[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3791 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3791

To amend sections 33 and 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control 
                  Act of 1974, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 13, 2009

   Mr. Mitchell (for himself, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Gordon of 
Tennessee, Mr. Wu, Mr. Andrews, Mr. Grayson, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Rothman of 
    New Jersey, Mr. Wilson of Ohio, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Carnahan, Mr. 
  Costello, Mr. Peters, Mr. Holden, Ms. Shea-Porter, Ms. Hirono, Mr. 
   Hinchey, Mr. Michaud, Mr. Higgins, Mrs. Halvorson, Mr. Ross, Mr. 
   Foster, Mr. Langevin, Mr. McIntyre, Mr. Delahunt, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. 
  Kagen, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Ms. Richardson, Ms. Sutton, Mr. 
 Cuellar, Mrs. Kirkpatrick of Arizona, Ms. Clarke, Ms. Loretta Sanchez 
    of California, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. 
   Cleaver, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, and Mr. Doyle) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 
                           and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend sections 33 and 34 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control 
                  Act of 1974, and for other purposes.

    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 Grants Reauthorization Act of 
2009''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF FEDERAL FIRE PREVENTION AND CONTROL ACT OF 1974.

    Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an 
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a 
repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be 
considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Federal 
Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.).

SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE TO FIREFIGHTERS GRANT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Grant Recipients.--Section 33(b)(1) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``State, in 
        consultation'' and inserting ``State or State fire training 
        academies, in consultation''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``nonaffiliated EMS'' 
        and inserting ``volunteer, non-fire service EMS and rescue''.
    (b) Use of Grant Funds.--Section 33(b)(3) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``in firefighting,'' 
        and by inserting ``in firefighting, emergency medical services 
        and other'';
            (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``inspectors'' and 
        inserting ``and building inspectors employed by a fire 
        department or serving as a volunteer building inspector with a 
        fire department'';
            (3) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``nonaffiliated EMS'' 
        and inserting ``volunteer, non-fire service EMS and rescue'';
            (4) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``for fighting fires 
        with foam in remote areas without access to water, and 
        equipment''; and
            (5) in subparagraph (K), by striking ``codes'' and 
        inserting ``codes and standards''.
    (c) Fire Prevention and Firefighter Safety Programs.--Section 
33(b)(4) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``5 percent'' and 
        inserting ``10 percent''; and
            (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``$1,000,000'' and 
        inserting ``$1,500,000''.
    (d) Matching Requirement.--Section 33(b)(6) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``20 percent'' and 
        inserting ``10 percent'';
            (2) by amending subparagraph B to read as follows:
                    ``(B) Requirement for small community 
                organizations.--In the case of an applicant whose 
                personnel serve jurisdictions of 20,000 or fewer 
                residents, the percent applied under the matching 
                requirement of subparagraph (A) shall be 5 percent.''; 
                and
            (3) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``(A)(ii)''.
    (e) Maintenance of Expenditures.--Section 33(b)(7) is amended by 
striking ``above the'' and inserting ``above 80 percent of the''.
    (f) Variety of Fire Department Grant Recipients.--Section 33(b)(9) 
is amended to read as follows:
            ``(9) Variety of fire department grant recipients.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the amounts made available 
                under subsection (e), the Director shall ensure that 
                grants under paragraph (1)(A) for a fiscal year are 
                allocated, to the extent that there are eligible 
                applicants to carry out the activities under paragraph 
                (3), as follows:
                            ``(i) 25 percent shall be made available to 
                        career fire departments;
                            ``(ii) 25 percent shall be made available 
                        to volunteer fire departments; and
                            ``(iii) 25 percent shall be made available 
                        to combination fire departments.
                    ``(B) Priority for high population and incident 
                response.--In awarding grants under paragraph (1)(A), 
                the Director shall give priority within each category 
                of applicants under subparagraph (A) to an applicant 
                that is serving an area with high population and with a 
                high number of incidents requiring a response.
                    ``(C) Remainder.--Of the amounts made available 
                under subsection (e) that are not allocated for use and 
                awarded under subparagraph (A) or designated for use 
                under any other provision of this section, the Director 
                shall provide for an open competition for grants among 
                career fire departments, volunteer fire departments, 
                and combination fire departments to carry out the 
                activities under paragraph (3).''.
    (g) Recipient Limitations.--Section 33(b)(10) is amended--
            (1) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
                    ``(A) Recipient limitations.--A grant recipient 
                under paragraph (1)(A)--
                            ``(i) that serves a jurisdiction with 
                        100,000 people or less may not receive grants 
                        in excess of $1,000,000 for any fiscal year;
                            ``(ii) that serves a jurisdiction with more 
                        than 100,000 people but less than 500,000 
                        people may not receive grants in excess of 
                        $2,000,000 for any fiscal year;
                            ``(iii) that serves a jurisdiction with 
                        500,000 people or more but less than 1,000,000 
                        people may not receive grants in excess of 
                        $3,000,000 for any fiscal year;
                            ``(iv) that serves a jurisdiction with 
                        1,000,000 people or more but less than 
                        2,500,000 people may not receive grants in 
                        excess of $6,000,000 for any fiscal year; and
                            ``(v) that serves a jurisdiction with 
                        2,500,000 people or more may not receive grants 
                        in excess of $9,000,000 for any fiscal year.
                The Director may award grants in excess of the 
                limitations provided in clauses (i), (ii), (iii), and 
                (iv) if the Director determines that extraordinary need 
                for assistance by a jurisdiction warrants a waiver.'';
            (2) by striking subparagraph (B);
            (3) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (B);
            (4) by inserting after subparagraph (B), as redesignated by 
        paragraph (3) of this Act, the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) State fire training academies.--
                            ``(i) In general.--To the extent that there 
                        are eligible applicants and in accordance with 
                        clause (ii), the Director shall award not more 
                        than 3 percent of the amounts made available 
                        under subsection (e) for grants under this 
                        subsection for State fire training academies.
                            ``(ii) Limitation.--The Director shall not 
                        make a grant to a State fire training academy 
                        in excess of $1,000,000 and shall ensure that 
                        any grant awarded to a State fire training 
                        academy shall be used for the purposes 
                        described in paragraphs 3(G), 3(H), and 
                        3(I).'';
            (5) in subparagraph (E)--
                    (A) in the heading, by striking ``Nonaffiliated 
                ems'' and inserting ``Volunteer, non-fire service ems 
                and rescue organizations''; and
                    (B) in the text, by striking ``nonaffiliated EMS'' 
                and inserting ``volunteer, non-fire service EMS and 
                rescue'';
            (6) in subparagraph (F)--
                    (A) in the heading, by striking ``Nonaffiliated 
                ems'' and inserting ``Volunteer, non-fire service ems 
                and rescue''; and
                    (B) in the text, by striking ``nonaffiliated EMS'' 
                and inserting ``volunteer, non-fire service EMS and 
                rescue''; and
            (7) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(G) Consensus standards.--Any grant amounts used 
                to obtain training under this section shall be limited 
                to training that complies with applicable national 
                voluntary consensus standards (if applicable national 
                voluntary consensus standards have been 
                established).''.
    (h) Economic Hardship Waiver.--Section 33(b)(11) is amended to read 
as follows:
            ``(11) Economic hardship waiver.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In exceptional circumstances, 
                the Director may waive or reduce the matching 
                requirement under paragraph (6) and the maintenance of 
                expenditures requirement under paragraph (7) for 
                applicants facing demonstrated economic hardship.
                    ``(B) Criteria development.--The criteria under 
                which the Director may waive or reduce such 
                requirements shall be developed in consultation with 
                individuals who are--
                            ``(i) recognized for expertise in 
                        firefighting, emergency medical services 
                        provided by fire services, or the economic 
                        affairs of State and local governments; and
                            ``(ii) members of national fire service 
                        organizations or national organizations 
                        representing the interests of State and local 
                        governments.
                    ``(C) Public availability.--Criteria developed 
                under subparagraph (B) shall be made publicly 
                available.''.
    (i) Guidelines.--Section 33(b)(14)(A) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' after the semicolon;
            (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(iii) the criteria developed under 
                        paragraph (11) which the Director will use to 
                        evaluate applicants for waivers from program 
                        requirements.''.
    (j) Definitions.--Section 33(d) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon;
            (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting a semicolon; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) the term `career fire department' means a 
        firefighting department that has an all professional force of 
        firefighting personnel;
            ``(5) the term `combination fire department' means a 
        firefighting department that has a combined force of 
        professional and volunteer firefighting personnel; and
            ``(6) the term `volunteer fire department' means a 
        firefighting department that has an all volunteer force of 
        firefighting personnel.''.
    (k) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 33(e) is amended to 
read as follows:
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
        for the purposes of this section $1,000,000,000 for each of the 
        fiscal years 2010 through 2014.
            ``(2) Administrative expenses.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Of the funds appropriated 
                pursuant to paragraph (1) for a fiscal year, the 
                Director may use not more than 3 percent of the funds 
                to cover salaries and expenses and other administrative 
                costs incurred by the Director to make grants and 
                provide assistance under this section.
                    ``(B) Formula.--The Director shall subtract the 
                amount to be used for subparagraph (A) from the amount 
                appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) before making 
                any allocations or apportioning any funds under 
                subsection (b).''.

SEC. 4. EXPANSION OF PRE-SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, FIRE GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Amendments to Subsection (a).--Section 34(a) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) in clause (i), by striking ``4 years'' 
                        and inserting ``3 years'';
                            (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ``1 year 
                        beyond the termination of their grants'' and 
                        inserting ``the entire 3 years of the grant 
                        period''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new clause:
                            ``(iii) The portion of the cost of hiring 
                        firefighters provided by a grant under this 
                        paragraph may not exceed 80 percent of such 
                        cost for each fiscal year.'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``subparagraph 
                (E)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (B)(iii)'';
                    (C) by striking subparagraph (E); and
                    (D) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) through (H) 
                as subparagraphs (E) through (G), respectively; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``paragraph (1)(H)'' and inserting 
                ``paragraph (1)(G)''; and
                    (B) by striking ``departments, and organizations on 
                a local or statewide'' and inserting ``departments and 
                organizations on a local, statewide, or national''.
    (b) Amendment to Subsection (b).--Section 34(b)(3)(B) is amended by 
striking ``subsection (a)(1)(B)(ii) and (F)'' and inserting 
``subparagraphs (B)(ii) and (E) of such subsection''.
    (c) Amendment to Subsection (c).--Section 34(c)(4) is amended to 
read as follows:
            ``(4) Waiver.--In exceptional circumstances, the 
        Administrator may waive the requirements of subsections 
        (a)(1)(B)(ii), (a)(1)(B)(iii), and paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
        this subsection if the Administrator determines that the 
        jurisdiction is facing demonstrated economic hardship in 
        accordance with section 33(a)(11).''.
    (d) Amendment to Subsection (e).--Section 34(e) is amended by 
striking ``of this section'' each place it appears and by inserting 
``of the Fire Grants Reauthorization Act of 2009''.
    (e) Amendment to Subsection (i).--Section 34(i) is amended by 
striking ``this section'' and all that follows through the period at 
the end and inserting ``this section $1,194,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2010 through 2014.''
    (f) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--Section 34 is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Administrator'' each place it appears and 
        inserting ``Director''; and
            (2) in subsection (h)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
                paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so 
                redesignated) the following:
            ``(1) `Director' means the Director, acting through the 
        Administrator;''.
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