S 1941 IS

To amend the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to authorize the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance to fire departments and fire prevention organizations for the purpose of protecting the public and firefighting personnel against fire and fire-related hazards.

November 17, 1999

Mr. DODD (for himself and Mr. DEWINE) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

To amend the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to authorize the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance to fire departments and fire prevention organizations for the purpose of protecting the public and firefighting personnel against fire and fire-related hazards.

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 `Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--

(1) increased demands on firefighting personnel have made it difficult for local governments to adequately fund necessary fire safety precautions;

(2) the Federal Government has an obligation to protect the health and safety of the firefighting personnel of the United States and to ensure that the personnel have the financial resources to protect the public; and

(3) the high rates in the United States of death, injury, and property damage caused by fires demonstrates a critical need for Federal investment in support of firefighting personnel.

SEC. 3. FIREFIGHTER INVESTMENT AND RESPONSE ENHANCEMENT.

The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

`SEC. 33. FIREFIGHTER INVESTMENT AND RESPONSE ENHANCEMENT.

`(a) DEFINITION OF FIREFIGHTING PERSONNEL- In this section, the term `firefighting personnel' means individuals, including volunteers, who are firefighters, officers of fire departments, or emergency medical service personnel of fire departments.

`(b) ASSISTANCE PROGRAM-

`(1) AUTHORITY- In accordance with this section, the Director may--

`(A) make grants on a competitive basis to fire departments for the purpose of protecting the health and safety of the public and firefighting personnel against fire and fire-related hazards; and

`(B) provide assistance for fire prevention programs in accordance with paragraph (4).

`(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE FOR ADMINISTRATION OF ASSISTANCE- Before providing assistance under paragraph (1), the Director shall establish an office in the Federal Emergency Management Agency that shall have the duties of establishing specific criteria for the selection of recipients of the assistance, and administering the assistance, under this section.

`(3) USE OF FIRE DEPARTMENT GRANT FUNDS- The Director may make a grant under paragraph (1)(A) only if the applicant for the grant agrees to use the grant funds--

`(A) to hire additional firefighting personnel;

`(B) to train firefighting personnel in firefighting, emergency response, arson prevention and detection, or the handling of hazardous materials, or to train firefighting personnel to provide any of the training described in this subparagraph;

`(C) to fund the creation of rapid intervention teams to protect firefighting personnel at the scenes of fires and other emergencies;

`(D) to certify fire inspectors;

`(E) to establish wellness and fitness programs for firefighting personnel to ensure that the firefighting personnel can carry out their duties;

`(F) to fund emergency medical services provided by fire departments;

`(G) to acquire additional firefighting vehicles, including fire trucks;

`(H) to acquire additional firefighting equipment, including equipment for communications and monitoring;

`(I) to acquire personal protective equipment required for firefighting personnel by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and other personal protective equipment for firefighting personnel;

`(J) to modify fire stations, fire training facilities, and other facilities to protect the health and safety of firefighting personnel;

`(K) to enforce fire codes;

`(L) to fund fire prevention programs; or

`(M) to educate the public about arson prevention and detection.

`(4) FIRE PREVENTION PROGRAMS-

`(A) IN GENERAL- For each fiscal year, the Director shall use not less than 10 percent of the funds made available under subsection (c)--

`(i) to make grants to fire departments for the purpose described in paragraph (3)(L); and

`(ii) to make grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, national, State, local, or community organizations that are recognized for their experience and expertise with respect to fire prevention or fire safety programs and activities, for the purpose of carrying out fire prevention programs.

`(B) PRIORITY- In selecting organizations described in subparagraph (A)(ii) to receive assistance under this paragraph, the Director shall give priority to organizations that focus on prevention of injuries to children from fire.

`(5) APPLICATION- The Director may provide assistance to a fire department or organization under this subsection only if the fire department or organization seeking the assistance submits to the Director an application in such form and containing such information as the Director may require.

`(6) MATCHING REQUIREMENT- The Director may provide assistance under this subsection only if the applicant for the assistance agrees to match with an equal amount of non-Federal funds 10 percent of the assistance received under this subsection for any fiscal year.

`(7) MAINTENANCE OF EXPENDITURES--The Director may provide assistance under this subsection only if the applicant for the assistance agrees to maintain in the fiscal year for which the assistance will be received the applicant's aggregate expenditures for the uses described in paragraph (3) or (4) at or above the average level of such expenditures in the 2 fiscal years preceding the fiscal year for which the assistance will be received.

`(8) REPORT TO THE DIRECTOR- The Director may provide assistance under this subsection only if the applicant for the assistance agrees to submit to the Director a report, including a description of how the assistance was used, with respect to each fiscal year for which the assistance was received.

`(9) VARIETY OF FIRE DEPARTMENT GRANT RECIPIENTS- The Director shall ensure that grants under paragraph (1)(A) for a fiscal year are made to a variety of fire departments, including, to the extent that there are eligible applicants--

`(A) paid, volunteer, and combination fire departments;

`(B) fire departments located in communities of varying sizes; and

`(C) fire departments located in urban, suburban, and rural communities.

`(10) LIMITATION ON EXPENDITURES FOR FIREFIGHTING VEHICLES- The Director shall ensure that not more than 25 percent of the assistance made available under this subsection for a fiscal year is used for the use described in paragraph (3)(G).

`(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS-

`(1) IN GENERAL- There is authorized to be appropriated to the Director $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 through 2005.

`(2) LIMITATION ON ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS- Of the amounts made available under paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the Director may use not more than 10 percent for the administrative costs of carrying out this section.'.

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