PROVIDENCE -- The special legislative commission studying fire safety will hear tonight from experts in finance and insurance, who will speak about the financial benefits of fire sprinklers and programs to help pay for them.
The commission is also expected to take testimony from representatives of the hospitality industry, a group that could be affected by changes to the state's fire code.
And the commission, which has been off for two weeks during the traditional legislative break, has invited Rhode Island's congressional delegation to tonight's meeting, said Sen. John A. Celona, D-North Providence, a cochairman of the commission. By yesterday afternoon, members of the federal delegation had not yet confirmed their attendance, Celona said. He is hoping to ask the delegation about efforts to get disaster relief from the federal government for The Station nightclub fire, the Feb. 20 disaster that killed 99 people.
The General Assembly created the 17-member special legislative commission after the fire at the West Warwick nightclub.
The commission is charged with reviewing the state's fire code and recommending changes to make the state safer. Several earlier witnesses have urged the commission to require more places of assembly to have automatic fire sprinklers.
Earl Queenan, the director of finance for the Economic Development Corporation, and Mark Hayward, district director for the Rhode Island office of the U.S. Small Business Administration, will testify tonight about programs that could help businesses pay to install sprinklers, Celona said.
Celona will have several questions for the witnesses: "Are there low-interest loans?" he said. "Are there programs available? Can we make them available?"
The commission is also scheduled to take testimony from Donald L. Schmidt, a consultant and author in the field of emergency management and insurance risk. He will address the insurance benefits a property owner can realize by installing sprinklers, Celona said.
The commission was not sure yesterday who would represent the hospitality industry at the hearing, said Greg Pare, a spokesman for Senate leadership who has been working with the special commission.
