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Committee backs $6.5 million pilot for fire incident management software
Summary
Senate Bill 12‑97 would appropriate $6.5 million to the Arizona Department of Administration for a three‑year Fire Incident Management Grant Program providing incident management software to fire agencies; the committee approved the bill after testimony from multiple fire chiefs and a 6–3 vote.
The Committee on Land, Agriculture and Rural Affairs voted to return Senate Bill 12‑97 with a do‑pass recommendation, advancing a bill that would appropriate $6.5 million from the state general fund in FY2026 to the Arizona Department of Administration for a Fire Incident Management Grant Program.
Research intern Sam Robinson told the committee that the bill “appropriates $6,500,000 from the state general fund fiscal year '26 to the Arizona Department of Administration for a Fire Incident Management Grant Program” and outlines the program’s administration and eligible applicants.
Sponsor testimony and multiple chiefs described the software’s expected operational benefits. Mike Williams, the House sponsor’s representative in committee, said the program will provide “fire incident management software to allow the firefighters to see where everybody’s at and get instantaneous command.” He said the sponsor is working with appropriations to phase the funding over three years so departments can use the system and transition to recurring costs if needed.
Deputy Chief Louis Jones of the Guadalupe Fire Department and Deputy Chief Eric Kepler of Glendale described accountability, real‑time information sharing from drones and dispatch, and improved interoperability between agencies as primary benefits. Jones said GPS and mapping improvements “drastically reduced our response time” when similar technologies were earlier introduced.
Committee members asked whether subscriptions and ongoing operating costs were covered; Williams said the appropriation funds a three‑year program and does not include subscription funding beyond that term, although the sponsor said he would return to request continued support for smaller jurisdictions if the pilot demonstrates benefit.
After testimony and questions, the committee voted 6–3 to return the bill with a do‑pass recommendation.
The bill includes conditions for audit and reversion of funds if the software is not implemented within a year, and gives ADOA authority to review bids and audits of recipients as part of program oversight.
