QUINCY, MA — The U.S. Congress has approved legislation designed to accelerate a federal effort to end homelessness among veterans and ensure safe living conditions in group housing projects. The legislation, the “Heather French Homeless Veterans Assistance Act,” will require the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA’s) Life Safety Code® to be met as a condition for securing grants for transitional housing assistance authorized by the legislation.

The Life Safety Code is the only code referenced in the bill, which provides minimum building design, construction, operation, and maintenance requirements necessary to protect occupants from danger caused by fire, including smoke, fumes, or panic.