Bill Would Ban Governor’s Use Of Emergency Alert System For Policy Announcements

Republican State Sen. Peter Lucido plans to introduce a bill that would restrict the governor’s use of a state of Michigan emergency alert system. Lucido says he plans to formally introduce the bill on July 22.

On July 13, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer used the state's emergency alert system to distribute a message about a new executive order that mandates face mask use in all public places, including outdoors when social distancing is not possible. The Integrated Public Alert Warning System is a “secure network connecting all of the public alert and warning systems in the United States into a single system.”

The bill would limit officials’ use of the emergency alert system to time-sensitive emergencies as tornadoes, flash floods, wild fires and other immediate dangers. The bill would not allow using the system to announce things like government policy changes, including ones that are part of an executive order.