NEWS: U.S. Senate Passes Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Bill to Strengthen Emergency Alerts; Heads to President’s Desk to Become Law

NEWS: U.S. Senate Passes Sen. Ossoff’s Bipartisan Bill to Strengthen Emergency Alerts; Heads to President’s Desk to Become Law October 1, 2026 Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff’s bipartisan bill to strengthen emergency alerts during natural disasters has passed the Senate. Last night, the U.S. Senate passed Sens. Ossoff and John Cornyn (R-TX)’s bipartisan Mystic Alerts Act to improve distribution of wireless emergency alerts (WEA). The Senate unanimously passed H.R. 7022, the House version of their bill. The bill previously passed the U.S. House of Representatives and now heads to the President’s desk to become law. In August, Sens. Ossoff and Cornyn introduced the bipartisan bill to enable emergency alerts to be delivered via satellite communications technologies when other systems fail during emergencies, including natural disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, and floods. The bipartisan bill comes after last year’s devastating flood in Central Texas that killed over 100 people, where it was later reported residents did not receive emergency alerts after cellular infrastructure was damaged. “When storms, disasters, or threats to public safety threaten our state, crisis management is key. Our bipartisan bill will help upgrade America’s emergency alert systems to keep Georgia families safe and informed,” Sen. Ossoff said. “More than 130 people were tragically killed in the July 4th floods that ravaged Central Texas last year, many of whom did not receive emergency alerts due to compromised cellular networks that were knocked out by the storm,” said Sen. Cornyn. “This bill will address this technology shortfall and honor the memory of those lost by ensuring Texans and all Americans can receive wireless emergency alerts on their mobile devices via satellite even when disaster strikes, and I look forward to President Trump signing it into law soon.” Sen. Ossoff continues working to strengthen public safety. This year, Sen. Ossoff brought Republicans and Democrats together to deliver $175,000 in Federal funding to help upgrade the Spalding County Sheriff Office’s helicopter rescue infrastructure after the County experienced difficulties in emergency response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock brought Republicans and Democrats together to help establish a central law enforcement command center in Norcross. Also, this year, Sen. Ossoff brought Republicans and Democrats together to deliver $1,031,000 in Federal funding to help the Conyers Police Department strengthen emergency response efforts by purchasing new portable radios and a Mobile Command Vehicle. In 2023, Sen. Ossoff delivered new resources through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to construct a new hurricane and tornado safe room on Tybee Island, providing a safe area for emergency personnel who must remain on the Island during hurricanes and other disaster situations. Click here to read the Mystic Alerts Act . # # # Prev Previous 11Alive: “Gwinnett woman highlights struggles with health insurance authorization”