Every year, Chuck commits to traveling to all62 counties in New York to meet with constituents.
On March 27, 2023, standing at the East Willison Fire Department alongside a bipartisan group of elected officials, firefighters, and public safety advocates, Senator Schumer sounded the alarm on the risk of federal funding for life-saving firefighter equipment purchases and upgrades running out by the end of the year. Senator Schumer highlighted how without federal funding, the East Williston fire department and fire departments all over Long Island will be unable to afford essential, yet expensive equipment, drawing attention to the $200,000 East Williston needs for new breathing apparatuses. To ensure fire departments have the technology they need to save lives and that local budgets are not erroneously overburdened, Schumer announced his plans to introduce the “Fire Grants and Safety Act,” which would reauthorize the U.S. Fire Administration, the Assistance to Firefighter Grants (AFG), and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Program. These pivotal FEMA programs, which the Senator originally spearheaded in 1999, have delivered nearly $700 million in federal funding to support New York first responders. Schumer committed to tirelessly advocating in Congress that these funding lifelines to Long Island’s firehouses are not eliminated, applauding the work local firefighters who effectively used their resources and tools to control recent fires in the villages of Great Neck and Flower Hill, New York.