SB17: SB17 "Ricky and Alyssa's Law"; enact

Georgia currently has no statewide requirement that public schools use a mobile panic alert system to connect with local police, fire, and other emergency responders during a security emergency. This bill, called Ricky and Alyssa's Law, changes that. By July 1, 2026, every public school must implement a system known as 'Alyssa's Alert' that links different emergency technologies together, transmits 911 calls and mobile activations through Next Generation 9-1-1 systems, and integrates with new school mapping data. The bill also requires schools to procure detailed school mapping data, including floor plans, aerial imagery, labeled access points, utility locations, and nearby areas like parking lots and athletic fields. This data must be verified yearly, kept in formats usable by public safety agencies without extra cost, and developed in coordination with local law enforcement. The Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency can set rules for the data, and schools, school systems, and their employees get civil liability immunity for creating and using it, unless an employee acts with gross negligence or bad faith. The law would take effect July 1, 2025.

• Requires all Georgia public schools to install by July 1, 2026 a mobile panic alert system called 'Alyssa's Alert' that connects different emergency technologies for real-time coordination among first responders.
• Requires the alert system to integrate with Next Generation 9-1-1 technology so 911 calls and mobile activations transmit directly to local public safety answering points.
• Exempts schools from adding new capabilities if they already have a functioning system meeting the requirements as of July 1, 2026.
• Requires public schools to procure detailed school mapping data, including floor plans, labeled access points, utility and safety equipment locations, and nearby areas, verified annually.
• Authorizes the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to write rules covering data standards, encryption, and secure transmission of school mapping data to first responders.
• Grants civil liability immunity to school boards, school systems, local governments, and their employees for creating and using the mapping data, unless an employee acted with gross negligence or bad faith.

Public school students, staff, and administrators; local boards of education and school systems; local law enforcement, fire departments, and 911 dispatch centers; and the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, which gains rulemaking authority over the new school mapping data requirements.

If enacted, schools would have a direct, real-time link to police and fire agencies during emergencies, and responders would have access to detailed building maps rather than relying on outdated or inconsistent information, potentially changing how quickly help arrives during a school security incident.

• Section 1 names the law 'Ricky and Alyssa's Law.'
• Section 2 adds Code Section 20-2-591 requiring schools to implement the 'Alyssa's Alert' mobile panic system by July 1, 2026, integrated with Next Generation 9-1-1 and school mapping data, with an exception for schools that already meet the standard.
• Section 3 adds a definition of 'school mapping data' to O.C.G.A. § 38-3-151 as building information, floor plans, and aerial imagery of any public school.
• Section 4 adds Code Section 38-3-154 detailing mapping data requirements, including annual in-person verification, labeling of access points and safety equipment, and collaboration with local law enforcement before procurement.
• Section 4 also exempts the mapping data from public disclosure under Georgia's open records law (O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72) and grants civil liability immunity to school entities and employees except in cases of gross negligence or bad faith.
• Section 5 sets the effective date as July 1, 2025.

1. 2026-03-31Senate Agreed House Amend or Sub As Amended (Senate)
2. 2025-04-02House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
3. 2025-04-02House Third Readers (House)
4. 2025-03-18House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
5. 2025-03-11House Second Readers (House)
6. 2025-03-10House First Readers (House)
7. 2025-03-06Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
8. 2025-03-06Senate Third Read (Senate)

• Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-031)Primary sponsor
• Clint Dixon (R, SD-045)
• Frank Ginn (R, SD-047)
• Steve Gooch (R, SD-051)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• Matt Brass (R, SD-006)
• Chuck Hufstetler (R, SD-052)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)
• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)
• John Kennedy (R, SD-018)
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)
• Brian Strickland (R, SD-042)
• Billy Hickman (R, SD-004)
• Mike Hodges (R, SD-003)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Larry Walker (R, SD-020)
• Marty Harbin (R, SD-016)
• Greg Dolezal (R, SD-027)
• Drew Echols (R, SD-049)
• Timothy Bearden (R, SD-030)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Sonya Halpern (D, SD-039)
• Jason Esteves (D, SD-035)
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Ben Watson (R, SD-001)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)
• Sam Watson (R, SD-011)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)
• Holt Persinger (R, HD-119)

1. PassedSenate voteMarch 6, 2025

   55 yea, 0 nay (0 not voting, 1 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #163

2. PassedHouse voteApril 2, 2025

   171 yea, 0 nay (1 not voting, 8 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #380

3. PassedSenate voteMarch 31, 2026

   32 yea, 17 nay (2 not voting, 3 absent)

   Agree To House Substitute As Amended: Senate Vote #924

• school safety
• panic alert systems
• 911 emergency response
• school mapping data
• first responders