Carbon Monoxide Alarms Leading Every Resident to Safety Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. GARCIA of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of a practical bill that will ensure healthy, safe housing.

H.R. 1690, the Safe Housing for Families Act, now named the Carbon Monoxide ALERTS Act, or CO ALERTS Act, would require the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in all federally assisted public housing to prevent needless deaths.

The legislation I introduced with my colleague, Joe Cunningham of South Carolina, passed out of the Financial Services Committee unanimously, and bipartisan action in the Senate is well underway.

Secretary Carson of the Department of Housing and Urban Development testified in support of our efforts to put an end to carbon monoxide deaths in public housing.

Allow me to share a story about Gwendolyn and Anthony Fleming, who were residents of the Hickory Hollow residence in Wayne, Michigan. They moved to their community to be somewhere quiet and safe, but the fact that HUD doesn't require carbon monoxide detectors on its facilities put them in grave danger.

On a cold February day this year, Ashley, their daughter, pulled up to Hickory Hollow with her three kids. She expected to find her parents waiting for a routine family dinner. When her parents didn't return her calls or answer the door, she knew that something was wrong and called the police. Ashley's mother had died of carbon monoxide poisoning.

When the medical examiner arrived, Ashley knew it was time to leave. ``I didn't want to see them bring my mother's body out in a body bag,'' she said. ``And I didn't want my children to see that either.''

Anthony Fleming, Ashley's father, was found unconscious and was taken to a hospital. He never regained consciousness.

These deaths--and many others--were preventable.

Since 2003, 13 people have died from carbon monoxide poisoning in federally subsidized housing. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control reports that 50,000 individuals per year are sickened by carbon monoxide poisoning, and over 400 die per year.

It is unconscionable that the very people our government seeks to provide shelter for are dying in their homes. All it takes is a detector, just like smoke detectors we already require in every building.

Secretary Carson said it himself: ``A simple, inexpensive, widely available device can be the difference between life and death. Given the unevenness of State and local law, we intend to make certain that carbon monoxide detectors are required in all our housing programs, just as we require smoke detectors, no matter where our HUD-assisted families live.''

In April, HUD proposed a rule to require carbon monoxide detectors on its housing units. In May, HUD announced $5 million to install detectors. We know, however, that the rulemaking process can drag on for months.

Already, almost 25 States already require carbon monoxide monitors in homes, and it was Secretary Carson who suggested that the patchwork of State laws be aligned around the principle of expanding public safety protections.

Testifying before the Financial Services Committee in May, Secretary Carson said that he was 100 percent in favor of resolving this issue and said, ``As quickly as we can get it done, it is going to get done.'' The quickest possible solution is for the House to pass the bill before us today.

Secretary Carson's staff at HUD have been engaged in working with Congress to expedite the rule-making process and make sure that protections are put in place before the cold winter months arrive. This bill has already spurred legislative action in the Senate, and the bipartisan efforts moving through the Senate Banking Committee are now aligned in this bill.

Let's pass this life-saving legislation and protect those in Federally assisted housing.

I would like to thank the staff of the House Financial Services Committee, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and in the Senate those who have worked to ensure that our efforts will effectively prevent needless deaths as quickly as possible.

I would also especially like to thank Senator Kamala Harris for working with me to introduce this legislation and to Senators Menendez and Scott for helping us make technical changes to improve the bill.

I also want to thank Chair Maxine Waters, ranking members Pat McHenry and Mr. Stivers of Ohio and members of their staff for all their work on this bill, which received unanimous support from the Financial Services Committee.

Numerous housing, public health, and home security groups support this legislation.

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Mr. GARCIA of Illinois. The supporters of this bill include the National Association of Realtors, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the American Public Health Association, the National Housing Law Project, the National Housing Trust, the Public Housing Authorities Directors Association, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, the Latin United Community Housing Association, Justice Innovations, Safe Kids Illinois, and the Security Industry Association.

Colleagues, let's seize the rare opportunity to advance straightforward life-saving legislation that has already won bipartisan support in this House. Saving lives in our housing facilities with a simple, inexpensive solution is not a partisan issue. It is exactly what our constituents sent us here to do, work together to find solutions for the American people. I urge you to support H.R. 1690, the CO ALERTS Act.

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