U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE BJS
SEPTEMBER 11, 1995 202-307-0703
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES 18 MORE GRANTS
FOR IMPROVEMENT OF CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORDS
SEBASCO, MAINE -- Eighteen states, led by
Florida, Texas, and New Mexico, will receive about
$27 million under the $88 million National
Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) to
upgrade their criminal history records systems.
The grants will help states implement the Crime
Law and enhance their efforts to keep felons from
purchasing handguns, prevent sex offenders from
working with children and the elderly, and
identify repeat offenders who may be subject to
"three strikes" laws.
Dr. Jan Chaiken, Director of the Bureau of
Justice Statistics (BJS), U.S. Department of
Justice, the agency that administers NCHIP,
announced the awards today at the 1995 Conference
of the Association of State Uniform Crime
Reporting Programs.
"These grants will continue the Justice
Department's commitment to help states have
accurate, complete, and accessible criminal
history records. Improving criminal records is
NOT about computers and bookkeeping. It's about
fighting crime in states and communities across
America," said Dr. Chaiken. "This year every
state will receive a Federal grant under the NCHIP
program."
"The NCHIP grants are part of our commitment
to use the tools of the Crime Law to assist states
and local communities," Attorney General Janet
Reno added from Washington. "The Crime Law,
signed by the President a year ago, is helping us
ensure that the most violent criminals are dealt
with appropriately and swiftly."
As states improve their recordkeeping, they
will be able to share complete criminal history
information through the FBI's National Instant
Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and gain
full access to interstate records. NICS is
scheduled to become fully operational by 1998.
States also will be able to provide a clearer
snapshot of an offender's past to avoid the
pretrial release of offenders who may pose a
danger to the community.
The states receiving these awards and the
amounts are:
Alabama, $552,733
Alaska, $825,000
Connecticut, $640,000
Delaware, $960,000
Florida, $2,900,000
Kansas, $903,000
Maine, $1,975,000
Massachusetts, $1,900,000
Wyoming, $480,000
Minnesota, $1,480,000
Mississippi, $1,725,000
Montana, $335,000
New Mexico, $2,100,000
North Carolina, $1,460,705
South Dakota, $500,000
Texas, $4,961,000
Washington, $1,200,000
West Virginia, $1,919,000
The states receiving the awards announced today
hold one-third (33 percent) of all criminal
history records in the nation. To date, grants
have been made to 30 states that hold
approximately 66 percent of the nation's criminal
history records.
Twelve states received approximately $20
million in NCHIP awards in July. Those states and
their award amounts are:
Arkansas, $659,390
California, $3,405,542
Georgia, $1,500,000
Iowa, $792,036
Missouri, $1,619,570
Nebraska, $830,330
New York, $4,792,375
North Dakota, $556,365
Pennsylvania, $2,632,984
South Carolina, $1,145,955
Utah, $642,653
Vermont, $1,975,279
Criminal history records are fingerprint
cards or their electronic counterparts, linked
with information about arrests, convictions and
sentences, when available. Of the 50 million
criminal history records in the United States,
half are accessible nationally, but only a quarter
(28 percent) are both accessible and include
dispositions. Records are inaccessible
electronically to other states if they are not
automated or if a state does not participate in
the national system (Interstate Identification
Index). Records without dispositions delay
inquiries or handicap law enforcement in the
identification of individuals with a prior
conviction.
In December 1994, BJS designated five states
"priority" states because they had little or no
automated criminal history records. Four of those
states are receiving awards today--Maine,
Mississippi, New Mexico, and West Virginia.
Vermont, the other "priority" state, received
first round funding in July. Each of the priority
states will receive $1 million supplemental
assistance as part of its award to accelerate
their automation process.
A total of $100 million was appropriated for
NCHIP in Fiscal Year 1995. Of this amount:
$88 million will be awarded directly to
states to automate their criminal history
record systems and improve the accuracy,
completeness, timeliness and accessibility of
criminal history records;
$5 million is being used to provide direct
technical assistance to the states and to
evaluate the program;
$6 million was transferred to the FBI for
implementation of the National Instant
Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
$1 million is for administering and
monitoring the program.
# # #
After hours contact:
Harri J. Kramer 301/229-4861
or Chris Rizzuto 703/525-1792
END OF FILE
Date Published: September 11, 1995