[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1194 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1194

 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to classify automatic fire 
   sprinkler systems as 5-year property for purposes of depreciation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 25, 2009

 Mr. Langevin (for himself, Mr. Cantor, Mr. Roskam, Mr. LoBiondo, Mr. 
Grijalva, Mr. Paul, Mr. Gutierrez, Ms. Sutton, Mr. Young of Alaska, Mr. 
 Bishop of Georgia, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Holt, Mr. Moran of Virginia, Mr. 
Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Honda, Mr. Hoekstra, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. Sherman, 
Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Bishop of New York, Ms. 
Schwartz, Mr. Payne, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Oberstar, Ms. Baldwin, Mrs. Bono 
Mack, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Serrano, Mr. Doyle, Ms. Norton, 
  Mr. Andrews, Mr. Ehlers, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. Rothman of New Jersey, 
 Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Carnahan, Mr. Wilson of South Carolina, 
 Mr. Gordon of Tennessee, Mr. Shimkus, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Schakowsky, 
  Mr. Boozman, Mr. Bachus, Mr. McIntyre, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Filner, Mr. 
Latham, Mr. King of New York, Mr. Wexler, Mr. Space, Mr. Crowley, Mrs. 
Myrick, and Mr. Kind) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to classify automatic fire 
   sprinkler systems as 5-year property for purposes of depreciation.

    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 Sprinkler Incentive Act of 
2009''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) the publication of the original study and comprehensive 
        list of recommendations in America Burning, written in 1974, 
        requested advances in fire prevention through the installation 
        of automatic sprinkler systems in existing buildings have yet 
        to be fully implemented;
            (2) fire departments responded to more than 1,500,000 fires 
        in 2007;
            (3) there were 3,430 civilian deaths and 17,675 civilian 
        injuries resulting from fire in the United States in 2007;
            (4) 114 on-duty firefighters were killed in 2008;
            (5) fire caused an estimated $14,639,000,000 in direct 
        property damage in 2007, and sprinklers are responsible for a 
        70 percent reduction in property damage from fires in public 
        assembly, educational, residential, commercial, industrial and 
        manufacturing buildings;
            (6) fire departments respond to a fire every 20 seconds, a 
        fire breaks out in a structure every 59 seconds and in a 
        residential structure every 76 seconds in the United States;
            (7) the Station Nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, 
        did not contain an automated sprinkler system and burned down, 
        killing 100 people on February 20, 2003;
            (8) due to an automated sprinkler system, not a single 
        person was injured from a fire beginning in the Fine Line Music 
        Cafe in Minneapolis after the use of pyrotechnics on February 
        17, 2003;
            (9) the National Fire Protection Association has no record 
        of a fire killing more than 2 people in a completely 
        sprinklered public assembly, educational, institutional or 
        residential building where the system was properly installed 
        and fully operational;
            (10) sprinkler systems dramatically improve the chances of 
        survival of those who cannot save themselves, specifically 
        older adults, young children and people with disabilities;
            (11) the financial cost of upgrading fire counter measures 
        in buildings built prior to fire safety codes is prohibitive 
        for most property owners;
            (12) many State and local governments lack any requirements 
        for existing structures to contain automatic sprinkler systems;
            (13) under the present straight-line method of 
        depreciation, there is a disincentive for building safety 
        improvements due to an extremely low rate of return on 
        investment; and
            (14) the Nation is in need of incentives 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.

SEC. 3. CLASSIFICATION OF AUTOMATIC FIRE SPRINKLER SYSTEMS.

    (a) In General.--Subparagraph (B) of section 168(e)(3) of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to 5-year property) is amended 
by striking ``and'' at the end of clause (vi), by striking the period 
at the end of clause (vii) and inserting ``, and'', and by adding at 
the end the following:
                            ``(viii) any automated fire sprinkler 
                        system placed in service after April 11, 2003, 
                        in a building or structure which was placed in 
                        service before such date.''.
    (b) Alternative System.--The table contained in section 
168(g)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 
inserting after the item relating to subparagraph (B)(vii) the 
following:

``(B)(viii).................................................       7''.
    (c) Definition of Automatic Fire Sprinkler System.--Subsection (i) 
of section 168 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(20) Automated fire sprinkler system.--The term 
        `automated fire sprinkler system' means those sprinkler systems 
        classified under one or more of the following publications of 
        the National Fire Protection Association--
                    ``(A) NFPA 13, Installation of Sprinkler Systems,
                    ``(B) NFPA 13 D, Installation of Sprinkler Systems 
                in One and Two Family Dwellings and Manufactured Homes, 
                and
                    ``(C) NFPA 13 R, Installation of Sprinkler Systems 
                in Residential Occupancies up to and Including Four 
                Stories in Height.''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to property placed in service after April 11, 2003.
    (e) Waiver of Limitations.--If refund or credit of any overpayment 
of tax resulting from the amendments made by this section is prevented 
at any time before the close of the 1-year period beginning on the date 
of the enactment of this Act by the operation of any law or rule of law 
(including res judicata), such refund or credit may nevertheless be 
made or allowed if claim therefor is filed before the close of such 
period.
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