20 V.S.A. § 53: Technical Rescue Grant Program

(a) Creation of Program. There is created the Technical Rescue Grant Program to assist Vermont fire departments, emergency medical services agencies, and technical rescue agencies with the improvement of operational readiness and investment in specialized equipment, personal protective gear, and training. The Program shall be administered by the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Team program manager.

(b) Duties of USAR Team program manager. The USAR Team program manager, in addition to other duties described elsewhere in law, shall review grant applications, award grants, and otherwise administer the Program.

(c) Eligibility. Fire departments, emergency medical services agencies, and technical rescue agencies operating within Vermont shall be eligible for Program grants. Grant applicants shall demonstrate their use, planned use, or need for technical rescue operations within their service area. All grant applicants shall submit their application on a form adopted by the USAR Team program manager. The USAR Team program manager shall prioritize grant awards for applicants that:

(1) maintain a memorandum of understanding with the Division of Emergency Management for swiftwater rescue; or

(2) function as regional technical rescue teams providing services in multiple jurisdictions.

(d) Grant award limitations. The maximum award to any applicant in a given fiscal year shall be not more than $5,000.00. The Program shall not award more than $25,000.00 in total grants in a given fiscal year.

(e) Application review and scoring. The USAR Team program manager shall adopt procedures governing application submission, forms, review, scoring, and recommendation of awards. The procedures for application scoring shall include alignment with the Program priorities in subsection (a) of this section, operational need, geographic service area, feasibility of the proposed project, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of the applicant’s services.

(f) Grant recipient reporting; report. Each grant recipient shall submit to the USAR Team program manager a final expenditure report, proof of purchase or training completion, and a narrative description of how the grant improved the recipient’s technical rescue capacity. Annually on or before November 15, the USAR Team program manager shall submit a written report to the House Committee on Government Operations and Military Affairs and the Senate Committee on Government Operations summarizing grant awards, outcomes, and Program recommendations.

(g) Rulemaking. The USAR Team program manager may adopt rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25 as needed to implement this section.