For Steve:

A former colleague of mine asked me to research a couple of items for him. The following is provided in response:

Perplexity Prompt: Consider this incentive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFC_CeYoImE. Provide data on how many agencies/entities by type of service (ie, fire, police, EMS, national guard, fed-dea, fbi, etc) might profit from its use. How might the facility best be funded from a non-traditional source?

Agencies That Might Benefit from the MAAC Facility

The MAAC Foundation provides no-cost, state-of-the-art training for first responders—including access at nights and weekends, equipment, tools, and consumables—to eliminate financial and logistical barriers to effective training1. A wide variety of public safety and emergency response agencies could profit from such a facility.

Breakdown by Agency Type (U.S. Data)

Service Type	Approximate Number of Agencies/Entities	Notes
Fire Departments	27,10023	96% are local/county; rest are state/fed.
Police/Law Enforcement	17,98545	Includes local police, sheriff, federal.
EMS Agencies	18,200+67	Local agencies responding to 911 calls.
National Guard	3,200+ facilities8	Armories, training sites, airfields.
DEA (Drug Enforcement)	241 domestic offices9	In 23 federal divisions across U.S.
FBI	55 field offices1011	Major city offices, with regional reach.

Details

• Fire departments: The 27,100 departments include career, combination, and volunteer; most are local, but a small share (4%) are state/federal or private fire brigades23.
• Police: 17,985 policing agencies span local, county, state, and federal levels; about 15,400 are local law enforcement and sheriff’s offices45.
• EMS: Over 18,200 EMS agencies respond to 911 calls; around 73,500 ground vehicles are in service67.
• National Guard: 3,200+ facilities used for training, administration, and readiness8.
• DEA: 241 domestic offices represent widespread federal law enforcement presence9.
• FBI: 55 field offices, each overseeing local “resident agencies” for broad geographic coverage1011.

Profiting from Training Facilities

All these organizations require recurring, technical, and realistic field training. An open-access, well-equipped training center like MAAC could reduce costs, standardize training, enhance collaboration, and ensure readiness across agency types, from rural volunteer departments to federal teams.

Non-Traditional Funding Sources for Facilities

In addition to conventional government grants, alternatives exist to sustainably fund advanced training centers like the MAAC Foundation:

Alternative Funding Avenues

• Private Philanthropy & Foundations
  • Grants from foundations dedicated to public safety, e.g., the Gary Sinise Foundation’s First Responders Outreach Program, which funds equipment and training needs for fire, EMS, and police agencies and prioritizes underfunded departments12.
  • Corporate foundations (insurance, healthcare, safety equipment manufacturers).
• Public-Private Partnerships
  • Local businesses, regional corporations, and industries could sponsor training events, donate capital, or fund equipment in return for community goodwill and enhanced safety.
• Specialty Grants
  • Foundations such as the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation and others offer grants tailored to training, equipment, and facility upgrades12.
• Training Rental or Membership Fees
  • While core training for responders could remain free, specialized or external organizational use (e.g., industrial emergency response teams, private security, school safety drills) could generate rental fees13.
• Community or Auxiliary Fundraising
  • Events, naming rights, and volunteer auxiliary groups can support recurring operational costs.
• Endowment or Legacy Giving
  • Long-term sustainability from investment income donated specifically for ongoing operating support.

Utilizing multiple non-traditional sources—especially those targeting public-private cooperation and mission-aligned philanthropy—can diversify support and ensure facility longevity beyond the limits of traditional public funding1312.

Summary Table: Potential Agency and Funding Sources

Agency Type	Entities/Facilities (U.S.)	Non-Traditional Funding Example
Fire Departments	27,100	Foundation grants, industry partners
Police Agencies	17,985	Corporate philanthropy, specialty endowments
EMS Agencies	18,200+	Public-private partnerships
National Guard	3,200+ facilities	Legacy gifts, rental for outside groups
Federal Agencies (DEA, FBI)	241 / 55	Joint training fees, corporate funding

Facilities like the MAAC Foundation are positioned to impact thousands of agencies across disciplines—and can tap an array of diverse, creative funding strategies to remain resilient and mission-focused intod into the future.

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFC_CeYoImE.
2. https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/registry/summary
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefighting_in_the_United_States
4. https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2016/jul/10/charles-ramsey/how-many-police-departments-are-us/
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_enforcement_in_the_United_States
6. https://www.ems1.com/ambulance-service/articles/national-association-of-state-ems-officials-releases-stats-on-local-agencies-911-calls-LPQTHJrK2oIpxuR1/
7. https://www.naemt.org/docs/default-source/about-ems/what-is-ems-for-web-04-17-2017.pdf?status=Temp&sfvrsn=0.46038588091233634
8. https://thegunzone.com/how-many-guard-military-bases-are-there-in-the-us/
9. https://www.dea.gov/who-we-are/divisions
10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_FBI_field_offices
11. https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices
12. https://blog.msafire.com/exploring-new-grant-opportunities-for-fire-departments-beyond-femas-afg-program/
13. https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/pdf/efop/efo40343.pdf
14. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Firefighter-Salary
15. https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/03/bf/7bb8a5f04651b98de071b3464196/osfdprofile.pdf
16. https://www.nvfc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/NVFC-Volunteer-Fire-Service-Fact-Sheet.pdf
17. https://www.leacounty.net/DocumentCenter/View/546/US-Fire-Department-Profile-2020-Supporting-Tables-PDF
18. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HvBTuG5oD0
19. https://en-academic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/23778
20. https://www.druglibrary.net/schaffer/dea/pubs/briefing/7.htm
21. https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/registry-summary-2023.pdf