[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8488-8489]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          ARSON AWARENESS WEEK

 Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, I rise today to remind the Senate 
and the American Public that this is Arson Awareness Week. It is that 
time once a year that we stop to assess how arson affects our lives. 
Each year hundreds of Americans die because of the arsonist's match. 
Mr. President, I am outraged at this and the countless firefighters who 
are killed every year attempting to extinguish intentionally set fires. 
Arsonists should be swiftly brought to justice, especially when 
firefighters lives are put on the line.
  When a fire is intentionally set in the center of a retail city 
district the damaged property becomes blight on the entire community. 
Like cancer, arson degrades the whole area. Jobs are lost, tax bases 
are depleted and, most importantly, people are often killed.
  As a member of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus, I have long 
been associated with the war against arson.

[[Page 8489]]

I have consistently supported stricter penalties for convicted 
arsonists. I have supported the efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, 
Tobacco, and Firearms that assist our fine state and local fire 
investigators. I have also supported the United States Fire 
Administration which provides valuable research grants and public 
education efforts geared toward controlling arson.
  Mr. President I remind all Americans that arson is still a serious 
problem, one we must continually work together to solve.

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