September 10, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 144 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session
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CARBON MONOXIDE ALARMS LEADING EVERY RESIDENT TO SAFETY ACT OF 2019; Congressional Record Vol. 165, No. 144
(House of Representatives - September 10, 2019)
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[Pages H7581-H7583] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] CARBON MONOXIDE ALARMS LEADING EVERY RESIDENT TO SAFETY ACT OF 2019 Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1690) to require carbon monoxide alarms or detectors in certain federally assisted housing, and for other purposes, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 1690 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Carbon Monoxide Alarms Leading Every Resident To Safety Act of 2019'' or the ``CO ALERTS Act of 2019''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds that-- (1) carbon monoxide alarms are not required by federally assisted housing programs, when not required by State or local codes; (2) numerous federally assisted housing residents have lost their lives due to carbon monoxide poisoning; (3) the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning occur immediately and can result in death in a matter of minutes; (4) carbon monoxide exposure can cause permanent brain damage, life-threatening cardiac complications, fetal death or miscarriage, and death, among other harmful health conditions; (5) carbon monoxide poisoning is especially dangerous for unborn babies, children, elderly individuals, and individuals with cardiovascular disease, among others with chronic health conditions; (6) the majority of the 4,600,000 families receiving Federal housing assistance are families with young children, elderly individuals, or individuals with disabilities, making them especially vulnerable to carbon monoxide poisoning; (7) more than 400 people die and 50,000 additional people visit the emergency room annually as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning; (8) carbon monoxide poisoning is entirely preventable and early detection is possible with the use of carbon monoxide alarms; (9) the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that carbon monoxide poisoning is entirely preventable and recommends the installation of carbon monoxide alarms; (10) the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes of the Department of Housing and Urban Development recommends the installation of carbon monoxide alarms as a best practice to keep families and individuals safe and to protect health; and (11) in order to safeguard the health and well-being of tenants in federally assisted housing, the Federal Government should consider best practices for primary prevention of carbon monoxide-related incidents. SEC. 3. CARBON MONOXIDE ALARMS OR DETECTORS IN FEDERALLY ASSISTED HOUSING. (a) Public Housing, Tenant-Based Assistance, and Project- Based Assistance.--The United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.) is amended-- (1) in section 3(a) (42 U.S.C. 1437a(a)), by adding at the end the following: ``(8) Carbon monoxide alarms.--Each public housing agency shall ensure that carbon monoxide alarms or detectors are installed in each dwelling unit in public housing owned or operated by the public housing agency in a manner that meets or exceeds-- ``(A) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(B) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''; and (2) in section 8 (42 U.S.C. 1437f)-- (A) by inserting after subsection (i) the following: ``(j) Carbon Monoxide Alarms.--Each owner of a dwelling unit receiving project-based assistance under this section shall ensure that carbon monoxide alarms or detectors are installed in the dwelling unit in a manner that meets or exceeds-- ``(1) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(2) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''; and (B) in subsection (o), by adding at the end the following: ``(21) Carbon monoxide alarms.--Each dwelling unit receiving tenant-based assistance or project-based assistance under this subsection shall have carbon monoxide alarms or detectors installed in the dwelling unit in a manner that meets or exceeds-- ``(A) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(B) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''. (b) Supportive Housing for the Elderly.--Section 202(j) of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q(j)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(9) Carbon monoxide alarms.--Each owner of a dwelling unit assisted under this section shall ensure that carbon monoxide alarms or detectors are installed in the dwelling unit in a manner that meets or exceeds-- ``(A) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(B) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''. (c) Supportive Housing for Persons With Disabilities.-- Section 811(j) of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 8013(j)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(7) Carbon monoxide alarms.--Each dwelling unit assisted under this section shall contain installed carbon monoxide alarms or detectors that meet or exceed-- ``(A) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(B) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''. (d) Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS.--Section 856 of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12905) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(i) Carbon Monoxide Alarms.--Each dwelling unit assisted under this subtitle shall contain installed carbon monoxide alarms or detectors that meet or exceed-- ``(1) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(2) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''. (e) Rural Housing.--Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.) is amended-- (1) in section 514 (42 U.S.C. 1484), by adding at the end the following: ``(j) Housing and related facilities constructed with loans under this section shall contain installed carbon monoxide alarms or detectors that meet or exceed-- ``(1) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(2) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, in collaboration with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''; and (2) in section 515 (42 U.S.C. 1485)-- (A) in subsection (m), by inserting ``(1)'' before ``The Secretary shall establish''; and (B) by adding at the end the following: ``(2) Housing and related facilities rehabilitated or repaired with amounts received under a loan made or insured under this section shall contain installed carbon monoxide alarms or detectors that meet or exceed-- ``(A) the standards described in chapters 9 and 11 of the 2018 publication of the International Fire Code, as published by the International Code Council; or ``(B) any other standards as may be adopted by the Secretary, in collaboration with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, including any relevant updates to the International Fire Code, through a notice published in the Federal Register.''. (f) Guidance.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall provide guidance to public housing agencies (as defined in section 3(b)(6) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(6)) on how to educate tenants on health hazards in the home, including to carbon monoxide poisoning, lead poisoning, asthma induced by housing-related allergens, and other housing-related preventable outcomes, to help advance primary prevention and prevent future deaths and other harms. (g) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) through (d) shall take effect on the date that is 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act. (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act, $101,400,000 per year for each of fiscal years 2020, 2021, and 2022. [[Page H7582]] (i) No Preemption.--Nothing in the amendments made by this section shall be construed to preempt or limit the applicability of any State or local law relating to the installation and maintenance of carbon monoxide alarms or detectors in housing that requires standards that are more stringent than the standards described in the amendments made by this section. SEC. 4. STUDY ON INCLUSION OF CARBON MONOXIDE ALARMS OR DETECTORS IN OTHER UNITS. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, in consultation with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, shall conduct a study and issue a publicly available report on requiring carbon monoxide alarms or detectors in federally assisted housing that is not covered in the amendments made by section 3. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Guam (Mr. San Nicolas) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Stivers) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Guam. General Leave Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Guam? There was no objection. Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1690, the CO ALERTS Act of 2019, which would prevent needless carbon monoxide deaths from happening in federally assisted housing. Known as the silent killer, carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless, tasteless, and nonirritant gas that is produced by common fuel-burning products and appliances, such as gas ranges, cars, heating systems, boilers, and portable engine-driven generators. High levels of carbon monoxide can cause serious illness and, in worst cases, death. Carbon monoxide poisoning is as risky to health and safety as a fire. But while smoke detectors are required in all housing units, including public and assisted housing units, carbon monoxide detectors are not. Only some States and localities currently require carbon monoxide detectors. They are not otherwise required in federally assisted housing, such as public housing or private market units inhabited by Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher households. Therefore, public and assisted housing residents are at risk of this silent killer. According to media reports, there have been 13 carbon monoxide poisoning deaths cited in public housing since 2003. Four have occurred in 2019 alone. In April of this year, HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing sent a notice to public housing authorities and private owners of HUD- subsidized housing to encourage them to install and maintain carbon monoxide detectors. Unfortunately, in the absence of funding and clear statutory requirements, public housing authorities and property owners will struggle to afford the cost of these critical safety devices. H.R. 1690 will provide just over $300 million over a 3-year period to support the installation and maintenance of carbon monoxide detectors and alarms in public and assisted housing, including units in rural areas. No family should have to learn their loved ones died because Congress did not invest in a simple and cost-effective solution that would have prevented this tragedy from happening in the first place. I want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia) for introducing this lifesaving legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. STIVERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of H.R. 1690, the Carbon Monoxide ALERTS Act of 2019, by the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia). Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas emitted from household items like stoves, furnaces, fireplaces, and portable generators that can cause sudden illness or death when it is inhaled. The Centers for Disease Control, CDC, reports that each year more than 400 Americans die from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning, and more than 4,000 people are hospitalized. The good news is that carbon monoxide poisoning is easily detectable and preventable through the installation of relatively inexpensive, battery-operated carbon monoxide detectors. But, unlike fire alarms, Federal law doesn't currently require federally assisted housing properties to have carbon monoxide detectors. H.R. 1690 would address that by requiring that properties in Section 8 public housing, Section 202 for elderly folks, and Section 811 for disabled people have at least one carbon monoxide detector per floor installed. This bill builds on the proactive work of HUD Secretary Ben Carson. In April, Secretary Carson issued a notice to all properties in the programs encouraging them to do just that and followed up with a release of $5 million in funding for the installation of these detectors in public housing. I commend Secretary Carson for taking that action and issuing that guidance. I also want to thank Representative Garcia for this legislation, and I want to thank Senator Scott for his work on similar legislation in the United States Senate. This is a bill that will save lives and will help make us all safer. Again, I want to commend Representative Garcia for his great work on this. I would urge its adoption. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia), the sponsor of the legislation and an active member of the Financial Services Committee. Mr. GARCIA of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of a practical bill that will ensure healthy, safe housing. H.R. 1690, the Safe Housing for Families Act, now named the Carbon Monoxide ALERTS Act, or CO ALERTS Act, would require the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in all federally assisted public housing to prevent needless deaths. The legislation I introduced with my colleague, Joe Cunningham of South Carolina, passed out of the Financial Services Committee unanimously, and bipartisan action in the Senate is well underway. Secretary Carson of the Department of Housing and Urban Development testified in support of our efforts to put an end to carbon monoxide deaths in public housing. Allow me to share a story about Gwendolyn and Anthony Fleming, who were residents of the Hickory Hollow residence in Wayne, Michigan. They moved to their community to be somewhere quiet and safe, but the fact that HUD doesn't require carbon monoxide detectors on its facilities put them in grave danger. On a cold February day this year, Ashley, their daughter, pulled up to Hickory Hollow with her three kids. She expected to find her parents waiting for a routine family dinner. When her parents didn't return her calls or answer the door, she knew that something was wrong and called the police. Ashley's mother had died of carbon monoxide poisoning. When the medical examiner arrived, Ashley knew it was time to leave. ``I didn't want to see them bring my mother's body out in a body bag,'' she said. ``And I didn't want my children to see that either.'' Anthony Fleming, Ashley's father, was found unconscious and was taken to a hospital. He never regained consciousness. These deaths--and many others--were preventable. Since 2003, 13 people have died from carbon monoxide poisoning in federally subsidized housing. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control reports that 50,000 individuals per year are sickened by carbon monoxide poisoning, and over 400 die per year. It is unconscionable that the very people our government seeks to provide shelter for are dying in their homes. All it takes is a detector, just like smoke detectors we already require in every building. Secretary Carson said it himself: ``A simple, inexpensive, widely available device can be the difference between life and death. Given the unevenness of State and local law, we intend to make certain that carbon monoxide detectors [[Page H7583]] are required in all our housing programs, just as we require smoke detectors, no matter where our HUD-assisted families live.'' In April, HUD proposed a rule to require carbon monoxide detectors on its housing units. In May, HUD announced $5 million to install detectors. We know, however, that the rulemaking process can drag on for months. Already, almost 25 States already require carbon monoxide monitors in homes, and it was Secretary Carson who suggested that the patchwork of State laws be aligned around the principle of expanding public safety protections. {time} 1415 Testifying before the Financial Services Committee in May, Secretary Carson said that he was 100 percent in favor of resolving this issue and said, ``As quickly as we can get it done, it is going to get done.'' The quickest possible solution is for the House to pass the bill before us today. Secretary Carson's staff at HUD have been engaged in working with Congress to expedite the rule-making process and make sure that protections are put in place before the cold winter months arrive. This bill has already spurred legislative action in the Senate, and the bipartisan efforts moving through the Senate Banking Committee are now aligned in this bill. Let's pass this life-saving legislation and protect those in Federally assisted housing. I would like to thank the staff of the House Financial Services Committee, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and in the Senate those who have worked to ensure that our efforts will effectively prevent needless deaths as quickly as possible. I would also especially like to thank Senator Kamala Harris for working with me to introduce this legislation and to Senators Menendez and Scott for helping us make technical changes to improve the bill. I also want to thank Chair Maxine Waters, ranking members Pat McHenry and Mr. Stivers of Ohio and members of their staff for all their work on this bill, which received unanimous support from the Financial Services Committee. Numerous housing, public health, and home security groups support this legislation. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired. Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 5 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia). Mr. GARCIA of Illinois. The supporters of this bill include the National Association of Realtors, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the American Public Health Association, the National Housing Law Project, the National Housing Trust, the Public Housing Authorities Directors Association, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities, the Latin United Community Housing Association, Justice Innovations, Safe Kids Illinois, and the Security Industry Association. Colleagues, let's seize the rare opportunity to advance straightforward life-saving legislation that has already won bipartisan support in this House. Saving lives in our housing facilities with a simple, inexpensive solution is not a partisan issue. It is exactly what our constituents sent us here to do, work together to find solutions for the American people. I urge you to support H.R. 1690, the CO ALERTS Act. Mr. STIVERS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, again, I rise in support of H.R. 1690, the CO ALERTS Act. I want to thank my colleague from Illinois (Mr. Garcia). I also want to recognize Senator Tim Scott from South Carolina, who was the Senate sponsor of the bill, and we want to help make this into law. I rise in support of this legislation and would urge all my colleagues to support this great legislation from Mr. Garcia and Senator Scott. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. SAN NICOLAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I just want to extend a sincere thanks to Representative Garcia for this life-saving legislation. To be able to introduce something that is actually going to save lives, not just immediately but over the generations that we are going to continue to provide for is something very profound. It is an honor to be able to serve with Representative Garcia. It is an honor to see so much bipartisan support for this legislation, as well as both Houses of our Congress. I humbly ask my colleagues to please join all of us in supporting this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Garcia) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1690, as amended. The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________
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