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Promising Practices New  |  Funding 2009-2012  |  State-by-State Summaries   | NICS Contact Addresses

Promising practices by states for improved record reporting

The BJS website now has information on promising practices by Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Virginia for improved record reporting to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). This information responds to requirements in the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-180) and the recent GAO Report Gun Control: Sharing Promising Practices and Assessing Incentives Could Better Position Justice to Assist States in Providing Records for Background Checks (GAO-12-684). The promising practices involve identifying, collecting, maintaining, automating, and transmitting information that determines whether a person is prohibited by federal or state law from possessing or receiving a firearm, and that improves the availability of these records to national systems. Several practices focus on how to improve reporting of mental health information while others address how to determine relevant records, how to facilitate broader coordination, or other process improvement efforts.

Arizona - Creating a SharePoint Site to Coordinate NICS Work
Connecticut - Using Visual Flow Charts to Document "As Is" Data Flow
Florida - Identifying Disqualifying Mental Health Dispositions
New York - Automate Communication Between Mental Health Record Holders and NICS Index
New York - Establish a Misdemeanor Crime of Domestic Violence through Legislation
Oregon - Implementing Live Scan Devices in Courts to Improve Record Matching
Texas - Conducting Training & Outreach with Court Clerks
Virginia - Automate Mental Health Record Transfer to Repository

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NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP) Awards FY 2009-2012

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State-by-State Summaries for FY 2012 NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP)

AFIS - Automated Fingerprint Identification System
CCH - Computerized Criminal History
IAFIS - Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System
III - Interstate Identification Index
NCIC - National Crime Information Center
NIEM - National Information Exchange Model
NFF - National Fingerprint File
NICS - National Instant Criminal Background Check System
XML - Extensible Markup Language

Arizona ($1,012,166) The Arizona Criminal Justice Commission (ACJC) will use funds to complete tasks associated with the following projects: 1) subaward funds to the Arizona Department of Public Safety to research Maricopa Superior Court felony cases for which the Clerk of Court has not received a final disposition report for felony convictions, drug arrests and convictions, and domestic violence misdemeanor convictions. It is anticipated that final disposition forms will be created for 30,600 Superior Court cases for subsequent updating in III; 2) support consultant services to gather critical information on state systems and define the requirements, functional specifications, and technical design recommendations for NIEM compliant data exchanges; 3) purchase source software and cover programming expenses to implement data exchanges from booking agencies to the prosecutors for three counties to enable the implementation of NIEM-based data exchanges to share defendant and charging information to ensure full-charge disposition tracking from booking through court adjudication; 4) support project management services for the Arizona NICS Record Improvement Initiative to carry out the goals and objectives of the state's NICS Record Improvement Strategic Plan; 5) support the continuation of quarterly NICS Task Force meetings; 6) support ACJC staff time to research and analyze the state's criminal history records to help shape and inform the NICS Task Force priorities and needs; and 7) support administrative costs for ACJC staff to administer, monitor, and report subgrantee activities.

Connecticut ($1,650,000) The Office of Policy and Management, the Judicial Branch, and Probate Courts will use funds to: 1) support a NICS Records Improvement Task Force to guide the development and implementation of both ongoing and long-range records improvement plans; 2) continue designing and building an electronic record system that will provide more timely and complete disposition records from the criminal courts and increase the completeness and number of records available for firearm determinations; and 3) streamline the conservatorship and commitment modules within the Probate Case Management System to allow court personnel to perform record validation and perform lookups by person, decree, case, attorney, and hospital to increase data integrity, reduce manual intervention, and minimize duplicate records being reported to the state and NICS system; and 4) continue record auditing to improve the completeness, automation, and transmittal of relevant probate court records (specifically mental health information) to the NICS.

Florida ($1,400,000) The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) will use funds to complete tasks associated with the following projects: 1) begin efforts to update and modernize Florida's criminal history repository to improve the overall completeness, automation, and use of records by the state with the goal of increasing the data available to NICS and realizing increased time efficiencies and cost savings; 2) continue to support staff efforts to partner with the Clerks of Court to identify civil mental health adjudications that are firearm disqualifiers and enter the records into MECOM, Florida's Mental Competency database, and the NICS Index; and 3) continue to support staff efforts to partner with the Clerks of Court to research historic disposition records for firearm purchase decisions.

Idaho ($279,848) The Idaho State Police and the Idaho Courts will carry out the following projects: 1) digitize backlogged fingerprint cards; 2) replace the state's store and forward server that transmits fingerprint cards to the state AFIS; 3) provide programming in the court's system to standardize the hair and eye color tables across counties; and, 4) update older mental health commitment records in Idaho's unified court system. Funds will also be used for court staff to attend training on topics related to the NICS system.

Illinois ($1,650,000) The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA) will subcontract funds to the Illinois State Police (ISP) to continue efforts to automate the process of submitting qualifying mental health information and other disqualifying records into the NICS System. Funds will be used to establish and implement a NICS Reporting System to identify and report prohibited persons to NICS. The major features of the framework and components include: 1) A collaborative effort with the state's Circuit Clerks and the software vendors supporting them to better facilitate the submission of information related to court ordered adjudications which are not currently part of the criminal justice reporting process. 2) A NICS information management system that provides: a process for managing the eligibility determination and prohibitors for the transfer and possession of firearms; and a modular management system for submission and maintenance of NICS records. 3) Continue current efforts to improve data quality and exchange with the Department of Human Services (DHS). 4) Continue current efforts to improve ISP business processes supporting eligibility determinations.

Indiana ($1,200,000)  The Indiana Criminal Justice Institute will transfer funds to the Indiana Supreme Court's Judicial Automation and Technology Committee (JTAC) to deploy Odyssey, Indiana's court case management system, in two additional counties. With the deployment of Odyssey, felony convictions will be sent electronically to the state repository housed at the Indiana State Police (ISP) and accessible at the time of a background check. Funds will also be used to assist with the rewrite of Indiana's criminal history repository to include scanning, indexing, storage, and retrieval of  document images. This project will provide ISP’s Central Repository with significantly updated and accurate information on over 300,000 electronically available criminal history records.

Kentucky ($517,428) The Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet will transfer funds to the Kentucky State Police (KSP) and the Department of Corrections (DOC) to meet the technological and personnel needs that have been identified as necessary components to facilitate the successful exchange of criminal history information from both agencies to the FBI's NICS Index. The proposed projects will target 67.6% of records with felony charges that currently reside in the state's computerized criminal history (CCH) system without disposition information. Completion of these projects will result in a higher disposition rate for records within the CCH which have at least one felony charge, thereby increasing the number of dispositions updated at the federal level.

Missouri ($1,204,247) The Missouri State Highway Patrol (MSHP) will work with the Office of the State Court Administrator (OSCA) and the Missouri Office of Prosecution Services (MOPS) to implement improved criminal history record capture procedures in Missouri courts, prosecutors' offices, and law enforcement agencies. Funds will be used to establish a NICS Improvement Task Force to guide the development and implementation of an ongoing long-range records improvement plan. Activities at MSHP include: developing a municipal courts criminal history interface, updating backlogged felony dispositions, and replacing obsolete livescan devices. OSCA will use funds to implement an interface between the remaining circuit courts and prosecutor offices to allow for the transmission of filing documents to the court case management system. MOPS will use funds to acquire the services of a technical services coordinator as project manager for the automated Karpel Case Management System used by prosecutors' offices statewide.

North Dakota ($91,294) The North Dakota Office of Attorney General Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) and Information Technology (IT) divisions will use funds to continue initiatives started in FY 2011. Specifically, funds will be used to continue to support the work of administrative staff to develop and implement procedures related to NICS submissions and address the additional workload that resulted due to an increase in the number of concealed weapon license applications submitted and processed. Duties will include serving as a liaison with the courts; conducting records checks; entering, querying, and reconciling data; submitting fingerprint cards; receiving, processing, and issuing permits; and providing testimony at administrative hearings or in court as requested to describe why an applicant was denied a concealed weapon license.

Nebraska ($429,288) The Nebraska State Patrol will use funds to: 1) enhance a newly developed web portal to automate the reporting of mental health commitments to improve the transfer of information from the district courts to the NICS Index; 2) automate the process and improve reporting of protection order information into NCIC; 3) provide training to probation officers and county attorneys to improve identification and submission of disqualifying misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence convictions to the NICS Index, and 4) utilize a professional contractor to assist the state in developing a comprehensive long range strategic plan to improve the quality, completeness, and availability of records to NICS.

Texas ($488,841) The Texas Office of Court Administration (OCA) will use funds to increase the number of prohibiting mental health adjudications or commitments, mental retardation and guardianship records, particularly historical records, made available to NICS by employing staff to provide direct assistance to the district and county clerks responsible for this reporting requirement. Staff members funded through this award will continue to conduct physical reviews of mental health, probate and guardianship, and criminal case files and docket sheets to identify relevant records in counties in which the district and/or county clerk have indicated that not all relevant records have been identified or reported.

West Virginia ($1,200,000) The West Virginia Supreme Court Administrative Offices will partner with the West Virginia State Police and West Virginia Criminal Justice and Community Service to complete tasks associated with a Disposition Project and a Mental Health NICS Database Project. Specifically, funds will be used to initiate efforts to resolve the current disposition backlog of about 44,000 records and prevent future backlogs as well as to implement systems to enable the automation and electronic submission of data to NICS. Funds will also be used to expand the existing reporting software system for mental health prohibitors to include persons unable to stand trial by reason of mental illness or insanity and persons found not guilty by reason of mental illness or insanity, expand the existing automated system to include additional mental health prohibitors, and support the work of a quality data manager to continue the state's efforts to verify mental health data daily, provide training and technical assistance, and complete assigned administrative tasks.

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NARIP Contact Addresses

Arizona
Pat Nelson
Program Manager
Arizona Criminal Justice Commission
1110 West Washington, Suite 230
Phoenix, Arizona 85007
(602) 364-1152
E-mail: pnelson@azcjc.gov

Connecticut
Linda DeConti
Policy and Planning Manager
Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division (CJPPD)
Office of Policy & Management
450 Capitol Avenue, MS# 52CJP
Hartford, Connecticut 06106-1397
(860) 418-6248
E-mail: linda.deconti@ct.gov

Florida
Clayton H. Wilder
Administrator
Office of Criminal Justice Grants
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
2331 Phillips Road
Tallahassee, Florida 32308
(850) 617-1251
E-mail: claytonwilder@fdle.state.fl.us

Idaho
Dawn A. Peck, Manager
Bureau of Criminal Identification
Idaho State Police
700 S. Stratford Dr., Ste. 120
Meridian, ID 83642
(208) 884-7136
E-mail: dawn.peck@isp.idaho.gov

Illinois
Jack Cutrone, Executive Director
Attn: Gregory Stevens
Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority
300 W. Adams Street, Suite 200
Chicago, Illinois 60606
(312) 793-1302
E-mail: jack.cutrone@illinois.gov 
          gregory.stevens@illinois.gov         
  
Indiana
Mary L. Allen
Executive Director
Attn: Megan Compton, Drug & Crime Control Division Director
Indiana Criminal Justice Institute
101 W. Washington Street, Suite 1170 East
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204-2038
(317) 232-1229
E-mail: mlallen@cji.in.gov 
          mlcompton@cji.in.gov

Kentucky
Tanya Dickinson, Grants Branch Manager
Attn: Robin Finney, Internal Policy Analyst II
Kentucky Justice & Public Safety Cabinet
125 Holmes Street
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
(502) 564-3251
E-mail: tanya.dickinson@ky.gov 
          robin.finney@ky.gov

Missouri
Captain Timothy P. McGrail
Director
Attn: Sandy Walters, Federal Grants Accountant
Criminal Justice Information Services Division
Missouri State Highway Patrol
P.O. Box 9500 (1510 E. Elm St.)
Jefferson City, Missouri 65102
(573) 526-6160
E-mail: Tim.McGrail@mshp.dps.mo.gov 
          sandy.walters@mshp.dps.mo.gov

Nebraska
Jeannine Davison
Nebraska State Patrol
Grants Division
P.O. Box 94907 (1600 Nebraska Highway 2, 68502)
Lincoln, Nebraska 68509-4907
(402) 479-4010
E-mail: jeannine.davison@nebraska.gov

Nevada
Michael Lambrecht
Nevada Department of Public Safety
Office of Criminal Justice Assistance
555 Wright Way
Carson City, Nevada 89711
(775) 687-4170
E-mail: mlambrecht@dps.state.nv.us

New Jersey
Opal Plummer
Court Executive
RJ Hughes Justice Complex
25 Market St
Trenton, NJ 08625
(609) 633-7515
E-mail: opal.plummer@judiciary.state.nj.us

New York
Anne Roest
Attn: Valerie Shanley
Office of Justice Information Services
New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services
4 Tower Place – 9th Floor
Albany, NY  12203
(518) 485-7176
E-mail: anne.roest@dcjs.state.ny.us 
          valerie.shanley@dcjs.state.ny.us  

North Dakota
Judith Volk, Information Services Manager
North Dakota Office of the Attorney General
Bureau of Criminal Investigation
P.O. Box 1054 (4205 State Street, 58502)
Bismarck, North Dakota 58502 (zip code for FedEx or UPS deliveries is 58503)
(701) 328-5500
E-mail: jvolk@nd.gov

Oregon
Tricia Whitfield, Director
Oregon State Police, Identification Services Section
3772 Portland Rd NE, Bldg C
Salem, OR  97301
(503) 934-2305
E-mail: patricia.whitfield@state.or.us

Texas
Mary Cowherd
Deputy Director
Texas Office of Court Administration
205 W. 14th St. Suite 600
Austin, TX 78701-1614
(512) 463-1629  
E-mail: mary.cowherd@txcourts.gov

Desiree Taylor
Program Administrator
Crime Records Service – MSC0230
Texas Department of Public Safety
(512) 424-2968
E-mail: desiree.taylor@txdps.state.tx.us   

Virginia
Minni Powell, Grant Manager
The Virginia State Police
P.O. Box 27472 (7700 Midlothian Turnpike, 23235)
Richmond, Virginia 23261-7472
(804) 674-2079
E-mail: minni.powell@vsp.virginia.gov

West Virginia
Angela D. Saunders
Director of Court Services
WV Supreme Court of Appeals Administrative Office
State Capitol Building, E-100
1900 Kanawha Boulevard, E
Charleston, WV  25305-0832
(304) 558-0145
E-mail: angela.saunders@courtswv.gov

Wisconsin
Matt Raymer, Criminal Justice Program Analyst
Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance
1 S. Pinckney Street, Suite 615
Madison, Wisconsin 53702-3220
(608) 261-4374
E-mail: matt.raymer@wisconsin.gov