Lulu’s Law

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1003, the Senate companion to H.R. 2076, Lulu's Law, named after Lulu Gribbin of Alabama, who was attacked by a shark in 2024.

It was not long ago that Americans received emergency alerts exclusively over broadcast television and radio channels. In the last 10 to 15 years, our emergency alerting capabilities have improved significantly as a direct byproduct of innovation and breakthroughs in wireless technology.

Prior to 2012, Americans needed to practically seek out emergency warnings via broadcast programming to receive alert information being distributed for any number of important situations. That is why the creation of the Wireless Emergency Alert, or WEA, system in 2012 marked a significant leap forward in our ability to disseminate warning and alert messages to the public.

All across the Nation, natural disasters like tornadoes, wildfires, and flash floods show up with little or no warning. One tragedy after another has demonstrated that being able to push emergency warning information out directly to cell phones in the danger zone is one of the most powerful tools that we have to save lives.

The WEA system allows alerting authorities at nearly every level of government the ability to reach Americans where they are. Cell phones are ubiquitous today, and the WEA system will only continue to be more effective as wireless providers and alerting authorities take steps to improve geotargeting and location accuracy.

These tools can also be utilized to protect beachgoers from threats to life and safety posed by sharks.

This is especially important for me as I represent the Jersey Shore towns that attract millions of visitors and billions in economic activity during the summer months. As we approach the Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start to New Jersey's beach season, this reminds us of the importance of being vigilant in and near the water while at the beach. It is particularly timely because, just yesterday in my district, a great white shark appeared off the coast of Asbury Park. We know that dangerous circumstances posed by sharks or rip currents leave even the most prepared swimmers in harm's way.

This bill directs the Federal Communications Commission to issue an order that drives home the point that potential shark attacks are permissible uses of the WEA system. This is important because local authorities can and should use every tool at their disposal to keep the public informed of developments with clear actionable instructions for how to respond safely.

I strongly support the passage of S. 1003, and I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, as I say, I did not realize that she was up in the gallery. I appreciate all the help that she has done in moving this legislation because it is important. As I mentioned, this weekend is Memorial Day weekend. We just had a huge shark actually appear off the coast of Asbury Park, one of our premier beach destinations in my district.

Mr. Speaker, I can't stress enough the importance of this bill, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on a bipartisan basis. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1003) to require the Federal Communications Commission to issue an order providing that a shark attack is an event for which a wireless emergency alert may be transmitted, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the Record on the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 1003, Lulu's Law. This legislation is named after a courageous young woman from Mountain Brook, Alabama, Lulu Gribbin, who suffered serious injuries in a shark attack nearly 2 years ago, losing her left hand and part of her right leg.

She was rushed to the hospital suffering from severe loss of blood, which raised grave concerns as to whether or not Lulu would survive.

When she finally woke up in the hospital and saw her family, the first words she spoke were, ``I made it.'' What makes this even more heartbreaking is that a shark attack, possibly the same shark, occurred just a mile or two away only 90 minutes prior. Had an alert gone out warning of a shark attack nearby, these attacks might have been avoided because the victim's friends and family would have received notice prompting them to pull their loved ones from the water. But no such warning was sent.

Lulu's Law provides a commonsense solution. State and local authorities can use wireless emergency alerts to notify the public when a shark attack has occurred or when dangerous conditions are present along the shoreline.

Lulu has inspired many in Alabama and across the entire Nation by her response to her attack. She has turned a tragic experience into an effort to help others by advocating for this bill and by founding the Lulu Strong Foundation to assist other amputees. I commend her for her resilience and determination to use her experience to help others overcome life-impacting injuries.

While we cannot undo what happened to Lulu, we can honor her strength and leadership by taking steps to better protect beachgoers and prevent another shark attack from happening in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation to help keep American beachgoers safe, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would point out that Lulu and her family are in the gallery observing the debate and will be here for the vote.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his support. This is another example of how in a bipartisan manner we can do good.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote favorably for S. 1003, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Today, we are considering a series of bipartisan and, one hopes, noncontroversial bills to help ensure that the U.S. Code is up-to-date and accessible to all American citizens. We do this at least once every Congress. This is the first time we are doing it in the 119th Congress, I believe, and I am very pleased to support this package.

Currently consisting of 54 different titles, the U.S. Code is a compilation of the vast array of Federal laws organized by coherent subject matter areas. As new laws are passed, they get assimilated into the code, which is a painstaking process undertaken by the dedicated professionals who work in the Office of the Law Revision Counsel.

As part of the office's efforts to maintain the code, they work to make it more efficient and easier to navigate and understand. This includes correcting technical errors, removing ambiguities, updating statutory cross-references, and repealing provisions that have become obsolete.

The bills we are considering today are a result of this exhaustive process. It is important to note that these bills make no change to the substantive meaning or effect of any existing laws. They are purely technical in nature and will help ensure that the code is authoritative, accurate, and accessible.

I thank Chairman Jordan for continuing our Judiciary Committee's long tradition of considering these bills in a bipartisan way. I thank the sponsors of each bill for bringing them forward today.

The first of them is H.R. 4499, which updates cross-references and corrects related technical errors throughout the code to accommodate previous reclassification efforts in title 34.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support the legislation, and I thank my distinguished colleague for his leadership. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I will not belabor the point. I like this legislation, and I am voting for it. I hope everybody does. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4499) to make technical amendments to update statutory references to provisions reclassified to title 34, United States Code, and to correct related technical errors, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 4499.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4499, a bill that makes important technical corrections to our Federal statutes and ensures that references in the United States Code remain accurate.

The Office of the Law Revision Counsel, or OLRC, is responsible for preparing and publishing the United States Code, which organizes the Federal laws enacted by Congress. In 2017, the OLRC moved various laws to title 34 of the United States Code, which pertains to crime control and law enforcement. This was done to ensure that our Nation's laws are properly organized.

H.R. 4499 updates references to these laws throughout the titles of the code affected by their move to title 34. While these may be technical changes, they are important for maintaining an accurate and accessible United States Code. I am grateful that Congress is taking action through my bill, as well as the other legislation being considered by the House today, to ensure that our laws accurately reflect the current code.

I thank the Office of the Law Revision Counsel for all the work it does, as well as those on the Judiciary Committee who helped address these much-needed changes. I urge all my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I support this bill. I am very grateful for the bipartisan support, and I urge everyone to support H.R. 4499. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.