Washington — On Monday, President Obama signed into law S.1180, the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Modernization Act of 2015. The bipartisan bill was introduced by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.). It will modernize the nation’s public alert and warning system to ensure that federal, state and local officials can effectively warn citizens during times of disasters, acts of terrorism, and other threats to public safety.
“In an emergency, getting information quickly is crucial,” said Johnson, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “This bill takes important steps to expand our nation’s public warning system to ensure the largest number of people are reached. The IPAWS Modernization Act also ensures effective training and collaboration so that when an emergency hits, we are ready. I was pleased to have guided this bipartisan bill through the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee last year and am glad the president has signed this common sense bill into law, thereby strengthening our nation’s public warning system.”
“I’m thrilled the President has signed into law our legislation to ensure communities are prepared with the best protection possible when we face a natural disaster,” said McCaskill, a senior member of the Senate Homeland Security Committee. “Unfortunately, in Missouri, we’ve been all too familiar with that need—and this law is a concrete achievement for Missourians that’ll help more families and businesses get lifesaving information quickly, as well as ensure our government has the flexibility it needs to evolve with future technological changes.”
###