NVFC Joins Other Fire Service Organizations in Calling for the Preservation of Key Public Safety Programs

March 18, 2025

Over the past two months the Trump Administration has undertaken efforts to streamline agency functions in the federal government. The Administration is exempting personnel deemed necessary to meet public safety responsibilities from ongoing personnel changes. The NVFC recently joined 30 other national fire service organizations to cosign letters to Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy. These letters express appreciation for the Administration’s public safety personnel change exemption and advocate for the preservation of critical programs that serve as essential resources for safeguarding public safety and strengthening national security.

The letter to Kennedy highlights the need to support key public safety programs within the Department of Health and Human Services including the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program and the National Firefighter Registry for Cancer. The letter to Noem highlights the need to support key public safety programs within the Department of Homeland Security including the Assistance to Firefighters Grant and Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant programs, the U.S. Fire Administration, and Urban Search and Rescue teams. The letter to Secretary Duffy highlights the need to support key public safety programs within the Department of Transportation including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Emergency Medical Services and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.