The Kansas-Nebraska Act was signed into law on May 30, 1854. It was officially titled "An Act to Organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas" and was signed by President Franklin Pierce. The act allowed the settlers of the Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide whether to permit slavery within their borders through popular sovereignty, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise which had prohibited slavery above the 36°30′ latitude line. This act intensified national division and contributed to the events leading up to the American Civil War.