[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 161 (Friday, September 28, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S6390]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 662--DESIGNATING SEPTEMBER 2018 AS ``CAMPUS FIRE 
                             SAFETY MONTH''

  Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Mr. Carper) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 662

       Whereas campus-related housing fires at colleges in 
     Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, 
     Texas, Washington, D.C., and other States have tragically cut 
     short the lives of several young people;
       Whereas, since January 2000, at least 175 people, including 
     students, parents, and children, have died in campus-related 
     fires;
       Whereas approximately 87 percent of those deaths occurred 
     in off-campus residences;
       Whereas a majority of college students in the United States 
     live in an off-campus residence;
       Whereas many fatal fires have occurred in a building in 
     which the occupants had compromised or disabled the fire 
     safety systems;
       Whereas automatic fire alarm systems and smoke alarms 
     provide the early warning of a fire that is necessary for 
     occupants of a building and the fire department to take 
     appropriate action;
       Whereas automatic fire sprinkler systems are a highly 
     effective method of controlling or extinguishing a fire in 
     its early stages, thus protecting the lives of the building 
     occupants;
       Whereas many college students live in an off-campus 
     residence, fraternity or sorority housing, or a residence 
     hall that is not adequately protected by an automatic fire 
     sprinkler system and an automatic fire alarm system or 
     adequate smoke alarm;
       Whereas fire safety education is an effective method of 
     reducing the occurrence of fires and the resulting loss of 
     life and property damage;
       Whereas college students do not routinely receive effective 
     fire safety education while in college;
       Whereas educating young people in the United States about 
     the importance of fire safety is vital to help ensure that 
     young people engage in fire-safe behavior during college and 
     after college; and
       Whereas developing a generation of adults who practice fire 
     safety may significantly reduce future loss of life from 
     fires: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) designates September 2018 as ``Campus Fire Safety 
     Month''; and
       (2) encourages administrators of institutions of higher 
     education and municipalities across the United States--
       (A) to provide educational programs about fire safety to 
     all college students in September and throughout the school 
     year;
       (B) to evaluate the level of fire safety being provided in 
     both on-campus and off-campus student housing; and
       (C) to ensure fire-safe living environments through fire 
     safety education, installation of fire suppression and 
     detection systems and smoke alarms, and the development and 
     enforcement of applicable codes relating to fire safety.

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