While storm-based warnings became the norm in 2009, that data is disseminated through almost all outlets, except NWR. While the SAME code was developed to include geographical subdivisions, that 1st-digit subdivision has not been implemented in the continental U.S. (Puerto Rico does make use of it, however.)
As a matter of fact, NWR SAME receiver decoders (all consumer models) are designed to ignore the first digit of the SAME code. In other words, if you program yours with something other than "0" as the first digit, it will still alert for the county-wide code (as this is the only geographic code being transmitted over NWR). Conversely, if you program your weather radio to alert for the entire county (which you should), it will alert if a subdivision geographic code is transmitted (which is not done). This can be found in Appendix B of the current NWR SAME specification:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/directives/sym/pd01017012curr.pdf
So, while the original spec for NWR SAME does provide for partitioning the geographical area code, it is not implemented. The warnings that are transmitted over NWR are still SAME-coded for entire jurisdictions. Yes, you will see the polygons and partial county areas on web sites and applications that get their data from the NOAA weather wire and the Internet feeds, but that information is not conveyed by SAME codes.
There seems to be confusion about SAME and the steady alarm tone that is heard on NWR. First of all, they are very different. The SAME codes are transmitted in the "header" and are 3 short bursts of ASCII digital data. These are usually followed by the Warning Alarm Tone (WAT) of 1050 Hz for 8 to 10 seconds. The SAME data is not contained in this steady alert tone.
Scanners and radios that monitor other frequencies but also have a weather "alert" feature only detect the 1050 Hz tone. This is because they do not have a separate receiver section to dedicate to monitoring NWR. So, scanners and other radios will "sample" or "scan" the weather radio frequency that has been programmed every 5-6 seconds to listen for that tone. Those types of receivers would "miss" hearing the short SAME data bursts. Some scanners and other radios can also be programmed with SAME codes, but they are only valid when the scanner or receiver is placed into a special mode to silently monitor just the NWR frequency; they cannot be used in this mode to listen to other activity. This basically turns the scanner into a very expensive weather radio. So, the SAME code is not important at all when a scanner is used to listen to police, fire, etc., while having weather alert activated. It only listens for the 1050 Hz tone, which means it will alert for any watches or warnings for any area served by the particular transmitter it is receiving.
And, by the way, most weather radios and scanners will NOT automatically tune to the right frequency. You must program it to the specific frequency of the NWR transmitter that covers your area.
While none of us are perfect or right 100% of the time, it's probably wise to read through a few threads on this forum to get a feel for who knows their stuff and who might just be playing mister know-it-all.
rdale knows his stuff (as do a lot of others on here) and is not confused. He is definitely worth listening to.