Lulu's Law: allowing federal emergency alerts for shark attacks
Perhaps the alerts will read: “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”
Context and what the bill does
Mountain Brook, Alabama teenager Lulu Gribbin was attacked by a shark in June 2024, while swimming off the coast of Rosemary Beach, Florida. Gribbin survived, but lost her left hand and part of her right leg.
About an hour and a half earlier, but only a few miles away, another person was attacked by a shark and suffered severe injuries. If the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) had provided an emergency alert – as they do for events like tornadoes, hurricanes, and tsunamis – perhaps Gribbin’s attack could have been avoided.
So an Alabama representative and senator from Gribbin’s home state introduced Lulu’s Law, allowing exactly that. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL6) introduced the House version in March 2025, then Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) introduced the Senate version the next day.
To be clear: the alerts would be geographically targeted. So even though this is now poised to become a national law, it’s not like all 300+ million people across the U.S.A. would all be alerted if there was a shark attack in one specific region.
What supporters say
Supporters argue the legislation would save lives.
“Lulu’s tremendous strength, faith, and bravery throughout her healing journey has inspired many,” Rep. Palmer said in a press release. “By passing Lulu’s Law, we would be creating a practical solution to prevent future attacks from occurring and keeping beachgoers safe.”
“Lulu’s Law would empower authorities to quickly and accurately put information in the hands of beachgoers to help keep them out of harm’s way,” Sen. Britt said in a separate press release. “This is a commonsense measure aimed at keeping families safe – a cause that I know people can rally around, just like her local community, our great state, and the entire nation have rallied around Lulu.”
What happens next
Rep. Palmer and Sen. Britt previously introduced the legislation in the House and the Senate in 2024, during the prior Congress, but it never received a committee vote.
This time around, momentum picked up. The Senate passed it in July 2025 by unanimous consent. In addition to its Republican lead sponsor, the Senate version attracted nine bipartisan cosponsors: five Republicans and four Democrats.
About 10 months later, in May 2026, the House passed it by a 401 to 6 vote. All six opponents were Republicans considered to be on the right wing of the party:
As of this writing, the bill has been sent to President Donald Trump, who seems likely to sign it into law. (At least he hasn’t publicly expressed opposition.)
Fun fact: Lulu Gribbin herself was at the U.S. Capitol Building in-person to watch her namesake law pass.
Gribbin and her family started the Lulu Strong Foundation, raising money for prosthetics for amputees.