I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 3557

To require the establishment of a Federal system for the purpose of conducting background checks to prevent the employment of child abusers by

child care providers, to establish a Federal point-of-purchase background

check system for screening prohibited firearms purchasers, to provide

accurate and immediately accessible records for law enforcement purposes, to assist in the identification and apprehension of violent felons,

and to assist the courts in determining appropriate bail and sentencing

decisions.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOVEMBER 19, 1993

Mr. FRANKS of Connecticut introduced the following bill; which was referred

to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To require the establishment of a Federal system for the

purpose of conducting background checks to prevent the

employment of child abusers by child care providers,

to establish a Federal point-of-purchase background

check system for screening prohibited firearms purchasers, to provide accurate and immediately accessible

records for law enforcement purposes, to assist in the

identification and apprehension of violent felons, and to

assist the courts in determining appropriate bail and

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Criminal

5 Records Identification Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

7 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

8 (1) the technological capability exists to identify

9 violent felons, convicted child abusers, and other

10 predatory criminals through existing criminal justice

11 records;

12 (2) advances in electronic communication and

13 data compilation make it possible to check criminal

14 history records instantaneously to identify child

15 abusers who seek employment or access to child care

16 facilities, felons who attempt to purchase handguns,

17 fugitives for whom arrest warrants exist, and con18 victed persons prior to sentencing by courts of

19 justice;

20 (3) five States are currently demonstrating the

21 practicability of instantaneous electronic screening of

22 handgun purchasers, and other States are dem23 onstrating the practicability of electronic screening

24 of child care personnel;
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1 (4) the vast majority of serious criminal career

2 activity occurs between the ages of 18 and 30; Jus3 tice Department research indicates that 80 percent

4 or more of the current nationwide criminal records

5 for dangerous criminals committing offenses the last

6 5 years are in automated form allowing a viable in7 stant check system to be implemented immediately;

8 (5) a key element in operating the point-of-pur9 chase sale system is a master name index, whether

10 automated or manual, which directs the system to

11 the full criminal history record of an individual; De12 partment of Justice research indicates that such in13 formation is currently 100 percent available in 44 or

14 more States;

15 (6) continuing Department of Justice initiatives

16 for improving criminal history records have directed

17 State remedial efforts toward automating criminal

18 records in reverse chronological order, focusing on

19 persons with a record of criminal activity within the

20 last 5 years;

21 (7) at least 39 States, which account for more

22 than 80 percent of all criminal records, have a fully

23 automated master name index; even in States where

24 the records are not fully automated, immediate na-
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1 tional accessibility is available through the name

2 index in virtually all cases;

3 (8) thirty-two States with fully automated

4 criminal histories include final results or have dis5 position rates of criminal charges at rates that equal

6 or surpass those available in Florida and Virginia,

7 both of which States successfully operate instant

8 background screening systems on firearms pur9 chasers;

10 (9) in each of the 5 States currently using in11 stant background check systems for firearms pur12 chases, the time between the enactment of the legis13 lation establishing the systems and the actual online

14 usage was less than 1 year; in 4 of those States, the

15 online implementation of the system required be16 tween 6 and 9 months;

17 (10) as a result of earmarking 5 percent of

18 funds available under the Omnibus Crime Control

19 and Safe Streets Act of 1968, an additional

20 $20,000,000 was provided to the States in 1992 for

21 the purpose of developing and improving access to

22 automated criminal history records;

23 (11) over 1,000,000 people are currently incar24 cerated in the United States, and more than

25 3,000,000 people are on probation or parole;
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1 (12) instant retrieval of accurate criminal

2 records greatly enhances the ability of law enforce3 ment officers in the field to identify dangerous sus4 pects and enables courts of justice to make informed

5 decisions for conditions of release and imposition of

6 sentence;

7 (13) preschool and adolescent child care edu8 cation programs have upwards of 50,000,000 chil9 dren enrolled; more than 6,000,000 children receive

10 some form of out-of-home care, and the number of

11 children enrolled in day care is projected to increase

12 substantially over the next decade;

13 (14) child abuse is an extremely serious na14 tional problem; it is estimated that each year over

15 500,000 children are victims; the emotional and psy16 chological consequences of abuse are devastating,

17 not only to the victim, but to the family and friends

18 of the child; child abuse undermines public con19 fidence in the individuals and systems which provide

20 care, education, supervision, or recreation for our

21 children;

22 (15) predatory child molesters commit sexual

23 crimes against a staggering number of children, and

24 are similar to the serial killers in their commitment

25 to perpetrating numbers of heinous crimes;
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1 (16) there is an extremely high rate of recidi2 vism among child sex abusers; even when they are

3 apprehended and punished, the lack of adequate de4 tection and monitoring of sexual predators who mi5 grate from State to State poses a particularly

6 sinister threat to children;

7 (17) at least 22 States currently require a

8 criminal history check or permit access to criminal

9 information systems to screen people who will have

10 substantial contact with children, and a number of

11 States are considering initiatives to develop systems

12 for screening child care providers;

13 (18) the States are severely hampered in their

14 ability to protect children from child abuse outside

15 the home because of the incompleteness and inacces16 sibility of the national criminal history records nec17 essary for screening child care providers for a

18 history of child abuse crimes;

19 (19) screening the background of a potential

20 child care provider for a history of child abuse

21 crimes, the overwhelming majority of whom are car22 ing and professional individuals, does not violate the

23 individual’s rights, nor does instant background

24 screening of prospective handgun purchasers, vir25 tually all of whom are law-abiding citizens, violate
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1 their individual rights under the Second and Four2 teenth Amendments to the United States Constitu3 tion to keep and bear arms; and

4 (20) the creation of a nationally accessible and

5 accurate database on criminal offenders will yield

6 general benefits to law enforcement authorities by—

7 (A) permitting the immediate review of ac8 curate criminal records by officers in the field,

9 thus protecting their safety and improving their

10 response to crime;

11 (B) enabling cross-comparisons of homi12 cides, acts of violence, and criminal activity,

13 thus assisting discovery of patterns of serial

14 murderers, gang migrations, or other concerted

15 criminal activities; and

16 (C) generally improving information with

17 regard to criminal trends and behavior, thus al18 lowing a more effective law enforcement re19 sponse to protect the public.

20 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—

21 (1) to create a Federal instant background

22 check system to—

23 (A) identify persons for whom there are

24 outstanding arrest warrants so that law en-
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1 forcement officers may be protected in the field

2 and may apprehend fugitives from justice;

3 (B) screen prospective handgun purchasers

4 to prevent persons who are prohibited by chap5 ter 44 of title 18, United States Code, from

6 purchasing handguns from licensed dealers;

7 (C) establish a uniform Federal framework

8 to ensure that States that conduct background

9 checks for child care providers are able to ob10 tain access to accurate and complete criminal

11 history information from across the Nation; and

12 (D) enable the courts to have ready access

13 to criminal history background information to

14 aid in establishing appropriate bail for defend15 ants and to aid in imposing sentences on per16 sons convicted of serious crimes;

17 (2) to provide the resources for each State to

18 implement a computerized criminal records system

19 that incorporates, on a continuing basis, the records

20 of crimes committed by persons with a record of

21 criminal activity dating back at least a decade;

22 (3) to provide a continuing funding mechanism

23 to ensure the long-term viability of the system;

24 (4) to require the Attorney General to develop

25 regulations implementing national uniform guide-
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1 lines to allow States to determine if a person who

2 seeks employment as a child care provider should be

3 prohibited because of past criminal activity in an4 other State;

5 (5) to determine and to report on the status of

6 State criminal history records systems, and deter7 mine what needs to be done by each State to imple8 ment an effective instant background check system;

9 (6) to determine the means by which a federally

10 accessible network of criminal history records can be

11 accessed by the States;

12 (7) to provide the means of communication to

13 allow law enforcement authorities and the courts to

14 function more efficiently and effectively in carrying

15 out their duty to preserve public order and protect

16 the citizenry; and

17 (8) to provide for the privacy and to protect the

18 rights of the persons who will be screened by the

19 system.

20 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

21 In this Act—

22 (1) ‘‘authorized agency’’ means a division or of23 fice of a State designated by a State to report, re24 ceive, or disseminate information under this Act;

25 (2) ‘‘background check crime’’ means—
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1 (A) for the purpose of screening child care

2 providers, a child abuse crime, murder, man3 slaughter, aggravated assault, kidnapping,

4 arson, sexual assault, domestic violence, incest,

5 indecent exposure, prostitution, promotion of

6 prostitution, and a felony offense involving the

7 use or distribution of a controlled substance;

8 and

9 (B) for the purpose of screening handgun

10 purchasers, a crime punishable by imprison11 ment for a term exceeding 1 year within the

12 meaning of section 921(a)(20) of title 18,

13 United States Code;

14 (3) ‘‘child’’ means a person who is a child for

15 purposes of the criminal child abuse law of a State;

16 (4) ‘‘child abuse’’ means physical or mental in17 jury, sexual abuse or exploitation, neglectful treat18 ment, negligent treatment, or maltreatment of a

19 child by a person in violation of the criminal child

20 abuse laws of a State;

21 (5) ‘‘child abuse crime’’ means a crime commit22 ted under a law of a State that establishes criminal

23 penalties for the commission of child abuse by a par24 ent or other family member of a child or by any

25 other person;
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1 (6) ‘‘child abuse crime information’’ means the

2 following facts concerning a person who is under in3 dictment for, or has been convicted of, a child abuse

4 crime: full name, social security number, race, date

5 of birth, a brief description of the child abuse crime

6 or offenses for which the person is under indictment

7 or has been convicted, and any other information

8 that the Attorney General determines may be useful

9 in identifying persons under indictment for, or con10 victed of, a child abuse crime;

11 (7) ‘‘child care’’ means the provision of care,

12 treatment, education, training, instruction, super13 vision, or recreation to children;

14 (8) ‘‘domestic violence’’ means a felony or mis15 demeanor involving the use or threatened use of

16 force by—

17 (A) a present or former spouse of the

18 victim;

19 (B) a person with whom the victim shares

20 a child in common;

21 (C) a person who is cohabiting with or has

22 cohabited with the victim as a spouse; or

23 (D) any person defined as a spouse of the

24 victim under the domestic or family violence

25 laws of a State;
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1 (9) ‘‘exploitation’’ means child pornography and

2 child prostitution;

3 (10) ‘‘handgun’’ has the meaning stated in sec4 tion 921(a) of title 18, United States Code;

5 (11) ‘‘licensee’’ means an importer, manufac6 turer, or dealer (as defined in section 921(a) of title

7 18, United States Code) that is licensed under sec8 tion 923 of title 18, United States Code;

9 (12) ‘‘mental injury’’ means harm to a child’s

10 psychological or intellectual functioning, which may

11 be exhibited by severe anxiety, depression, with12 drawal or outward aggressive behavior, or a com13 bination of those behaviors or by a change in behav14 ior, emotional response, or cognition;

15 (13) ‘‘negligent treatment’’ means the failure to

16 provide, for a reason other than poverty, adequate

17 food, clothing, shelter, or medical care so as to seri18 ously endanger the physical health of a child;

19 (14) ‘‘physical injury’’ includes lacerations,

20 fractured bones, burns, internal injuries, severe

21 bruising, and serious bodily harm;

22 (15) ‘‘provider’’ means—

23 (A) a person who—

24 (i) is employed by a qualified entity;
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1 (ii) who owns or operates a qualified

2 entity; or

3 (iii) who has or may have unsuper4 vised access to a child to whom the quali5 fied entity provides child care; and

6 (B) a person who—

7 (i) seeks to be employed by a qualified

8 entity; or

9 (ii) seeks to own or operate a qualified

10 entity;

11 (16) ‘‘qualified entity’’ means a public or pri12 vate business or organization that provides child

13 care or child care placement services, including a

14 business or organization that licenses or certifies

15 others to provide child care or child care placement

16 services;

17 (17) ‘‘sex crime’’ means an act of sexual abuse

18 that is a criminal act;

19 (18) ‘‘sexual abuse’’ includes the employment,

20 use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion

21 of a child to engage in, or assist another person to

22 engage in, sexually explicit conduct or the rape, mo23 lestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual ex24 ploitation of children or incest with children; and
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1 (19) ‘‘State’’ means a State, the District of Co2 lumbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Amer3 ican Samoa, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and the

4 Trust Territories of the Pacific.

5 SEC. 4. STATE INSTANT CRIMINAL CHECK SYSTEMS FOR

6 HANDGUN PURCHASES.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date that is

8 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act, each

9 State shall establish and maintain a system that, on re10 ceipt of an inquiry from a licensee pursuant to section

11 922(s)(1) of title 18, United States Code, immediately re12 searches the criminal history of a prospective handgun

13 transferee, advises the licensee whether its records dem14 onstrate that such transferee is prohibited from receiving

15 a handgun by reason of section 922 (g) or (n) of title 18,

16 United States Code, and, if such transferee is not so pro17 hibited, provides the licensee a unique identification num18 ber with respect to the transfer.

19 (b) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—A State instant

20 criminal check system shall—

21 (1) provide for the privacy and security of the

22 information contained in the system to an extent

23 equal, at a minimum, to the protections and rem24 edies provided in section 552a(g) of title 5, United

25 States Code;
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1 (2) ensure that information conveyed to the sys2 tem by a licensee pursuant to section 922(s)(1) of

3 title 18, United States Code, is not retained in any

4 form whatsoever, is not conveyed to any person ex5 cept a person who has a need to know to carry out

6 the purpose of that section, and is not used for any

7 purpose other than to carry out that section; and

8 (3) provide to a prospective handgun transferee

9 who is denied receipt of a handgun on the basis of

10 information provided by the system a procedure for

11 the correction of erroneous information as otherwise

12 set forth in this Act.

13 (c) PROHIBITIONS ON USES OF INFORMATION.—

14 (1) RECORDATION BY THE GOVERNMENT.—No

15 record or portion thereof generated by an inquiry

16 concerning or a search of the criminal history of a

17 prospective transferee under a State instant criminal

18 check system established under subsection (a) shall

19 be recorded at or transferred to a facility owned,

20 managed, or controlled by the United States or any

21 State or political subdivision thereof.

22 (2) REGISTRATION OF OWNERSHIP.—Neither

23 the United States, a State, or any political subdivi24 sion thereof shall use information provided by a li25 censee pursuant to a State instant criminal check
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1 system established under subsection (a) to establish

2 any system for the registration of handguns, hand3 gun owners, or handgun transactions or dispositions,

4 except with respect to persons who are prohibited

5 from receiving a handgun by section 922 (g) or (n)

6 of title 18, United States Code.

7 SEC. 5. AMENDMENT OF CHAPTER 44 OF TITLE 18, UNITED

8 STATES CODE.

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 921(a) of title 18, United

10 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow11 ing new paragraph:

12 ‘‘(29) The term ‘handgun’ means—

13 ‘‘(A) a firearm (other than a firearm that is a

14 curio or relic under criteria established by the Sec15 retary by regulation) that has a short stock and is

16 designed to be held and fired by the use of a single

17 hand; and

18 ‘‘(B) any combination of parts designed and in19 tended to be assembled into such a firearm and from

20 which such a firearm can be readily assembled.’’.

21 (b) IDENTIFICATION PROCEDURE.—Section 922 of

22 title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the

23 end the following new subsection:

24 ‘‘(s)(1) Upon a State instant criminal check system

25 becoming operational pursuant to the Federal Criminal
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1 Records Identification Act of 1993, and notice by an ap2 propriate State official by certified mail to each licensee

3 in the State that such system is operational, a licensed

4 importer, licensed manufacturer, or licensed dealer shall

5 not knowingly transfer a handgun from the business in6 ventory of such licensee to any other person who is not

7 licensed under this chapter before the completion of the

8 transfer unless the licensee contacts the State instant

9 criminal check system.’’.

10 (b) IDENTIFICATION PROCEDURE.—Section 922 of

11 title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the

12 end the following new subsection:

13 ‘‘(A) the State system notifies the licensee that

14 the system has not located any record that dem15 onstrates that the receipt of a handgun by such

16 other person would violate section 922 (g) or (n); or

17 ‘‘(B) at least 8 hours have elapsed since the li18 censee first contacted the system with respect to the

19 transfer, and the system has not notified the licensee

20 that the information available to the system dem21 onstrates that the receipt of a handgun by the per22 son would violate section 922 (g) or (n).

23 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a handgun

24 transfer between a licensee and another person if—
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1 ‘‘(A) the other person presents to the licensee

2 a valid permit or license issued by the State or a po3 litical subdivision of the State in which the transfer

4 is to occur that authorizes the person to purchase,

5 possess, or carry a firearm;

6 ‘‘(B) the Secretary has, under section 5812 of

7 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, approved the

8 transfer;

9 ‘‘(C) the ability of the licensee to exchange in10 formation with the system described in paragraph

11 (1) is impaired for a period of more than 8 hours

12 due to natural or human disaster, insurrection, riot,

13 hurricane, other act of God, or other circumstance

14 beyond the control of the licensee; or

15 ‘‘(D) on application of the licensee, the State

16 instant criminal check system has certified that com17 pliance with paragraph (1)(A) is impracticable be18 cause of the inability of the licensee to communicate

19 with the system due to the remote location of the li20 censed premises.

21 ‘‘(3) If the State instant criminal check system noti22 fies the licensee that the information available to the sys23 tem does not demonstrate that the receipt of a handgun

24 by the person would violate section 922 (g) or (n), and

25 the licensee transfers a handgun to the person, the li-
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1 censee shall include in the record of the transfer the

2 unique identification number provided by the system with

3 respect to the transfer.

4 ‘‘(4)(A) If the licensee knowingly transfers a handgun

5 to a person and willfully fails to comply with paragraph

6 (1) with respect to the transfer and, at the time of the

7 transfer, the State instant criminal check system was op8 erating and information was available to the system dem9 onstrating that receipt of a handgun by the person would

10 violate section 922 (g) or (n), the Secretary may, after

11 notice and opportunity for a hearing, suspend for not more

12 than 12 months or revoke any license issued to the licensee

13 under this section, and may impose on the licensee a civil

14 fine of not more than $10,000.

15 ‘‘(B) Any action by the Secretary under subpara16 graph (A) shall be subject to the procedures and remedies

17 provided in section 923 (e) and (f).

18 ‘‘(5) A State employee responsible for providing infor19 mation through a State instant criminal check system

20 shall not be liable in an action at law for damages for

21 failure to prevent the sale or transfer of a handgun to

22 a person whose receipt or possession of a handgun is un23 lawful under this section.

24 ‘‘(6) Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation of

25 a State or political subdivision of a State that requires
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1 a waiting period prior to the receipt or sale of a handgun,

2 after a State instant criminal check system has been

3 placed in operation, a licensee may transfer, and a person

4 may receive, a handgun immediately upon notification of

5 the licensee pursuant to subparagraph (1)(A). No permit

6 or license shall be required by any State or political sub7 division of a State for such transfer or receipt.’’.

8 (c) PENALTY.—Section 924(a) of title 18, United

9 States Code, is amended—

10 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘(2) or (3)’’

11 and inserting ‘‘(2), (3), (4), or (5)’’; and

12 (2) by adding at the end the following new

13 paragraph:

14 ‘‘(5) A person who willfully violates section 922(s)

15 shall be fined not more than $2,000, imprisoned not more

16 than 1 year, or both.’’.

17 SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF CRIMINAL

18 HISTORY SYSTEM.

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SYSTEM.—Each State

20 shall establish a system accessible by telephone, and may

21 establish other electronic means in addition to telephonic

22 communication, that any licensee, provider, law enforce23 ment officer, or court of law may contact for criminal his24 tory information. Information available to a licensee shall

25 be limited to information concerning a background check
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1 crime or other information concerning whether receipt of

2 a handgun by a prospective transferee would violate sec3 tion 922 (g) or (n) of title 18, United States Code. Infor4 mation available to a provider shall be limited to a back5 ground check crime. Information available to law enforce6 ment officers and to courts of law shall include informa7 tion concerning any arrest or conviction for any crime.

8 (b) CONTINUOUS OPERATION.—Each State shall

9 take such steps as are necessary to ensure that the system

10 operates continuously and without closing, at all times and

11 days of each year for purposes of inquiries from law en12 forcement officers, licensees, and courts.

13 SEC. 7. OPERATION OF SYSTEM FOR PURPOSE OF SCREEN14 ING HANDGUN PURCHASERS.

15 (a) ACCURACY OF RESPONSES.—Each State shall

16 take such steps as are necessary to ensure that not more

17 than 2 percent of initial telephone responses of the system

18 contain erroneous determinations that receipt of a hand19 gun by a prospective handgun transferee would violate sec20 tion 922 (g) or (n) of title 18, United States Code.

21 (b) NOTIFICATION OF LICENSEES.—On establish22 ment of a system under this section, each respective State

23 shall notify the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Sec24 retary shall notify each licensee of the existence and pur-
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1 pose of the system and the telephone number and other

2 electronic means that may be used to contact the system.

3 (c) OPERATION OF THE SYSTEM.—

4 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR PROVISION OF INFOR5 MATION.—The system established under this section

6 shall not provide information to any person who

7 places a telephone call to the system with respect to

8 a person unless—

9 (A) the system verifies that the caller is a

10 licensee; and

11 (B) the licensee—

12 (i) states that a person seeks to pur13 chase a handgun from the licensee; and

14 (ii) provides the name, birth date, and

15 social security number (or if the transferee

16 does not have a social security number,

17 other identifying information about the

18 proposed transferee as required to make a

19 valid identification).

20 (2) INFORMATION TO BE PROVIDED.—

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the system receives a

22 telephone call with respect to the transfer of a

23 handgun to a person and the requirements of

24 paragraph (1) are met, the system shall, in ac25 cordance with subparagraph (B)—
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1 (i) if the receipt of a handgun by the

2 person would violate section 922 (g) or (n)

3 of title 18, United States Code, inform the

4 licensee that the transfer is disapproved;

5 and

6 (ii) if such a receipt would not violate

7 section 922 (g) or (h) of title 18, United

8 States Code—

9 (I) assign a unique identification

10 number to the transfer;

11 (II) provide the licensee with the

12 number; and

13 (III) destroy all records of the

14 system with respect to the call (other

15 than the identifying number and the

16 date the number was assigned) and all

17 records of the system relating to the

18 person or the transfer.

19 (B) TIMING.—

20 (i) PROMPT RESPONSE REQUIRED.—

21 The system shall make every effort to pro22 vide to the caller the information required

23 by subparagraph (A) immediately or by re24 turn telephone call without delay.
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1 (ii) RULES GOVERNING DELAYED RE2 SPONSES.—If the system is unable to re3 spond immediately to the inquiry due to

4 circumstances beyond the control of the

5 system, the system shall—

6 (I) advise the caller that the re7 sponse of the system will be delayed

8 and state the reasons for the delay

9 and the estimated length of the delay;

10 and

11 (II) make every effort to provide

12 the information required by subpara13 graph (A) within 8 hours after the li14 censee first contacted the system with

15 respect to the transfer.

16 (d) CORRECTION OF ERRONEOUS SYSTEM.—

17 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES.—If the sys18 tem established under this section informs a licensee

19 that receipt of a handgun by a person would violate

20 section 922 (g) or (n) of title 18, United States

21 Code, the person may request the system to provide

22 him or her in writing with a detailed explanation of

23 the reasons therefore. Within 5 days after receipt of

24 such a request, the system shall comply with the re25 quest. The requestor may submit to the system in-
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1 formation to correct, clarify, or supplement records

2 of the system with respect to the requestor. Within

3 5 days after receipt of such information, the system

4 shall consider such information, investigate the mat5 ter further, and correct all erroneous records relat6 ing to the requestor and notify any department or

7 agency of the United States or of any State or polit8 ical subdivision of a State that was the source of the

9 erroneous records or such errors.

10 (2) PRIVATE CAUSE OF ACTION.—After all ad11 ministrative remedies are exhausted and such

12 records are not corrected, a person disapproved for

13 the purchase or receipt of a handgun because the

14 system established under this section provided erro15 neous information relating to the person may bring

16 an action in any court of competent jurisdiction

17 against the United States, or any State or political

18 subdivision of a State that is the source of the erro19 neous information, for damages (including con20 sequential damages), injunctive relief, mandamus,

21 and such other relief as the court may deem appro22 priate. If the person prevails in the action, the court

23 shall allow the person a reasonable attorney’s fee as

24 part of the costs.
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1 SEC. 8. REPORTING OF CHILD ABUSE INFORMATION.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—An authorized agency of a State

3 shall report child abuse crime information to the Federal

4 criminal background check system.

5 (b) PROVISION OF STATE CHILD ABUSE CRIME

6 RECORDS TO THE FEDERAL CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

7 CHECK SYSTEM.— Not later than 180 days after the date

8 of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall—

9 (1) investigate the criminal records of each

10 State and determine for each State a timetable by

11 which the State should be able to provide child

12 abuse crime records on an online capacity basis to

13 the Federal criminal background check system;

14 (2) establish guidelines for the reporting of

15 child abuse crime information, including guidelines

16 relating to the format, content, and accuracy of child

17 abuse crime information and other procedures for

18 carrying out this Act; and

19 (3) notify each State of the determinations

20 made pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B).

21 (c) EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION.—An authorized

22 agency of a State shall maintain close liaison with the Na23 tional Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, the National

24 Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and the Na25 tional Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse for the
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1 exchange of information and technical assistance in cases

2 of child abuse.

3 (d) ANNUAL SUMMARY.—The Attorney General shall

4 publish an annual statistical summary of the child abuse

5 crime information reported under this Act. The annual

6 statistical summary shall not contain any information that

7 may reveal the identity of any particular victim of a crime.

8 (e) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Attorney General shall

9 publish an annual summary of each State’s progress in

10 reporting child abuse crime information to the Federal

11 criminal background check system.

12 (f) STUDY OF CHILD ABUSE OFFENDERS.—(1) Not

13 later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this

14 Act, the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice

15 and Delinquency Prevention shall begin a study based on

16 a statistically significant sample of convicted child abuse

17 offenders and other relevant information to determine—

18 (A) the percentage of convicted child abuse of19 fenders who have more than 1 conviction for an of20 fense involving child abuse;

21 (B) the percentage of convicted child abuse of22 fenders who have been convicted of an offense in23 volving child abuse in more than 1 State;

24 (C) whether there are crimes or classes of

25 crimes, in addition to those defined as background
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1 check crimes, that are indicative of a potential to

2 abuse children; and

3 (D) the extent to which and the manner in

4 which instances of child abuse form a basis for con5 victions for crimes other than child abuse crimes.

6 (2) Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment

7 of this Act, the Administrator shall submit a report to the

8 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Com9 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives

10 containing a description of and a summary of the results

11 of the study conducted pursuant to paragraph (1).

12 SEC. 9. BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR CHILD CARE PROVID13 ERS.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—

15 (1) PROCEDURES FOR MAKING REQUEST FOR

16 BACKGROUND CHECK.—A State may have in effect

17 procedures (established by or under State statute or

18 regulation) to permit a qualified entity to contact an

19 authorized agency of the State to request a nation20 wide background check for the purpose of determin21 ing whether a provider is under indictment for, or

22 has been convicted of, a background check crime.

23 (2) ACCESS THROUGH NATIONAL CRIMINAL

24 BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM.—The authorized

25 agency shall access and review State and Federal
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1 records of background check crimes through the na2 tional criminal background check system and other

3 criminal justice record keeping systems and shall re4 spond promptly to the inquiry.

5 (b) GUIDELINES.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall

7 establish guidelines for State background check pro8 cedures established under subsection (a), including

9 procedures for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

10 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The guidelines estab11 lished under paragraph (1) shall require—

12 (A) that no qualified entity may request a

13 background check of a provider under sub14 section (a) unless the provider first completes

15 and signs a statement that—

16 (i) contains the name, address, date of

17 birth, and social security number of the

18 provider;

19 (ii) the provider is not under indict20 ment for, and has not been convicted of, a

21 background check crime and, if the pro22 vider is under indictment for or has been

23 convicted of a background check crime,

24 contains a description of the crime and the

25 particulars of the indictment or conviction;
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1 (iii) notifies the provider that the en2 tity may request a background check under

3 subsection (a);

4 (iv) notifies the provider of the provid5 er’s rights under subparagraph (B); and

6 (v) notifies the provider that prior to

7 the receipt of the background check the

8 qualified entity may deny the provider em9 ployment;

10 (B) that each State establish procedures

11 under which a provider who is the subject of a

12 background check under subsection (a) is enti13 tled—

14 (i) to obtain a copy of any background

15 check report; and

16 (ii) to challenge the accuracy and

17 completeness of any information contained

18 in any such report;

19 (C) that an authorized agency to which a

20 qualified entity has provided notice pursuant to

21 subsection (a) make reasonable efforts to review

22 available criminal history records and respond

23 to the qualified entity;

24 (D) that the response of an authorized

25 agency to an inquiry pursuant to subsection (a)
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1 inform the qualified entity that the background

2 check pursuant to this section—

3 (i) may not reflect all indictments or

4 convictions for a background check crime;

5 (ii) is not certain to include arrest in6 formation; and

7 (iii) should not be the sole basis for

8 determining the fitness of a provider;

9 (E) that the response of an authorized

10 agency to an inquiry pursuant to subsection

11 (a)—

12 (i) state whether the background

13 check information set forth in the identi14 fication document required under subpara15 graph (A) is complete and accurate; and

16 (ii) be limited to the information rea17 sonably required to accomplish the pur18 poses of this Act;

19 (F) that no qualified entity may take ac20 tion adverse to a provider, except that the

21 qualified entity may choose to deny the provider

22 employment on the basis of a background check

23 under subsection (a) until the provider has ob24 tained a determination as to the validity of any
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1 challenge under subparagraph (B) or waived

2 the right to make such challenge;

3 (G) that each State establish procedures to

4 ensure that any background check under sub5 section (a) and the results thereof shall be re6 quested by and provided only to—

7 (i) qualified entities identified by

8 States;

9 (ii) authorized representatives of a

10 qualified entity who have a need to know

11 such information;

12 (iii) the providers;

13 (iv) law enforcement authorities; or

14 (v) pursuant to the direction of a

15 court of law;

16 (H) that background check information

17 conveyed to a qualified entity pursuant to sub18 section (a) shall not be conveyed to any person

19 except as provided under subparagraph (G);

20 and

21 (I) that an authorized agency, State em22 ployee or a political subdivision of a State or

23 employee thereof responsible for providing in24 formation to the Federal criminal background

25 check system shall not be liable in an action at
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1 law for damages for failure to prevent a quali2 fied entity from taking action adverse to a pro3 vider on the basis of a background check.

4 (c) EQUIVALENT PROCEDURES.—

5 (1) CERTIFICATION.—Notwithstanding any6 thing to the contrary in this Act, the Attorney Gen7 eral may certify that a State licensing or certifi8 cation procedure that differs from the procedures

9 described in subsections (a) and (b) shall be deemed

10 to be the equivalent of such procedures for purposes

11 of this Act, but the procedures described in sub12 sections (a) and (b) shall continue to apply to those

13 qualified entities, providers, and background check

14 crimes that are not governed by or included within

15 the State licensing or certification procedure.

16 (2) CRITERIA.—The Attorney General shall by

17 regulation establish criteria for certifications under

18 this subsection. Such criteria shall include a finding

19 by the Attorney General that the State licensing or

20 certification procedure accomplishes the purposes of

21 this Act and incorporates a nationwide review of

22 State and Federal records of background check of23 fenses through the Federal criminal background

24 check system.
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1 (d) RECORDS EXCHANGE.—The Attorney General

2 may exchange Federal Bureau of Investigation identifica3 tion records with authorized agencies for purposes of back4 ground checks under subsection (a) and may by regulation

5 authorize further dissemination of such records by author6 ized agencies for such purposes.

7 (e) TECHNOLOGY.—The Attorney General shall, to

8 the maximum extent possible, encourage the use of the

9 best technology available in conducting background

10 checks.

11 SEC. 10. IMPROVEMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE RECORDS.

12 (a) EXPEDITED ACTION BY THE ATTORNEY GEN13 ERAL.—The Attorney General shall expedite—

14 (1) the incorporation of the remaining State

15 criminal history records into the Federal criminal

16 records systems maintained by the Federal Bureau

17 of Investigation; and

18 (2) the development of hardware and software

19 systems to link State criminal history check systems

20 into the National Crime Information Center.

21 SEC. 11. ACCESS TO STATE CRIMINAL RECORDS.

22 (a) MEANS OF COMMUNICATION.—Not later than 60

23 days after the date of enactment of this Act the Attorney

24 General shall—
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1 (1) determine the type of computer hardware

2 and software that shall be used to operate the Fed3 eral criminal records system and the means by which

4 State criminal records system shall communicate

5 with the Federal system;

6 (2) investigate the criminal records system of

7 each State and determine for each State the extent

8 of such accessible criminal records that each State

9 shall be able to provide thereafter to the Federal

10 system by the effective date of section 922(s) of title

11 18, United States Code, as added by section 5; and

12 (3) notify each State of the determination made

13 pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2).

14 (b) FEDERAL SYSTEM.—Not later than the effective

15 date of section 922(s) of title 18, United States Code, as

16 added by section 5, the Attorney General shall provide to

17 each State access to the Federal Crime Information Cen18 ter, including the records of other States through a net19 work, for the purpose of permitting the State to conduct

20 instant criminal background checks required by that

21 section.

22 SEC. 12. IMPROVEMENTS IN STATE RECORDS.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 509(b) of title I of the

24 Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42

25 U.S.C. 3759(b)) is amended—
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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

2 (2);

3 (2) by striking the period at the end of para4 graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

5 (3) by adding at the end the following new

6 paragraph:

7 ‘‘(4) the improvement of State record systems

8 and the sharing of all of the records described in

9 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and the records re10 quired by this Act with the Attorney General for the

11 purpose of implementing this Act.’’.

12 (b) ADDITIONAL FUNDING.—Section 509 of title I of

13 the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968

14 (42 U.S.C. 3759) is amended by adding at the end the

15 following new subsection:

16 ‘‘(e) In addition to other funds authorized in this Act,

17 there are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year

18 1994, to be available until expended, $21,000,000 for the

19 purpose of implementing subsection (b)(4).’’.

20 (c) WITHHOLDING FUNDS.—

21 (1) Effective on the effective date of section

22 922(s) of title 18, United States Code, as added by

23 section 5, the Attorney General may refuse to make

24 grants under title I of the Omnibus Crime Control

25 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to a State that does
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1 not establish and operate a State criminal back2 ground check system in compliance with subsection

3 (b)(1)(A) of this section and section 922(s) of title

4 18, United States Code. No State that receives

5 funds pursuant to the Federal Criminal Records

6 Identification Act of 1993 may charge more than $3

7 per transaction to check for the existence of a felony

8 record of a prospective purchaser of a handgun.

9 (2) Effective 1 year after the date of enactment

10 of this Act, the Attorney General may reduce by up

11 to 10 percent the allocation to a State for a fiscal

12 year under title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and

13 Safe Streets Act of 1968 of a State that is not in

14 compliance with this Act, and the portion of the

15 amounts that are appropriated for allocation to the

16 States under that title for that fiscal year that is

17 equal to the amount of the reduction shall thereby

18 be rescinded.

19 SEC. 13. FUNDING OF STATE CRIMINAL RECORDS SYSTEMS

20 AND DEDICATION OF FUNDS.

21 (a) INCREASE IN SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS.—Section

22 3013(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended—

23 (1) in paragraph (1)(A)(iii) by striking ‘‘$25’’

24 and inserting ‘‘$30’’;
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1 (2) in paragraph (2)(A) by striking ‘‘$50’’ and

2 inserting ‘‘$75’’; and

3 (3) in paragraph (2)(B) by striking ‘‘$200’’ and

4 inserting ‘‘$250’’.

5 (b) SYSTEMS FOR SCREENING CHILD CARE PROVID6 ERS AND HANDGUN PURCHASERS AND FOR CRIMINAL

7 JUSTICE PURPOSES.—Notwithstanding any other law, $5

8 of each assessment collected under section 3013

9 (a)(1)(A)(iii) of title 18, United States Code, $25 of each

10 assessment collected under subsection (a)(2)(A) of that

11 section, and $50 of each assessment collected under sub12 section (a)(2)(B) of that section shall be paid to the

13 States, in proportion to the respective populations thereof,

14 for the purposes of carrying out the Federal Criminal

15 Records Identification Act of 1993.

16 SEC. 14. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro18 priated such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.

19 (b) LIMITATION ON USE.—No appropriation, grant,

20 or fund authorized under this Act shall be used for any

21 purpose other than the creation, maintenance, and oper22 ation of systems for access to criminal history records and

23 screening systems for handgun purchasers and child care

24 providers as provided in this Act.
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