[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5048 Introduced in House (IH)]
103d CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5048
To save lives, prevent injuries, and protect property through improved
State and local fire safety education.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 19, 1994
Mr. Hoyer (for himself, Mr. Weldon, and Mr. Boehlert) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space,
and Technology
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To save lives, prevent injuries, and protect property through improved
State and local fire safety education.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Fire Safety Education Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that--
(1) the Nation's fire losses are estimated at 5,000 deaths
and 29,000 injuries annually, producing an economic loss
conservatively estimated at $10,000,000,000 a year plus more
than $1,000,000,000 a year in health care costs;
(2) sustained and targeted fire safety education at the
State and local levels, particularly in identifiable high-risk
populations, produces dramatic results in preventing fires,
fire deaths, and dollar loss from fire;
(3) in recent years, the Nation's fire departments have
seen their fire safety education budgets cut dramatically and,
in many cases, eliminated;
(4) there is a need to expand the availability of State and
local fire prevention programs and supporting resources and
materials to help State agencies and local fire departments in
carrying out effective public education;
(5) fire departments in other countries with fewer fire
deaths per capita than the United States spend an average of 4-
10 percent of their budgets on fire prevention, versus less
than 3 percent for United States departments; and
(6) only by accurately collecting and analyzing data on
fire deaths, injuries and dollar loss can the Nation's fire
departments pinpoint the populations and regions where they
most need to direct their educational efforts, thus leading to
a more efficient and effective use of resources.
SEC. 3. FIRE SAFETY EDUCATION.
(a) Awards.--The Administrator may enter into contracts,
cooperative agreements, or grants with eligible entities to obtain and
distribute at the State and local level fire safety and prevention
education programs and supporting educational resources.
(b) Use of Funds.--Of the amounts received by an entity under
subsection (a)--
(1) not more than 25 percent may be used for statewide fire
safety and prevention programs;
(2) not more than 25 percent may be used to implement new
regional or local fire safety and prevention programs targeting
high risk populations; and
(3) at least 50 percent shall be used for awards of not
more than $10,000 for existing regional or local fire safety
and prevention programs that have been demonstrated to be
effective in preventing fires, fire deaths and injuries, and
dollar losses from fire.
SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION.
The Administrator may enter into contracts, cooperative agreements,
or grants with States for the purpose of implementing the revised
National Fire Incident Reporting System, established under section 9 of
the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2208),
to improve and enhance the collection and analysis of fire data at the
State and local levels.
SEC. 5. APPLICATIONS.
Each eligible entity desiring a contract, cooperative agreement, or
grant under this Act shall submit an application to the Administrator
at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as
the Administrator may reasonably require.
SEC. 6. REPORTS AND EVALUATION.
(a) Annual Report to Administrator.--An entity receiving funds
under section 3 shall prepare and submit to the Administrator an annual
report which contains such information as the Administrator may
require. At a minimum, the report shall describe the program activities
undertaken with such funds, including--
(1) any program that has been developed directly or
indirectly by the entity, and the target population of such
program;
(2) support materials that have been obtained and the
method by which such materials are distributed; and
(3) any initiatives undertaken by the entity to develop
public-private partnerships to secure non-Federal support for
the development and distribution of programs and material in
furtherance of this Act.
(b) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall prepare and submit
to the Congress an annual report which includes a description of the
programs undertaken and materials developed and distributed by entities
receiving funds under section 3.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Fire Safety Education.--For the purposes of carrying out
section 3 of this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated
$10,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1996 and 1997, of which no
more than $500,000 may be spent in any fiscal year on administrative
costs.
(b) Data Collection.--For the purposes of carrying out section 4 of
this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated $2,500,000 for fiscal
year 1995, of which no more than $300,000 shall be spent on
administrative costs.
SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act--
(1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of
the United States Fire Administration;
(2) the term ``eligible entity'' means the office of the
State fire marshal for a State or an equivalent State office
having primary responsibility for fire safety and prevention in
the State;
(3) the term ``fire safety and prevention education
programs'' includes publications, audiovisual presentations,
and demonstrations; and
(4) the term ``State'' means any State of the United
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa,
the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or
possession of the United States.
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