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Due to events of September 11, 2001, Governor George Pataki has issued an Executive Order suspending the Statute of Limitations on certain civil and criminal actions until further notice for periods of limitations that end in the period beginning the date that the disaster emergency was declared on September 11, 2001.
You can access the Executive Order directly by clicking on the link below: Governor George Pataki Executive Order
WHAT IS A BACKGROUND CHECK?
Several agencies conduct background checks including the FBI. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) provides detailed information about checks for those attempting to purchase firearms.
In November 1993, the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (Brady Act) of 1994 was signed into law, requiring Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) to request background checks on individuals attempting to purchase a firearm. The permanent provisions of the Brady Act, which went into effect on November 30, 1998, required the Attorney General to establish the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Any FFL may contact NICS for information to be supplied immediately as to whether the receipt of a firearm by a prospective transferee would violate federal or state law.
In states that agree to conduct Brady background checks, once the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms? (ATF) form 4473 is completed, the FFL contacts the state point of contact (POC) for a NICS check. A state POC is a state agency that agrees to conduct Brady background checks, including NICS checks, on prospective gun purchasers. In states that have agreed to serve as POCs, FFLs contact the state POC for a Brady background check rather than contacting the FBI. Currently, 16 states serve as full POCs for NICS (checks on handguns and long guns) and 10 states serve as partial POCs for NICS (states perform checks for handgun purchases and FBI processes checks for long gun purchases).
A state POC will access the state?s independant criminal history database as well as NICS. The NICS provides access to millions of criminal history records from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The NICS searches its own database, the NICS Index, as well as the National Crime Information Center 2000 (NCIC 2000) and the FBI Interstate Identification Index (III) for possible matching subject information under the disqualifiers set forth by the Brady Act.
Prohibited Categories Include:
1. Convicted felons and persons under indictment for a felony;
2. Fugitives from justice;
3. Unlawful drug users or drug addicts;
4. Individuals who have been involuntarily committed to a mental institution or determined to be mentally incompetent;
5. Illegal aliens and legal aliens admitted under a non-immigrant visa;
6. Individuals who have been dishonorably discharged from the military;
7. Persons who have renounced their citizenship;
8. Persons subject to certain domestic violence restraining orders; and
9. Persons convicted of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence.
In states that have not agreed to serve as state POCs, once the ATF Form 4473 is completed, the FFL contacts the NICS at the FBI, via a toll free telephone number, to request a background check. NICS is available for background checks 17 hours a day, seven days a week, including holidays (except Thanksgiving and Christmas). The call is received at one of two call centers located in Moundsville, West Virginia, and Uniontown, Pennsylvania.
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