Background Check Point of Contact Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.4246 | Sponsor: Rep. Dean, Madeleine (D-PA)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Background Check Point of Contact Act of 2021
This bill authorizes the Department of Justice to make grants to states that establish or maintain a point-of-contact system for a licensed firearms importer, manufacturer, or dealer to verify that a firearm sale or transfer would be lawful.

To establish a grant program through the Department of Justice to 
 incentivize States to establish point-of-contact systems for firearm 
      sales subject to a background check, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Background Check Point of Contact 
Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS ESTABLISHED.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Establishment.--The Attorney General may make an annual 
        grant of not more than $1,000,000 to each eligible State that 
        has conformed to the requirements of this Act. Such grant may 
        be renewed for each year that the State remains in such 
        conformity. The grant shall be used for the establishment, 
        operation, and maintenance of a point-of-contact system as set 
        forth in section 3.
            (2) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to carry out this program not more than $10,000,000 each fiscal 
        year.
            (3) Matching requirement.--The Federal share of the cost of 
        a point-of-contact system carried out using grant funds may not 
        exceed 25 percent.
    (b) Preference for Other Grants.--The Attorney General shall give 
preference in awards of any discretionary grant administered by the 
Bureau of Justice Assistance to a State that has conformed its laws in 
accordance with this Act.

SEC. 3. POINT-OF-CONTACT SYSTEMS REQUIRED.

    To be in compliance with this section, a State shall conform its 
laws to the following:
            (1) A point-of-contact system for the sale or transfer of a 
        firearm shall be established or maintained, under which a 
        person licensed under section 923 of title 18, United States 
        Code, may verify that the sale or transfer would be lawful.
            (2) A sale or transfer of a firearm may not be completed 
        unless the parties to the sale or transfer receive an approval 
        number issued by the point-of-contact system not later than 10 
        days after the sale or transfer is initiated.
            (3) The point-of-contact system may not issue an approval 
        number if the system cannot confirm that the sale or transfer 
        would be lawful.
            (4) A hotline shall be established, to be operated by the 
        State, to be used by a person licensed under section 923 of 
        title 18, United States Code, for purposes of contacting the 
        national instant criminal background check system.
            (5) A fund shall be established by the State for the 
        operation of the point-of-contact system.
            (6) An appeals process in the case of any failure by the 
        point-of-contact system to issue an approval number, with the 
        burden of proof on the State to prove that there was a valid 
        basis for failure to issue shall be established.
            (7) For each denial, the information will be transferred to 
        the state or local law enforcement agency responsible for 
        investigating the denial as a violation of law.

SEC. 4. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    To be in compliance with this section, a State that receives a 
grant under this Act shall publish an annual report that contains 
information substantially similar to the information included in a NICS 
operations report made by the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation and additionally includes the following:
            (1) The number of investigations resulting from failures to 
        issue approval numbers.
            (2) Results of investigations reported.
            (3) Denied appeals that were overturned.
            (4) Total number of hours where point of contact system was 
        not functional resulting in a halt in processing checks.
            (5) The number of persons arrestsed as a result of an 
        information transfer under section 3(7).

SEC. 5. ANNUAL AUDIT.

    To be in compliance with this section, a State shall submit to an 
annual audit by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation of 
the point-of-contact system established under section 3.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``firearm'' has the meaning given such term in 
        section 921 of title 18, United States Code.
            (2) The terms ``law enforcement agency'' and ``unit of 
        local government'' have the meanings given such terms in 
        section 901 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 
        of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10251).
            (3) The term ``State'' includes each of the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and 
        any other territory of the United States.
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