May 17, 2012. Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Wayne Goodwin recently announced the 2012 Volunteer Fire Department Fund grants. Volunteer fire departments in Watauga County received $183,806.91 and in Avery County received $139,661.05.
This year, a total of $8,717,495.18 has been awarded to 644 volunteer fire departments across the state.
The Volunteer Fire Department Fund, administered by the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal, was created by the General Assembly in 1988 to provide dollar-for-dollar matching grants to assist volunteer fire departments with the purchase of equipment and capital expenditures. The maximum annual award amount is $30,000 per applicant.
“I’m proud that so many fire departments are taking advantage of this important grant program,” said Goodwin. “These grants help our volunteer fire departments stretch their budgets to better serve our communities.”
More than $89 million in matching grant funds has been awarded to volunteer fire departments since the program began in 1988.
See a full list of the 2012 Volunteer Fire Department Fund grant recipients at: http://www.ncdoi.com/OSFM/FRGrants/Documents/2012FireGrantAwards.pdf.