Update: Amber Bill Package passed the House. It may or may not make it through the Senate: <The two bills will have to be reconciled by House and Senate negotiators before any version can be sent to the president. Last year, the Senate refused to consider the House bill, and the House refused to consider the Senate bill.

Democrats argued that the House-passed bill likely will meet the same fate in the Senate as last year, because its additional child protection measures face much more resistance in the Senate.

"Here we are again, facing the same misguided strategies, and this time again with even more reason for the Senate to reject the bill which the Amber Alert bill is buried in," said Rep. Robert Scott, D-Va."

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The Democrats in the House yesterday failed to pass a stand-alone Amber Alert bill.

The Republicans want the Amber Alert bill to be part of a larger anti-crime package--one with increased criminal penalties and expanded wiretap powers. The Republican measure is expected to pass the House today, but may run into problems in the Senate due to the anti-crime provisions. The Senate had already passed a stand-alone Amber Alert bill.

40 states already have Amber Alert systems in place. The federal law would create a national coordinator for the system in the Justice Department and provide matching grants to states for operating the networks. The New York Times warns that Congress should move slowly on the Amber Alert bill.

Our view, as we have expressed in the comments section to this post, is that we should leave Amber Alerts to the states, and put the money where it can save more lives.

Update: The House is poised to approve the Republican bill with anti-crime provisions.