NICS Act Record Improvement Program

The NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, P. L. 110-180 ("NIAA"), was initially signed into law by the President on January 8, 2008 (reauthorized by Title VI of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, P.L. 115-141). The NIAA 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 NIAA authorizes grants to be made in a manner consistent with the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP).

In 2018, the Swinomish Tribe was awarded a Tribal Access Program (TAP) Grant to enable direct access to NCIC. The TAP program allows tribes to enter criminal disposition information into a national database accessible by law enforcement. The Tribe is requesting personnel funds for one FTE to enter new dispositions and 10 years of historical criminal history information to NCIC.

(CA/NCF)