Today, Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) joined the Harrington Park Fire Department and Harrington Park Councilmember Allan Napolitano to celebrate a federal grant of $212,572 awarded for protective equipment for the firefighters as part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program.

“Returning our federal tax dollars to New Jersey is a critical part of keeping our first responders safe as they do the same for us. That is why I am proud to join the Harrington Park Fire Department today to celebrate their success in receiving their first AFG grant in nearly a decade,” said Congressman Gottheimer. “Our state gets pennies back on the dollars that we send to Washington, and that’s why I’ve made it a top priority to improve the return on investment we see from our federal taxes – to help communities like Harrington Park get the equipment and resources they need to keep us safe from everything from lone wolf terrorism to fire emergencies.”

This award is Harrington Park’s first Assistance to Firefighters grant in seven years.

Below: Congressman Gottheimer and Harrington Park firefighters celebrate their $212,572 AFG grant.

The AFG award helps firehouses across the United State to upgrade or purchase new equipment, vehicles, workplace trainings, and other fire prevention activities.

Since taking office, Congressman Gottheimer has been laser-focused on encouraging North Jersey towns to apply for grant programs to return federal tax dollars to North Jersey, including through the AFG grant program. His first public district event after being sworn was to encourage fire departments to apply for the grant, and he has celebrated each success with them as the money has been awarded.

He has also hosted several return on investment roundtables to provide guidance to local towns on the federal resources available to them and how best to secure these grants.