Taxpayer dollars at work: Sens. Ossoff and Warnock announce fire dept. upgrades, online safety bill

Note: In this recurring digital news series, GPB follows your federal tax dollars back to the state of Georgia each week. U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock are not up for reelection this year — the former will be eligible to run again in 2026 and the latter in 2028.

For the week ending Aug. 16, the senators announced federal funding for airport infrastructure, fire safety upgrades and affordable housing and led a senate human rights subcommittee hearing about abuse of incarcerated pregnant women.

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U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff visits Georgia bases

On Aug. 13, Ossoff brought Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David W. Allvin to Georgia. Ossoff, along with Allvin and Lt. Gen. John Healy, commander of the Air Force Reserve, met with senior leadership and service members at Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins; Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta; and Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta, as part of the senator's work to promote national security interests.

Georgia airport infrastructure

An Aug. 13 announcement touted continued aviation grants.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) signed into law by President Biden in November 2021 contains funding to support airports across Georgia.

"In addition to the funding grants for Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, the Columbus and Athens Airports will each receive over $800,000 to acquire an aircraft rescue and fire fighting vehicle to support operations and promote safety, and the Statesboro-Bulloch County Airport will receive over $800,000 for hangar construction," according to a press release from Warnock's office.

"The combined awards for Georgia total more than $38 million and will support control tower improvements, terminal and taxiway infrastructure upgrades, safety enhancements, and more," the statement read.

This graphic shows which Georgia airports have projects related to the funding:

Caption

Sen. Warnock's office provided this graphic listing airport projects in Georgia funded by aviation grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).

Credit: U.S. Senate

Senate Committee on Human Rights

On Aug. 14, Ossoff, chairman of the U.S. Senate Human Rights Subcommittee, heard additional testimony of the abuse of pregnant women in Georgia state prisons and jails as part of his subcommittee’s ongoing inquiry, including from a Georgia woman who testified that she was forced to give birth into her underwear at Clayton County Jail, despite testifying that she pleaded for months for medical assistance.

GPB reported on the hearing, in which Tiana Hill was pregnant while held in the Clayton County Jail for seven months, finally giving birth.

She testified that guards at the facility denied she was pregnant, and she received no prenatal care. She told the committee she gave birth in the infirmary on a metal bed with no privacy from other inmates.

“The subcommittee sustains its focus on the humanitarian crisis behind bars in the State of Georgia and the United States because this is, in my view, the most extreme civil rights problem happening in the United States today, and only by shedding light on it, calling attention to it, demanding and enacting change will it change,” Ossoff said in his closing statement.

Fire safety upgrades

On Aug. 15, Ossoff and Warnock announced new federal resources to strengthen local fire departments in Georgia.

FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Program and Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) Program is providing safety upgrades to the follow fire service counties and cities: Fannin, Emanuel, Atkinson, Union, Grady, Gilmer counties; Statesboro, Roswell, Cleveland, Sparta; the Sandy Cross Volunteer Fire Department will receive federal funding through the AFG Operations and Safety program, which provides funding for professional training, wellness and fitness programs, equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE), or modifications to facilities.

Lamar, Treutlen, Emanuel, Polk, and Haralson counties will receive federal funding through the AFG Vehicle Acquisition program, which provides funding to purchase new vehicles.

“Firefighters across Georgia put their lives on the line to keep families safe,” Ossoff said in a press release. “Senator Warnock and I will never stop championing Georgia’s heroic fire departments, and these resources will help them respond to emergencies that threaten lives and property.”

Online Safety

On Aug. 16, Ossoff's office announced that the U.S. Senate recently passed the Kids Online Safety and Privacy Act. According to a press release, the bill "would also require online platforms to activate the most protective settings for kids by default, providing minors with options to protect their information, disable addictive product features, and opt-out of personalized algorithmic recommendations."

The bipartisan bill now goes to the U.S. House.

“It’s essential that we protect children from online predators and protect their privacy from advertisers and social media companies,” Sen. Ossoff said in the statement. “We brought senators from both parties together to pass our bipartisan bill that will keep kids safe and protect their privacy.”