The Pennsylvania Municipal League

Updates from the PA State Fire Commissioner – Grants, Training & PennFIRS Transition

via PA Office of the State Fire Commissioner

Fire Company & EMS Grant
The 2025–26 FCEMS Grant Program application period opened on September 5th. Applications must be submitted by October 20, 2025, at 4:00 PM. This program provides critical funding for fire companies, EMS agencies, and volunteer rescue squads.

Unconventional Gas Well Grant
Applications for the Unconventional Gas Well Grant will open on September 30, 2025, and close on November 30, 2025, at 4:00 PM. This program supports emergency preparedness and training for incidents at unconventional gas well sites.

PennFIRST Transition to Emergency Networking
The transition from Emergency Reporting to Emergency Networking is underway. Please note:

  • Departments that do not have a separate contract with ESO will no longer have access to the current system (Emergency Reporting) after October 1st.
  • To begin with Emergency Networking, departments must register for an Emergency Networking account and attend a kickoff call (held Mondays at 3 PM and Thursdays at 6 PM).
  • One remaining in-person training session is being offered to support the rollout at the Keystone Conference Center (Annville) – September 24, 2025. There will be a 1-3pm session and a 6-9pm session. No registration required.
  • Virtual training sessions will be held at a later date TBD

Best Practices in Community Risk Reduction (CRR) Courses
As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This course is designed to help municipal leaders, fire service leaders, building/code officials, and others understand how to use a proven process backed by data to reduce the likelihood of fire-related injuries, fatalities, and property damage in a community. Risk reduction is a proactive shift from responding to incidents to preventing them through Education, Enforcement, Engineering, Emergency response, and Economic incentives (the 5 E’s). Attend one of the courses below or host a CRR course in your area:

HazMat Awareness Training Online
HazMat Awareness courses from the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy are now available online through our training management platform, Acadis! This flexible option allows first responders to complete the course on their own schedule.