. Includes a final budget report and a closeout summary (survey)

OSFM Grants Program:
Shaun Parkman, Grants Manager
Michelle Slay, Grants Coordinator
Dedrei Oldham, Grants Assistant
Email: osfm.grants@osfm.oregon.gov
Phone: 503-791-1956