Schatz Legislation To Improve Emergency Alert System Included In Must-Pass Bipartisan Deal
ALERT Act Will Give Federal Government Primary Responsibility Of Notifying the Public Of A Missile Threat; Deal Expected To Easily Pass Congress And Be Signed Into Law
WASHINGTON – Bipartisan congressional negotiators released details of the annual must-pass National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which includes the Authenticating Local Emergencies and Real Threats (ALERT) Act, legislation authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i). The ALERT Act, which was introduced following the false emergency alert that went out across Hawai‘i in January 2018, will improve the emergency alert system and give the federal government the primary responsibility of alerting the public of a missile threat.
“These alerts save lives, so we have to get it right,” said Senator Schatz. “The federal government is always the first to know of a missile threat and they should be responsible for telling the rest of us.”
State and local governments have been largely responsible for alerting the public of threats from natural disasters and severe weather. With various government agencies issuing alerts, the system has relied on an inconsistent patchwork of technologies and procedures established by each agency. The false alarm in Hawai‘i highlighted some of the weaknesses in the state’s emergency alert system, which had a poorly designed user interface and did not have a sufficient verification system or computer redundancies to help prevent mistakes. The incident made clear the need for federal standards in the system and called into question the state’s responsibility to issue a missile alert.
Schatz’s legislation will strengthen the way state and local governments use the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, the FEMA platform used by emergency management professionals across the country to issue warnings.
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