Texas A&M Forest Service awards $14 million to Texas fire departments
Third round of awards from $192 million legislative appropriation
Texas A&M Forest Service approved an additional $14 million in funding for grants to Texas vol- unteer fire departments on Feb. 13.
The 89th Texas Legislature approved a historic $192 million appropriation to Texas A&M Forest Service through the Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program, RVFDAP, established by Texas House Bill 2604 in 2001.
The program provides grants to rural volunteer fire departments for essential firefighting equip ment and training.
Volunteer fire departments from across the state were notified on Feb. 13 they were the recipients of grant funding through Texas A&M Forest Service’s Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program. (Texas A&M Forest Service) “With this funding from the Legislature, we’ve been able to expedite the awards schedule to cover the list of unfunded requests,” said Jason Keiningham, capacity building department head for Texas A&M Forest Service. “This provides support to some fire de partments that may have been on waiting lists for years.”
The first two rounds of funding awards occurred in October, with $164 million awarded for 558 fire trucks and 321 slip-on units or mobile water systems, and an additional $17.6 million awarded in December for rescue equipment and dry hydrants.
These grants, along with this round, total $195 million to Texas volunteer fire departments.
Although assistance requests made prior to November 2024 have been largely satisfied by this third round of funding from the recent legislative allocation, Texas volunteer fire departments contin ue to experience ongoing needs for vehicles, equipment, safety gear and training.
Recognizing this continuing need, during the legislative session, the RVFDAP also appropriated approximately $88 million in base funding for fiscal years 2026- 27 — the most ever allocated — to address ongoing needs for critical equipment at the local level.
“This additional base funding allowed us to increase reimbursement levels in certain categories to reflect rising equipment costs better, while also reducing the fi nancial burden on departments by lowering cost-share requirements,” Keiningham said.
Beyond financial support, the platform acts as a statewide directory for public and inter-agency use, offering a portal for incident reporting and a searchable equipment database.
This new feature can help agencies during complex, fast-moving emergencies by rapidly identifying and securing the mutual aid equipment needed to protect Texas communities.
Area fire departments receive award money: - Cat Spring VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment and $10k for Training Aids - Flatonia VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment and $10k for Training Aids - Frelsburg VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment and $10k for Training Aids - Ledbetter VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment - New Ulm VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment - Oakland VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment and $10k for Training Aids - San Felipe/Frydek VFD - $10k for Training Aids - Sealy Fire Dept. - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment - Shelby VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment - Sheridan VFD - $25 for Personal Protective Equipment - Weimar VFD - $25k for Personal Protective Equipment.
