[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 4884-4897]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     UNITED STATES FIRE ADMINISTRATION REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2008

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1071 and rule 
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House 
on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 4847.

                              {time}  1041


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the 
Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 4847) to reauthorize the United States Fire Administration, and 
for other purposes, with Mr. Faleomavaega in the chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the 
first time.
  The gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Mitchell) and the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 4847, the U.S. Fire 
Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008, a bill I introduced with 
the original cosponsor, my good friend from Georgia, Dr. Gingrey.
  Firefighters are often the first to arrive at an emergency scene and 
the last to leave. Whether it is putting out a house fire or a wild 
fire, or responding to a terrorist attack or car accident, we depend on 
firefighters every day. But firefighters also depend on us; they depend 
on the public and their elected officials to make sure that they have 
the resources, the equipment, and the training they need to do their 
job. Without those tools, we put them and all of us at risk.
  The U.S. Fire Administration is an invaluable resource for our 
Nation's firefighters and the communities they protect. Through 
training, data collection, fire education for the public, and support 
for fire-related research and development, the USFA provides critical 
tools and leadership to the Fire Service.
  Fire is one of nature's most destructive forces. In 1973, when USFA 
was created, over 6,000 Americans died each year in fires and another 
100,000 were injured. Through the leadership of USFA and others, the 
number of people killed by fires each year is now between 3,000 and 
3,500, with approximately 16,000 people who were injured. We can all be 
proud of the significant reduction. However, 3,000 Americans a year is 
still too many, especially when so many of these deaths and injuries 
are from our most vulnerable populations, children and the elderly.
  In addition, the Nation still suffers over $11 billion per year in 
direct losses due to fire, and the trend for this number is going up, 
not down. With statistics like these, it is clear that fire continues 
to be a major problem for the U.S. H.R. 4847 reauthorizes this 
important agency for 4 years at funding levels that will enable USFA to 
carry out fully its mission.

                              {time}  1045

  At a hearing with the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee held 
last fall, we heard the priorities of the Nation's fire service 
communities for USFA. This bill directly reflects their priorities.
  This bill authorizes the USFA to focus on the pressing challenges of 
fighting fires in the wildland-urban interface, and fires involving 
hazardous materials, as well as advanced topics of emergency medical 
services.
  Back home in Arizona, one of the toughest challenges our firefighters 
face is wildfires in the wildland-urban interface. This is an important 
year for wildfires. We have had a pretty wet winter which means a great 
deal of shrubs and bushes have grown at lower elevations. When the 
summer months heat up and the vegetation dries out, those shrubs and 
bushes will turn into tinder that can start a fast-moving wildfire in 
urban areas. Those fires threaten homes and lives. Fighting wildfires 
in urban areas requires special training, and I am proud that this 
legislation enhances fire administration training for wildland-urban 
interface fires.
  Firefighters today are called upon to respond to an ever-broader 
range of emergencies. This authorization bill gives USFA the authority 
to make sure its training program keeps pace with the increasing 
challenges to the fire service.
  The bill also addresses an important priority of the fire service in 
USFA, and that is to update the National Fire Incident Reporting 
System, or NFIRS. This system provides important data on fire events to 
policymakers at all levels of government. The current system is slow to 
report the data to the National Fire Data Center, and does not capture 
data on every fire, thus limiting its value to users. H.R. 4847 would 
direct USFA to update NFIRS to a real-time reporting, web-based system.
  The bill also directs the U.S. Fire Administrator to continue USFA's 
leadership in firefighter health and safety. Every year over 100 
firefighters die in the line of duty. H.R. 4847 directs USFA to educate 
local fire departments about national voluntary consensus standards for 
firefighter health and safety, and to encourage local departments to 
adopt these standards. This provision will help reduce the tragic loss 
of life the fire service suffers each year in line-of-duty deaths by 
promoting good practices in a variety of fire emergencies.
  I also understand there have been some concerns that this provision 
would affect the jurisdiction of NIOSH, the National Institute of 
Occupational Safety and Health. I would like to reassure my colleagues 
that it is not my intent for this bill to have any effect on NIOSH or 
any other agency of the Department of Health and Human Services.
  H.R. 4847 is the product of bipartisan collaboration, and is 
supported by major fire service organizations, including the 
International Association of Fire Chiefs, the International Association 
of Firefighters, the National Volunteer Fire Council, National Fire 
Protection Association, and the Congressional Fire Services Institute.
  The resources and leadership of the USFA are an essential part of the 
ability of the fire service to protect our cities, towns and 
communities. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 4847, the U.S. Fire Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008 
reauthorizes USFA's activities in training, fire education and 
awareness, data collection, research and standards development and 
promotion. This legislation also authorizes $291 million in Federal 
funds for fiscal years 2009 through 2012 for the USFA. This 
authorization level, Mr. Chairman, is consistent with previously 
authorized levels and it only includes a very modest growth in funding 
that is capped at 3 percent in any of the fiscal years for the bill.
  Mr. Chairman, as the lead Republican sponsor of this legislation, I 
am pleased to have worked with my colleague from Arizona, Mr. Mitchell, 
over these past few months to bring this bill, H.R. 4847, to the House 
floor today.
  I am also pleased that this bill has gone through the regular order 
process. That is a refreshing phrase, Mr. Chairman, but I am certainly 
pleased that it went through regular order. In fact, in October, the 
Science Committee's Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation, of which 
I am the ranking member, we held a hearing on reauthorizing USFA, and 
H.R. 4847 was unanimously reported out of our subcommittee earlier this 
year.

[[Page 4885]]

  On February 27 of this year, the full committee, the full Science 
Committee, reported the bill after accepting both Republican and 
Democratic amendments that I think have improved the bill.
  The mission of USFA is to limit economic and life loss ``due to fire 
and related emergencies, through leadership, advocacy, coordination and 
support.''
  This organization provides vital assistance in the areas of training, 
fire education and awareness, and it awards grants to a number of our 
local fire departments across this country. We all have them in every 
district of all 435 Members. These activities have made a substantial 
impact over the last 30 years.
  Mr. Chairman, it is important to note that because of the work of the 
USFA, smoke alarms are now standard issue in residences across the 
country. Over a million firefighters have received advanced training, 
and firefighter equipment and safety continually improves.
  USFA should be proud of its record of achievement. However, it is 
also clear that certainly there are still improvements that can be 
made. In the last 10 years, deaths related to fires have decreased by 
approximately 25 percent, from nearly 5,000 in 1996 to 3,675 in 2006. 
Although that decrease in fire-related deaths is commendable, the 
United States still has one of the highest death rates from fires in 
the industrialized world.
  Additionally, despite decreases in the numbers of fires, direct 
damage costs are increasing and have surpassed $10 billion per year. 
The number of fires have gone down, but the damage from them has gone 
up to $10 billion per year. In an average year, Mr. Chairman, fires 
caused as much damage in the United States as have hurricanes. The 
reauthorization of USFA will allow the agency to continue to improve 
our preparedness and to reduce our vulnerability to fires.
  Unfortunately, last year we saw wildfires that literally ravaged 
southern California, and we need to develop a more cohesive way of 
combating these fires. I am happy to see that this legislation 
specifically addresses the issue of fighting fires in what we refer to 
as an urban-wildland interface by implementing methods to better 
respond and prepare for fires that move from wildlands to suburban and 
indeed urban areas.
  Furthermore, Mr. Chairman, I am particularly pleased that this 
legislation now includes an amendment that I offered at full committee. 
It will allow the USFA administrator to perform studies related to the 
management of emergency medical services at the scene of a fire. Our 
brave firefighters, men and women, are called upon to extract victims 
from car crashes, building fires or collapses, and other emergencies, 
so it is critical that patients receive consistent care under medical 
direction.
  While I do not expect USFA to pursue studies into the medical care 
EMS patients should receive, I believe my amendment, which was accepted 
by the full Science Committee, will give the administrator the 
authority to conduct studies into training, system design, on-scene 
patient management while making sure to work with appropriate Federal 
agencies and existing medical services in these local communities.
  Mr. Chairman, the current bill is an important and well-crafted step 
forward for the USFA, and it represents months of diligent work by both 
the majority and the minority members and staff of the Science 
Committee. I want to make sure to commend the great staff of both the 
minority and the majority.
  This legislation has been a bipartisan accomplishment of our 
committee. That is pretty much standard practice in the Science 
Committee, I am proud to say, Mr. Chairman. And it is being supported 
not only unanimously by the committee, but by a number of fire related 
advocacy groups, including the Congressional Fire Services Institute, 
the International Association of Arson Investigators, the International 
Association of Fire Chiefs, the International Association of 
Firefighters, the International Fire Service Training Association, the 
National Fire Protection Association, the National Volunteer Fire 
Council, and the National North American Fire Training Directors.
  Mr. Chairman, I could go on, but my staff didn't list any more.
  I certainly want to say, Mr. Chairman, this is an outstanding bill 
and I urge all my colleagues to support it, H.R. 4847, because this 
bill will enable the USFA to continue its record of achievement, as 
well as prepare firefighters for the challenges that they will 
undoubtedly face in the future.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Gordon), the chairman of the Science and Technology 
Committee.
  Mr. GORDON of Tennessee. Mr. Chairman, I thank Mr. Mitchell for 
yielding to me, and I want to thank him for the introduction of this 
important and outstanding piece of legislation.
  As my friend Dr. Gingrey said, this is a bipartisan piece of 
legislation coming out of what I hope is thought of as a bipartisan 
committee. I want to thank him, as well as Mr. Wu, for their work as 
the subcommittee chairman and ranking member. I want to thank Mr. Hall 
for his help in getting this bill out as the ranking member of the 
committee.
  We have passed more than 30 bills and resolutions out of the Science 
and Technology Committee, all of which have been bipartisan, and all 
but one have been unanimous. This is another one of those unanimous 
bills. I think that happens because we are working together to try to 
do it the right way. We had a good subcommittee hearing. We had a 
subcommittee markup, a full committee markup. When you do it that way, 
you get the type of third-party endorsements that Dr. Gingrey talked 
about.
  We have the endorsement of the International Association of Fire 
Chiefs, the International Association of Firefighters, the National 
Volunteer Fire Council, the National Fire Protection Association, the 
International Association of Arson Investigators, the National North 
American Training Directors, the International Fire Service Training 
Association, and the Congressional Fire Service Institute. That is 
quite a lineup to demonstrate the support for this good bill.
  I also want to thank the members of the committee for their work as 
this bill was crafted. Ms. Richardson was particularly helpful in 
bringing her experience of firefighting from a coastal area, and made 
us realize that a curriculum in marine and port firefighting was 
important.
  This is a good bill done the right way, and I thank all parties for 
their participation.
  Mr. Chairman, at this time I would like to place into the Record an 
exchange of letters between the Committee on Science and Technology and 
the Committee on Homeland Security.

                               Committee on Homeland Security,

                                   Washington, DC, March 28, 2008.
     Hon. Bart Gordon,
     Chairman, Committee on Science and Technology, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Gordon: I am writing to you concerning H.R. 
     4847, the United States Fire Administration Reauthorization 
     Act of 2007. Though H.R. 4847 implicates the Rule X 
     jurisdiction of the Committee on Homeland Security, I will 
     not seek a sequential referral of this bill because I share 
     your interest in assuring that this legislation is brought to 
     the House floor in an expeditious manner. Agreeing to waive 
     consideration of the bill should not be construed as the 
     Committee on Homeland Security waiving its jurisdiction.
       Further, the Committee on Homeland Security while forgoing 
     a sequential referral of this bill, reserves the right to 
     seek the appointment of conferees during any House-Senate 
     conference convened on this or similar legislation. I ask for 
     your commitment to support any request by the Committee on 
     Homeland Security for the appointment of conferees on H.R. 
     4847 or similar legislation.
       In addition, I ask that you please include this letter and 
     a copy of your response acknowledging the Committee on 
     Homeland Security's jurisdictional interest in this bill and 
     indicating your support of our agreement in the committee 
     report on H.R. 4847 and into the Congressional Record during 
     consideration of the measure on the House

[[Page 4886]]

     floor. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                               Bennie G. Thompson,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                              Committee on Science


                                               and Technology,

                                                   March 28, 2008.
     Hon. Bennie G. Thompson,
     Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for your letter regarding the 
     consideration of H.R. 4847, the United States Fire 
     Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008. I appreciate your 
     willingness to forgo a sequential referral on this measure so 
     that it may move expeditiously to the Floor.
       While the Committee on Science and Technology has been 
     given sole jurisdiction over every U.S. Fire Administration 
     (USFA) bill since the USFA's creation, we recognize that the 
     Committee on Homeland Security has an interest in H.R. 4847 
     based on your jurisdiction over functions of the Department 
     of Homeland Security relating to research and development 
     (House Rule X(1)(i)(3)(E)). Research, development, and 
     demonstration programs and projects at the Department of 
     Homeland Security remain within the shared jurisdiction of 
     the Committee on Science and Technology due to our 
     jurisdiction over ``scientific research, development, and 
     demonstration, and projects, therefor'' (House Rule 
     X(1)(o)(14)). I acknowledge that by forgoing a sequential 
     referral, the Committee on Homeland Security does not waive 
     its jurisdiction. In addition, I will support any request you 
     may make to have conferees to a conference committee on those 
     sections of H.R. 4847, or any similar legislation.
       The exchange of letters between our two committees will be 
     inserted in the legislative report on H.R. 4847 and the 
     Congressional Record during consideration of the measure on 
     the House floor.
       Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Bart Gordon,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve my time.

                              {time}  1100

  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield 3 minutes to Mr. 
Pascrell, the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Chairman, to all of those on both sides of the 
aisle who made it possible for the reauthorization bill to come to the 
floor today, I say thank you, and all the services.
  The U.S. Fire Administration, through FEMA, provides the leadership, 
the coordination, and support services for fire prevention and control, 
which is critical. I mean, we still lose 100 firefighters, on average, 
every year. That certainly is unacceptable to any of us on this floor. 
And we need to work even harder to make sure that our firefighters have 
the resources and the wherewithal to do the job we ask them to do.
  If you remember the Fire Act we passed before 9/11, this was a 
response to the very basic needs of the 32,000 fire departments 
throughout the United States and the one million firefighters. That 
legislation broke ground because it was a response to needs that we've 
neglected. We can't expect that every local community in this country 
has the resources to supply and provide the training and the state-of-
the-art equipment to the fire departments throughout America, and so 
that Fire Act has been so successful.
  There is literally $3.5 billion in applications in the Fire Act, and 
a tremendous amount of applications for SAFER every year. And we have 
devised, both of us, on both sides of the aisle, probably the best 
format of how to judge the competitive applications. We've asked the 
firefighters to step up to the plate, judged by their peers. But the 
Fire Administration is partner with all of these peer firefighters who 
review the applications. In the Fire Act and SAFER bill, this is very 
unusual, the money goes directly to the departments so that the States 
cannot skim and the local government cannot skim. So, this is a real 
competition, and I believe that's how all Federal funds should be used. 
That's my own personal opinion.
  The Fire Administration has been a true partner for 34 years. The 
roles and responsibilities of the fire service have evolved for the 1.1 
million men and women in fire and emergency services, over 316,000 
career firefighters, almost 317,000, and the 824,000 volunteers.
  What I am so thankful for, in terms of the U.S. Fire Administration, 
Mr. Chairman, is that the U.S. Fire Administration has brought the 
volunteers and the career firefighters together. This is invaluable.
  The CHAIRMAN. The time of the gentleman from New Jersey has expired.
  Mr. MITCHELL. I yield an additional minute to the gentleman.
  Mr. PASCRELL. I cannot express how important this is. All the 
competition that existed before 2000, we've gotten out of it, and 
thanks to the Fire Administration. They are working together, the 
career firefighters and the volunteer firefighters.
  This is a very important legislation that is going to save lives. And 
isn't this what we're here for, to do what we can on a Federal level, 
realizing it's always going to be the local efforts that are going to 
be most important. But we have a responsibility, and it seems to me 
today, Mr. Chairman, that we're stepping up to the plate.
  I want to commend Members on both sides, the good doctor and my good 
friend from the Southwest part of the country. This has brought us 
together, this legislation, and it is good legislation.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I will continue to reserve my time.
  Mr. Chairman, may I ask how much time is remaining on both sides?
  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Arizona, his time remaining is 18 
minutes. The gentleman from Georgia, his time remaining is 22 minutes.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield as much time as she 
may consume to Ms. Richardson, the gentlelady from California.
  Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support today of H.R. 
4847, which is the United States Fire Administration Reauthorization 
Act.
  This reauthorization of this vital legislation demonstrates Congress' 
commitment to enhance the protection of our citizens throughout this 
great Nation to prevent any harm that might come to loss of life or 
property due to devastation caused by fires. Included in this 
legislation is an amendment that I offered at a full committee markup 
that I'd like to reiterate and clarify at this time.
  Inclusive in H.R. 4847 is an amendment that does not create a new 
stand-alone course regarding port and marine firefighting. In fact, 
much effort was taken by my staff, the Republican side, committee 
staff, as well as the various agencies, to ensure that we would take 
conscious action in not creating additional costs for the agencies and/
or programs that are right now really not funded to the levels we would 
like to see.
  The intent of the amendment is to take the unique content of port and 
marine firefighting activity and to incorporate that information into 
existing classes. Why, you might ask? This Congress' goal of using, in 
an efficient manner, resources that we have, we also want to integrate 
information to best prepare our firefighters to respond to disasters.
  And you might ask the question, why? In the United States alone, we 
have over 126 shipping ports, all of which are critical to the movement 
of goods and the general health of our economy. The volatility of the 
products that are being shipped and the new increased size of these 
shipping vessels causes problems to our firefighters in terms of 
responding. So, when you consider a district such as mine that borders 
along the Port of Long Beach and also the Port of Los Angeles, one of 
the things that we learned in the wake of Katrina, we learned in the 
San Diego fires, and we also learned with September 11th is that 
firefighters are brothers and sisters. You might have rural 
firefighters who respond to an urban disaster; likewise, urban 
firefighters might be called to respond to a rural disaster.
  And so, one of the things that we've learned in these incredible 
complex disasters that we've had over the last couple of years is that 
inoperability, the ability for rural and urban firefighters to have the 
same information and to be prepared in the midst of a disaster because 
it's one thing to play Monday night quarterback when everything can be 
planned in advance, but when we

[[Page 4887]]

have a disaster, it is too late at that point for our firefighters to 
be trained on how do you respond to an extended vessel, or how do you 
respond to an LNG disaster, or how do you respond to anything else that 
might be occurring. And so, with that, it is my pleasure to work with, 
we had great leadership by Mr. Mitchell here in this effort of the 
reauthorization bill.
  Because we never know what our firefighters might be facing, I, 
unfortunately, lost a firefighter in California just last week. So, I 
would be remiss at this moment not to thank my colleagues on the other 
side of the aisle, Representative Bartlett and Representative 
Rohrabacher, for their support of this amendment.
  I intend, through conference with staff and the appropriate members 
of the Department of Homeland Security, USFA, and the Superintendent of 
the Fire Academy to ensure that we have the right curriculum that can 
be incorporated that can benefit all firefighters to ultimately protect 
our citizens in a better way.
  In closing, I want to again commend our colleague, Representative 
Mitchell, for his leadership on this issue, and also Chairman Gordon 
for his commitment on the Science and Technology Committee to move 
beyond all of the limits and the challenges that we have, and to make 
sure that Americans are protected every day.
  I encourage my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield as much time as he 
may consume to Mr. Wu, the gentleman from Oregon. He is the chairman of 
the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee. And I want to thank 
Chairman Wu for moving this bill so quickly through the subcommittee.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. Chairman, first of all, I would like to recognize the leadership 
of the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Mitchell) for working diligently on 
this important piece of legislation, for reaching across the aisle and 
working with the gentleman from Georgia, and for his leadership in 
shaping this important piece of legislation. In fact, it was, indeed, 
through efforts like this that Congress first formed the United States 
Fire Administration in 1974 because of then reports that there are over 
12,000 deaths each year in this country, and over 300,000 fire 
injuries. And through the hard work of the USFA, and others, we have 
been fortunate to see that number drop dramatically.
  We are now a much safer Nation thanks to improved awareness of fire 
safety practices, increased use of smoke detectors and sprinklers, and 
other fire safety measures. Still, about 3,000 people die each year of 
fires, and 10,000 more are injured. We also still see too many 
firefighters die in the line of duty. And I want to recognize Mr. 
Pascrell, the gentleman from New Jersey, for his diligent work over 
many years to decrease that unconscionable number.
  We have a lot more work to do. The USFA supports local fire 
departments in a variety of ways. It offers training and career 
development to thousands of mid-level firefighters, fire chiefs, and 
other emergency management officials.
  USFA is a great way for the Federal Government to help coordinate 
efforts for local firefighters. USFA also develops fire education and 
awareness curriculum material to be used in training citizens across 
the country. It aims these messages at groups which suffer the highest 
fire casualties, such as the young and the elderly.
  While Congress is working to reauthorize and build on this program, 
the President, unfortunately, is cutting the budget for USFA. Indeed, 
the President's fiscal `09 budget cuts USFA by more than 5 percent.
  As firefighters learn to respond to new issues, such as fires and the 
wildland-urban interface, terrorist events and harmful materials 
incidents, we need to provide sufficient funds to train and prepare 
them for these situations.
  Firefighters risk their lives every day so that they can protect 
ours. Passing this legislation is one way that we can not only show, 
but tangibly demonstrate our deep appreciation.
  I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the underlying bill. I again 
recognize the leadership of the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Mitchell).
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, at this time, I am pleased to yield to the 
ranking member of the full committee, the Science Committee, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall). I yield to him as much time as he 
might consume.
  Mr. HALL of Texas. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I won't 
take all that much time.
  I've heard it said that water and fire are wonderful friends and 
fearful enemies, and I'm sure that's been said a lot of times today. 
And we know the terrible devastation that both of these can bring.
  Thousands of people die in the United States every year due to fire, 
and many more are injured. The total would be even higher if it weren't 
for the dedication and the service of our Nation's fire men and women.
  I don't know how you can say enough about our Nation's firefighters. 
I would say this: It's kind of a shame that it took a 9/11 for people 
to really fully appreciate firefighters and men and women that defend 
us and defend our property and our lives. I just think they're 
treasures of the country, and it's good for this Congress to honor them 
every chance we get. And that's why I'm very pleased that the Committee 
on Science and Technology has taken the time to deliberate and produce 
a bill that will greatly contribute to the effectiveness of the United 
States Fire Administration, and by extension, the local men and women 
who serve us so very well.
  I'd like to thank the gentlemen from Arizona and Georgia for their 
leadership on this bill, as well as the rest of the colleagues on the 
committee for their work. And I, of course, urge passage of H.R. 4847 
and yield back the balance of my time after once again saying that it's 
unusual that it would take some kind of devastation like we had in our 
sister State over here to really bring the full appreciation of men and 
women who, day and night, face the fires and face protection of our 
property and our goods. I'm honored to be a part of recognizing them 
and saying to them one more time from the bottom of our hearts, we 
thank you, we appreciate what you're doing, and we look forward to the 
fact that you're going to be able to continue to do it.

                              {time}  1115

  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield as much time as he 
may consume to Mr. Matheson, the gentleman from Utah.
  Mr. MATHESON. Mr. Chairman, once again the Science Committee brings 
to the House floor a bill that makes sense, that was developed in a 
bipartisan way. It's a great tradition of this committee, and I think 
Members on both sides of the aisle on that committee know what a great 
committee it is to work on.
  And I want to thank Congressman Mitchell, in particular, for taking 
the lead on this issue, because his approach really fits into the 
Science Committee approach about how we look at issues, and we try to 
work together in a bipartisan way to make progress. And that's why I'm 
happy to stand up and offer my support for this bill today.
  In the grand scheme of things, one of the reasons why I think this is 
incredibly important is that the United States has one of the highest 
fire-related death rates among all industrialized nations. Think about 
that. With all the technology we have in this country, all the safety 
measures, we still rank so poorly among industrialized nations in terms 
of fire-related deaths. And this legislation takes a step in terms of 
trying to address that problem.
  Now, I come from a western State, the State of Utah; and in the West, 
we have particular danger in terms of forest fires. This legislation 
fully funds the National Fire Incident Reporting System, which is going 
to help the U.S. Fire Administration prevent future forest fires. 
Currently, we're only able to

[[Page 4888]]

capture data from 50 percent of wildfires, which just is not enough.
  By improving the incident reporting system, the U.S. Fire 
Administration will be able to speed up the reporting data, generating 
a more comprehensive database. In practical terms, that's going to mean 
better analysis, greater fire prevention, and fewer lives lost.
  And, in particular, this bill, if enacted, will expand the program to 
include training in wildland-urban interface areas. And this is an 
issue that's particularly important in western States where, as 
population growth has taken place, there has been greater development 
of housing that's moved more into where the forest exists; and that's a 
critical problem during these wildfire incidents is how we deal with 
fire issues in that very sensitive area.
  Most of my congressional district faces this problem, and my 
congressional district is not unusual compared to most of the West. I 
believe better training in terms of this wildland-urban interface will 
be a huge asset to Fire Departments in similar areas.
  So Mr. Chairman, I want to again thank you for your leadership on 
this issue. I thank Chairman Gordon and ranking member Hall. I thank 
Chairman Wu from the subcommittee. I thank Congressman Mitchell for his 
leadership. I know Mr. Gingrey's been a leader on this issue as well. 
And again, the Science Committee, as usual, comes up with a bill that 
makes sense. I'm sure it will be adopted today, and I urge all my 
colleagues to support the bill.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, if I might ask my good friend from Arizona 
how much time, first of all, does he have left, and does he have 
additional speakers.
  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Arizona, the time remaining for him 
is 8 minutes. And the gentleman from Georgia, the balance of time 
remaining for him is 20\1/2\ minutes.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Thank you. We have some additional speakers that are on 
their way.
  Mr. GINGREY. At this point, Mr. Chairman, I will continue to reserve 
the balance of my time. But if the gentleman needs some time from our 
side, we will be glad to yield it to him.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, we do have a couple more 
speakers. They are on their way.
  Mr. Chairman, if I may, I appreciate the good words that people have 
come and said before this body. We've made significant strides in 
reducing fire-related deaths and injuries since Congress first created 
this agency in the 1970s. But again, as we've noted, and all the 
speakers have noted, there are still more than 3,000 Americans that die 
every year from fires, and many more injured. And despite the decreases 
in the number of fires, the cost, as we said, is continually rising. 
And, in fact, it's roughly the same cost, the damage of fires is 
roughly the same cost as caused by hurricanes.
  We know that the Fire Service provides critical assistance in 
protecting our communities from emergency events. From house fires to 
terrorist events to natural disasters, firefighters, as we've noted, 
are not only the first on the scene, but many times the last to leave.
  As the wildfires in California last fall demonstrated, the Fire 
Service plays a vital role in protecting our communities, and that's 
why we introduced H.R. 4847, to reauthorize the U.S. Fire 
Administration and provide additional resources for our Nation's 
firefighters.
  The U.S. Fire Administration is an invaluable resource for over 1.3 
million firefighters and emergency personnel around the country. 
Through training, educational materials, data collection and other 
services, the USFA provides tools and leadership to firefighters and 
communities that they serve.
  H.R. 4847 will reauthorize the USFA, funding its critical work until 
the Fiscal Year 2012. This bill will ensure that our firefighters are 
trained to handle modern-day challenges facing today's first 
responders, including, as we have mentioned before, firefighting in the 
wildland-urban interface and responding to hazardous material 
incidents.
  The bill is supported by, and we've listed a whole list of these 
before, all of these national associations that deal with firefighting.
  This bill is the product of bipartisan collaboration and had 
considerable input from the Fire Service community.
  We encourage you to help support firefighters in your district by 
ensuring that everyone has the resources they need by supporting this 
important legislation.
  I would reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I will yield to myself such time as I 
might consume.
  I was recently in Iraq. I've been a number of times, of course, to 
Iraq, and Afghanistan. And also just recently, I saw a news special 
back home highlighting one of our great heroes from the Middle East who 
was burned severely. His injuries, I think, were the result of an 
improvised explosive device, and he was an occupant of one of the up-
armored HUMVEES or the new MRAP vehicles. I think, indeed, it was an 
up-armored HUMVEE.
  And while he was not injured by shrapnel or a projectile, there was a 
fire, and there was a significant fire. And of course, as he was pulled 
from the burning vehicle, he sustained severe, severe injuries to his 
person from the fire. And he described how he just, he knew what to do. 
He rolled, he tried everything in his power. But of course, thanks to 
what happened to him at Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany, and then 
eventually at Walter Reed and Bethesda, he's alive and well and has a 
family and children. And this little news clip featured him playing 
with his kids. But you could certainly see the ravages that that fire 
inflicted upon his body, and the scarring of course. What a brave--I 
wish I could remember his name, Mr. Chairman, because it was, talk 
about a profile in courage.
  But it just made me think about, as we've been discussing here today, 
and you talk about what these firefighters do and how important they 
are. And actually, as we know, 40 percent of the workload in Operation 
Iraqi and Enduring Freedom has been carried by our Guard and Reserve, 
many of whom are firefighters who, you know, they've been trained. And 
thank God for that. And I'm very hopeful. I want to look into this 
further. I'm sure that our military, our regular Army and Marine Corps, 
they're all well-trained in that. But that just goes to show you how 
important it is, not just to save a life, but try to bring that life 
back and so they can rejoin their family and friends in society, go 
back to their job.
  One of the statistics that I think both Mr. Mitchell and I mentioned 
in regard to the fact that the latest year that we had numbers, there 
was still something like 37, 3,800 people that lose their lives every 
year in fires in this country.
  Well, you know what? That's about the number, we're at 4,000 now, 
that have lost their lives in this 4\1/2\, 5-year war. And of course 
there were practically 3,000 lives lost, many of them from fire, a lot 
of them firefighters themselves, on 9/11. So it just brings home the 
message that fire is an awful thing. It is an awful thing. It might not 
kill you immediately, like one of these high powered projectiles, but 
it can certainly destroy one's life.
  And so what we're talking about here today is so important, and 
that's why this bill is so important.
  I just wanted to make those remarks, Mr. Chairman.
  I, at this time, don't have additional speakers waiting for time, but 
I would like to reserve the balance of my time. And I still make the 
offer to yield to the gentleman from Arizona if he needs some more 
minutes.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I would, again, like to yield as much 
time as he may consume to Mr. Wu, the gentleman from Oregon, who is the 
chairman of the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee. I, again, want 
to thank him for all the efforts he's put into this bill.
  Mr. WU. Mr. Chairman, again, I would like to recognize the leadership 
of the gentleman from Arizona for working so hard on this important 
legislation, this legislation which was developed in regular order in 
both subcommittee and full committee.

[[Page 4889]]

  The gentleman from Georgia, my ranking member, we held hearings last 
October at the subcommittee level, and then we had a full committee 
markup, and the bill was drafted in full consultation with both 
majority and minority members and majority and minority staff.
  Much has been made of the work that will be done on the wildland-
urban interface and the fuel loads and the biomass loads there, and the 
hazardous materials, and that is very, very important.
  I also want to draw attention to the sections of the bill that 
directs the USFA to educate local fire departments about voluntary 
consensus standards for firefighters health and safety. And many fire 
groups, especially the National Association of Firefighters, very 
strongly believe that adherence to these standards can help reduce the 
number of firefighters who die each year in the line of duty.

                              {time}  1130

  This bill has been endorsed by the International Association of Fire 
Chiefs, the International Association of Firefighters, the National 
Volunteer Fire Council, the National Fire Protection Association, the 
International Association of Arson Investigators, the North American 
Fire Training Directors, the International Fire Service Training 
Association, and the Congressional Fire Services Institute; and I would 
like to specifically thank all of the firefighters from home in Oregon 
who helped me with this legislation in shaping it and bringing it to 
this point on the House floor.
  And with that, I would again like to commend the gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Mitchell) for his leadership on this important 
legislation.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I will continue to reserve my time.
  Mr. MITCHELL. I would like to yield as much time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Miller).
  Mr. MILLER of North Carolina. Thank you, Mr. Mitchell. I will not 
consume much.
  I do want to applaud the work of the Science and Technology Committee 
on reauthorizing this program that has been remarkably effective.
  Fire is remarkably destructive, but we have made great strides under 
this program. In 1973, there were more than 6,000 Americans who died 
each year in fires, another hundred thousand were injured. Largely 
because of this program and the training and other support, we are now 
about to the point where about 16,000 a year are injured and between 
3,000 and 3,500 die each year. That is obviously still too much, but is 
remarkable progress.
  And among the most dangerous work that anyone can do is fighting 
fires. The number of deaths each year among firefighters is a large 
number, and even more are injured every year. A great many firefighters 
never complete their term of service before qualifying for retirement 
because they suffer from disabling injuries.
  This bill does provide for additional training for fighting fires, 
particularly where wild areas come into contact or where urban areas 
and wildland areas meet. It helps training for fires that involve 
hazardous materials as well as giving advance training in emergency 
medical services. And it does, as Mr. Wu just pointed out a moment ago, 
provide for moving towards a voluntary consensus for firefighters' 
health and safety.
  This will help reduce that number of firefighters who die each year 
and who suffer from grievous injuries in doing very courageous work in 
protecting us and protecting our property.
  Mr. MITCHELL. I would like to yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson).
  The CHAIRMAN. The Chair will remind the gentleman from Arizona he has 
1\1/2\ minutes remaining.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Chairman, I would rise today in 
strong support of the underlying bill which reauthorizes one of the 
most effective agencies in the Department of Homeland Security. H.R. 
4847 provides $70 million annually to the Fire Administration through 
2012 to ensure long-term funding stability for this critical agency.
  I would like to thank the gentleman from Arizona, Mr. Mitchell, and 
the chairman of the Science and Technology Committee, Mr. Gordon, for 
their leadership on this issue and for working with me to bring this 
legislation to the floor today.
  Mr. Chairman, the statistics are sobering. Every year, over 100 
firefighters die in the line of duty. In 2005, the National Fire 
Protection Association reported 3,675 civilian deaths, nearly 18,000 
civilian fire injuries, and over $10 billion in direct losses due to 
fire. The United States Fire Administration plays a critical leadership 
role in leading local fire departments to dramatically reduce these 
numbers.
  Mr. Chairman, I, along with all of the other speakers who have come 
before you in support of this legislation, encourage its passage.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I will continue to reserve.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, we have no further speakers.
  Mr. GINGREY. How much time do we have, Mr. Chairman?
  The CHAIRMAN. At this point in time, the gentleman from Arizona's 
time has totally expired. The time remaining for the gentleman from 
Georgia is 16\1/2\ minutes.
  Mr. GINGREY. I would be happy, Mr. Chairman, if the Chair would 
allow, to yield up to 5 minutes for the gentleman from Arizona to 
close. But I want to make my closing remarks, of course, before that.
  The CHAIRMAN. After the gentleman from Georgia concludes his remarks, 
he may then yield time to the gentleman from Arizona.
  Mr. GINGREY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
  To close on my side, again, let me just simply say as I did before, 
it has been a great pleasure to work with Mr. Mitchell on this bill. It 
has been an even greater pleasure to meet with the many firefighters 
and fire chiefs who I have consulted with over the past few months: our 
own fire chiefs in my county and city, Cobb County, Georgia; Marietta 
City, Georgia; Chief Jackie Gibbs, Chief Becky Dillenger. I see them 
literally every week in the district and the great work that they do, 
and it makes me awfully proud to be up here representing not only them 
but the other eight counties in my district. They know that we are 
fighting to help them protect us, and that's a comforting feeling.
  H.R. 4847 is a very good bill. And this is the least that we, in this 
body, can do to support our Nation's fire services. And I want to again 
say I hope that we will have as many Members that are present today, 
close to 430, I hope, voting ``yes'' for 4847 to support this bill.
  At this time, I am prepared to yield as much time as the gentleman 
from Arizona needs for the purpose of his closing.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
  And first, I would like to thank Mr. Gingrey and all of his staff for 
the support they've given this important piece of legislation. And it's 
the least we can do, here in Congress, to provide the resources 
necessary for our first responders to react, the education that's 
involved, the training, particularly in areas that are very important, 
like in Arizona and California where there is a wildfire/urban 
interface.
  As I said earlier, we have had a very wet winter in Arizona. It's 
good and bad. It brings out the wild flowers; it brings out a lot of 
green. But at the same time, in the lower elevations it brings out a 
lot of dry tender which just really is very dangerous this time of 
year.
  So I would like to thank everyone, the staffs on both sides, the 
committee chairman, the subcommittee chairman, everyone who dealt with 
this particular issue.
  And I, again, want to thank all of the firefighters, the professional 
people who are involved, who gave us what they felt is necessary to 
move this bill forward and to give them the tools that they need.
  This piece of legislation will last until 2012. At that time, of 
course, we

[[Page 4890]]

will have more input. Hopefully, we won't have as many disasters or 
types of disasters, but there will be new things that we need to learn 
and train for.
  So I appreciate, again, everyone's efforts in this, and I know that 
the people around this country who are protected by these first 
responders also appreciate what we are doing for them today.
  Thank you.
  The CHAIRMAN. All time for general debate has expired.
  In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute printed in the 
bill, it shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the 
purpose of amendment under the 5-minute rule an amendment in the nature 
of a substitute printed in part A of House Report 110-563. That 
amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered read.
  The text of the amendment in the nature of a substitute is as 
follows:

       Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``United States Fire 
     Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The loss of life due to fire has dropped significantly 
     over the last 25 years in the United States. However, the 
     United States still has one of the highest fire death rates 
     in the industrialized world. For 2006, the National Fire 
     Protection Association reported 3,245 civilian fire deaths, 
     17,925 civilian fire injuries, and $11,307,000,000 in direct 
     losses due to fire.
       (2) Every year, over 100 firefighters die in the line of 
     duty. The United States Fire Administration should continue 
     its leadership to help local fire agencies dramatically 
     reduce these fatalities.
       (3) Members of the fire service community should continue 
     to work together to further the promotion of national 
     voluntary consensus standards that increase firefighter 
     safety.
       (4) The United States Fire Administration provides crucial 
     support to the Nation's 30,300 fire departments through 
     training, data collection, fire awareness and education, and 
     other activities for improving fire prevention, control, and 
     suppression technologies.
       (5) The collection of data on fire and other emergency 
     incidents is a vital tool both for policy makers and 
     emergency responders to identify and develop responses to 
     emerging hazards. Improving the United States Fire 
     Administration's data collection capabilities is essential 
     for accurately tracking and responding to the magnitude and 
     nature of the Nation's fire problem.
       (6) The research and development performed by the Federal 
     Government and non-government organizations on fire 
     technologies, techniques, and tools advance the capabilities 
     of the Nation's fire service to prevent and suppress fires.
       (7) The United States Fire Administration is one of the 
     strongest voices representing the Nation's fire service 
     within the Federal Government, and, as such, it should have a 
     prominent place within the Federal Government.

     SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR UNITED STATES 
                   FIRE ADMINISTRATION.

       Section 17(g)(1) of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control 
     Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2216(g)(1)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting a semicolon; and
       (3) by adding after subparagraph (D) the following new 
     subparagraphs:
       ``(E) $70,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
       ``(F) $72,100,000 for fiscal year 2010;
       ``(G) $74,263,000 for fiscal year 2011; and
       ``(H) $76,490,890 for fiscal year 2012.''.

     SEC. 4. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY TRAINING PROGRAM MODIFICATIONS 
                   AND REPORTS.

       (a) Amendments to Fire Academy Training.--Section 7(d)(1) 
     of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 
     U.S.C. 2206(d)(1)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``terrorist-caused 
     national catastrophes'' and inserting ``national 
     catastrophes'';
       (2) in subparagraph (K), by striking ``forest'' and 
     inserting ``wildland'';
       (3) in subparagraph (M), by striking ``response tactics 
     and'' and inserting ``response, tactics, and'';
       (4) by redesignating subparagraphs (I) through (N) as 
     subparagraphs (M) through (R), respectively; and
       (5) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the following new 
     subparagraphs:
       ``(I) response, tactics, and strategies for fighting large-
     scale fires or multiple fires in a general area that cross 
     jurisdictional boundaries;
       ``(J) response, tactics, and strategies for fighting fires 
     occurring at the wildland-urban interface;
       ``(K) response, tactics, and strategies for fighting fires 
     involving hazardous materials;
       ``(L) advanced emergency medical services training;''.
       (b) Triennial Reports.--Section 7 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 
     2206) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     subsection:
       ``(m) Triennial Report.--In the first annual report filed 
     pursuant to section 16 for which the deadline for filing is 
     after the expiration of the 18-month period that begins on 
     the date of the enactment of the United States Fire 
     Administration Reauthorization Act of 2008, and in every 
     third annual report thereafter, the Administrator shall 
     include information about changes made to the Academy 
     curriculum, including--
       ``(1) the basis for such changes, including a review of the 
     incorporation of lessons learned by emergency response 
     personnel after significant emergency events and emergency 
     preparedness exercises performed under the National Exercise 
     Program; and
       ``(2) the desired training outcome of all such changes.''.
       (c) Authorizing the Administrator to Enter Into Contracts 
     to Provide On-Site Training Through Certain Accredited 
     Organizations.--Section 7(f) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 2206(f)) 
     is amended to read as follows:
       ``(f) Assistance.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Administrator is authorized to 
     provide assistance to State and local fire service training 
     programs through grants, contracts, or otherwise.
       ``(2) Authorization to enter into contracts to provide on-
     site training through certain accredited organizations.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Administrator is authorized to enter 
     into a contract with one or more nationally recognized 
     organizations that have established on-site training programs 
     that prepare fire service personnel to meet national 
     voluntary consensus standards for fire service personnel and 
     that facilitate the delivery of the education and training 
     programs outlined in subsection (d)(1) directly to fire 
     service personnel.
       ``(B) Restrictions.--The Administrator shall not enter into 
     a contract with such organization unless such organization--
       ``(i) provides training that leads to certification by a 
     program accredited by a nationally recognized accreditation 
     organization; or
       ``(ii) at the time the Administrator enters into the 
     contract, provides training under such a program under a 
     cooperative agreement with a Federal agency.
       ``(3) Restriction on use of funds.--The amounts expended by 
     the Administrator to carry out this subsection in any fiscal 
     year shall not exceed 4 percent of the amount authorized to 
     be appropriated in such fiscal year pursuant to section 17 of 
     this Act.''.
       (d) Incident Command Training Course for Fires at Ports 
     Required.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the United States 
     Fire Administration, in consultation with the Superintendent 
     of the National Academy for Fire Prevention and Control, 
     shall consolidate and integrate into the current Academy 
     curriculum a course on incident command training for fire 
     service personnel for fighting fires at United States ports 
     and in marine environments, including fires on the water and 
     aboard vessels. Such course shall not relate to border and 
     port security.

     SEC. 5. NATIONAL FIRE INCIDENT REPORTING SYSTEM UPGRADES.

       (a) Incident Reporting System Database.--Section 9 of the 
     Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
     2208) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     subsection:
       ``(d) National Fire Incident Reporting System Update.--Of 
     the amounts made available pursuant to subparagraphs (E), 
     (F), and (G) of section 17(g)(1), the Administrator shall use 
     no more than an aggregate amount of $5,000,000 during the 3-
     year period consisting of fiscal years 2009, 2010, and 2011 
     to carry out activities necessary to update the National Fire 
     Incident Reporting system to an Internet-based, real-time 
     incident reporting database, including capital investment, 
     contractor engagement, and user education.''.
       (b) Technical Correction.--Section 9(b)(2) of such Act (15 
     U.S.C. 2208(b)(2)) is amended by striking ``assist State,'' 
     and inserting ``assist Federal, State,''.

     SEC. 6. FIRE TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE AND DISSEMINATION.

       (a) Assistance to Fire Services for Fire Prevention and 
     Control in Wildland-Urban Interface.--Section 8(d) of the 
     Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
     2207(d)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``Rural Assistance'' in the heading and 
     inserting ``Rural and Wildland-Urban Interface Assistance'';
       (2) by striking ``The Administrator'' and inserting ``(1) 
     The Administrator''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(2) The Administrator is authorized to assist the 
     Nation's fire services, directly or through contracts, 
     grants, or other forms of assistance, for activities and 
     equipment to improve fire prevention and control in the 
     wildland-urban interface.''.
       (b) Dissemination.--Section 8 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 2207) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

[[Page 4891]]

       ``(h) Dissemination.--Beginning 1 year after the date of 
     the enactment of the United States Fire Administration 
     Reauthorization Act of 2008, the Administrator, in 
     collaboration with the relevant departments and agencies of 
     the Federal Government, shall make available to the public 
     information regarding United States Fire Administration 
     funded activities to advance new knowledge and best practices 
     in firefighting, through a regularly updated Internet 
     database.''.

     SEC. 7. ENCOURAGING ADOPTION OF STANDARDS FOR FIREFIGHTER 
                   HEALTH AND SAFETY.

       The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 
     U.S.C. 2201 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new section:

     ``SEC. 37. ENCOURAGING ADOPTION OF STANDARDS FOR FIREFIGHTER 
                   HEALTH AND SAFETY.

       ``The Administrator shall promote adoption by fire services 
     of national voluntary consensus standards for firefighter 
     health and safety, including such standards for firefighter 
     operations, training, staffing, and fitness, by educating 
     fire services about such standards, encouraging the adoption 
     at all levels of government of such standards, and making 
     recommendations on other ways in which the Federal government 
     can promote the adoption of such standards by fire 
     services.''.

     SEC. 8. COORDINATION REGARDING FIRE SERVICE-BASED EMERGENCY 
                   MEDICAL SERVICES.

       (a) In General.--Section 21(e) of the Federal Fire 
     Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2218(e)) is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(e) Coordination.--
       ``(1) In general.--To the extent practicable, the 
     Administrator shall utilize existing programs, data, 
     information, and facilities already available in other 
     Federal Government departments and agencies and, where 
     appropriate, existing research organizations, centers, and 
     universities.
       ``(2) Coordination of fire prevention and control 
     programs.--The Administrator shall provide liaison at an 
     appropriate organizational level to assure coordination of 
     the Administrator's activities with State and local 
     government agencies, departments, bureaus, or offices 
     concerned with any matter related to programs of fire 
     prevention and control with private and other Federal 
     organizations and offices so concerned.
       ``(3) Coordination of fire service-based emergency medical 
     services programs.--The Administrator shall provide liaison 
     at an appropriate organizational level to assure coordination 
     of the Administrator's activities with State and local 
     government agencies, departments, bureaus, or offices 
     concerned with programs related to emergency medical services 
     provided by fire service-based systems with private and other 
     Federal organizations and offices so concerned.''.
       (b) Fire Service-Based Emergency Medical Services Best 
     Practices.--Section 8(c) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 2207(c)) is 
     amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (4) as 
     paragraphs (3) through (5), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(2) The Administrator is authorized to conduct, directly 
     or through contracts or grants, studies of the operations and 
     management aspects of fire service-based emergency medical 
     services and coordination between emergency medical services 
     and fire services. Such studies may include the optimum 
     protocols for on-scene care, the allocation of resources, and 
     the training requirements for fire service-based emergency 
     medical services.''.

     SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 4 of the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 
     1974 (15 U.S.C. 2203) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ``Administration'' and 
     inserting ``Administration, who is the Assistant 
     Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency'';
       (2) in paragraph (7), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (3) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and'';
       (4) by redesignating paragraphs (6), (7), and (8) as 
     paragraphs (7), (8), and (9), respectively;
       (5) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(6) `hazardous materials' has the meaning given such term 
     in section 5102(2) of title 49, United States Code;''; and
       (6) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(10) `wildland-urban interface' has the meaning given 
     such term in section 101(16) of the Healthy Forests 
     Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511(16)).''.

  The CHAIRMAN. No amendment to that amendment shall be in order except 
those printed in part B of the report. Each amendment may be offered 
only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a 
Member designated in the report, shall be considered read, debatable 
for the time specified in the report, equally divided and controlled by 
the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and 
shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.


                Amendment No. 1 Offered by Mr. Pascrell

  The CHAIRMAN. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 1 printed 
in part B of House Report 110-563.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Part B amendment No. 1 offered by Mr. Pascrell:
       Page 3, strike lines 23 through 25 and insert the following 
     new paragraph:
       (1) by amending subparagraph (H) to read as follows:
       ``(H) response, tactics, and strategies for dealing with 
     national catastrophes, including terrorist-caused national 
     catastrophes and incidents that involve weapons of mass 
     destruction;'';

  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 1071, the gentleman from 
New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
  Mr. Chairman, in the reauthorization act of 2008, this amendment 
provides that the National Fire Academy training program could train 
fire service personnel in response tactics and strategies for dealing 
with natural catastrophes, including terrorist-caused national 
catastrophes and incidents that involve weapons of mass destruction.
  I want to thank the cosponsor of the underlying bill, Representative 
Harry Mitchell from Arizona, for presenting a very strong piece of 
legislation that will reauthorize the United States Fire Administration 
for another 5 years.
  I also want to thank the chairman of the Science Committee, 
Congressman Gordon, for his leadership in considering all of the 
necessary elements of this legislation with the end result being a 
strong, comprehensive bill.
  The underlying bill would authorize $293 million through fiscal year 
2012 for the U.S. Fire Administration, which is a vital agency charged 
with reducing debt and economic losses because of fire emergencies. I 
want to make clear that this is a small price to pay when considering 
the thousands of lives we lose each year to fire emergencies and the 
billions of dollars we spend to fight them.
  Throughout my years in Congress, I have always been passionate for 
funding our Nation's fire departments and firefighters, the Fire and 
Safety grants that this Congress has provided in the funds supplied 
through this reauthorization. I feel especially strong about this 
reauthorization because it also includes provisions that help guide the 
fire academy on how to best train our Nation's firefighters for the 
added and the increased challenges they face every day. My amendment 
addresses this issue by simply updating the training program at the 
National Fire Academy to include national catastrophes related to 
terrorism.
  We saw on 9/11 our Nation's heroic firefighters were among the first 
responders on the scene trying desperately to rescue as many people as 
possible in that horrific act of terror. Clearly, we all understand 
that the responsibilities of our Nation's firefighters became greater 
on that day as they now have to train for emergency response to 
catastrophic terrorist attacks, including the foreboding threats of 
incidents involving weapons of mass destruction. Many of these types of 
courses already exist at the fire academy, but the future of these 
critical courses for these firefighters should never be put in doubt 
and need to be codified.
  My amendment simply puts these practices into law and sends a message 
to the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Fire Administration 
that this issue continues to be important to the Congress and the 
protection of our constituents.
  I thank the sponsor, Mr. Mitchell, the chairman, Mr. Gordon, once 
again for all of their work.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I rise to claim the time under the rule 
but I

[[Page 4892]]

am in support of the gentleman's amendment, not in opposition to it.
  The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, the gentleman from Georgia is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1145

  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, the men and women of our Nation's fire 
services are among the very first responders to an extraordinary wide 
range of accidents, injuries, and disasters. And the gentleman from New 
Jersey, he knows as well as anybody in this body. He was right there. 
His district's right there, very close to the scene of 9/11. And I 
think that his amendment is very, very appropriate because this was a 
fire caused by a terrorist attack. Unlike the Murrah Building attack at 
Oklahoma City, which was an incidence of domestic violence by our own, 
if you will, homegrown terrorists, this situation that occurred on 9/11 
is the reason why I'm sure the gentleman from New Jersey has brought 
forth this good amendment. And he is so right to point out that 
firefighters will also be the first to the scene when many of these 
catastrophes happen.
  Hopefully, it won't occur in this country again. We've been blessed. 
I think there has been a lot of hard work on the part of this Congress 
and this administration to protect our country on our soil from another 
terrorist attack. Thank God so far it hasn't happened. But that doesn't 
mean you don't train for and prepare for it. And those firefighters 
that went to work that day, they were well trained, but I'm sure they 
weren't expecting a terrorist attack. And in such an event like that, 
their first job, of course, always is to heroically save lives. But 
fire services will also act to minimize the damage and property loss 
that a terrorist strike or ensuing events may cause. I mean, as the 
amendment addresses, there may be biological weapons of mass 
destruction, and there could have been, right behind the two planes, 
maybe another plane with a terrorist coming into the city in parachutes 
with nuclear or biological weapons, a sarin gas attack. God knows what 
could have happened in the subways of New York City. So the United 
States Fire Administration works hand-in-glove with other components of 
the Department of Homeland Security, and Chairman Thompson is here on 
the floor right now, to ensure that our Nation's fire services have 
access to the best training and resources available.
  So I'm proud of the U.S. Fire Administration's work to date to 
improve our resiliency and our preparedness, yes, for terrorist events, 
natural disasters, and, of course, the daily accidents and fires that 
occur in communities across the country.
  Mr. Chairman, I wholeheartedly support the gentleman's amendment. I 
urge all my colleagues and expect all my colleagues to support his 
amendment.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Chair will remind the gentleman from New Jersey 
that he has 2 minutes remaining.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank my friend from 
Georgia.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. 
Mitchell).
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Chairman, I also want to say thank you to Mr. 
Gingrey for his support of this amendment, which we know will make this 
a much stronger bill and a better bill.
  So I thank you very much for the amendment and all the support that 
it's receiving.
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Chairman, it now gives me a tremendous sense of 
honor to introduce also the gentleman from Mississippi, my good friend, 
who is also the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee. No one, no 
one has worked harder to bring all of the agencies together in this 
effort to protect our country and to protect our families and our 
neighborhoods.
  Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield the balance of my time to 
Chairman Thompson.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Chairman, today I rise in support of 
the amendment offered by my good friend, a member of the Committee on 
Homeland Security, Mr. Pascrell. The gentleman from Paterson, New 
Jersey, is a leader on the committee and in Congress on first responder 
issues.
  As a former volunteer firefighter and graduate of the Mississippi 
Fire Academy, I understand that many firefighters are unable to travel 
to the National Fire Academy's campus in Maryland to partake in 
training. The Fire Academy recognizes this need. By harnessing 
technology, the Fire Academy partners with existing local and State 
training academies to reach more first responders.
  The Pascrell amendment addresses one key area of training: terrorism 
response training. Specifically, the amendment seeks to ensure that 
fire service personnel get training on response tactics and strategies 
for dealing with ``terrorist-caused national catastrophes and incidents 
that involve weapons of mass destruction.'' Such incidents can be very 
complex and require response from many public safety agencies across 
multiple jurisdictions.
  Today, the Fire Academy has a terrorism curriculum in place. The 
Pascrell amendment will ensure this continuation.
  It has been nearly 7 years since the attacks of 9/11, and, 
thankfully, we have not been attacked since. However, Mr. Chairman, the 
threat is still very real. As Members of Congress, it's our collective 
responsibility to ensure that responders in our communities are fully 
trained, equipped, and staffed to answer the question call.
  Once again, I encourage my colleagues to support the Pascrell 
amendment as well as the underlying bill.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                  Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mr. Sali

  The CHAIRMAN. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 2 printed 
in part B of House Report 110-563.
  Mr. SALI. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Part B amendment No. 2 offered by Mr. Sali:
       Page 9, line 24, strike ``section'' and insert 
     ``sections''.
       Page 10, after line 11, insert the following:

     ``SEC. 38. TRAINING AGENCIES ON IMPORTANCE OF CLEARING 
                   BIOMASS IN WILDLAND AREAS TO PROMOTE 
                   FIREFIGHTER SAFETY.

       ``In collaboration with the relevant departments and 
     agencies of the Federal Government, the Administrator shall 
     develop and provide information and training to relevant 
     departments and agencies of the Federal Government on the 
     importance of clearing biomass in wildland areas of Federal 
     lands to promote the safety of firefighters.''.

  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 1071, the gentleman from 
Idaho (Mr. Sali) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Idaho.
  Mr. SALI. Mr. Chairman, firefighting is a high-risk, high-consequence 
activity, and the agencies that are involved in managing wildland-urban 
interface have always had strong firefighter safety and training 
programs. Firefighter safety is their highest priority. In fact, the 
1995 Federal Fire Policy sets the order of priorities for wildland 
firefighters as, number one, public and firefighter safety; number two, 
protection of resources; number three, protection of property.
  The safety, health, and welfare of firefighters and the general 
public are becoming increasingly linked to the decline in the health of 
forested ecosystems. The most effective means of reducing burgeoning 
fire suppression costs, protecting community values, restoring forest 
and grassland health, and improving firefighter safety is an aggressive 
fuel treatment program. How land managers apply the fuels reduction 
program will have the greatest impact on the safety of wildland 
firefighters.
  Threats to human life are compounded by the fact that more and

[[Page 4893]]

more people are living in homes near fire-prone forests, placing 
themselves and the firefighters who try to protect them at greater 
risk.
  My amendment allows the Administrator of the United States Fire 
Administration to develop and distribute information on the importance 
of clearing biomass from Federal lands. This commonsense amendment 
requires USFA to work in consultation with other Federal agencies such 
as the U.S. Forest Service and the BLM to ensure that USFA provides the 
best possible recommendation. As we come upon what many are predicting 
to be another deadly and costly fire season, this information will be 
as vital as ever. We must provide our Federal employees, who are the 
best in the world, all the tools they need to keep our communities and 
themselves safe from catastrophic wildfires.
  The Federal hazardous fuels reduction program can be a very good 
thing for wildfire fighters. If it is done properly, the program can 
reduce the most extreme of the hazardous fuels and make the working 
environment for wildland firefighters much safer.
  The Federal Government has invested millions of dollars in a 
hazardous fuels reduction program to mitigate the risks, costs, and 
consequences of wildfire across millions of acres of publicly owned 
wildlands. The knowledge gained as to relative effectiveness of 
different types of treatments and the overall effectiveness of those 
treatments will have much greater value for protecting and promoting 
firefighter safety when that information is shared. The United States 
Fire Administration should be an important vehicle for disseminating 
this information, and this amendment will help to make that a reality.
  Mr. WU. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. SALI. I yield to the gentleman from Oregon.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Do I understand the gentleman's amendment is designed specifically to 
increase firefighter safety within the wildland-urban interface?
  Mr. SALI. The gentleman is correct.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentleman. Do I further understand that the 
gentleman's amendment does not intend to expand the clearing of biomass 
beyond current force management practices outside of the wildland-urban 
interface?
  Mr. SALI. Mr. Chairman, this is intended to promote sharing of 
information. It doesn't have anything actually to do with the actual 
clearing of the biomass. It just deals with the information that's 
gained, and it would be in the wildland-urban interface for the results 
of that fuels treatment.
  Mr. WU. If the gentleman would yield.
  Mr. SALI. I yield.
  Mr. WU. So all that information or other things to be done would be 
focused on the wildland-urban interface?
  Mr. SALI. That's the purpose of this amendment too.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentleman.
  And if the gentleman would further yield, the language that has been 
traditionally used, it refers to ``fuel load,'' and the gentleman's 
amendment, I believe, sometimes uses ``biomass,'' and the gentleman has 
sometimes referred to fuel load.
  Is the gentleman using ``biomass'' in this sense, in the traditional 
sense that ``fuel load'' has been used in similar legislation?
  Mr. SALI. I believe that that is correct.
  Mr. WU. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. SALI. Mr. Chairman, how much time do I have remaining?
  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman's time has expired.
  Does any Member seek time in opposition to the proposed amendment?
  Mr. MITCHELL. Yes, I do, Mr. Chairman.
  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Arizona is recognized for 5 minutes.

                              {time}  1200

  Mr. MITCHELL. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Gingrey).
  Mr. GINGREY. I want to thank the gentleman for yielding, and the 
generosity of his time.
  Mr. Chairman, in this decade, wildland fires have consumed 50 million 
acres in this country. While the term ``wildland fires'' brings to mind 
uninhabited areas in our Nation's parks, forests, and rural areas, 
wildland fires have done tremendous damage to urban and suburban 
development as well. I think that was the reason for the colloquy 
between Mr. Wu from Oregon and Mr. Sali from Idaho.
  Last fall, western States were hit particularly hard by wildland 
fires that encroached into developed areas and destroyed homes, 
businesses, and livelihoods. The amendment offered by the gentleman 
from Idaho addresses that concern. The amendment allows the 
Administrator of the USFA to distribute information on the importance 
of clearing in these areas biomass materials from Federal lands, not 
out in the interior of a National Park. That was a point that was made 
in the colloquy.
  The amendment requires USFA to work in consultation, of course, with 
other Federal agencies to ensure that USFA provides the best possible 
recommendations. Removing hazardous fuels, biomass materials, from 
Federal forests and lands will help to prevent, and more importantly, 
to limit these forest fires as they begin to encroach on urban areas. 
So if you leave these materials susceptible to forest fires, the 
consequences, as Mr. Sali pointed out, can be disastrous.
  So, Mr. Chairman, I support wholeheartedly his amendment and urge my 
colleagues to do the same.
  Mr. MITCHELL. I yield back the balance of my time, Mr. Chairman.
  The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the 
gentleman from Idaho (Mr. Sali).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                Amendment No. 3 Offered by Mr. Langevin

  The CHAIRMAN. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 3 printed 
in part B of House Report 110-563.
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Part B amendment No. 3 offered by Mr. Langevin:
       At the end of the bill, add the following new section:

     SEC. 10. SUPPORTING THE ADOPTION OF FIRE SPRINKLERS.

       Congress supports the recommendations of the United States 
     Fire Administration regarding the adoption of fire sprinklers 
     in commercial buildings and educational programs to raise 
     awareness of the importance of installing fire sprinklers in 
     residential buildings.

  The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 1071, the gentleman from 
Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Rhode Island.
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Chairman, I rise to introduce an amendment that 
highlights the critical importance of deploying fire sprinklers in all 
commercial buildings. My amendment encourages the installation of fire 
sprinklers in commercial buildings and supports educational programs 
about installing them in residential buildings as well.
  Five years ago, a tragedy struck in my home State of Rhode Island 
when a fire tore through the Station Nightclub in West Warwick. It was 
certainly a terrible awakening for all of us about the importance of 
fire safety. That fire, which killed 100 people and injured 200 more, 
could have been prevented, Mr. Chairman, if fire sprinklers had been 
installed throughout the building. Almost every Rhode Islander knows 
someone whose life was changed forever by that terrible night, and we 
all learned a very hard lesson on the importance of installing fire 
protection equipment in our homes, workplaces, our schools, and 
recreational buildings. I hope that with a renewed focus on installing 
fire sprinklers and other safety devices, that we can prevent a tragedy 
like the one in West Warwick from ever occurring again.
  There is no question that fire sprinklers save lives. In fact, the 
National Fire Protection Association has no

[[Page 4894]]

record of a fire killing more than two people in a public building 
equipped with a fully operational automatic fire sprinkler system.
  So, to this end I have introduced a piece of legislation called the 
Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act, H.R. 1742, which would amend the Internal 
Revenue Code to provide an incentive to business owners for 
retrofitting existing buildings with lifesaving sprinklers. This 
legislation, which right now has 114 cosponsors, will reduce the tax 
depreciation time for retrofitting sprinklers in nonresidential real 
property from 39 years down to only 5. So a significant time reduction. 
Again, from 39 years down to only 5 years for this tax depreciation to 
take advantage of the retrofitting of sprinklers.
  While it's clear that fire sprinklers save lives, Congress has to 
date not taken a position on the importance of this important 
technology. So I believe that it is critical that we lend our voice to 
this issue and hopefully save another community from ever experiencing 
the devastating losses that West Warwick did.
  So while we may not always be able to prevent fires from occurring, 
we certainly can minimize the damage they cause and the lives that they 
take. My amendment that I am offering today is a sense of Congress, and 
takes us one step closer toward that goal.
  With that, Mr. Chairman, I strongly support reauthorizing the United 
States Fire Administration, and I would like to commend Chairman Gordon 
for his leadership in bringing this bill to the floor. This bill will 
allow the U.S. Fire Administration to continue to provide support 
services for fire prevention, firefighter training and education, and 
emergency medical services activities. I urge my colleagues to support 
my amendment as well, H.R. 4847.
  Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, I rise to claim time in opposition. 
However, we are very supportive of the gentleman's amendment, and I 
yield myself such time as I may consume.
  The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, the gentleman from Georgia is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GINGREY. Mr. Chairman, millions of United States houses today 
contain smoke alarms. They have been credited with saving thousands of 
lives. Yet, smoke alarms can only warn the occupants of a fire. They 
cannot contain or extinguish a fire. Fire sprinkler systems provide the 
means to limit fire growth and therefore save lives and property. We 
already mentioned $10 billion a year, I think, in property damage, 
3,600 lives lost every year.
  Studies by the USFA have shown that the installation of residential 
fire sprinkler systems could save thousands of lives and millions of 
dollars in property taxes. Bottom line. So together with their Federal 
partners, USFA has reported a potential 82 percent reduction in fire 
deaths if fire sprinklers, along with smoke alarms, were installed in 
all residential dwellings. With the cost of a home sprinkler system in 
new construction being estimated as low as $1.50 a square foot, or as 
low as 1 percent of the total cost of the house, and of course, many 
insurance companies offering discounts up to 15 percent on houses that 
contain sprinkler systems, it is clear that the benefits in lives and 
property saved far outweigh the costs.
  The amendment from the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin) 
supports the efforts of the U.S. Fire Administration to improve the 
awareness of the effectiveness and availability of residential 
sprinkler systems.
  Mr. Chairman, I wholeheartedly support the gentleman's amendment, and 
urge my colleagues to do the same.
  I yield back my time.
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Georgia for 
his supportive comments and look forward to working with him on passage 
of this amendment.
  At this time, Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield as much time as he 
may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).
  Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank Mr. Langevin for all of 
his critical work on this too often neglected issue of fire sprinklers. 
I applaud this amendment for encouraging the installation of fire 
sprinklers in all commercial buildings and supporting educational 
programs about installing them in residential buildings. A very 
critical issue here.
  We must take every opportunity to promote the use of fire sprinklers, 
as the gentleman from Georgia just pointed out, which is why we 
introduced the Campus Fire Safety Legislation to require mandatory 
responses. Every university now, every college, every community 
college, whether it is a college building or a dormitory, any building 
connected to that university or institution has an obligation to tell 
the parents and the students what is their record on fire safety. No 
students should be sent to any university, any university or any 
college, unless their parents and they themselves know what the record 
is, if there are sprinklers installed, if there are smoke detectors 
installed. We lost three who were killed in the Seton Hall fire in New 
Jersey, 58 were injured. Since 2000, 108 people have died in campus 
fires. There are 20 campus-related fire deaths in the last 2 years.
  Mr. Chairman, I want to bring the attention to everyone on this as 
part of the educational process. I want to thank the gentleman from 
Rhode Island for introducing this amendment. It makes sense, and I hope 
everybody will support it.
  The CHAIRMAN. The time of the gentleman from Rhode Island has 
expired.
  The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Rhode 
Island (Mr. Langevin).
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment in the nature of a 
substitute, as amended.
  The amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended, was agreed 
to.
  The CHAIRMAN. Under the rule, the Committee rises.
  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Salazar) having assumed the chair, Mr. Faleomavaega, Chairman of the 
Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union, reported that 
that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4847) to 
reauthorize the United States Fire Administration, and for other 
purposes, pursuant to House Resolution 1071, he reported the bill back 
to the House with an amendment adopted by the Committee of the Whole.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is 
ordered.
  Is a separate vote demanded on any amendment to the amendment 
reported from the Committee of the Whole? If not, the question is on 
the amendment.
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment and third 
reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.


          motion to recommit offered by mrs. mc morris rodgers

  Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at 
the desk.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentlewoman opposed to the bill?
  Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Yes, in its current form.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to 
recommit.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Mrs. McMorris Rodgers moves to recommit the bill H.R. 4847 
     to the Committee on Science and Technology with instructions 
     to report the same back to the House forthwith with the 
     following amendment:
       Page 5, line 16, after the em dash, insert ``(1)''.
       Page 5, line 23, strike ``otherwise'' and insert 
     ``otherwise, so long as the State or local government in 
     which such fire service training program operates provides 
     that any firefighter or rescue personnel, entity, or 
     organization, including a governmental or intergovernmental 
     entity, providing inspection services or advice on a 
     voluntary basis without expectation of compensation regarding 
     proper installation, use, defects, or recalls of infant and 
     child safety seats shall not be liable for any act or 
     omission in connection with providing such services or advice 
     that results in harm to an infant or child''.

[[Page 4895]]

       Page 7, after line 6, insert the following new paragraph:
       (2) That portion of paragraph (1) added by the amendment 
     made by this subsection that appears after ``otherwise'' 
     shall take effect after the end of the 2-year period 
     beginning on the date of enactment of this Act.

                              {time}  1215

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from Washington is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Mr. Speaker, the underlying bill importantly 
recognizes the role and sacrifices of firefighters. And, yes, it is our 
firefighters who often volunteer to help protect our greatest asset, 
our children, yet they face a growing threat of liability lawsuits 
related to the proper installation of car seats.
  Each year, nearly 2,500 children under the age of 14 die in car 
accidents, and more than 200,000 are injured in motor vehicle 
accidents. In 2005, half of those who died were not restrained.
  According to the National Institute of Highway Safety, children that 
are restrained in child seats have an 80 percent lower risk of fatal 
injury. The good news is that we are doing better as a country in using 
child seats and saving lives. This may have something to do with the 
fact that all 50 States and the District of Columbia now have child 
restraint laws on the books. Yet it is estimated that 25 percent of 
kids are still not restrained.
  We are making great progress in ensuring child safety seats are used 
to protect our Nation's greatest asset. However, even though more 
children are using child safety seats, improper installation or 
improper use of a child safety seat can have the same fatal 
consequences. As a new mom, this is a scary reality, and, like many new 
parents, I fear that we haven't installed our child safety seat 
properly.
  A recent study in six States on the misuse of child restraint systems 
concluded that nearly 75 percent of child seats had at least one 
critical misuse. In an effort to reduce the misuse of child safety 
seats, many fire departments send personnel to a 32-hour 4-day course 
on their proper installation and use. Once these personnel have been 
trained, they are able to provide inspection services or advice on a 
voluntary basis regarding the proper installation and use.
  When my husband and I had Cole last year, we were advised to have a 
fire department ensure our seat was properly installed. But I have also 
heard the stories of people being denied by their local fire department 
due to liability concerns.
  One example was in Eaton Rapids, where new parents, John and Carol 
Doyle, like many parents, were nervous about the new responsibility for 
the health and safety of their new baby, and it began with that first 
ride home from the hospital. They had a pretty good idea how to strap 
their rear-facing infant car seat into the back seat of their car, but 
they didn't like the idea of guessing. They sought help from the people 
at the local medical center, but those folks declined. ``They were 
afraid that if they told us how to do it, then there would be a 
problem. We would sue them.''
  The medical staffers suggested that they seek help from the fire 
department, so on the way home from the hospital they stopped by the 
fire station. The woman wanted to help, but couldn't. ``It is a 
liability issue,'' she said, referring the family to the local police. 
They called the police department, but the person they spoke to said 
again it is a liability thing.
  This is an important service that can help save the life of a child. 
However, the fear is that some departments and communities may be 
unwilling to offer this life-saving service because of fear of 
liability.
  The motion to recommit I offer today would help remedy the situation. 
It would protect fire departments that wish to offer this service to 
the public. The language requires States or local governments covered 
under the provisions of this bill to protect their properly-trained 
firefighters from liability and lawsuits when they offer inspection and 
advice regarding car seat use.
  This motion to recommit gives States 2 years to provide protection 
for our firefighters. This service the firefighters are offering is too 
valuable to let it get bogged down by the threat of lawsuits. We should 
not allow trial lawyers to hijack the safety of our children.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GORDON of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the 
motion.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GORDON of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, my mother grew up way out in 
the country, way, way out in the country, and when she was a young girl 
their house burned. The only things they saved were their lives and the 
clothes on their back. Today, 70 years later, whenever my mother hears 
a fire engine or sees a fire truck, she tells me that story about how 
her house burned, almost in a trance. It is a very traumatic experience 
when a family goes through something like this.
  That is the reason that our committee worked in a bipartisan way to 
try to come forth with a very good bill that would help to save lives, 
save property and help our firefighters do a better job of hopefully 
shielding some other families from that trauma that my mother went 
through.
  It is really unfortunate after all of that work that the gentlewoman 
would come forth with a mischievous amendment that has had no 
discussion. We don't know anything about is there a liability problem 
or not. We don't know whether or not this is going to affect States' 
own liability or whether this is going to preempt it.
  The gentlewoman had an opportunity, if this is such an important 
issue, to both come before the committee and talk to us at the 
subcommittee level. But there was no discussion. She could have come to 
the subcommittee markup, where it passed unanimously. But there was no 
discussion. She could have come to the full committee markup, where 
again it passed out unanimously, but there was no effort. Or she could 
have gone to the Rules Committee and asked to have a rule and be 
allowed to submit the amendment so we could have a discussion, even 
here at this late date. But there was no effort.
  Quite frankly, I think this is a game of ``gotcha.'' It is an insult 
to the Democrats and Republicans on the Science Committee, who worked 
hard to put this good bill together. It is an insult to the 
firefighters, who are trying to do their job every day and who need 
these funds and training. It is an insult to all those individuals and 
organizations that endorsed this bill, like the International 
Association of Fire Chiefs, the International Association of 
Firefighters, the National Volunteer Fire Council, the National Fire 
Protection Association, the International Association of Arson 
Investigators, the North American Fire Training Directors, the 
International Fire Services Training Association, and the Congressional 
Fire Service Institute. They endorsed this bill because it is a good 
bill, a bill that will help firefighters do their job. It is very 
unfortunate that we are trying to play these games at the last moment.
  Mr. Speaker, I recommend that we vote down this amendment that we 
know nothing about and that we move forward with this good bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered on the motion to recommit.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to recommit.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the noes appeared to have it.
  Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XX, the Chair 
will reduce to 5 minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on 
the question of passage.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 205, 
nays 209, not voting 16, as follows:

[[Page 4896]]



                             [Roll No. 159]

                               YEAS--205

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Alexander
     Altmire
     Bachmann
     Bachus
     Barrett (SC)
     Barrow
     Bartlett (MD)
     Barton (TX)
     Biggert
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boehner
     Bonner
     Bono Mack
     Boozman
     Boustany
     Boyda (KS)
     Brady (TX)
     Broun (GA)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Buchanan
     Burgess
     Burton (IN)
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp (MI)
     Campbell (CA)
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Carney
     Carter
     Castle
     Chabot
     Coble
     Cole (OK)
     Conaway
     Crenshaw
     Culberson
     Davis (KY)
     Davis, David
     Davis, Tom
     Deal (GA)
     Dent
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Donnelly
     Doolittle
     Drake
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Edwards
     Ehlers
     Emerson
     English (PA)
     Everett
     Fallin
     Feeney
     Ferguson
     Flake
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Fossella
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gerlach
     Gilchrest
     Gingrey
     Gohmert
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Graves
     Hall (TX)
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Heller
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Inglis (SC)
     Issa
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Jordan
     Keller
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Kline (MN)
     Kuhl (NY)
     LaHood
     Lamborn
     Lampson
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Latta
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     LoBiondo
     Lucas
     Lungren, Daniel E.
     Mack
     Mahoney (FL)
     Manzullo
     Marchant
     Marshall
     McCarthy (CA)
     McCaul (TX)
     McCotter
     McCrery
     McHenry
     McHugh
     McIntyre
     McKeon
     McMorris Rodgers
     McNerney
     Mica
     Miller (MI)
     Miller, Gary
     Moran (KS)
     Murphy, Tim
     Musgrave
     Myrick
     Neugebauer
     Nunes
     Pearce
     Pence
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Poe
     Porter
     Price (GA)
     Pryce (OH)
     Putnam
     Radanovich
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Reichert
     Renzi
     Reynolds
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Sali
     Saxton
     Schmidt
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shays
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Souder
     Space
     Stearns
     Sullivan
     Tancredo
     Taylor
     Terry
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Turner
     Upton
     Walberg
     Walden (OR)
     Walsh (NY)
     Wamp
     Weldon (FL)
     Weller
     Westmoreland
     Whitfield (KY)
     Wilson (NM)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                               NAYS--209

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Andrews
     Arcuri
     Baca
     Baird
     Baldwin
     Bean
     Becerra
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (NY)
     Blumenauer
     Boren
     Boswell
     Boyd (FL)
     Brady (PA)
     Braley (IA)
     Brown, Corrine
     Butterfield
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Carnahan
     Carson
     Chandler
     Clarke
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Costello
     Courtney
     Cramer
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Cummings
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis, Lincoln
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Doyle
     Ellison
     Ellsworth
     Emanuel
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Farr
     Fattah
     Filner
     Foster
     Frank (MA)
     Giffords
     Gillibrand
     Gonzalez
     Gordon
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hall (NY)
     Hare
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Herseth Sandlin
     Higgins
     Hill
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hirono
     Hodes
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones (OH)
     Kagen
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick
     Kind
     Kucinich
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis (GA)
     Lipinski
     Loebsack
     Lofgren, Zoe
     Lowey
     Lynch
     Maloney (NY)
     Markey
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum (MN)
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McNulty
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Melancon
     Michaud
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, George
     Mitchell
     Mollohan
     Moore (KS)
     Moore (WI)
     Moran (VA)
     Murphy (CT)
     Murphy, Patrick
     Murtha
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal (MA)
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Payne
     Perlmutter
     Peterson (MN)
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Rahall
     Reyes
     Richardson
     Rodriguez
     Ross
     Rothman
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruppersberger
     Ryan (OH)
     Salazar
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schwartz
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Serrano
     Sestak
     Shea-Porter
     Sherman
     Shuler
     Skelton
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Solis
     Spratt
     Stark
     Stupak
     Sutton
     Tanner
     Tauscher
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Tierney
     Towns
     Tsongas
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Van Hollen
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz (MN)
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson
     Watt
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Welch (VT)
     Wexler
     Wilson (OH)
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Yarmuth

                             NOT VOTING--16

     Allen
     Boucher
     Castor
     Cubin
     Granger
     Hooley
     Jefferson
     Klein (FL)
     Knollenberg
     Miller (FL)
     Paul
     Rangel
     Rush
     Sires
     Wittman (VA)
     Wynn

                              {time}  1246

  Messrs. GUTIERREZ, BERMAN, Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California, Messrs. 
CROWLEY, LARSON of Connecticut, UDALL of Colorado, and Ms. SLAUGHTER 
changed their vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Messrs. MICA, PRICE of Georgia, LEWIS of California, McINTYRE, and 
KING of Iowa changed their vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  So the motion to recommit was rejected.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the passage of the bill.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. GORDON of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. This will be a 5-minute vote.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 412, 
nays 0, not voting 18, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 160]

                               YEAS--412

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Aderholt
     Akin
     Alexander
     Altmire
     Andrews
     Arcuri
     Baca
     Bachmann
     Bachus
     Baird
     Baldwin
     Barrett (SC)
     Barrow
     Bartlett (MD)
     Barton (TX)
     Bean
     Becerra
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Biggert
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (NY)
     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     Blumenauer
     Blunt
     Bonner
     Bono Mack
     Boozman
     Boren
     Boswell
     Boustany
     Boyd (FL)
     Boyda (KS)
     Brady (PA)
     Brady (TX)
     Braley (IA)
     Broun (GA)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown, Corrine
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Buchanan
     Burgess
     Burton (IN)
     Butterfield
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp (MI)
     Campbell (CA)
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Carnahan
     Carney
     Carson
     Carter
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chandler
     Clarke
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Coble
     Cohen
     Cole (OK)
     Conaway
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costa
     Costello
     Courtney
     Cramer
     Crenshaw
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Culberson
     Cummings
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (IL)
     Davis (KY)
     Davis, David
     Davis, Lincoln
     Davis, Tom
     Deal (GA)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Dent
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Donnelly
     Doolittle
     Doyle
     Drake
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Edwards
     Ehlers
     Ellison
     Ellsworth
     Emanuel
     Emerson
     Engel
     English (PA)
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Everett
     Fallin
     Farr
     Fattah
     Feeney
     Ferguson
     Filner
     Flake
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Fossella
     Foster
     Foxx
     Frank (MA)
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gerlach
     Giffords
     Gilchrest
     Gillibrand
     Gingrey
     Gohmert
     Gonzalez
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Gordon
     Graves
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hall (NY)
     Hall (TX)
     Hare
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Heller
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Herseth Sandlin
     Higgins
     Hill
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hirono
     Hobson
     Hodes
     Hoekstra
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Inglis (SC)
     Inslee
     Israel
     Issa
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Jones (OH)
     Jordan
     Kagen
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Keller
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick
     Kind
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Klein (FL)
     Kline (MN)
     Kucinich
     Kuhl (NY)
     LaHood
     Lamborn
     Lampson
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Latta
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (GA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Loebsack
     Lofgren, Zoe
     Lowey
     Lucas
     Lungren, Daniel E.
     Lynch
     Mack
     Mahoney (FL)
     Maloney (NY)
     Manzullo
     Marchant
     Markey
     Marshall
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCarthy (CA)
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCaul (TX)
     McCollum (MN)
     McCotter
     McCrery
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McHenry
     McHugh
     McIntyre
     McKeon
     McMorris Rodgers
     McNerney
     McNulty
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Melancon
     Mica
     Michaud
     Miller (MI)
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, Gary
     Miller, George
     Mitchell
     Mollohan
     Moore (KS)
     Moore (WI)
     Moran (KS)
     Moran (VA)
     Murphy (CT)
     Murphy, Patrick
     Murphy, Tim
     Murtha
     Musgrave
     Myrick

[[Page 4897]]


     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal (MA)
     Neugebauer
     Nunes
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Payne
     Pearce
     Pence
     Perlmutter
     Peterson (MN)
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Poe
     Pomeroy
     Porter
     Price (GA)
     Price (NC)
     Putnam
     Radanovich
     Rahall
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Reichert
     Renzi
     Reyes
     Reynolds
     Richardson
     Rodriguez
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothman
     Roybal-Allard
     Royce
     Ruppersberger
     Ryan (OH)
     Ryan (WI)
     Salazar
     Sali
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Saxton
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schmidt
     Schwartz
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Sensenbrenner
     Serrano
     Sessions
     Sestak
     Shadegg
     Shays
     Shea-Porter
     Sherman
     Shimkus
     Shuler
     Shuster
     Simpson
     Skelton
     Slaughter
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Solis
     Souder
     Space
     Spratt
     Stark
     Stearns
     Stupak
     Sullivan
     Sutton
     Tancredo
     Tanner
     Tauscher
     Taylor
     Terry
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Tierney
     Towns
     Tsongas
     Turner
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Upton
     Van Hollen
     Visclosky
     Walberg
     Walden (OR)
     Walsh (NY)
     Walz (MN)
     Wamp
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson
     Watt
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Welch (VT)
     Weldon (FL)
     Weller
     Westmoreland
     Wexler
     Whitfield (KY)
     Wilson (NM)
     Wilson (OH)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wolf
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Yarmuth
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                             NOT VOTING--18

     Allen
     Boehner
     Boucher
     Castor
     Cubin
     Granger
     Hooley
     Jefferson
     Knollenberg
     Miller (FL)
     Paul
     Pryce (OH)
     Rangel
     Rush
     Sires
     Velazquez
     Wittman (VA)
     Wynn

                              {time}  1256

  So the bill was passed.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________