110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2640 

AN ACT 

To improve the National Instant Criminal Background Check 

System, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
2 

•HR 2640 EH

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF RECORDS 

Sec. 101. Enhancement of requirement that Federal departments and agencies 

provide relevant information to the National Instant Criminal 

Background Check System. 

Sec. 102. Requirements to obtain waiver. 

Sec. 103. Implementation assistance to States. 

Sec. 104. Penalties for noncompliance. 

Sec. 105. Relief from disabilities program required as condition for participation in grant programs. 

TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL ASSISTANCE ON THE 

IMPROVEMENT OF RELEVANT RECORDS 

Sec. 201. Continuing evaluations. 

TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE COURT SYSTEMS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT IN AUTOMATION AND TRANSMITTAL OF DISPOSITION RECORDS 

Sec. 301. Disposition records automation and transmittal improvement grants. 

TITLE IV—GAO AUDIT 

Sec. 401. GAO audit. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Approximately 916,000 individuals were 

9 prohibited from purchasing a firearm for failing a 

10 background check between November 30, 1998, (the 

11 date the National Instant Criminal Background 

12 Check System (NICS) began operating) and Decem13 ber 31, 2004. 
3 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (2) From November 30, 1998, through Decem2 ber 31, 2004, nearly 49,000,000 Brady background 

3 checks were processed through NICS. 

4 (3) Although most Brady background checks 

5 are processed through NICS in seconds, many back6 ground checks are delayed if the Federal Bureau of 

7 Investigation (FBI) does not have automated access 

8 to complete information from the States concerning 

9 persons prohibited from possessing or receiving a 

10 firearm under Federal or State law. 

11 (4) Nearly 21,000,000 criminal records are not 

12 accessible by NICS and millions of criminal records 

13 are missing critical data, such as arrest dispositions, 

14 due to data backlogs. 

15 (5) The primary cause of delay in NICS back16 ground checks is the lack of— 

17 (A) updates and available State criminal 

18 disposition records; and 

19 (B) automated access to information con20 cerning persons prohibited from possessing or 

21 receiving a firearm because of mental illness, 

22 restraining orders, or misdemeanor convictions 

23 for domestic violence. 

24 (6) Automated access to this information can 

25 be improved by— 
4 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (A) computerizing information relating to 

2 criminal history, criminal dispositions, mental 

3 illness, restraining orders, and misdemeanor 

4 convictions for domestic violence; or 

5 (B) making such information available to 

6 NICS in a usable format. 

7 (7) Helping States to automate these records 

8 will reduce delays for law-abiding gun purchasers. 

9 (8) On March 12, 2002, the senseless shooting, 

10 which took the lives of a priest and a parishioner at 

11 the Our Lady of Peace Church in Lynbrook, New 

12 York, brought attention to the need to improve in13 formation-sharing that would enable Federal and 

14 State law enforcement agencies to conduct a com15 plete background check on a potential firearm pur16 chaser. The man who committed this double murder 

17 had a prior disqualifying mental health commitment 

18 and a restraining order against him, but passed a 

19 Brady background check because NICS did not have 

20 the necessary information to determine that he was 

21 ineligible to purchase a firearm under Federal or 

22 State law. 

23 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

24 As used in this Act, the following definitions shall 

25 apply: 
5 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (1) COURT ORDER.—The term ‘‘court order’’ 

2 includes a court order (as described in section 

3 922(g)(8) of title 18, United States Code). 

4 (2) MENTAL HEALTH TERMS.—The terms ‘‘ad5 judicated as a mental defective’’, ‘‘committed to a 

6 mental institution’’, and related terms have the 

7 meanings given those terms in regulations imple8 menting section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States 

9 Code, as in effect on the date of the enactment of 

10 this Act. 

11 (3) MISDEMEANOR CRIME OF DOMESTIC VIO12 LENCE.—The term ‘‘misdemeanor crime of domestic 

13 violence’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

14 921(a)(33) of title 18, United States Code. 

15 TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF 

16 RECORDS 

17 SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FED18 ERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES PRO19 VIDE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO THE NA20 TIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND 

21 CHECK SYSTEM. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(e)(1) of the Brady 

23 Handgun Violence Prevention Act (18 U.S.C. 922 note) 

24 is amended— 
6 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (1) by striking ‘‘Notwithstanding’’ and insert2 ing the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding’’; 

4 (2) by striking ‘‘On request’’ and inserting the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(B) REQUEST OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.— 

7 On request’’; 

8 (3) by striking ‘‘furnish such information’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘furnish electronic versions of the informa10 tion described under subparagraph (A)’’; and 

11 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(C) QUARTERLY SUBMISSION TO ATTOR13 NEY GENERAL.—If a department or agency 

14 under subparagraph (A) has any record of any 

15 person demonstrating that the person falls 

16 within one of the categories described in sub17 section (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

18 United States Code, the head of such depart19 ment or agency shall, not less frequently than 

20 quarterly, provide the pertinent information 

21 contained in such record to the Attorney Gen22 eral. 

23 ‘‘(D) INFORMATION UPDATES.—The agen24 cy, on being made aware that the basis under 

25 which a record was made available under sub-
7 

•HR 2640 EH

1 paragraph (A) does not apply, or no longer ap2 plies, shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) update, correct, modify, or re4 move the record from any database that 

5 the agency maintains and makes available 

6 to the Attorney General, in accordance 

7 with the rules pertaining to that database; 

8 or 

9 ‘‘(ii) notify the Attorney General that 

10 such basis no longer applies so that the 

11 National Instant Criminal Background 

12 Check System is kept up to date. 

13 ‘‘(E) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Attorney 

14 General shall submit an annual report to Con15 gress that describes the compliance of each de16 partment or agency with the provisions of this 

17 paragraph.’’. 

18 (b) PROVISION AND MAINTENANCE OF NICS 

19 RECORDS.— 

20 (1) DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY.— 

21 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall make 

22 available to the Attorney General— 

23 (A) records, updated not less than quar24 terly, which are relevant to a determination of 

25 whether a person is disqualified from possessing 
8 

•HR 2640 EH

1 or receiving a firearm under subsection (g) or 

2 (n) of section 922 of title 18, United States 

3 Code, for use in background checks performed 

4 by the National Instant Criminal Background 

5 Check System; and 

6 (B) information regarding all the persons 

7 described in subparagraph (A) of this para8 graph who have changed their status to a cat9 egory not identified under section 922(g)(5) of 

10 title 18, United States Code, for removal, when 

11 applicable, from the National Instant Criminal 

12 Background Check System. 

13 (2) DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—The Attorney 

14 General shall— 

15 (A) ensure that any information submitted 

16 to, or maintained by, the Attorney General 

17 under this section is kept accurate and con18 fidential, as required by the laws, regulations, 

19 policies, or procedures governing the applicable 

20 record system; 

21 (B) provide for the timely removal and de22 struction of obsolete and erroneous names and 

23 information from the National Instant Criminal 

24 Background Check System; and 
9 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (C) work with States to encourage the de2 velopment of computer systems, which would 

3 permit electronic notification to the Attorney 

4 General when— 

5 (i) a court order has been issued, lift6 ed, or otherwise removed by order of the 

7 court; or 

8 (ii) a person has been adjudicated as 

9 mentally defective or committed to a men10 tal institution. 

11 (c) STANDARD FOR ADJUDICATIONS, COMMITMENTS, 

12 AND DETERMINATIONS RELATED TO MENTAL

13 HEALTH.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—No department or agency of 

15 the Federal Government may provide to the Attor16 ney General any record of an adjudication or deter17 mination related to the mental health of a person, 

18 or any commitment of a person to a mental institu19 tion if— 

20 (A) the adjudication, determination, or 

21 commitment, respectively, has been set aside or 

22 expunged, or the person has otherwise been 

23 fully released or discharged from all mandatory 

24 treatment, supervision, or monitoring; 
10 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (B) the person has been found by a court, 

2 board, commission, or other lawful authority to 

3 no longer suffer from the mental health condi4 tion that was the basis of the adjudication, de5 termination, or commitment, respectively, or 

6 has otherwise been found to be rehabilitated 

7 through any procedure available under law; or 

8 (C) the adjudication, determination, or 

9 commitment, respectively, is based solely on a 

10 medical finding of disability, without a finding 

11 that the person is a danger to himself or to oth12 ers or that the person lacks the mental capacity 

13 to manage his own affairs. 

14 (2) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN ADJUDICATIONS, 

15 DETERMINATIONS, AND COMMITMENTS.— 

16 (A) PROGRAM FOR RELIEF FROM DISABIL17 ITIES.—Each department or agency of the 

18 United States that makes any adjudication or 

19 determination related to the mental health of a 

20 person or imposes any commitment to a mental 

21 institution, as described in subsection (d)(4) 

22 and (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, United 

23 States Code, shall establish a program that per24 mits such a person to apply for relief from the 

25 disabilities imposed by such subsections. Relief 
11 

•HR 2640 EH

1 and judicial review shall be available according 

2 to the standards prescribed in section 925(c) of 

3 title 18, United States Code. 

4 (B) RELIEF FROM DISABILITIES.—In the 

5 case of an adjudication or determination related 

6 to the mental health of a person or a commit7 ment of a person to a mental institution, a 

8 record of which may not be provided to the At9 torney General under paragraph (1), including 

10 because of the absence of a finding described in 

11 subparagraph (C) of such paragraph, or from 

12 which a person has been granted relief under a 

13 program established under subparagraph (A), 

14 the adjudication, determination, or commit15 ment, respectively, shall be deemed not to have 

16 occurred for purposes of subsections (d)(4) and 

17 (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, United States 

18 Code. 

19 (d) INFORMATION EXCLUDED FROM NICS 

20 RECORDS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—No department or agency of 

22 the Federal Government may make available to the 

23 Attorney General, for use by the National Instant 

24 Criminal Background Check System (nor may the 

25 Attorney General make available to such system), 
12 

•HR 2640 EH

1 the name or any other relevant identifying informa2 tion of any person adjudicated or determined to be 

3 mentally defective or any person committed to a 

4 mental institution for purposes of assisting the At5 torney General in enforcing subsections (d)(4) and 

6 (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code, 

7 unless such adjudication, determination, or commit8 ment, respectively, included a finding that the per9 son is a danger to himself or to others or that the 

10 person lacks the mental capacity to manage his own 

11 affairs. 

12 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall 

13 apply to names and other information provided be14 fore, on, or after the date of the enactment of this 

15 Act. Any name or information provided in violation 

16 of paragraph (1) before such date shall be removed 

17 from the National Instant Criminal Background 

18 Check System. 

19 SEC. 102. REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN WAIVER. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 3 years after the date 

21 of the enactment of this Act, a State shall be eligible to 

22 receive a waiver of the 10 percent matching requirement 

23 for National Criminal History Improvement Grants under 

24 the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1988 (42 

25 U.S.C. 14601) if the State provides at least 90 percent 
13 

•HR 2640 EH

1 of the information described in subsection (c). The length 

2 of such a waiver shall not exceed 2 years. 

3 (b) STATE ESTIMATES.— 

4 (1) INITIAL STATE ESTIMATE.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—To assist the Attorney 

6 General in making a determination under sub7 section (a) of this section, and under section 

8 104, concerning the compliance of the States in 

9 providing information to the Attorney General 

10 for the purpose of receiving a waiver under sub11 section (a) of this section, or facing a loss of 

12 funds under section 104, by a date not later 

13 than 180 days after the date of the enactment 

14 of this Act, each State shall provide the Attor15 ney General with a reasonable estimate, as cal16 culated by a method determined by the Attor17 ney General, of the number of the records de18 scribed in subparagraph (C) applicable to such 

19 State that concern persons who are prohibited 

20 from possessing or receiving a firearm under 

21 subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

22 United States Code. 

23 (B) FAILURE TO PROVIDE INITIAL ESTI24 MATE.—A State that fails to provide an esti25 mate described in subparagraph (A) by the date 
14 

•HR 2640 EH

1 required under such subparagraph shall be in2 eligible to receive any funds under section 103, 

3 until such date as it provides such estimate to 

4 the Attorney General. 

5 (C) RECORD DEFINED.—For purposes of 

6 subparagraph (A), a record is the following: 

7 (i) A record that identifies a person 

8 arrested for a crime that is punishable by 

9 imprisonment for a term exceeding one 

10 year, and for which a record of final dis11 position is available electronically or other12 wise. 

13 (ii) A record that identifies a person 

14 for whose arrest a warrant or process has 

15 been issued that is valid under the laws of 

16 the State involved, as of the date of the es17 timate. 

18 (iii) A record that identifies a person 

19 who is an unlawful user of or addicted to 

20 a controlled substance (as such terms ‘‘un21 lawful user’’ and ‘‘addicted’’ are respec22 tively defined in regulations implementing 

23 section 922(g)(3) of title 18, United States 

24 Code, as in effect on the date of the enact25 ment of this Act) and whose record is not 
15 

•HR 2640 EH

1 protected from disclosure to the Attorney 

2 General under any provision of State or 

3 Federal law. 

4 (iv) A record that identifies a person 

5 who has been adjudicated mentally defec6 tive or committed to a mental institution 

7 (as determined in regulations implementing 

8 section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States 

9 Code, as in effect on the date of the enact10 ment of this Act) and whose record is not 

11 protected from disclosure to the Attorney 

12 General under any provision of State or 

13 Federal law. 

14 (v) A record that is electronically 

15 available and that identifies a person who, 

16 as of the date of such estimate, is subject 

17 to a court order described in section 

18 922(g)(8) of title 18, United States Code. 

19 (vi) A record that is electronically 

20 available and that identifies a person con21 victed in any court of a misdemeanor crime 

22 of domestic violence, as defined in section 

23 921(a)(33) of title 18, United States Code. 

24 (2) SCOPE.—The Attorney General, in deter25 mining the compliance of a State under this section 
16 

•HR 2640 EH

1 or section 104 of this Act for the purpose of grant2 ing a waiver or imposing a loss of Federal funds, 

3 shall assess the total percentage of records provided 

4 by the State concerning any event occurring within 

5 the prior 30 years, which would disqualify a person 

6 from possessing a firearm under subsection (g) or 

7 (n) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code. 

8 (3) CLARIFICATION.—Notwithstanding para9 graph (2), States shall endeavor to provide the Na10 tional Instant Criminal Background Check System 

11 with all records concerning persons who are prohib12 ited from possessing or receiving a firearm under 

13 subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

14 United States Code, regardless of the elapsed time 

15 since the disqualifying event. 

16 (c) ELIGIBILITY OF STATE RECORDS FOR SUBMIS17 SION TO THE NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACK18 GROUND CHECK SYSTEM.— 

19 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—From information col21 lected by a State, the State shall make elec22 tronically available to the Attorney General 

23 records relevant to a determination of whether 

24 a person is disqualified from possessing or re25 ceiving a firearm under subsection (g) or (n) of 
17 

•HR 2640 EH

1 section 922 of title 18, United States Code, or 

2 applicable State law. 

3 (B) NICS UPDATES.—The State, on being 

4 made aware that the basis under which a record 

5 was made available under subparagraph (A) 

6 does not apply, or no longer applies, shall, as 

7 soon as practicable— 

8 (i) update, correct, modify, or remove 

9 the record from any database that the 

10 Federal or State government maintains 

11 and makes available to the National In12 stant Criminal Background Check System, 

13 consistent with the rules pertaining to that 

14 database; or 

15 (ii) notify the Attorney General that 

16 such basis no longer applies so that the 

17 record system in which the record is main18 tained is kept up to date. 

19 (C) CERTIFICATION.—To remain eligible 

20 for a waiver under subsection (a), a State shall 

21 certify to the Attorney General, not less than 

22 once during each 2-year period, that at least 90 

23 percent of all information described in subpara24 graph (A) has been made electronically avail-
18 

•HR 2640 EH

1 able to the Attorney General in accordance with 

2 subparagraph (A). 

3 (D) INCLUSION OF ALL RECORDS.—For 

4 purposes of this paragraph, a State shall iden5 tify and include all of the records described 

6 under subparagraph (A) without regard to the 

7 age of the record. 

8 (2) APPLICATION TO PERSONS CONVICTED OF

9 MISDEMEANOR CRIMES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.— 

10 The State shall make available to the Attorney Gen11 eral, for use by the National Instant Criminal Back12 ground Check System, records relevant to a deter13 mination of whether a person has been convicted in 

14 any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic vio15 lence. With respect to records relating to such 

16 crimes, the State shall provide information specifi17 cally describing the offense and the specific section 

18 or subsection of the offense for which the defendant 

19 has been convicted and the relationship of the de20 fendant to the victim in each case. 

21 (3) APPLICATION TO PERSONS WHO HAVE BEEN

22 ADJUDICATED AS A MENTAL DEFECTIVE OR COM23 MITTED TO A MENTAL INSTITUTION.—The State 

24 shall make available to the Attorney General, for use 

25 by the National Instant Criminal Background Check 
19 

•HR 2640 EH

1 System, the name and other relevant identifying in2 formation of persons adjudicated as mentally defec3 tive or those committed to mental institutions to as4 sist the Attorney General in enforcing section 

5 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code. 

6 (d) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—For any information 

7 provided to the Attorney General for use by the National 

8 Instant Criminal Background Check System, relating to 

9 persons prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm 

10 under section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code, 

11 the Attorney General shall work with States and local law 

12 enforcement and the mental health community to establish 

13 regulations and protocols for protecting the privacy of in14 formation provided to the system. The Attorney General 

15 shall make every effort to meet with any mental health 

16 group seeking to express its views concerning these regula17 tions and protocols and shall seek to develop regulations 

18 as expeditiously as practicable. 

19 (e) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—Not later than 

20 January 31 of each year, the Attorney General shall sub21 mit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 

22 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep23 resentatives a report on the progress of States in auto24 mating the databases containing the information described 

25 in subsection (b) and in making that information elec-
20 

•HR 2640 EH

1 tronically available to the Attorney General pursuant to 

2 the requirements of subsection (c). 

3 SEC. 103. IMPLEMENTATION ASSISTANCE TO STATES. 

4 (a) AUTHORIZATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail6 able to carry out this section and subject to section 

7 102(b)(1)(B), the Attorney General shall make 

8 grants to States and Indian tribal governments, in 

9 a manner consistent with the National Criminal His10 tory Improvement Program, which shall be used by 

11 the States and Indian tribal governments, in con12 junction with units of local government and State 

13 and local courts, to establish or upgrade information 

14 and identification technologies for firearms eligibility 

15 determinations. 

16 (2) GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—Up to 5 per17 cent of the grant funding available under this sec18 tion may be reserved for Indian tribal governments, 

19 including tribal judicial systems. 

20 (b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants awarded to 

21 States or Indian tribes under this section may only be 

22 used to— 

23 (1) create electronic systems, which provide ac24 curate and up-to-date information which is directly 

25 related to checks under the National Instant Crimi-
21 

•HR 2640 EH

1 nal Background Check System (referred to in this 

2 section as ‘‘NICS’’), including court disposition and 

3 corrections records; 

4 (2) assist States in establishing or enhancing 

5 their own capacities to perform NICS background 

6 checks; 

7 (3) supply accurate and timely information to 

8 the Attorney General concerning final dispositions of 

9 criminal records to databases accessed by NICS; 

10 (4) supply accurate and timely information to 

11 the Attorney General concerning the identity of per12 sons who are prohibited from obtaining a firearm 

13 under section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States 

14 Code, to be used by the Federal Bureau of Inves15 tigation solely to conduct NICS background checks; 

16 (5) supply accurate and timely court orders and 

17 records of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence 

18 for inclusion in Federal and State law enforcement 

19 databases used to conduct NICS background checks; 

20 and 

21 (6) collect and analyze data needed to dem22 onstrate levels of State compliance with this Act. 

23 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for a grant under 

24 this section, a State shall certify, to the satisfaction of 

25 the Attorney General, that the State has implemented a 
22 

•HR 2640 EH

1 relief from disabilities program in accordance with section 

2 105. 

3 (d) CONDITION.—As a condition of receiving a grant 

4 under this section, a State shall specify the projects for 

5 which grant amounts will be used, and shall use such 

6 amounts only as specified. A State that violates this sub7 section shall be liable to the Attorney General for the full 

8 amount of the grant received under this section. 

9 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

11 $250,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 

12 2010. 

13 (f) USER FEE.—The Federal Bureau of Investigation 

14 shall not charge a user fee for background checks pursu15 ant to section 922(t) of title 18, United States Code. 

16 SEC. 104. PENALTIES FOR NONCOMPLIANCE. 

17 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 31 

19 of each year, the Attorney General shall submit to 

20 the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 

21 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

22 Representatives a report on the progress of the 

23 States in automating the databases containing infor24 mation described under sections 102 and 103, and 
23 

•HR 2640 EH

1 in providing that information pursuant to the re2 quirements of sections 102 and 103. 

3 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 There are authorized to be appropriated to the De5 partment of Justice, such funds as may be necessary 

6 to carry out paragraph (1). 

7 (b) PENALTIES.— 

8 (1) DISCRETIONARY REDUCTION.—During the 

9 2-year period beginning 3 years after the date of en10 actment of this Act, the Attorney General may with11 hold not more than 3 percent of the amount that 

12 would otherwise be allocated to a State under sec13 tion 506 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 

14 Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756) if the State 

15 provides less than 60 percent of the information re16 quired to be provided under sections 102 and 103. 

17 (2) MANDATORY REDUCTION.—After the expi18 ration of the period referred to in paragraph (1), the 

19 Attorney General shall withhold 5 percent of the 

20 amount that would otherwise be allocated to a State 

21 under section 506 of the Omnibus Crime Control 

22 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756), if 

23 the State provides less than 90 percent of the infor24 mation required to be provided under sections 102 

25 and 103. 
24 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (3) WAIVER BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The At2 torney General may waive the applicability of para3 graph (2) to a State if the State provides substantial 

4 evidence, as determined by the Attorney General, 

5 that the State is making a reasonable effort to com6 ply with the requirements of sections 102 and 103. 

7 (c) REALLOCATION.—Any funds that are not allo8 cated to a State because of the failure of the State to com9 ply with the requirements of this title shall be reallocated 

10 to States that meet such requirements. 

11 SEC. 105. RELIEF FROM DISABILITIES PROGRAM REQUIRED 

12 AS CONDITION FOR PARTICIPATION IN 

13 GRANT PROGRAMS. 

14 (a) PROGRAM DESCRIBED.—A relief from disabilities 

15 program is implemented by a State in accordance with this 

16 section if the program— 

17 (1) permits a person who, pursuant to State 

18 law, has been adjudicated as described in subsection 

19 (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code, 

20 or has been committed to a mental institution, to 

21 apply to the State for relief from the disabilities im22 posed by subsections (d)(4) and (g)(4) of such sec23 tion by reason of the adjudication or commitment; 

24 (2) provides that a State court, board, commis25 sion, or other lawful authority shall grant the relief, 
25 

•HR 2640 EH

1 pursuant to State law and in accordance with the 

2 principles of due process, if the circumstances re3 garding the disabilities referred to in paragraph (1), 

4 and the person’s record and reputation, are such 

5 that the person will not be likely to act in a manner 

6 dangerous to public safety and that the granting of 

7 the relief would not be contrary to the public inter8 est; and 

9 (3) permits a person whose application for the 

10 relief is denied to file a petition with the State court 

11 of appropriate jurisdiction for a de novo judicial re12 view of the denial. 

13 (b) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE RELIEF FROM CER14 TAIN DISABILITIES WITH RESPECT TO FIREARMS.—If, 

15 under a State relief from disabilities program implemented 

16 in accordance with this section, an application for relief 

17 referred to in subsection (a)(1) of this section is granted 

18 with respect to an adjudication or a commitment to a men19 tal institution, the adjudication or commitment, as the 

20 case may be, is deemed not to have occurred for purposes 

21 of subsections (d)(4) and (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, 

22 United States Code. 
26 

•HR 2640 EH

1 TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL 

2 ASSISTANCE ON THE IM3 PROVEMENT OF RELEVANT 

4 RECORDS 

5 SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS. 

6 (a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the 

7 Bureau of Justice Statistics (referred to in this section 

8 as the ‘‘Director’’) shall study and evaluate the operations 

9 of the National Instant Criminal Background Check Sys10 tem. Such study and evaluation shall include compilations 

11 and analyses of the operations and record systems of the 

12 agencies and organizations necessary to support such Sys13 tem. 

14 (b) REPORT ON GRANTS.—Not later than January 

15 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Congress 

16 a report containing the estimates submitted by the States 

17 under section 102(b). 

18 (c) REPORT ON BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than 

19 January 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Con20 gress, and to each State participating in the National 

21 Criminal History Improvement Program, a report of the 

22 practices of the States regarding the collection, mainte23 nance, automation, and transmittal of information rel24 evant to determining whether a person is prohibited from 

25 possessing or receiving a firearm by Federal or State law, 
27 

•HR 2640 EH

1 by the State or any other agency, or any other records 

2 relevant to the National Instant Criminal Background 

3 Check System, that the Director considers to be best prac4 tices. 

5 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

7 necessary for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2010 

8 to complete the studies, evaluations, and reports required 

9 under this section. 

10 TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE 

11 COURT SYSTEMS FOR THE IM12 PROVEMENT IN AUTOMATION 

13 AND TRANSMITTAL OF DIS14 POSITION RECORDS 

15 SEC. 301. DISPOSITION RECORDS AUTOMATION AND 

16 TRANSMITTAL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS. 

17 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

18 available to carry out this section, the Attorney General 

19 shall make grants to each State, consistent with State 

20 plans for the integration, automation, and accessibility of 

21 criminal history records, for use by the State court system 

22 to improve the automation and transmittal of criminal his23 tory dispositions, records relevant to determining whether 

24 a person has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of 

25 domestic violence, court orders, and mental health adju-
28 

•HR 2640 EH

1 dications or commitments, to Federal and State record re2 positories in accordance with sections 102 and 103 and 

3 the National Criminal History Improvement Program. 

4 (b) GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—Up to 5 percent 

5 of the grant funding available under this section may be 

6 reserved for Indian tribal governments for use by Indian 

7 tribal judicial systems. 

8 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts granted under this 

9 section shall be used by the State court system only— 

10 (1) to carry out, as necessary, assessments of 

11 the capabilities of the courts of the State for the au12 tomation and transmission of arrest and conviction 

13 records, court orders, and mental health adjudica14 tions or commitments to Federal and State record 

15 repositories; and 

16 (2) to implement policies, systems, and proce17 dures for the automation and transmission of arrest 

18 and conviction records, court orders, and mental 

19 health adjudications or commitments to Federal and 

20 State record repositories. 

21 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

22 under this section, a State shall certify, to the satisfaction 

23 of the Attorney General, that the State has implemented 

24 a relief from disabilities program in accordance with sec25 tion 105. 
29 

•HR 2640 EH

1 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General 

3 to carry out this section $125,000,000 for each of the fis4 cal years 2008 through 2010. 

5 TITLE IV—GAO AUDIT 

6 SEC. 401. GAO AUDIT. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

8 United States shall conduct an audit of the expenditure 

9 of all funds appropriated for criminal records improve10 ment pursuant to section 106(b) of the Brady Handgun 

11 Violence Prevention Act (Public Law 103–159) to deter12 mine if the funds were expended for the purposes author13 ized by the Act and how those funds were expended for 

14 those purposes or were otherwise expended. 

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

16 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

17 submit a report to Congress describing the findings of the 

18 audit conducted pursuant to subsection (a). 

Passed the House of Representatives June 13, 2007. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2640 

AN ACT 

To improve the National Instant Criminal 

Background Check System, and for other purposes.