Utah's 2015 NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP)

The NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, Pub. L. 110-180 ("NICS Improvement Act"), was signed into law by the President on January 8, 2008. The NICS Improvement Act amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 ("the Brady Act") (Pub. L. 103-159), under which the Attorney General established the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The Brady Act requires Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) to contact the NICS before transferring a firearm to an unlicensed person for information on whether the proposed transferee is prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm under state or federal law. The NICS Improvement Act authorizes grants to be made in a manner consistent with the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP).

Utah State government, in conjunction with units of Utah local government and State and local courts, routinely submit information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and are continually looking for improvements to systems and policy to improve the submission process which addresses the State goals. The state uses federal resources to supplement state funds for criminal history projects. Under the FY 2015 NARIP award, the Utah Governor’s Office will transfer funds to the Department of Public Safety for its Utah Criminal Justice Information System (UCJIS) Web Front Rewrite project, and to the Utah Prosecution Council and Statewide Association of Prosecutors for its Prosecution Case Management System project. The UCJIS web front is used extensively by the Bureau of Criminal Identification (BCI) for criminal history and gun check processing. Additionally, BCI uses the web front extensively to query other systems (including the Interstate Identification Index - III) in order to research information so that the Utah Criminal History database can be updated with the most current information. Without the UCJIS web front, BCI would no longer be able to research disposition records for the Criminal History repository, access III, add, modify or cancel records in the NICS Index, do background checks on gun purchasers outside the normal gun check application or do background checks on concealed firearm permit holders. The infrastructure and technology of the UCJIS web front is over 10 years old. Funds are will be used to upgrade and enhance the UCJIS web front with the latest coding requirements, software, browsing technologies and security protocols to meet the expanding needs of the criminal justice agencies.

The Utah Prosecution Council and Statewide Association of Prosecutors is requesting funds to purchase a third-party vendor case management software program for county and municipal prosecutor offices. This program will allow prosecutor offices to electronically share information and documents with each other, but will also provide for direct, cost saving communication with the district courts.

CA/NCF