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SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1350 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1505
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Sal N. DiDomenico
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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act relative to fire safety education in schools and colleges.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Sal N. DiDomenicoMiddlesex and SuffolkMichael J. BarrettThird Middlesex1/27/2023Jacob R. OliveiraHampden, Hampshire and Worcester2/9/2023 1 of 2
SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1350 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1505
By Mr. DiDomenico, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1505) of Sal N. DiDomenico,
Michael J. Barrett and Jacob R. Oliveira for legislation relative to fire safety education in schools
and colleges. Public Safety and Homeland Security.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 1570 OF 2021-2022.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
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An Act relative to fire safety education in schools and colleges.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Chapter 15A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official
2Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following section:- “Section 46. Establishment of a fire
3safety curriculum. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following term shall, unless the
4context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meaning:- “Institute of higher education”,
5all postsecondary institutions including (i) the system of public institutions of higher education,
6established in section 5; (ii) private occupational schools, as defined in section 263 of chapter
7112; and (iii) private colleges, universities and other institutions of higher learning.
8 (b) All institutes of higher education shall require students to complete a comprehensive
9fire safety curriculum from an expert source. The curriculum shall include instruction on fire
10safety in a variety of scenarios, such as: fire prevention, fires in homes, in professional settings, 2 of 2
11in vehicles, wild and brush fires, fires while cooking, while camping, electrical fires, heating
12fires, smoking fires, solid, liquid and gas fires, smoldering fires, fast-burning fires, smoke
13inhalation, carbon monoxide poisoning, and leaving a fire scene, and any other matter the
14institution deems essential to the curriculum. Students shall complete an examination to test
15student proficiency.
16 SECTION 2. Chapter 71 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition,
17is hereby amended by adding the following section:- “Section 98. Establishment of a fire safety
18curriculum. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following term shall, unless the context
19clearly requires otherwise, have the following meaning:- “School”, every public or private
20elementary and secondary school in the commonwealth; provided, however, that the term school
21shall not include colleges and universities.
22 (b) All schools shall require students to complete a comprehensive fire safety curriculum
23by the end of the 10th grade from an expert source. The curriculum shall include instruction on
24fire safety in a variety of scenarios, such as: fire prevention, fires in homes, in professional
25settings, in vehicles, wild and brush fires, fires while cooking, while camping, electrical fires,
26heating fires, smoking fires, solid, liquid and gas fires, smoldering fires, fast-burning fires,
27smoke inhalation, carbon monoxide poisoning, and leaving a fire scene, and any other matter the
28institution deems essential to the curriculum. Students shall complete an examination to test
29student proficiency.