Sens. Ossoff, Rev. Warnock Delivering Nearly $500 Million to Improve Water Infrastructure Damaged by Hurricane Helene

Sens. Ossoff, Rev. Warnock Delivering Nearly $500 Million to Improve Water Infrastructure Damaged by Hurricane Helene September 10, 2026 Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Reverend Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff today announced they are delivering nearly $500 million in Federal funding to upgrade water infrastructure impacted by Hurricane Helene. Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock are delivering nearly $500 million to upgrade water infrastructure damaged during Hurricane Helene, including nearly $360 million for drinking water upgrades and nearly $125 million for wastewater upgrades. The Federal grants come through the Federal bipartisan disaster funding package that Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock helped passed in December 2024. “Bringing Republicans and Democrats together, we are delivering these resources to help improve Georgia’s water infrastructure after Hurricane Helene,” Sen. Ossoff said. “Hurricane Helene was a wake-up call: our state’s water infrastructure is not ready to handle extreme weather. That’s why I’m proud to work alongside Sen. Ossoff to unlock federal relief funding to help prevent dangerous flooding and keep clean drinking water flowing when the next storm hits,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. The Federal funding will be delivered to the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA), who will then distribute the Federal funds to local projects. According to the State and GEFA , the Federal funding is distributed across five funding categories: HRF (Helene Resilience Funding) for wastewater: $124.9 million HRF (Helene Resilience Funding) for decentralized wastewater (septic systems): $8.96 million HRF (Helene Resilience Funding) for drinking water: $359.5 million Emergency wastewater: $3.3 million Emergency drinking water: $2.75 million Sen. Ossoff continues working to upgrade infrastructure throughout the State of Georgia. In June, Sen. Ossoff delivered over $37 million through the bipartisan infrastructure law to remove lead pipes and conduct essential drinking water infrastructure upgrades across Georgia through the Lead Service Line Replacement Program. In May, Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock and Reps. Williams and McBath brought Republicans and Democrats in Congress together to deliver $1,092,000 in Federal funding for key stormwater infrastructure upgrades along Norman Berry Drive in East Point, including a storm water main replacement and headwall restoration to improve stormwater flows and prevent sink holes in the area. In April, Sen. Ossoff brought Republicans and Democrats in Congress together to deliver $954,000 in Federal funding to help the City of Hampton implement critical stormwater infrastructure improvements and reduce flooding along Woolsey Road. Also in April, Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Warnock and Rep. McBath brought Republicans and Democrats together to deliver $1,092,000 in Federal funding to help improve South Fulton’s stormwater infrastructure, including the replacement of old stormwater pipes and measures to mitigate the effect of flooding near homes. In March, Sens. Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock and Reps. Williams and McBath brought Republicans and Democrats in Congress together to deliver over $2.1 million in Federal funding to help the City of College Park upgrade its drinking water infrastructure. In December, Sen. Ossoff cosponsored the bipartisan Rural Water System Disaster Preparedness and Assistance Act to improve water infrastructure systems across rural Georgia. # # # Prev Previous Sen. Ossoff Working Across the Aisle to Lower Fertilizer Costs for Georgia Farmers