DeWine Fights to Prevent Campus Fire Deaths

DEWINE FIGHTS TO PREVENT CAMPUS FIRE DEATHS

U.S. Senator Mike DeWine, a Senate leader on fire prevention and safety issues, today launched an initiative to prevent the nation's college and university students from being victims of house, apartment or dorm fires.

Since 2000, at least 12 of Ohio's college and university students were killed in housing fires. Nationwide, 75 lives have been claimed in such fires over the same period, six of which came in April, 2005, alone. The majority of these incidents have occurred in privately owned off-campus housing or fraternities and sororities. Three students were killed and several others were injured in a fire at an off-campus house at Miami University last month. This tragic incident comes on the heels of a deadly fire in 2003 that killed five students at the Ohio State University.

"Protecting the hundreds of thousands of students across the state facing similar risks every year is an enormous challenge. It is a shared challenge at the local, state, and federal level, and is also shared between parents, students, college officials, and housing owners," stated Senator DeWine, "but so many campus administrators are unaware that federal assistance is available to help cover the costs."

Senator DeWine wrote and passed the Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act (S. 1941) in 2000, establishing a grant program dedicated to providing federal assistance to local fire departments. Senator DeWine's legislation increased the federal commitment to firefighting and emergency response services. During the fiscal year 2005 appropriations process, Senator DeWine, a member of the Appropriations Committee, helped secure $650 million for the FIRE Act. In the same year, Senator DeWine passed an updated version of the bill that improves the FIRE Act by adding a provision guaranteeing for the first time that federal funding for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and extends the entire program through 2010. Since 2001, fire departments in Ohio have received more than $65 million in grants to assist in firefighting or fire prevention programs. This legislation has a five percent guaranteed set-aside, which Senator DeWine fought to create, for fire prevention that could be used for safety programs including on or near college campuses.

Senator DeWine is working on ways to encourage colleges, universities, and community groups to tap into this funding to address on and off campus student fire safety needs. To that end, Senator DeWine will be sending a letter to all college presidents in Ohio making them aware of their eligibility for FIRE grants.

"These grants may be used for a wide range of activities, including student and parent fire safety education, smoke detector installation and battery replacement programs, fire safety inspections, and partnerships with local fire departments," stated Senator DeWine.

Senator DeWine is planning on introducing a resolution establishing September as Campus Fire Safety Month, timed to coincide with millions of college students nationwide returning to college campuses after summer break. This resolution would encourage administrators and municipalities to provide educational programs during the month and to evaluate the level of fire safety both on-campus and off. Senator DeWine is also looking at options for legislation that would increase outreach and education efforts about campus fire safety at the federal level and is looking at data collection issues with respect to on and off campus fires. Senator DeWine discussed these issues yesterday with U.S. Fire Administrator David Paulison, and it may be possible to achieve those goals without legislation.

Additionally, Senator DeWine co-sponsored Senator Rick Santorum's (R-PA) Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act of 2005, which would create a new tax incentive for the voluntary installation and retrofitting of buildings with automated sprinkler systems to save the lives of countless individuals and responding firefighters as well as drastically reduce the costs from property damage.

http://dewine.senate.gov/