I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1742 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to classify automatic fire 
sprinkler systems as 5-year property for purposes of depreciation. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 28, 2007 
Mr. LANGEVIN (for himself, Mr. CANTOR, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Mr. RAMSTAD, 
Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Ms. SCHWARTZ, Mr. KING of New 
York, Mr. GERLACH, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. COHEN, Mr. BOOZMAN, Ms. 
ZOE LOFGREN of California, Ms. SUTTON, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, 
Mr. ETHERIDGE, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. LOBIONDO, Mr. SAXTON, Mr. SHAYS, 
Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, and Mr. GRIJALVA) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways 
and Means 
A BILL 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to classify 
automatic fire sprinkler systems as 5-year property for 
purposes of depreciation. 
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 ‘‘Fire Sprinkler Incen-
tive Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that— 
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(1) the publication of the original study and 
comprehensive list of recommendations in America 
Burning, written in 1974, requested advances in fire 
prevention through the installation of automatic 
sprinkler systems in existing buildings have yet to be 
fully implemented; 
(2) fire departments responded to approxi-
mately 1,600,000 fires in 2005; 
(3) there were 3,675 civilian deaths and 17,925 
civilian injuries resulting from fire in the United 
States in 2005; 
(4) 87 firefighters were killed in 2005; 
(5) fire caused $10,672,000,000 in direct prop-
erty damage in 2005, and sprinklers are responsible 
for a 70 percent reduction in property damage from 
fires in public assembly, educational, residential, 
commercial, industrial and manufacturing buildings; 
(6) fire departments respond to a fire every 20 
seconds, a fire breaks out in a structure every 61 
seconds and in a residential structure every 79 sec-
onds in the United States; 
(7) the Station Nightclub in West Warwick, 
Rhode Island, did not contain an automated sprin-
kler system and burned down, killing 100 people on 
February 20, 2003; 
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(8) due to an automated sprinkler system, not 
a single person was injured from a fire beginning in 
the Fine Line Music Cafe´ in Minneapolis after the 
use of pyrotechnics on February 17, 2003; 
(9) the National Fire Protection Association 
has no record of a fire killing more than 2 people 
in a completely sprinklered public assembly, edu-
cational, institutional or residential building where 
the system was properly installed and fully oper-
ational; 
(10) sprinkler systems dramatically improve the 
chances of survival of those who cannot save them-
selves, specifically older adults, young children and 
people with disabilities; 
(11) the financial cost of upgrading fire 
counter-measures in buildings built prior to fire 
safety codes is prohibitive for most property owners; 
(12) many State and local governments lack 
any requirements for existing structures to contain 
automatic sprinkler systems; 
(13) under the present straight-line method of 
depreciation, there is a disincentive for building safe-
ty improvements due to an extremely low rate of re-
turn on investment; and 
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(14) the Nation is in need of incentives for the 
voluntary installation and retrofitting of buildings 
with automated sprinkler systems to save the lives of 
countless individuals and responding firefighters as 
well as drastically reduce the costs from property 
damage. 
SEC. 3. CLASSIFICATION OF AUTOMATIC FIRE SPRINKLER 
SYSTEMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of section 
168(e)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating 
to 5-year property) is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end of clause (v), by striking the period at the end of 
clause (vi) and inserting ‘‘, and’’, and by adding at the 
end the following: 
‘‘(vii) any automated fire sprinkler 
system placed in service after April 11, 
2003, in a building or structure which was 
placed in service before such date.’’. 
(b) ALTERNATIVE SYSTEM.—The table contained in 
section 168(g)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
subparagraph (B)(iii) the following: 
‘‘(B)(vii) ....................................................................................................
7’’. 
(c) DEFINITION OF AUTOMATIC FIRE SPRINKLER 
SYSTEM.—Subsection (i) of section 168 of the Internal 
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Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
‘‘(17) AUTOMATED FIRE SPRINKLER SYSTEM.— 
The term ‘automated fire sprinkler system’ means 
those sprinkler systems classified under one or more 
of the following publications of the National Fire 
Protection Association— 
‘‘(A) NFPA 13, Installation of Sprinkler 
Systems, 
‘‘(B) NFPA 13 D, Installation of Sprin-
kler Systems in One and Two Family Dwellings 
and Manufactured Homes, and 
‘‘(C) NFPA 13 R, Installation of Sprinkler 
Systems in Residential Occupancies Up to and 
Including Four Stories in Height.’’. 
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall apply to property placed in service after 
April 11, 2003. 
(e) WAIVER OF LIMITATIONS.—If refund or credit of 
any overpayment of tax resulting from the amendments 
made by this section is prevented at any time before the 
close of the 1-year period beginning on the date of the 
enactment of this Act by the operation of any law or rule 
of law (including res judicata), such refund or credit may 
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nevertheless be made or allowed if claim therefor is filed 
before the close of such period. 
Æ 
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