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28 U.S.C. 534; Pub. L. 92-544, 86 Stat. 1115; 42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.; Pub. L. 99-169, 99 Stat. 1002, 1008-1011, as amended by Pub. L. 99-569, 100 Stat. 3190, 3196; Pub. L. 101-515, as amended by Pub. L. 104-99, set out in the notes to 28 U.S.C. 534.; Pub. L. 117-159, 136 Stat. 1313, 1331.
Order No. 601-75, 40 FR 22114, May 20, 1975, unless otherwise noted.
Order No. 2258-99, 64 FR 52227, Sept. 28, 1999, unless otherwise noted.
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Order No. 2258-99, 64 FR 52227, Sept. 28, 1999, unless otherwise noted.
The provisions of this subpart of the regulations apply to the III System and the FIRS, and to duly authorized local, state, tribal, federal, foreign, and international criminal justice agencies to the extent that they utilize the services of the III System or the FIRS. This subpart is applicable to both manual and automated criminal history records.
(a) The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) shall manage the NCIC.
(b) The FBI shall manage the FIRS to support identification and criminal history record information functions for local, state, tribal, and federal criminal justice agencies, and for noncriminal justice agencies and other entities where authorized by federal statute, state statute pursuant to Public Law 92-544, 86 Stat. 1115, Presidential executive order, or regulation or order of the Attorney General of the United States.
(c) The FBI CJIS Division may manage or utilize additional telecommunication facilities for the exchange of fingerprints, criminal history record related information, and other criminal justice information.
(d) The FBI CJIS Division shall maintain the master fingerprint files on all offenders included in the III System and the FIRS for the purposes of determining first offender status; to identify those offenders who are unknown in states where they become criminally active but are known in other states through prior criminal history records; and to provide identification assistance in disasters and for other humanitarian purposes.
(e) The FBI may routinely establish and collect fees for noncriminal justice fingerprint-based and other identification services as authorized by Federal law. These fees apply to Federal, State and any other authorized entities requesting fingerprint identification records and name checks for noncriminal justice purposes.
(1) The Director of the FBI shall review the amount of the fee periodically, but not less than every four years, to determine the current cost of processing fingerprint identification records and name checks for noncriminal justice purposes.
(2) Fee amounts and any revisions thereto shall be determined by current costs, using a method of analysis consistent with widely accepted accounting principles and practices, and calculated in accordance with the provisions of 31 U.S.C. 9701 and other Federal law as applicable.
(3) Fee amounts and any revisions thereto shall be published as a notice in the Federal Register.
(f) The FBI will collect a fee for providing noncriminal name-based background checks of the FBI Central Records System through the National Name Check Program pursuant to the authority in Pub. L. 101-515 and in accordance with paragraphs (e)(1), (2) and (3) of this section.
[41 FR 11715, Mar. 19, 1976, as amended at 75 FR 18755, Apr. 13, 2010; 75 FR 24798, May 6, 2010]
(a) Criminal history record information maintained in the III System and the FIRS shall include serious and/or significant adult and juvenile offenses.
(b) The FIRS excludes arrests and court actions concerning nonserious offenses, e.g., drunkenness, vagrancy, disturbing the peace, curfew violation, loitering, false fire alarm, non-specific charges of suspicion or investigation, and traffic violations (except data will be included on arrests for vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence of drugs or liquor, and hit and run), when unaccompanied by a § 20.32(a) offense. These exclusions may not be applicable to criminal history records maintained in state criminal history record repositories, including those states participating in the NFF.
(c) The exclusions enumerated above shall not apply to federal manual criminal history record information collected, maintained, and compiled by the FBI prior to the effective date of this subpart.
(a) Criminal history record information contained in the III System and the FIRS may be made available:
(1) To criminal justice agencies for criminal justice purposes, which purposes include the screening of employees or applicants for employment hired by criminal justice agencies;
(2) To federal agencies authorized to receive it pursuant to federal statute or Executive order;
(3) For use in connection with licensing or employment, pursuant to Public Law 92-544, 86 Stat. 1115, or other federal legislation, and for other uses for which dissemination is authorized by federal law. Refer to § 50.12 of this chapter for dissemination guidelines relating to requests processed under this paragraph;
(4) For issuance of press releases and publicity designed to effect the apprehension of wanted persons in connection with serious or significant offenses;
(5) To criminal justice agencies for the conduct of background checks under the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS);
(6) To noncriminal justice governmental agencies performing criminal justice dispatching functions or data processing/ information services for criminal justice agencies; and
(7) To private contractors pursuant to a specific agreement with an agency identified in paragraphs (a)(1) or (a)(6) of this section and for the purpose of providing services for the administration of criminal justice pursuant to that agreement. The agreement must incorporate a security addendum approved by the Attorney General of the United States, which shall specifically authorize access to criminal history record information, limit the use of the information to the purposes for which it is provided, ensure the security and confidentiality of the information consistent with these regulations, provide for sanctions, and contain such other provisions as the Attorney General may require. The power and authority of the Attorney General hereunder shall be exercised by the FBI Director (or the Director's designee).
(b) The exchange of criminal history record information authorized by paragraph (a) of this section is subject to cancellation if dissemination is made outside the receiving departments, related agencies, or service providers identified in paragraphs (a)(6) and (a)(7) of this section.
(c) Nothing in these regulations prevents a criminal justice agency from disclosing to the public factual information concerning the status of an investigation, the apprehension, arrest, release, or prosecution of an individual, the adjudication of charges, or the correctional status of an individual, which is reasonably contemporaneous with the event to which the information relates.
(d) Criminal history records received from the III System or the FIRS shall be used only for the purpose requested and a current record should be requested when needed for a subsequent authorized use.
(e) NCIC Gun File records that are necessary to verify whether a firearm offered for sale to a licensed firearms importer, manufacturer, or dealer has been stolen may be made available to a person licensed as an importer, manufacturer, or dealer of firearms. Information disseminated to such licensees shall be limited solely to the purpose of verifying whether firearms offered for sale to licensees have been stolen.
[Order No. 2258-99, 64 FR 52227, Sept. 28, 1999, as amended by Order No. 5949-2024, 89 FR 54346, July 1, 2024]
The procedures by which an individual may obtain a copy of his or her identification record from the FBI to review and request any change, correction, or update are set forth in §§ 16.30-16.34 of this chapter. The procedures by which an individual may obtain a copy of his or her identification record from a state or local criminal justice agency are set forth in § 20.34 of the appendix to this part.
(a) There is established a CJIS Advisory Policy Board, the purpose of which is to recommend to the FBI Director general policy with respect to the philosophy, concept, and operational principles of various criminal justice information systems managed by the FBI's CJIS Division.
(b) The Board includes representatives from state and local criminal justice agencies; members of the judicial, prosecutorial, and correctional segments of the criminal justice community; a representative of federal agencies participating in the CJIS systems; and representatives of criminal justice professional associations.
(c) All members of the Board will be appointed by the FBI Director.
(d) The Board functions solely as an advisory body in compliance with the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Title 5, United States Code, Appendix 2.
(a) In order to acquire and retain direct access to the III System, each Control Terminal Agency and Federal Service Coordinator shall execute a CJIS User Agreement (or its functional equivalent) with the Assistant Director in Charge of the CJIS Division, FBI, to abide by all present rules, policies, and procedures of the NCIC, as well as any rules, policies, and procedures hereinafter recommended by the CJIS Advisory Policy Board and adopted by the FBI Director.
(b) Entry or updating of criminal history record information in the III System will be accepted only from state or federal agencies authorized by the FBI. Terminal devices in other agencies will be limited to inquiries.
It shall be the responsibility of each criminal justice agency contributing data to the III System and the FIRS to assure that information on individuals is kept complete, accurate, and current so that all such records shall contain to the maximum extent feasible dispositions for all arrest data included therein. Dispositions should be submitted by criminal justice agencies within 120 days after the disposition has occurred.
Access to systems managed or maintained by the FBI is subject to cancellation in regard to any agency or entity that fails to comply with the provisions of subpart C of this part.