The Victorian Government has unveiled $148.6 million of funding for the CFA, as part of its upcoming budget roll-out in May.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
CFA brigades across regional Victoria are set to receive new fire vehicles, station upgrades and enhanced volunteer support under a $148.6 million funding commitment in the upcoming state budget.
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The funding forms part of a broader $365 million emergency services package covering the CFA and Forest Fire Management Victoria.
Under the budget measures, $100 million will be invested over 10 years to expand and renew the CFA’s tanker and pumper fleet, allowing closer collaboration with manufacturers and the gradual replacement of ageing vehicles still in service across regional brigades.
Data presented to parliament in September last year highlighted the scale of the challenge, showing 429 CFA vehicles were more than 25 years old, almost a quarter of the state’s total fleet, with about 200 vehicles reported to be more than 30 years old.
An additional $26 million has been allocated for CFA station construction, planning, land acquisition and upgrades, while $22.4 million will be directed towards volunteer wellbeing initiatives.
These include expanded training programs, updated personal protective equipment and enhanced support services.
Goomalibee CFA was called into action in the lead-up to Christmas last year, with blazes covering 1600ha. Its fire truck, pictured here, is an older single-cab unit.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said the funding would deliver tangible safety and wellbeing benefits for volunteers and improve operational capacity across the state.
“This investment will make a substantial difference to the safety and comfort of our CFA members,” Mr Heffernan said.
“It will ensure our hard-working volunteers are equipped with modern vehicles, facilities and protective equipment to help protect lives and property in their communities.”
Mr Heffernan said the long-term fleet commitment would allow the CFA to better plan vehicle replacement and work more effectively with manufacturers, particularly in addressing the continued use of older single-cab tankers in some areas.
He said PPE funding would support the rollout of next-generation wildfire protective clothing, new structural firefighting gear and P3 masks to improve respiratory protection during bushfire smoke events.
Despite the investment, opposition MPs have criticised the funding package, arguing it falls short of what is needed to address the ageing CFA fleet and rising emergency service demands.
Nationals leader and Shadow Minister for Emergency Services Danny O’Brien said the headline $100 million fleet allocation was misleading, noting it would be spread across a decade and would not significantly reduce the number of outdated vehicles in the short term.
“There are at least 630 old single-cab tankers in the fleet ... this funding will not even begin to modernise the fleet,” Mr O’Brien said.
“It’s also a fraction of the $3 billion extra the government is collecting from Victorians through the emergency services tax. Where is the rest of the money going?”
Mr O’Brien warned that many volunteers would continue to operate older single-cab tankers for years to come, raising ongoing concerns about safety and survivability during bushfires.
Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria, the representative body for CFA volunteers, estimates that around 100 vehicles must be replaced each year at a cost of $60 million simply to prevent the fleet from continuing to age.
Similar concerns were raised at a public event, where long-serving Marong CFA volunteer Michael Shay questioned why comparable funding had not been delivered earlier, as brigades continued to deal with increasing fire risk, ageing equipment, rising operational costs and challenges in attracting and retaining volunteers.
The United Firefighters Union said while the new funding would provide important assets, it reflected persistent frustration within the sector over long-standing resourcing pressures and the pace of equipment replacement.
The government says the investment is designed to strengthen emergency response capability statewide as climate-driven fire seasons place increased pressure on regional firefighters.
However, while the funding promises long-term improvements, critics argue many brigades facing immediate risk may still be waiting years to see meaningful upgrades on the ground.
