National Fire Programs

Mission

Develop and manage programs that increase capacity of the nation's fire and emergency services and the public to prevent, mitigate, prepare for, and respond to local, regional and national emergencies.

Functions

  1. Develop programs that increase the capacity of the fire service to prevent and mitigate the consequences of local emergencies, and strengthen and support other emergency and disaster response elements.
  2. Develop state-of-the-art training and design and produce exemplary training models, materials, courses, programs, and curricula suitable for distribution to and use by State and local fire training organizations.
  3. Support the planning and design of the National Fire Academy curriculum as a whole; and the development, evaluation, and revision of each individual course within the curriculum.
  4. Continue efforts to implement the use of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) which involves all related disciplines, in emergency response.
  5. Develop doctrine and training to design, operate and evaluate the NIMS/National Response Plan (NRP) and the practice of Incident Command System.
  6. Research information and activities to support the development of training and assistance in response to evolving fire and emergency issues and/or strategies.
  7. Develop and evaluate USFA's curricula content.
  8. Develop and provide fire-safety education to increase public awareness about fire problems and reduce fire-risk behaviors.
  9. Develop and disseminate operational, technical, and public informational materials in a variety of formats.
  10. Coordinate USFA strategies and activities with State and local Government emergency services providers and other organizations that link to or work in partnership with USFA.
  11. Assist Federal regulatory agencies and State and local Governments in developing standards and regulations pertaining to the safety of firefighters.
  12. Identify and develop opportunities for partnerships with the private and public sectors across the spectrum of fire prevention and awareness activities.
  13. Enhance USFA's service to both customers and other Federal agencies having collateral fire and emergency support roles through Federal Agency partnering.
  14. Support the NRP prescribed ESF-4 within the NRP.
  15. Utilize and disseminate fire-related information to guide decisions on strategies and develop effective fire legislation at all levels.
  16. Identify model programs that can be transferred to State and local fire services and the public sector.
  17. Carry out broad-based programs to support the operation of the Nation's volunteer fire services, including increased leadership/management capabilities and advocacy for recruitment and retention.
  18. Implement and coordinate Nation-wide programs of community-based fire prevention in cooperation with public, private, and neighborhood organizations.
  19. Coordinate all Federal arson prevention and control programs with organizations, public and private entities in developing strategic partnerships.
  20. Coordinate fire program activities with other elements and external entities to minimize duplicative efforts and to improve efficacy and synergy.