IB
Union Calendar No. 96
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1727
[Report No. 103–172]
To establish a program of grants to States for arson research, prevention,
and control, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 20, 1993
Mr. BOUCHER (for himself, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr. BROWN of California, Mr.
HOYER, Mr. WELDON, Mr. STOKES, Mr. LEACH, Mr. BARLOW, Mr.
MCHUGH, Mr. LAZIO, Mr. MAZZOLI, Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas, Mr.
TOWNS, Mrs. MEYERS of Kansas, Ms. ESHOO, and Mr. MEEHAN) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science,
Space, and Technology
JULY 13, 1993
Additional sponsors: Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. BONIOR, Mr.
CASTLE, Mr. FISH, Mr. JACOBS, Mr. WISE, and Mr. KLEIN
JULY 13, 1993
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 20, 1993]
A BILL
To establish a program of grants to States for arson
research, prevention, and control, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Arson Prevention Act
of 1993’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) arson is a serious and costly problem in both
rural and urban areas, and is responsible for ap-
proximately 25 percent of all fires in the United
States;
(2) arson is a leading cause of fire deaths, ac-
counting for approximately 700 deaths annually in
the United States, and is the leading cause of prop-
erty damage due to fire in the United States;
(3) estimates of arson property losses are in the
range of $2,000,000,000 annually, or approximately 1
of every 4 dollars lost to fire;
(4) the incidence of arson in the United States
is seriously underreported, in part because of the lack
of adequate participation by local jurisdictions in the
National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)
and the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program;
(5) there is a need for expanded training pro-
grams for arson investigators;
(6) there is a need for improved programs de-
signed to enable volunteer firefighters to detect arson
crimes and to preserve evidence vital to the investiga-
tion and prosecution of arson cases;
(7) according to the National Fire Protection As-
sociation, of all the suspicious and incendiary fires
estimated to occur, only one-third are confirmed as
arson; and
(8) improved training of arson investigators will
increase the ability of fire departments to identify
suspicious and incendiary fires, and will result in
increased and more effective prosecution of arson
offenses.
SEC. 3. ARSON PREVENTION GRANTS.
The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974
is amended by adding after section 24 the following new
section:
‘‘ARSON PREVENTION GRANTS
‘‘SEC. 25. (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator,
through the Office, shall carry out a demonstration program
of grant awards, not to exceed 10 in number, to States, or
consortia thereof, for programs relating to arson research,
prevention, and control. In carrying out the requirements
of this section, the Administrator shall award 2-year grants
on a competitive, merit basis to States for projects which
have one or more of the following goals:
‘‘(1) To improve the training by States leading
to professional certification of arson investigators, in
accordance with nationally recognized certification
standards.
‘‘(2) To provide resources for the formation of
arson task forces or interagency organizational ar-
rangements involving police and fire departments and
other relevant local agencies such as State arson bu-
reaus and the State fire marshal’s office.
‘‘(3) To combat fraud as a cause of arson and
to advance research at the State and local levels on
the significance and prevention of fraud as a motive
for setting fires.
‘‘(4) To provide for management of arson squads,
including—
‘‘(A) training courses for fire departments
in arson case management, including standard-
ization of investigative techniques and reporting
methodology;
‘‘(B) preparation of arson unit management
guides; and
‘‘(C) the development and dissemination of
new public education materials relating to the
arson problem.
‘‘(5) To combat civil unrest as a cause of arson
and to advance research at the State and local levels
on the prevention and control of arson linked to
urban disorders.
‘‘(6) To combat juvenile arson, such as juvenile
fire-setter counseling programs and similar interven-
tion programs, and to advance research at the State
and local levels on the prevention of juvenile arson.
‘‘(7) To combat drug-related arson and to ad-
vance research at the State and local levels on the
causes and prevention of drug-related arson.
‘‘(8) To combat domestic violence as a cause of
arson and to advance research at the State and local
levels on the prevention of arson arising from domes-
tic violence.
‘‘(9) To combat arson in rural areas and to im-
prove the capability of firefighters to identify and
prevent arson initiated fires in rural areas and pub-
lic forests.
‘‘(10) To improve the capability of firefighters to
identify and combat arson through expanded training
programs, including—
‘‘(A) training courses at the State fire acad-
emies; and