The Campaign to Pass the
Moakley Bill, a coalition of consumer, fire protection and public health organizations
announced a revitalized effort to pass a fire prevention bill that would save
dozens of lives and millions of dollars in property damage each year in the
Commonwealth.
The Massachusetts Public
Interest Research Group (MASSPIRG), National Fire Protection Association (NFPA),
the Massachusetts Medical Society, and other groups are calling on the legislature
to pass An Act to Prevent Loss of Life Due to Fires Caused by Cigarettes, otherwise
known as the Moakley Bill after the late Congressman Joseph Moakley who was
a champion of the issue. The bill was jointly filed by Representative Rachel
Kaprielian (D-Watertown) and Senator Stephen Brewer (D-Barre). The fire prevention
bill would establish regulations by the Department of Public Health to make
it harder for cigarettes to set fire to objects they may touch.
"Cigarettes are the
number one cause of fatal fires in the home, both in Massachusetts and throughout
the U.S, for as long as NFPA has been studying this issue," said James
M. Shannon, National Fire Protection Association president. "We have aggressively
supported this legislation from the start when we were part of the studies that
showed this technology works, and we will continue to support it until it is
law, first in Massachusetts, and eventually at the federal level."
Every year in the Bay State,
cigarette caused blazes on average kill 18 people, injure 80 civilians and 67
firefighters, and destroy almost $8 million in property according to state Fire
Marshal Stephen Coan's office. The technology to make cigarettes that self-extinguish
when not being actively smoked has been in existence since the 1980s, and is
currently used in all cigarettes sold in the state of New York.
"This common sense
solution that will save lives is long overdue," said state Representative
Rachel Kaprielian (D-Watertown). "Now that fire safe cigarette technology
is working in New York, there should be no delay in making it happen here in
Massachusetts."
In addition to the civilian
toll of lost lives and damaged health and property, cigarette fires also cause
needless expense and injury to Bay State firefighters. In 2002 alone, 61 firefighters
were injured and 1,648 fire department responses were made because of cigarette-caused
fires
"Firefighters put
their own lives at risk to save others," said state Senator Stephen Brewer
(D-Barre). "The fire safe cigarette technology will protect fireman by
decreasing the amount of situations where they are placed in danger."
Using banded paper that
act like 'speed-bumps' to slow down a cigarette's burn, reduced-ignition-strength
cigarettes are less likely to smolder and burn if dropped onto an upholstered
chair or mattress.
"Just as cars are required
to have seatbelts and airbags, and as toy parts must not be made small enough
for young children to swallow, so too should cigarettes be held to basic fire
safety standards," said Eric Bourassa with MASSPIRG.
The coalitions' efforts were boosted today (Monday, January 24th) with the release
of a study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health that showed a significant
difference in the flammability between cigarettes with the self-extinguishing
technology sold in New York and cigarettes without the fire prevention technology
sold in Massachusetts. In tests of five major brands, Harvard researchers found
the self-extinguishing cigarettes sold in New York burned all the way to the
end about 10 percent of the time, while the conventional cigarettes sold in
Massachusetts burned to the end about 99.8 percent of the time.
The researchers also found tobacco tax revenue received after New York began
selling the self-extinguishing cigarettes was only slightly lower than before
the law took effect, suggesting the modified brands ''appeared to have no effect
on sales of cigarettes in New York, indicating consumer acceptance." Public
safety advocates are calling on Beacon Hill lawmakers to quickly pass a non-controversial
bill that will save lives and cost the state no money.
"New York state has already proven that the new cigarette technology works
and the new cigarettes are affordable and acceptable to smokers, which means
there is no significant impact on retailers," said Bourassa. "The
only major change is more safety."
Other Groups That Support the bill include
Institute for Health and
Recovery, the Massachusetts Consumers Coalition, the Massachusetts Prevention
Center of Greater Western Mass, Phoenix Society of Burn Survivors, Professional
Firefighters Association of Massachusetts.
