Fixing Gaps in Hurricane Preparedness Act

This bill tells NOAA, working with the National Science Foundation, to study how people receive, understand, and act on hurricane forecasts and warnings, so alerts can be clearer and more useful. The work includes a full review of what we already know, finding gaps, and learning how warnings are used by emergency managers and local governments. It looks at how past storm experience, who shares the warning, and the type of alert (watch vs. warning) shape choices. It also focuses on differences by age, disability, language, and where people live (rural, suburban, urban). The bill also asks NOAA to measure the value of giving people more lead time and to use what they learn to improve hurricane information and services.

Within 180 days, NOAA must start a pilot study in hurricane‑prone areas using surveys, focus groups, and interviews. It will check things like whether people have disaster supplies, how they decide to evacuate, which sources they trust, whether warnings are available in their first language, and what might keep them from leaving. The study’s method must be posted on NOAA’s website.

• Who is affected: People in hurricane‑prone communities, especially older adults, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups; emergency managers and local governments; NOAA and NSF.
• What changes: NOAA will review existing knowledge, collect new data, study lead‑time benefits, run cost‑benefit and risk assessments (including for areas with many older residents), set data‑handling policies, and fold the findings into better hurricane products and services.
• When: Pilot study to begin within 180 days, with methods made public online.