SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
As used in this Act, the following definitions shall 
apply: 
(1) COURT ORDER.—The term ‘‘court order’’ 
includes—
(A) a court order (as described under sec-
tion 922(g)(8) of title 18, United States Code; 
and 
(B) a protection order (as defined under 
section 2266(5) of title 18, United States Code. 
(2) MENTAL HEALTH TERMS.—The terms ‘‘ad-
judicated as a mental defective’’, ‘‘committed to a 
mental institution’’, and related terms have the 
meanings given those terms in regulations imple-
menting section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States 
Code, as in effect on the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
(3) MISDEMEANOR CRIME OF DOMESTIC VIO-
LENCE.—The term ‘‘misdemeanor crime of domestic 
violence’’—
(A) has the meaning given the term in sec-
tion 921(a)(33) of title 18, United States Code; 
(B) includes any Federal, State, or local 
offense that—
(i) is a misdemeanor under Federal, 
State, local, or tribal law or, in a State
that does not classify offenses as mis-
demeanors, is an offense punishable by im-
prisonment for a term of 1 year or less or 
punishable only by a fine regardless of 
whether or not the State statute specifi-
cally defines the offense as a crime of do-
mestic violence; 
(ii) has, as an element of the offense, 
the use or attempted use of physical force, 
such as assault and battery, or the threat-
ened use of a deadly weapon; and 
(iii) was committed by a current or 
former spouse, parent, or guardian of the 
victim, by a person with whom the victim 
shares a child in common, by a person who 
is cohabiting with or has cohabited with 
the victim as a spouse, parent, or guard-
ian, or a person similarly situated to a 
spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim; 
and 
(C) does not include a crime described 
under subparagraph (A) if—
(i) the person was not convicted by 
the jurisdiction in which the proceeding 
was held;
(ii) the person was not represented by 
counsel in the case and did not knowingly 
or intelligently waive the right to counsel 
in the case; 
(iii) in the case of a prosecution for 
which a person was entitled to a jury trial 
in the jurisdiction in which the case was 
tried—
(I) the case was not tried by a 
jury; and 
(II) the person did not knowingly 
or intelligently waive the right to have 
the case tried by a jury, by guilty 
plea, or otherwise; or 
(iv) the conviction has been expunged 
or set aside, or is an offense for which the 
person has been pardoned or has had civil 
rights restored unless—
(I) the pardon, expungement, or 
restoration of civil rights expressly 
provides that the person may not ship, 
transport, possess, or receive firearms; 
or 
(II) the person is otherwise pro-
hibited by the law of the jurisdiction
in which the proceedings were held 
from receiving or possessing any fire-
arms. 
TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF 
RECORDS 
SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FED-
ERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES PRO-
VIDE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO THE NA-
TIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND 
CHECK SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(e)(1) of the Brady 
Handgun Violence Prevention Act (18 U.S.C. 922 note) 
is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘Notwithstanding’’ and insert-
ing the following: 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘On request’’ and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(B) REQUEST OF ATTORNEY GENERAL.—
On request’’; 
(3) by striking ‘‘furnish such information’’ and 
inserting ‘‘furnish electronic versions of the informa-
tion described under subparagraph (A)’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(C) QUARTERLY SUBMISSION TO ATTOR-
NEY
GENERAL.—If a department or agency 
under subparagraph (A) has any record of any 
person demonstrating that the person falls 
within one of the categories described in sub-
section (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 
United States Code, the head of such depart-
ment or agency shall, not less frequently than 
quarterly, provide the pertinent information 
contained in such record to the Attorney Gen-
eral. 
‘‘(D) INFORMATION UPDATES.—The agen-
cy, on being made aware that the basis under 
which a record was made available under sub-
paragraph (A) does not apply, or no longer ap-
plies, shall—
‘‘(i) update, correct, modify, or re-
move the record from any database that 
the agency maintains and makes available 
to the Attorney General, in accordance 
with the rules pertaining to that database; 
or 
‘‘(ii) notify the Attorney General that 
such basis no longer applies so that the
National Instant Criminal Background 
Check System is kept up to date. 
‘‘(E) ANNUAL
REPORT.—The Attorney 
General shall submit an annual report to Con-
gress that describes the compliance of each de-
partment or agency with the provisions of this 
paragraph.’’. 
(b) PROVISION
AND
MAINTENANCE
OF
NICS 
RECORDS.—
(1) DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY.—
The Department of Homeland Security shall make 
available to the Attorney General—
(A) records, updated not less than quar-
terly, which are relevant to a determination of 
whether a person is disqualified from possessing 
or receiving a firearm under subsection (g) or 
(n) of section 922 of title 18, United States 
Code, for use in NICS background checks; and 
(B) information regarding all the persons 
described under paragraph (1)(A) who have 
changed their status to a category not identified 
under section 922(g)(5) of title 18, United 
States Code, for removal, when applicable, from 
the National Instant Criminal Background 
Check System.
(2) DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—The Attorney 
General shall—
(A) ensure that any information submitted 
to, or maintained by, the Attorney General 
under this section is kept accurate and con-
fidential, as required by the laws, regulations, 
policies, or procedures governing the applicable 
record system; 
(B) provide for the timely removal and de-
struction of obsolete and erroneous names and 
information from the National Instant Criminal 
Background Check System; and 
(C) work with States to encourage the de-
velopment of computer systems, which would 
permit electronic notification to the Attorney 
General when—
(i) a court order has been issued, lift-
ed, or otherwise removed by order of the 
court; or 
(ii) a person has been adjudicated as 
mentally defective or committed to a men-
tal institution. 
SEC. 102. REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN WAIVER. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 3 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act, a State shall be eligible to receive
a waiver of the 10 percent matching requirement for Na-
tional Criminal History Improvement Grants under the 
Crime Identification Technology Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 
14601) if the State provides at least 90 percent of the 
information described in subsection (c). The length of such 
a waiver shall not exceed 2 years. 
(b) STATE ESTIMATES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—To assist the Attorney Gen-
eral in making a determination under subsection (a), 
and under section 104, concerning the compliance of 
the States in providing information to the Attorney 
General for the purpose of receiving a waiver under 
subsection (a), or facing a loss of funds under sec-
tion 104, each State shall provide the Attorney Gen-
eral with a reasonable estimate, as calculated by a 
method determined by the Attorney General, of the 
number of—
(A) criminal history records for mis-
demeanors and felonies; 
(B) State criminal history records with dis-
position information; 
(C) active court orders in the State; and 
(D) State records of persons adjudicated 
mentally defective or committed to a mental in-
stitution.
(2) SCOPE.—The Attorney General, in deter-
mining the compliance of a State under this section 
or section 104 for the purpose of granting a waiver 
or imposing a loss of Federal funds, shall assess the 
total percentage of records provided by the State 
concerning any event occurring within the prior 30 
years, which would disqualify a person from pos-
sessing a firearm under subsection (g) or (n) of sec-
tion 922 of title 18, United States Code. 
(3) CLARIFICATION.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (2), States shall endeavor to provide NICS 
with all records concerning persons who are prohib-
ited from possessing or receiving a firearm under 
subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 
United States Code, regardless of the elapsed time 
since the disqualifying event. 
(c) ELIGIBILITY OF STATE RECORDS FOR SUBMIS-
SION
TO
THE NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACK-
GROUND CHECK SYSTEM.—
(1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—From information col-
lected by a State, the State shall make elec-
tronically available to the Attorney General 
records relevant to a determination of whether 
a person is disqualified from possessing or re-
ceiving a firearm under subsection (g) or (n) of 
section 922 of title 18, United States Code, or 
applicable State law. 
(B) NICS UPDATES.—The State, on being 
made aware that the basis under which a record 
was made available under subparagraph (A) 
does not apply, or no longer applies, shall, as 
soon as practicable—
(i) update, correct, modify, or remove 
the record from any database that the 
Federal or State government maintains 
and makes available to the National In-
stant Criminal Background Check System, 
consistent with the rules pertaining to that 
database; or 
(ii) notify the Attorney General that 
such basis no longer applies so that the 
record system in which the record is main-
tained is kept up to date. 
(C) CERTIFICATION.—To remain eligible 
for a waiver under subsection (a), a State shall 
certify to the Attorney General, not less than 
once during each 2-year period, that at least 90 
percent of all information described in subpara-
graph (A) has been made electronically avail-
able to the Attorney General in accordance with 
subparagraph (A). 
(D) INCLUSION
OF
ALL
RECORDS.—The 
State shall make every effort to identify and in-
clude all of the records described under sub-
paragraph (A) without regard to the age of the 
record. 
(2) APPLICATION TO PERSONS CONVICTED OF 
MISDEMEANOR CRIMES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—
The State shall make available to the Attorney Gen-
eral, for use by the National Instant Criminal Back-
ground Check System, records relevant to a deter-
mination of whether a person has been convicted in 
any court of a misdemeanor crime of domestic vio-
lence. With respect to records relating to such 
crimes, the State shall provide information specifi-
cally describing the offense and the specific section 
or subsection of the offense for which the defendant 
has been convicted and the relationship of the de-
fendant to the victim in each case. 
(3) APPLICATION TO PERSONS WHO HAVE BEEN 
ADJUDICATED AS A MENTAL DEFECTIVE OR COM-
MITTED
TO
A
MENTAL
INSTITUTION.—The State 
shall make available to the Attorney General, for use 
by the National Instant Criminal Background Check
System, the name and other relevant identifying in-
formation of persons adjudicated as mentally defec-
tive or those committed to mental institutions to as-
sist the Attorney General in enforcing section 
922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code. 
(d) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—For any information 
provided to the Attorney General for use by the National 
Instant Criminal Background Check System, relating to 
persons prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm 
under section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code, 
the Attorney General shall work with States and local law 
enforcement and the mental health community to establish 
regulations and protocols for protecting the privacy of in-
formation provided to the system. The Attorney General 
shall make every effort to meet with any mental health 
group seeking to express its views concerning these regula-
tions and protocols and shall seek to develop regulations 
as expeditiously as practicable. 
(e) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—Not later than 
January 31 of each year, the Attorney General shall sub-
mit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep-
resentatives a report on the progress of States in auto-
mating the databases containing the information described 
in subsection (b) and in making that information elec-
tronically available to the Attorney General pursuant to 
the requirements of subsection (c). 
SEC. 103. IMPLEMENTATION ASSISTANCE TO STATES. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail-
able to carry out this section, the Attorney General 
shall make grants to States and Indian tribal gov-
ernments, in a manner consistent with the National 
Criminal History Improvement Program, which shall 
be used by the States and Indian tribal govern-
ments, in conjunction with units of local government 
and State and local courts, to establish or upgrade 
information and identification technologies for fire-
arms eligibility determinations. 
(2) GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—Up to 5 per-
cent of the grant funding available under this sec-
tion may be reserved for Indian tribal governments, 
including tribal judicial systems. 
(b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants awarded to 
States or Indian tribes under this section may only be 
used to—
(1) create electronic systems, which provide ac-
curate and up-to-date information which is directly 
related to checks under the National Instant Crimi-
nal Background Check System (referred to in this
section as ‘‘NICS’’), including court disposition and 
corrections records; 
(2) assist States in establishing or enhancing 
their own capacities to perform NICS background 
checks; 
(3) supply accurate and timely information to 
the Attorney General concerning final dispositions of 
criminal records to databases accessed by NICS; 
(4) supply accurate and timely information to 
the Attorney General concerning the identity of per-
sons who are prohibited from obtaining a firearm 
under section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States 
Code, to be used by the Federal Bureau of Inves-
tigation solely to conduct NICS background checks; 
(5) supply accurate and timely court orders and 
records of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence 
for inclusion in Federal and State law enforcement 
databases used to conduct NICS background checks; 
and 
(6) collect and analyze data needed to dem-
onstrate levels of State compliance with this Act. 
(c) CONDITION.—As a condition of receiving a grant 
under this section, a State shall specify the projects for 
which grant amounts will be used, and shall use such 
amounts only as specified. A State that violates this sub-
section shall be liable to the Attorney General for the full 
amount of the grant received under this section. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$250,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2005 through 
2007. 
(e) USER FEE.—The Federal Bureau of Investiga-
tion shall not charge a user fee for background checks pur-
suant to section 922(t) of title 18, United States Code. 
SEC. 104. PENALTIES FOR NONCOMPLIANCE. 
(a) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 31 
of each year, the Attorney General shall submit to 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 
the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
Representatives a report on the progress of the 
States in automating the databases containing infor-
mation described under sections 102 and 103, and 
in providing that information pursuant to the re-
quirements of sections 102 and 103. 
(2) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.—
There are authorized to be appropriated to the De-
partment of Justice, such funds as may be necessary 
to carry out paragraph (1). 
(b) PENALTIES.—
(1) DISCRETIONARY REDUCTION.—During the 
2-year period beginning 3 years after the date of en-
actment of this Act, the Attorney General may with-
hold not more than 3 percent of the amount that 
would otherwise be allocated to a State under sec-
tion 506 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756) if the State 
provides less than 60 percent of the information re-
quired to be provided under sections 102 and 103. 
(2) MANDATORY REDUCTION.—After the expi-
ration of the period referred to in paragraph (1), the 
Attorney General shall withhold 5 percent of the 
amount that would otherwise be allocated to a State 
under section 506 of the Omnibus Crime Control 
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3756), if 
the State provides less than 90 percent of the infor-
mation required to be provided under sections 102 
and 103. 
(3) WAIVER BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The At-
torney General may waive the applicability of para-
graph (2) to a State if the State provides substantial 
evidence, as determined by the Attorney General, 
that the State is making a reasonable effort to com-
ply with the requirements of sections 102 and 103.
(c) REALLOCATION.—Any funds that are not allo-
cated to a State because of the failure of the State to com-
ply with the requirements of this title shall be reallocated 
to States that meet such requirements. 
TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL 
ASSISTANCE 
ON 
THE 
IM-
PROVEMENT 
OF 
RELEVANT 
RECORDS 
SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS. 
(a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the 
Bureau of Justice Statistics (referred to in this section 
as the ‘‘Director’’) shall study and evaluate the operations 
of the National Instant Criminal Background Check Sys-
tem. Such study and evaluation shall include compilations 
and analyses of the operations and record systems of the 
agencies and organizations necessary to support such Sys-
tem. 
(b) REPORT ON GRANTS.—Not later than January 
31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Congress 
a report containing the estimates submitted by the States 
under section 102(b). 
(c) REPORT ON BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than 
January 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Con-
gress, and to each State participating in the National 
Criminal History Improvement Program, a report of the
practices of the States regarding the collection, mainte-
nance, automation, and transmittal of information rel-
evant to determining whether a person is prohibited from 
possessing or receiving a firearm by Federal or State law, 
by the State or any other agency, or any other records 
relevant to the National Instant Criminal Background 
Check System, that the Director considers to be best prac-
tices. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for each of the fiscal years 2005 through 2007 
to complete the studies, evaluations, and reports required 
under this section. 
TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE 
COURT SYSTEMS FOR THE IM-
PROVEMENT IN AUTOMATION 
AND TRANSMITTAL OF DIS-
POSITION RECORDS 
SEC. 
301. 
DISPOSITION 
RECORDS 
AUTOMATION 
AND 
TRANSMITTAL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS. 
(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 
available to carry out this section, the Attorney General 
shall make grants to each State, consistent with State 
plans for the integration, automation, and accessibility of 
criminal history records, for use by the State court system