In the Senate of the United States,
December 19, 2007.
Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representa-
tives (H.R. 2640) entitled ‘‘An Act to improve the National
Instant Criminal Background Check System, and for other
purposes.’’, do pass with the following
AMENDMENT:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TILE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘NICS
Improvement Amendments Act of 2007’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title and 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.
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Sec. 105. Relief from disabilities program required as condition for participation
in grant programs.
Sec. 106. Illegal immigrant gun purchase notification.
TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL ASSISTANCE ON THE IMPROVEMENT
OF RELEVANT RECORDS
Sec. 201. Continuing evaluations.
TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE COURT SYSTEMS FOR THE IMPROVE-
MENT IN AUTOMATION AND TRANSMITTAL OF DISPOSITION
RECORDS
Sec. 301. Disposition records automation and transmittal improvement grants.
TITLE IV—GAO AUDIT
Sec. 401. GAO audit.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Approximately 916,000 individuals were pro-
hibited from purchasing a firearm for failing a back-
ground check between November 30, 1998, (the date
the National Instant Criminal Background Check
System (NICS) began operating) and December 31,
2004.
(2) From November 30, 1998, through December
31, 2004, nearly 49,000,000 Brady background checks
were processed through NICS.
(3) Although most Brady background checks are
processed through NICS in seconds, many background
checks are delayed if the Federal Bureau of Investiga-
tion (FBI) does not have automated access to com-
plete information from the States concerning persons
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prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm
under Federal or State law.
(4) Nearly 21,000,000 criminal records are not
accessible by NICS and millions of criminal records
are missing critical data, such as arrest dispositions,
due to data backlogs.
(5) The primary cause of delay in NICS back-
ground checks is the lack of—
(A) updates and available State criminal
disposition records; and
(B) automated access to information con-
cerning persons prohibited from possessing or re-
ceiving a firearm because of mental illness, re-
straining orders, or misdemeanor convictions for
domestic violence.
(6) Automated access to this information can be
improved by—
(A) computerizing information relating to
criminal history, criminal dispositions, mental
illness, restraining orders, and misdemeanor con-
victions for domestic violence; or
(B) making such information available to
NICS in a usable format.
(7) Helping States to automate these records will
reduce delays for law-abiding gun purchasers.
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(8) On March 12, 2002, the senseless shooting,
which took the lives of a priest and a parishioner at
the Our Lady of Peace Church in Lynbrook, New
York, brought attention to the need to improve infor-
mation-sharing that would enable Federal and State
law enforcement agencies to conduct a complete back-
ground check on a potential firearm purchaser. The
man who committed this double murder had a prior
disqualifying mental health commitment and a re-
straining order against him, but passed a Brady
background check because NICS did not have the nec-
essary information to determine that he was ineligible
to purchase a firearm under Federal or State law.
(9) On April 16, 2007, a student with a history
of mental illness at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute
and State University shot to death 32 students and
faculty members, wounded 17 more, and then took his
own life. The shooting, the deadliest campus shooting
in United States history, renewed the need to improve
information-sharing that would enable Federal and
State law enforcement agencies to conduct complete
background checks on potential firearms purchasers.
In spite of a proven history of mental illness, the
shooter was able to purchase the two firearms used in
the shooting. Improved coordination between State
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and Federal authorities could have ensured that the
shooter’s disqualifying mental health information was
available to NICS.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act, the following definitions shall
apply:
(1) COURT ORDER.—The term ‘‘court order’’ in-
cludes a court order (as described in section 922(g)(8)
of title 18, United States Code).
(2) MENTAL HEALTH TERMS.—The terms ‘‘adju-
dicated as a mental defective’’ and ‘‘committed to a
mental institution’’ have the same meanings as in
section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code.
(3) MISDEMEANOR
CRIME
OF
DOMESTIC
VIO-
LENCE.—The term ‘‘misdemeanor crime of domestic
violence’’ has the meaning given the term in section
921(a)(33) of title 18, United States Code.
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TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF
RECORDS
SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FEDERAL
DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES PROVIDE REL-
EVANT INFORMATION TO THE NATIONAL IN-
STANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYS-
TEM.
(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 inserting
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 ATTORNEY
GENERAL.—If a Federal department or agency
under subparagraph (A) has any record of any
person demonstrating that the person falls with-
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in one of the categories described in subsection
(g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, United
States Code, the head of such department or
agency shall, not less frequently than quarterly,
provide the pertinent information contained in
such record to the Attorney General.
‘‘(D) INFORMATION UPDATES.—The Federal
department or agency, on being made aware that
the basis under which a record was made avail-
able under subparagraph (A) does not apply, or
no longer applies, shall—
‘‘(i) update, correct, modify, or remove
the record from any database that the agen-
cy maintains and makes available to the
Attorney General, in accordance with the
rules pertaining to that database; and
‘‘(ii) notify the Attorney General that
such basis no longer applies so that the Na-
tional Instant Criminal Background Check
System is kept up to date.
The Attorney General upon receiving notice pur-
suant to clause (ii) shall ensure that the record
in the National Instant Criminal Background
Check System is updated, corrected, modified, or
removed within 30 days of receipt.
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‘‘(E) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Attorney Gen-
eral shall submit an annual report to Congress
that describes the compliance of each department
or agency with the provisions of this para-
graph.’’.
(b) 
PROVISION
AND
MAINTENANCE
OF
NICS
RECORDS.—
(1) DEPARTMENT
OF
HOMELAND
SECURITY.—
The Secretary of Homeland Security shall make
available to the Attorney General—
(A) records, updated not less than quarterly,
which are 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, for
use in background checks performed by the Na-
tional Instant Criminal Background Check Sys-
tem; and
(B) information regarding all the persons
described in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph
who have changed their status to a category not
identified under section 922(g)(5) of title 18,
United States Code, for removal, when applica-
ble, from the National Instant Criminal Back-
ground Check System.
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(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 confiden-
tial, as required by the laws, regulations, poli-
cies, 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 devel-
opment of computer systems, which would permit
electronic notification to the Attorney General
when—
(i) a court order has been issued, lifted,
or otherwise removed by order of the court;
or
(ii) a person has been adjudicated as a
mental defective or committed to a mental
institution.
(c) STANDARD
FOR ADJUDICATIONS
AND COMMIT-
MENTS RELATED TO MENTAL HEALTH.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—No department or agency of
the Federal Government may provide to the Attorney
General any record of an adjudication related to the
mental health of a person or any commitment of a
person to a mental institution if—
(A) the adjudication or commitment, respec-
tively, has been set aside or expunged, or the per-
son has otherwise been fully released or dis-
charged from all mandatory treatment, super-
vision, or monitoring;
(B) the person has been found by a court,
board, commission, or other lawful authority to
no longer suffer from the mental health condition
that was the basis of the adjudication or commit-
ment, respectively, or has otherwise been found to
be rehabilitated through any procedure available
under law; or
(C) the adjudication or commitment, respec-
tively, is based solely on a medical finding of
disability, without an opportunity for a hearing
by a court, board, commission, or other lawful
authority, and the person has not been adju-
dicated as a mental defective consistent with sec-
tion 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code, ex-
cept that nothing in this section or any other
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provision of law shall prevent a Federal depart-
ment or agency from providing to the Attorney
General any record demonstrating that a person
was adjudicated to be not guilty by reason of in-
sanity, or based on lack of mental responsibility,
or found incompetent to stand trial, in any
criminal case or under the Uniform Code of
Military Justice.
(2) TREATMENT
OF
CERTAIN
ADJUDICATIONS
AND COMMITMENTS.—
(A) PROGRAM FOR RELIEF FROM DISABIL-
ITIES.—
(i) IN GENERAL.—Each department or
agency of the United States that makes any
adjudication related to the mental health of
a person or imposes any commitment to a
mental institution, as described in sub-
section (d)(4) and (g)(4) of section 922 of
title 18, United States Code, shall establish,
not later than 120 days after the date of en-
actment of this Act, a program that permits
such a person to apply for relief from the
disabilities imposed by such subsections.
(ii) PROCESS.—Each application for
relief submitted under the program required
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by this subparagraph shall be processed not
later than 365 days after the receipt of the
application. If a Federal department or
agency fails to resolve an application for re-
lief within 365 days for any reason, includ-
ing a lack of appropriated funds, the de-
partment or agency shall be deemed for all
purposes to have denied such request for re-
lief without cause. Judicial review of any
petitions brought under this clause shall be
de novo.
(iii) JUDICIAL
REVIEW.—Relief and
judicial review with respect to the program
required by this subparagraph shall be
available according to the standards pre-
scribed in section 925(c) of title 18, United
States Code. If the denial of a petition for
relief has been reversed after such judicial
review, the court shall award the prevailing
party, other than the United States, a rea-
sonable attorney’s fee for any and all pro-
ceedings in relation to attaining such relief,
and the United States shall be liable for
such fee. Such fee shall be based upon the
prevailing rates awarded to public interest
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legal aid organizations in the relevant com-
munity.
(B) RELIEF
FROM
DISABILITIES.—In the
case of an adjudication related to the mental
health of a person or a commitment of a person
to a mental institution, a record of which may
not be provided to the Attorney General under
paragraph (1), including because of the absence
of a finding described in subparagraph (C) of
such paragraph, or from which a person has
been granted relief under a program established
under subparagraph (A) or (B), or because of a
removal of a record under section 103(e)(1)(D) of
the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, the
adjudication or commitment, respectively, shall
be deemed not to have occurred for purposes of
subsections (d)(4) and (g)(4) of section 922 of
title 18, United States Code. Any Federal agency
that grants a person relief from disabilities
under this subparagraph shall notify such person
that the person is no longer prohibited under
922(d)(4) or 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States
Code, on account of the relieved disability for
which relief was granted pursuant to a pro-
ceeding conducted under this subparagraph, with
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respect to the acquisition, receipt, transfer, ship-
ment, transportation, or possession of firearms.
(3) NOTICE REQUIREMENT.—Effective 30 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, any Federal
department or agency that conducts proceedings to
adjudicate a person as a mental defective under
922(d)(4) or 922(g)(4) of title 18, United States Code,
shall provide both oral and written notice to the indi-
vidual at the commencement of the adjudication proc-
ess including—
(A) notice that should the agency adjudicate
the person as a mental defective, or should the
person be committed to a mental institution,
such adjudication, when final, or such commit-
ment, will prohibit the individual from pur-
chasing, possessing, receiving, shipping or trans-
porting a firearm or ammunition under section
922(d)(4) or section 922(g)(4) of title 18, United
States Code;
(B) information about the penalties im-
posed for unlawful possession, receipt, shipment
or transportation of a firearm under section
924(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code; and
(C) information about the availability of re-
lief from the disabilities imposed by Federal laws
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with respect to the acquisition, receipt, transfer,
shipment, transportation, or possession of fire-
arms.
(4) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—Except for paragraph
(3), this subsection shall apply to names and other
information provided before, on, or after the date of
enactment of this Act. Any name or information pro-
vided in violation of this subsection (other than in
violation of paragraph (3)) before, on, or after such
date shall be removed from the National Instant
Criminal Background Check System.
SEC. 102. REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN WAIVER.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 3 years after the date
of the enactment of this Act, a State shall be eligible to re-
ceive a waiver of the 10 percent matching requirement for
National 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 infor-
mation described in subsection (c). The length of such a
waiver shall not exceed 2 years.
(b) STATE ESTIMATES.—
(1) INITIAL STATE ESTIMATE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—To assist the Attorney
General in making a determination under sub-
section (a) of this section, and under section 104,
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concerning the compliance of the States in pro-
viding information to the Attorney General for
the purpose of receiving a waiver under sub-
section (a) of this section, or facing a loss of
funds under section 104, by a date not later than
180 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act, each State shall provide the Attorney Gen-
eral with a reasonable estimate, as calculated by
a method determined by the Attorney General
and in accordance with section 104(d), of the
number of the records described in subparagraph
(C) applicable to such State that concern persons
who are prohibited from possessing or receiving
a firearm under subsection (g) or (n) of section
922 of title 18, United States Code.
(B) FAILURE
TO
PROVIDE
INITIAL
ESTI-
MATE.—A State that fails to provide an estimate
described in subparagraph (A) by the date re-
quired under such subparagraph shall be ineli-
gible to receive any funds under section 103,
until such date as it provides such estimate to
the Attorney General.
(C) RECORD
DEFINED.—For purposes of
subparagraph (A), a record is the following:
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(i) A record that identifies a person
who has been convicted in any court of a
crime punishable by imprisonment for a
term exceeding 1 year.
(ii) A record that identifies a person
for whom an indictment has been returned
for a crime punishable by imprisonment for
a term exceeding 1 year that is valid under
the laws of the State involved or who is a
fugitive from justice, as of the date of the es-
timate, and for which a record of final dis-
position is not available.
(iii) A record that identifies a person
who is an unlawful user of, or addicted to
a controlled substance (as such terms ‘‘un-
lawful user’’ and ‘‘addicted’’ are respec-
tively defined in regulations implementing
section 922(g)(3) of title 18, United States
Code, as in effect on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act) as demonstrated by ar-
rests, convictions, and adjudications, and
whose record is not protected from disclo-
sure to the Attorney General under any pro-
vision of State or Federal law.
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(iv) A record that identifies a person
who has been adjudicated as a mental defec-
tive or committed to a mental institution,
consistent with section 922(g)(4) of title 18,
United States Code, and whose record is not
protected from disclosure to the Attorney
General under any provision of State or
Federal law.
(v) A record that is electronically
available and that identifies a person who,
as of the date of such estimate, is subject to
a court order described in section 922(g)(8)
of title 18, United States Code.
(vi) A record that is electronically
available and that identifies a person con-
victed in any court of a misdemeanor crime
of domestic violence, as defined in section
921(a)(33) of title 18, United States Code.
(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 con-
cerning any event occurring within the prior 20
years, which would disqualify a person from pos-
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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 the Na-
tional Instant Criminal Background Check System
with all records concerning persons who are prohib-
ited from possessing or receiving a firearm under sub-
section (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 SUBMISSION
TO
THE
NATIONAL
INSTANT
CRIMINAL
BACKGROUND
CHECK SYSTEM.—
(1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—From the information
collected 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 receiv-
ing a firearm under subsection (g) or (n) of sec-
tion 922 of title 18, United States Code, or ap-
plicable State law.
(B) NICS UPDATES.—The State, on being
made aware that the basis under which a record
was made available under subparagraph (A)
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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 Fed-
eral or State government maintains and
makes available to the National Instant
Criminal Background Check System, con-
sistent with the rules pertaining to that
database; and
(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.
The Attorney General upon receiving notice pur-
suant to clause (ii) shall ensure that the record
in the National Instant Criminal Background
Check System is updated, corrected, modified, or
removed within 30 days of receipt.
(C) CERTIFICATION.—To remain eligible for
a waiver under subsection (a), a State shall cer-
tify to the Attorney General, not less than once
during each 2-year period, that at least 90 per-
cent of all records described in subparagraph (A)
has been made electronically available to the At-
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torney General in accordance with subparagraph
(A).
(D) INCLUSION
OF
ALL
RECORDS.—For
purposes of this paragraph, a State shall iden-
tify and include all of the records described
under subparagraph (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 General,
for use by the National Instant Criminal Background
Check System, records relevant to a determination of
whether a person has been convicted in any court of
a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. With re-
spect to records relating to such crimes, the State
shall provide information specifically describing the
offense and the specific section or subsection of the of-
fense for which the defendant has been convicted and
the relationship of the defendant 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 Sys-
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tem, the name and other relevant identifying infor-
mation of persons adjudicated as a mental defective
or those committed to mental institutions to assist 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 en-
forcement 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 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 States in automating the data-
bases containing the information described in subsection (b)
and in making that information electronically available to
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the Attorney General pursuant to the requirements of sub-
section (c).
SEC. 103. IMPLEMENTATION ASSISTANCE TO STATES.
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail-
able to carry out this section and subject to section
102(b)(1)(B), the Attorney General shall make grants
to States and Indian tribal governments, in a man-
ner consistent with the National Criminal History
Improvement Program, which shall be used by the
States and Indian tribal governments, in conjunction
with units of local government and State and local
courts, to establish or upgrade information and iden-
tification technologies for firearms eligibility deter-
minations. Not less than 3 percent, and no more than
10 percent of each grant under this paragraph shall
be used to maintain the relief from disabilities pro-
gram in accordance with section 105.
(2) GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—Up to 5 per-
cent of the grant funding available under this section
may be reserved for Indian tribal governments, in-
cluding tribal judicial systems.
(b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants awarded to
States or Indian tribes under this section may only be used
to—
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(1) create electronic systems, which provide accu-
rate and up-to-date information which is directly re-
lated to checks under the National Instant Criminal
Background Check System (referred to in this section
as ‘‘NICS’’), including court disposition and correc-
tions 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 Investiga-
tion 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;
(6) collect and analyze data needed to dem-
onstrate levels of State compliance with this Act; and
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(7) maintain the relief from disabilities program
in accordance with section 105, but not less than 3
percent, and no more than 10 percent of each grant
shall be used for this purpose.
(c) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for a grant under this
section, a State shall certify, to the satisfaction of the Attor-
ney General, that the State has implemented a relief from
disabilities program in accordance with section 105.
(d) 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.
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap-
propriated to carry out this section $125,000,000 for
fiscal year 2009, $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2010,
$250,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, $125,000,000 for
fiscal year 2012, and $125,000,000 for fiscal year
2013.
(2) ALLOCATIONS.—For fiscal years 2009 and
2010, the Attorney General shall endeavor to allocate
at least 1⁄2 of the authorized appropriations to those
States providing more than 50 percent of the records
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required to be provided under sections 102 and 103.
For fiscal years 2011, 2012, and 2013, the Attorney
General shall endeavor to allocate at least 1⁄2 of the
authorized appropriations to those States providing
more than 70 percent of the records required to be
provided under section 102 and 103. The allocations
in this paragraph shall be subject to the discretion of
the Attorney General, who shall have the authority to
make adjustments to the distribution of the authorized
appropriations as necessary to maximize incentives
for State compliance.
(f) USER FEE.—The Federal Bureau of Investigation
shall not charge a user fee for background checks pursuant
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 Rep-
resentatives a report on the progress of the States in
automating the databases containing information de-
scribed under sections 102 and 103, and in providing
that information pursuant to the requirements of sec-
tions 102 and 103.
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(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.—
(A) During the 2-year period beginning 3
years after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Attorney General may withhold not more than 3
percent of the amount that would otherwise be
allocated to a State under section 505 of the Om-
nibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 (42 U.S.C. 3755) if the State provides less
than 50 percent of the records required to be pro-
vided under sections 102 and 103.
(B) During the 5-year period after the expi-
ration of the period referred to in subparagraph
(A), the Attorney General may withhold not
more than 4 percent of the amount that would
otherwise be allocated to a State under section
505 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3755) if the State
provides less than 70 percent of the records re-
quired to be provided under sections 102 and
103.
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(2) MANDATORY REDUCTION.—After the expira-
tion of the periods 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 505 of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3755), if the
State provides less than 90 percent of the records re-
quired to be provided under sections 102 and 103.
(3) WAIVER BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The Attor-
ney 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 comply
with the requirements of sections 102 and 103, in-
cluding an inability to comply due to court order or
other legal restriction.
(c) REALLOCATION.—Any funds that are not allocated
to a State because of the failure of the State to comply with
the requirements of this Act shall be reallocated to States
that meet such requirements.
(d) METHODOLOGY.—The method established to cal-
culate the number of records to be reported, as set forth in
section 102(b)(1)(A), and State compliance with the re-
quired level of reporting under sections 102 and 103 shall
be determined by the Attorney General. The Attorney Gen-
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eral shall calculate the methodology based on the total num-
ber of records to be reported from all subcategories of
records, as described in section 102(b)(1)(C).
SEC. 105. RELIEF FROM DISABILITIES PROGRAM REQUIRED
AS 
CONDITION 
FOR 
PARTICIPATION 
IN
GRANT PROGRAMS.
(a) PROGRAM DESCRIBED.—A relief from disabilities
program is implemented by a State in accordance with this
section if the program—
(1) permits a person who, pursuant to State law,
has been adjudicated as described in subsection (g)(4)
of section 922 of title 18, United States Code, or has
been committed to a mental institution, to apply to
the State for relief from the disabilities imposed by
subsections (d)(4) and (g)(4) of such section by reason
of the adjudication or commitment;
(2) provides that a State court, board, commis-
sion, or other lawful authority shall grant the relief,
pursuant to State law and in accordance with the
principles of due process, if the circumstances regard-
ing the disabilities referred to in paragraph (1), and
the person’s record and reputation, are such that the
person will not be likely to act in a manner dan-
gerous to public safety and that the granting of the
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relief would not be contrary to the public interest;
and
(3) permits a person whose application for the
relief is denied to file a petition with the State court
of appropriate jurisdiction for a de novo judicial re-
view of the denial.
(b) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE RELIEF FROM CERTAIN
DISABILITIES WITH RESPECT TO FIREARMS.—If, under a
State relief from disabilities program implemented in ac-
cordance with this section, an application for relief referred
to in subsection (a)(1) of this section is granted with respect
to an adjudication or a commitment to a mental institution
or based upon a removal of a record under section
102(c)(1)(B), the adjudication or commitment, as the case
may be, is deemed not to have occurred for purposes of sub-
sections (d)(4) and (g)(4) of section 922 of title 18, United
States Code.
SEC. 106. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT GUN PURCHASE NOTIFICA-
TION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law or of this Act, all records obtained by the Na-
tional Instant Criminal Background Check system relevant
to whether an individual is prohibited from possessing a
firearm because such person is an alien illegally or unlaw-
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fully in the United States shall be made available to U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
(b) REGULATIONS.—The Attorney General, at his or
her discretion, shall promulgate guidelines relevant to what
records relevant to illegal aliens shall be provided pursuant
to the provisions of this Act.
TITLE 
II—FOCUSING 
FEDERAL
ASSISTANCE 
ON 
THE 
IM-
PROVEMENT 
OF 
RELEVANT
RECORDS
SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS.
(a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the Bu-
reau of Justice Statistics (referred to in this section as the
‘‘Director’’) shall study and evaluate the operations of the
National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
Such study and evaluation shall include compilations and
analyses of the operations and record systems of the agencies
and organizations necessary to support such System.
(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 sec-
tion 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