[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 76 (Wednesday, May 19, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H3589-H3591]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORABLE STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES COLLEGE FIRE PREVENTION ACT

  Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 2136) to establish the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs Jones Fire 
Suppression Demonstration Incentive Program within the Department of 
Education to promote installation of fire sprinkler systems, or other 
fire suppression or prevention technologies, in qualified student 
housing and dormitories, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2136

       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 ``Honorable Stephanie Tubbs 
     Jones College Fire Prevention Act''.

     SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE HONORABLE STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES 
                   FIRE SUPPRESSION DEMONSTRATION INCENTIVE 
                   PROGRAM.

       (a) Grants.--The Secretary of Education (in this Act 
     referred to as the ``Secretary''), in consultation with the 
     United States Fire Administration, shall establish a 
     demonstration program to award grants on a competitive basis 
     to eligible entities for the purpose of installing fire 
     sprinkler systems, or other fire suppression or prevention 
     technologies, in student housing and dormitories owned or 
     controlled by such entities.
       (b) Eligible Entity.--For purposes of this Act, the term 
     ``eligible entity'' means any of the following:
       (1) An institution of higher education (as that term is 
     defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
     (20 U.S.C. 1002)), including an institution eligible to 
     receive assistance under part A or B of title III or title V 
     of such Act.
       (2) A social fraternity or sorority exempt from taxation 
     under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 
     U.S.C. 501(a)), the active membership of which consists 
     primarily of students in attendance at an institution of 
     higher education (as that term is defined in section 102 of 
     the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)).
       (c) Selection Priority.--In making grants under subsection 
     (a), the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities 
     that demonstrate the greatest financial need.
       (d) Reserved Amounts.--
       (1) In general.--Of the amount made available to the 
     Secretary for grants under this section for each fiscal year, 
     the Secretary shall award--
       (A) not less than 10 percent to eligible entities that are 
     institutions described in subsection (b)(1) that are eligible 
     to receive assistance under part A or B of title III or title 
     V of the Higher Education Act of 1965; and
       (B) not less than 10 percent to eligible entities that are 
     social fraternities and sororities described in subsection 
     (b)(2).
       (2) Plan required.--The Secretary shall develop a plan to 
     inform entities described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 
     paragraph (1) that such entities may be eligible to apply for 
     grants under this section.
       (3) Insufficient applicants.--If the Secretary determines 
     that there are an insufficient number of qualified applicants 
     to award the reserved amounts required in accordance with 
     paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make available the 
     remainder of such reserved amounts for use by other eligible 
     entities.
       (e) Application.--To seek a grant under this section, an 
     eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary 
     at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such 
     information as the Secretary may require.
       (f) Matching Requirement.--As a condition of receipt of a 
     grant under subsection (a), the applicant shall provide 
     (directly or through donations from public or private 
     entities) non-Federal matching funds in an amount equal to 
     not less than 50 percent of the cost of the activities for 
     which assistance is sought.
       (g) Supplement Not Supplant.--Funds made available under 
     this program shall be used to supplement, not supplant, other 
     funds that would otherwise be expended to carry out fire 
     safety activities.
       (h) Limitation on Administrative Expenses.--Not more than 2 
     percent of a grant made under subsection (a) may be expended 
     for administrative expenses with respect to the grant.
       (i) Reports.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
     the first award of a grant under this section and annually 
     thereafter until completion of the program, the Secretary 
     shall provide to the Congress a report that includes the 
     following:
       (1) The number and types of eligible entities receiving 
     assistance under this section.
       (2) The amounts of such assistance, the amounts and sources 
     of non-Federal funding leveraged for activities under grants 
     under this section, and any other relevant financial 
     information.
       (3) The number and types of student housing fitted with 
     fire suppression or prevention technologies with assistance 
     under this section, and the number of students protected by 
     such technologies.
       (4) The types of fire suppression or prevention 
     technologies installed with assistance under this section, 
     and the costs of such technologies.
       (5) Identification of Federal and State policies that 
     present impediments to the development and installation of 
     fire suppression or prevention technologies.
       (6) Any other information determined by the Secretary to be 
     useful to evaluating the overall effectiveness of the program 
     established under this section in improving the fire safety 
     of student housing.
       (j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this Act such sums as may be 
     necessary for each of the fiscal years 2010 through 2012.

     SEC. 3. ADMISSIBILITY AS EVIDENCE.

       (a) Prohibition.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law and subject to subsection (b), any application for 
     assistance under this Act, any negative determination on the 
     part of the Secretary with respect to such application, or 
     any statement of reasons for the determination, shall not be 
     admissible as evidence in any proceeding of any court, 
     agency, board, or other entity.
       (b) Exception.--This section does not apply to the 
     admission of an application, determination, or statement 
     described in subsection (a) as evidence in a proceeding to 
     enforce an agreement entered into between the Secretary and 
     an eligible entity under section 2.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Ohio (Ms. Fudge) and the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Ohio.


                             General Leave

  Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which 
Members may revise and extend and insert extraneous materials on H.R. 
2136 into the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Ohio?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2136. I would 
like to thank Chairman Miller, Ranking Member Kline, the members of the 
Education and Labor Committee, and the 70 Members on both sides of the 
aisle who cosponsored this important

[[Page H3590]]

legislation, the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire 
Prevention Act.
  During the last 8 years of her career in Congress, the Honorable 
Stephanie Tubbs Jones tirelessly advocated for the passage of this 
bill. She believed, as I do, that college students must be safeguarded 
against house fires. When I was elected to Congress last fall, I 
promised myself and the people of the 11th Congressional District of 
Ohio that I would use my vote to support policies providing practical 
and lasting solutions for the district. This bill does just that. H.R. 
2136, the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act, 
supports the installation and management of fire suppression or fire 
prevention technologies in student housing, including fraternal houses. 
The Act directs the Secretary of Education to make competitive grants 
for up to half the cost of installing fire sprinkler systems or other 
fire suppression or prevention technologies. The funding would be 
disbursed to dormitories at institutions of higher education as well as 
fraternity and sorority housing. College students deserve safe housing 
with fire prevention systems, regardless of whether they live in 
nontraditional student housing, a sorority or fraternity house, or in 
dormitories. Fraternal organizations have long played a leading role in 
cultivating the social and intellectual well-being of our college 
students. We must ensure that these organizations have access to the 
necessary resources to protect our youth.
  So far this year, there have been six deaths attributed to student 
housing fires. Since the year 2000, Ohio alone has suffered 13 student 
deaths and 36 related campus incidents due to student housing fires, 
according to Campus Firewatch. When fire prevention and sprinkler 
systems are present, students' survival rates increase by 97 percent, 
and property damage is lowered by 35 percent. Carol Dietz, assistant 
vice president of facilities at John Carroll University, which is in my 
district, stresses the importance of fire safety measures. John Carroll 
is currently planning the implementation of fire fighting technologies 
which cost $500,000 for each residence hall. These grants could help us 
defray the costs of safeguarding our students.
  Once again, I would like to thank the Education and Labor Committee, 
the many supporters of this important legislation, and college students 
across the Nation who have worked tirelessly to move this legislation 
forward. Finally, I am grateful for the vision and compassion of my 
friend, the late Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones.

                                       Committee on the Judiciary,


                                     House of Representatives,

                                      Washington, DC, May 6, 2010.
     Hon. George Miller,
     Chairman, Committee on Education and Labor, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Miller: In recognition of the desire to 
     expedite consideration of H.R. 2136, the Honorable Stephanie 
     Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act, the Committee on the 
     Judiciary agrees to waive formal consideration of the bill as 
     to provisions that fall within its rule X jurisdiction.
       The Committee takes this action with our mutual 
     understanding that by foregoing consideration of H.R. 2136 at 
     this time, it does not waive any jurisdiction over subject 
     matter contained in this or similar legislation, and that our 
     Committee will be appropriately consulted and involved as the 
     bill or similar legislation moves forward, so that we may 
     address any remaining issues in our jurisdiction. The 
     Committee also reserves the right to seek appointment of an 
     appropriate number of conferees to any House-Senate 
     conference involving this or similar legislation, and 
     requests your support for any such request.
       I would appreciate your including this letter in the 
     Congressional Record during consideration of the bill on the 
     House floor.
       Thank you for your attention to this matter, and for the 
     cooperative working relationship between our two committees.
           Sincerely,
                                                John Conyers, Jr.,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

         Committee on Education and Labor, House of 
           Representatives,
                                      Washington, DC, May 6, 2010.
     Hon. John Conyers,
     Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of 
         Representatives, Washington. DC.
       Dear Chairman Conyers: Thank you for your May 6, 2010, 
     letter regarding H.R. 2136, the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs 
     Jones College Fire Prevention Act. Your support for this 
     legislation and your assistance in ensuring its timely 
     consideration are greatly appreciated.
       I agree that provisions in the bill are within the 
     jurisdiction of the Committee on the Judiciary. I acknowledge 
     that by waiving rights to further consideration at this time 
     of H.R. 2136, your Committee is not relinquishing its 
     jurisdiction and I will fully support your request to be 
     represented in a House-Senate conference on those provisions 
     over which the Committee on the Judiciary has jurisdiction in 
     H.R. 2136, or similar legislation. A copy of our letters will 
     he placed in the Congressional Record during, consideration 
     of the bill on the House floor.
       I value your cooperation and look forward to working with 
     you as we move ahead with this important legislation.
           Sincerely,
                                                    George Miller,
                                                         Chairman.

  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in support of the bill before us, H.R. 2136, the Honorable 
Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act. Today we have an 
opportunity to discuss the need to bolster safety on college campuses, 
specifically fire safety. The name of this bill is appropriate because 
there was no Member of this body more concerned about protecting our 
college students from the dangers of fires than the late Representative 
Stephanie Tubbs Jones. This bill would honor Representative Tubbs Jones 
by naming a demonstration program in her honor.
  Our Nation's college students should be able to live on campus with 
the confidence that they will be safe in their dorms, apartments or 
other housing. This measure will take a step toward allowing colleges 
to ensure their buildings are properly equipped with the latest fire 
safety measures. Specifically, this bill will allow colleges and 
universities hoping to participate in the demonstration program to 
apply for funds that can be used to install fire sprinkler systems or 
other fire suppression or prevention technologies on campus or in 
buildings controlled by the university.
  This measure, combined with the provisions enacted by Congress in the 
Higher Education Opportunity Act, will increase campus fire safety at 
colleges and universities. The provisions included in the Higher 
Education Opportunity Act require colleges to provide a fire safety 
report to the Secretary of Education. The report must include 
statistics showing the number of fires and injuries resulting from 
fires on campus over the past year. We will also require colleges to 
report on the type of fire prevention technologies they are utilizing 
and any plans the college may have to improve their fire prevention and 
detection technologies. The bill before us today will help colleges 
think creatively about fire safety and ensure they have the funds to 
move forward with their plans.
  Today we have the opportunity to provide a commitment to the safety 
of college students and pass a measure that will help colleges keep our 
young people safe from devastating fires. I urge my colleagues to 
support the bill before us.
  I understand the majority has no further requests for time, so I 
yield such time as she may consume to my colleague from West Virginia, 
the Honorable Representative Shelley Moore Capito.
  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman and 
gentlewoman for bringing this bill forth. I stand today in support of 
H.R. 2136, the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention 
Act. I had the pleasure of serving with Congresswoman Tubbs Jones. She 
was a wonderful effervescent Member of our House. She was a very strong 
advocate for campus fire prevention, and she is greatly missed. But we 
are thinking about her today.
  You know, every parent expects when they send their child off to 
college that they will be sending them to be protected and to be safe. 
For the most part, that is true, but unfortunately, that's not always 
the case. In 2007, a fire broke out in a 64-unit apartment building 
which was privately owned near Marshall University in Huntington, West 
Virginia. It housed a number of students from Marshall. Nine people 
were killed in that fire, including one student who attended Marshall 
University and two of his siblings who were visiting him there. I was 
astonished to learn that there was no sprinkler system in the building, 
and several of the apartments didn't have smoke detectors.
  Each year, unfortunately, college and university students on- and 
off-campus

[[Page H3591]]

experience hundreds of fire emergencies. Overall, most college-related 
fires are due to a general lack of knowledge about fire safety and 
prevention and also the lack of updating fire prevention equipment into 
the buildings. A lot of the buildings are older and were not equipped 
with sprinklers and other fire detection methods. This bill goes a long 
way, I think, to try to help solve that problem.
  The great majority of student fire deaths occur in off-campus housing 
with insufficient exits and missing or inoperative smoke alarms or 
automatic fire sprinklers. These are deaths that can and should be 
prevented. H.R. 2136, would extend Stephanie Tubbs Jones' legacy by 
providing grants to institutions of higher education, fraternities and 
sororities to cover up to half the cost of installing fire sprinkler 
systems and other fire suppression or prevention technologies in 
student housing and in dormitories.
  With that, I would like to thank the sponsors of the bill, and I urge 
the passage of this legislation.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 
2136, the Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act. This bill 
represents an opportunity to improve critical fire safety systems in 
college facilities across the country.
  The issue of campus fire safety became personal for me after a tragic 
fire swept through a dorm at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New 
Jersey, in 2000. The blaze took the lives of three students and injured 
58 more. Since that terrible day, thousands of fires have cut short the 
lives of 135 students throughout the country. The sad reality is that 
that many of those deaths could have been averted with proper fire 
safety equipment.
  The Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act will direct the 
Secretary of Education to provide grants to institutions of higher 
education toward the installation of sprinklers and other fire 
prevention systems in student housing and dorms. This essential funding 
can make the difference in fire emergencies between life and death. No 
college student should have to live in a building without appropriate 
fire safeguards.
  My home State of New Jersey has been at the forefront of this issue 
for many years now, mandating sprinkler systems be installed in all on-
campus housing facilities at universities in the State. This 
legislation will enable institutions of higher education in other 
States to take similar steps to provide security and peace of mind to 
students and parents--that they will have these basic safety devices to 
protect them in the event of an emergency.
  This bill gives special attention to colleges and universities that 
need funding most, and gives priority to institutions that demonstrate 
the greatest financial need. This key provision will help ensure that 
fire safety technology is not off limits to schools because of 
financial constraints. I believe we owe it to those students to ensure 
that each and every college dorm is outfitted with the most 
comprehensive fire prevention technology available. The Stephanie Tubbs 
Jones College Fire Prevention Act will provide great assistance in 
achieving this goal.
  In considering this legislation, we should also remember its 
namesake--the late Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones. I had the 
privilege of working closely with Stephanie on critical public safety 
legislation, and will always remember her as a staunch advocate of 
life-saving fire prevention.
  We are gaining ground in the battle to prevent these deadly college 
fires, but we must be mindful of the work that remains. The House has 
recognized September as Campus Fire Safety Month, which every year has 
helped to raise awareness of this critical issue. With the Stephanie 
Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act, we have the opportunity to 
provide colleges with the funding they need to install lifesaving fire 
safety technology and come one step closer to extinguishing the threat 
of college fires once and for all.
  I strongly support H.R. 2136, and call on this body to soon pass my 
legislation, H.R. 4908, the Campus Fire Safety Education Act of 2010, 
which will help deliver a life saving campus fire safety education 
curriculum to our Nation's colleges. I will continue to work tirelessly 
to make our colleges and universities a safe environment for our 
Nation's students.
  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my former colleague 
Stephanie Tubbs Jones and to address a cause she championed for much of 
her career in the Congress. Campus safety is a very complex and 
important issue. We must protect students as they walk home from their 
late night studies and we must protect them when they arrive in their 
dorms or other forms of campus housing.
  Our college and universities are more open now than they have been 
and serve more students than they were originally planned to serve. 
Often times, housing buildings are the oldest buildings on a campus. 
This is especially the case for fraternity and sorority housing. The 
Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act addresses the problem 
many colleges and universities face with housing and fire safety.
  Mr. Speaker, what made Congresswoman Tubbs Jones such an effective 
Member of Congress was her keen ability to see a need and fill it. This 
bill carries her name and does just that. I am proud to be a cosponsor 
of this bill and urge its passage.
  Mr. PETRI. I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their support, and 
I urge support of H.R. 2136.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Fudge) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 2136.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________