WASHINGTON, D.C. (WKZO AM/FM) — U.S. Representative Fred Upton of St. Joseph on Thursday, July 14, welcomed House approval of the Active Shooter Alert Act.
The Republican lawmaker from Michigan sponsored the legislation introduced by himself and Democratic U.S. Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island, to create a program similar to the AMBER Alert system for law enforcement to alert the public to active shooters in their community.
“This bill is about keeping our communities safe and supporting law enforcement,” Upton said. “By alerting the public to an ongoing active shooter threat, we can help folks avoid the area and better enable police and first responders to focus on ending the situation and saving lives.”
The Active Shooter Alert Act helps fund the police by appointing an Active Shooter Alert Coordinator within in the Department of Justice. The coordinator would then offer federal training, technical support, and best practices to local and state law enforcement officials to effectively improve or implement active shooter alert systems.
Resources would include guidance developed by subject matter experts, such as recommendations on making alerts in the vicinity of a shooter silent so the shooter is not alerted to those sheltered in place along with advice on what information is most effective to include in public alerts and how alerts should be sent.
“Sadly, our schools, houses of worship, or people simply going about their lives, as we tragically saw here in Kalamazoo in 2016 when an Uber driver murdered six people and wounded two, are not exempt from violence,” Upton said. “This bill is not about the Second Amendment, it’s about public awareness, and law enforcement supports it as a way to save lives. They provide Congress with text alerts on our phones whenever there is a threat, so why would we deny the same for our communities at home.”
The bill was approved in the House by a vote of 260 to 169.
