Statewide Iowa — The Iowa Senate has overwhelmingly approved a budget bill that includes four-and-a-half MILLION dollars over the next two years to cover fees for a digital “panic button” system for Iowa schools. Teachers and school staff would install the app on their smart phones.
Senator Zach Whiting, a Republican from Spirit Lake, says the app would be preferable to dialing 9-1-1 in an active shooter situation.
Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, says the funding for this project is being diverted from a budget that’s supposed to be used to build and maintain state-owned infrastructure.
The company is called Rave. The Rave Guardian App is available for COLLEGE students at Drake, the University of Iowa and Iowa State University. Hitting the app connects a student with campus police. The plan legislators are sending the governor does not call for getting the app on K-through-12 students’ phones, but for the adults in Iowa schools. Senator Bill Dotzler, a Democrat from Waterloo, isn’t convinced this is a good call.
A spokesperson for House Republicans says they have signed off on the panic button app project for schools. The House is set to debate the bill.
