October 19–25, 2026
A quiet week for passed legislation with little direct local impact, but one federal law now gives clergy a path back into Social Security.
For religious workers. If you're an ordained minister, nun, or Christian Science practitioner who previously opted out of Social Security and Medicare, a new federal law (HR 227) is now on the books that gives you a two-year window to reverse that decision. Once you opt back in, you'd pay self-employment taxes on your ministerial income going forward and become eligible for retirement and Medicare benefits down the road. This one is now law.
The other two federal bills that cleared this week deal with matters well outside Milwaukee County: one directs the sale of a federal land claim on eight acres in Sacramento, California, and the other is specific to San Francisco Bay restoration.
Emergency alerts. One item worth a quick note: a new federal law (HR 7022), now signed, lets wireless carriers send emergency alerts (severe weather, missing persons, public safety threats) through satellite networks in addition to regular cell towers. Your carrier has to opt in, and you'd have the option to turn satellite delivery off. In practice, this may not change much for most Milwaukee residents who already get alerts reliably over cellular, but it could help in areas where cell coverage is spotty. It is now law.
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Coming up next week:
San Francisco Bay cleanup funding. HR 1382, which would expand federal money for Bay Area environmental restoration and open that funding to private businesses and nonprofits, has cleared committee and is headed toward a full House floor vote. No firm date is set. This bill deals with a specific regional waterway and does not affect Milwaukee County.
See what's up for a vote now · Find your representatives