PRESS RELEASE

Rep. Fossella, R-N.Y. to Speak at NBFAA Breakfast
College Life Safety and Fire Protection Act Author
to Address Members during Annual Conference

Irving, Texas, Sept. 26, 2006 – Congressman Vito Fossella (R-NY), author of the College Life Safety and Fire Protection Act (H.R. 4460) will be the special guest speaker at the National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA) breakfast on Monday, Oct. 23 at the Sheraton Suites on the Hudson in Weehawken, N.J.

At the annual “Breakfast With” event, NBFAA members will hear how the association and the Chartered States Associations (CSA) worked with Representative Fossella to achieve a major legislative victory in securing passage of H.R. 4460 as an amendment to a larger higher education bill.

NBFAA's legislative team worked with Rep. Fossella’s office to secure the support of Chairman Howard McKeon (R-CA), of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, to include a scaled down version of H.R. 4460 into the larger bill, H.R. 609, The Higher Education Act. The Education and the Workforce Committee leadership permitted the NBFAA-endorsed grant program to be included as an amendment in this $40 million program of grants administered by the U.S. Department of Education.

"We know fire detectors and sprinklers save lives, but in too many cases college dorms do not offer students the most comprehensive protection," Fossella said. "Parents already have enough to worry about without having to fear for the safety of their children in the event of a fire. Statistics show that sprinklers and smoke detectors reduce a person's risk of dying in a fire by 82 percent compared to those who have neither kind of protection. This amendment will save the lives of countless students by helping colleges install fire prevention equipment. My hope is that this equipment will never be needed, but should a fire break out, we need to ensure that students have the best chance of getting out safe and alive."

“This is a great chance for our members to meet the Congressman in person and thank him for his support of this important legislation which will help save lives. The bill originally introduced by Rep. Fossella is one of the first bills introduced in Congress that promotes the installation of fire detection equipment. We have been working hard this year to promote our belief that true fire safety involves both detection and suppression,” said George Gunning, NBFAA president. “Our campaign slogan — Fire Detection + Suppression = Fire Safety — has been taken up to Capital Hill and we are seeing support for our efforts.”

NBFAA’s Fall Conference and CSA Symposium begins at the Sheraton Suites in Weehawken with registration on Sunday starting at 10:30 a.m., followed by the symposium from 2 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. A member reception will follow.

In addition to the CSA Symposium and Breakfast With Congressman Fossella, other conference highlights include the association’s annual Leadership Awards Luncheon, the semi-annual face-to-face Board of Directors meeting and committee meetings which give members the opportunity to interact with other experts in the industry.

Meetings in Weehawken will be followed by events and educational opportunities at the annual ISC East event at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City. NBFAA members who register for the association’s conference will receive free registration to ISC East and a 20 percent discount to the educational courses, many of which are accredited by NBFAA’s National Training School.

NBFAA members are eligible to receive hotel and airfare discounts made available to them through NBFAA. The conference ends on Wednesday, Oct. 25 at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City, N.Y. To learn more about NBFAA’s conference, or to register go to www.alarm.org.

About NBFAA

NBFAA, a non-profit 501(c) 6 trade association, is the nation's oldest and largest organization dedicated to representing, promoting, and supporting the electronic life safety, security, and systems industry. Member companies specialize in a wide spectrum of services to commercial and residential consumers, including security and fire alarms, video surveillance, access control and monitoring. In cooperation with a federation of state associations, NBFAA provides government advocacy and delivers timely information, professional development tools, products and services that members use to grow and prosper their businesses. The NBFAA may be reached at (888) 447-1689 or on the Web at www.alarm.org.

###