U.S. Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., announced last week that he is continuing to support a proposal from U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-NJ, to update sprinkler systems in public housing.
Watson Coleman introduced the “Public Housing Fire Safety Act” two years ago with Rutherford as one of the main co-sponsors. She brought the bill back last week and he is the main co-sponsor with more than 10 other members of the U.S. House lined up to support it.
“The Public Housing Fire Safety Act would create a program at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide grants to public housing authorities that wish to retrofit older high-rise apartments. Additionally, it would collect data on the status of sprinkler installations and submit a report to Congress on the presence of automatic sprinkler systems in public housing, with recommendations to improve fire safety,” Rutherford’s office noted.
“Sprinkler systems have been shown to be one of the most effective ways to prevent widespread damage and loss of life in the event of a fire,” said Watson Coleman. “As this country faces emergency after emergency, it’s our responsibility to mitigate and provide solutions so American people aren’t suffering. By ensuring our citizens living in public housing have the most basic fire safety measures, they become the priority. The added benefit that it will help save the lives of our nation’s bravest this a no-brainer.”
“Older public housing units are often not up to code, leaving residents exposed to potential hazards,” said Rutherford. “I am proud to join Congresswoman Watson Coleman to reintroduce the bipartisan Public Housing Fire Safety Act to provide grants to public housing authorities as they update older facilities with sprinkler systems. This simple change can prevent unnecessary disasters and ensure residents, their belongings, and our fire rescue teams are kept safe.”
Watson Coleman and Rutherford pointed to many examples of public housing without fire sprinklers, noting more than 2 million Americans are currently at risk.
The National Fire Sprinkler Association, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA), the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO), Minnesota NAHRO, the National Low-Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), the National Housing Law Project (NHLP), the Congressional Fire Services Institute, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters, the USA Sprinkler Fitters Association, the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority and the Minneapolis Highrise Representative Council are all backing the proposal.
The bill was sent to the U.S. House Financial Services Committee last week.
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., introduced the bill in the U.S. Senate. U.S. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., are co-sponsoring the bill in the upper chamber.
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