We appreciate the regular inspections by campus and state fire inspectors and make their recommendations a top priority. Building renovation and upgrade projects for fire safety present us with financial challenges, because they must compete for limited reserve funds against needed repairs, desired improvements and the major renovation program. Bringing buildings up to revised life-safety codes is sometimes mandated with aggressive deadlines, but those mandates are typically unfunded. There's new federal legislation under consideration that would provide matching funds for sprinklers in residence halls, and we're watching that bill closely. High-powered halogen lightbulbs are prohibited.
Students can have small microwave ovens, but other cooking appliances are limited.
Kitchens in the residence halls have been upgraded to encourage our students to use those areas as opposed to trying to prepare food in their rooms. Most hall kitchens are equipped with automatic fire-suppression systems over stoves. We continue to upgrade electrical systems to provide more electrical outlets. This is quite a problem for us, because today's student comes outfitted with a myriad of electrical devices. One thing working in our favor is that the newer appliances typically use less electricity than older ones.