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OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 5280
AN ACT CONCERNING THE NATIONAL INTEGRATED BALLISTIC
INFORMATION NETWORK.
SUMMARY
This bill conforms law to practice by requiring the Department of
Emergency Services and Public Protection’s Division of Scientific
Services to participate in the National Integrated Ballistic Information
Network (NIBIN) databank (see BACKGROUND) , rather than the
firearms evidence databank that current law requires the division to
establish.
Current law allows handguns in a police department’s custody that
pertain to a criminal investigation to be tested. The bill instead requires
all firearms, not just these handguns, to be tested.
The bill subjects additional law enforcement agencies to the NIBIN
databank-related requirements. It also requires law enforcement units
that recover any spent cartridge case from a crime scene or an improper
firearm discharge to submit an exam of the cartridge case to the NIBIN
databank as soon as practicable.
Lastly, the bill makes various minor, technical, and conforming
changes to implement these changes, including requiring laboratory
personnel to use the NIBIN database in accordance with federal
procedures and state regulations.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2024
FIREARMS TESTING FOR CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS
Current law allows a police department to submit any handgun that
comes into its custody during a criminal investigation to the Division of
Scientific Services’ laboratory for testing. The bill instead requires law
enforcement units to (1) submit firearms that come into police custody 2024HB-05280-R000232-BA.DOCX
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during a criminal investigation or fired components of ammunition
from the firearms to the laboratory or (2) if allowed by the laboratory,
test fire the firearm as soon as practicable and submit the results to the
NIBIN database.
As under current law for handguns, the bill allows the laboratory to
test fire any submitted firearm and collect fired components of
ammunition from the test fires. The laboratory must label the fired
components of ammunition with the firearm manufacturer, weapon
type, serial number, test fire data, and name of the person who test fired
the firearm and collected the ammunition.
LAW ENFORCEMENT UNIT S
The bill subjects additional law enforcement agencies to the NIBIN
databank-related requirements. It does so by replacing the “police
department” definition with a more expansive “law enforcement unit”
definition.
Under current law, a “police department” includes the State Police
and an organized local police department. Under the bill, a “law
enforcement unit” includes state, municipal, or tribal agencies or
departments whose primary functions include enforcing criminal or
traffic laws; preserving public order; protecting life and property; or
preventing, detecting, or investigating crime. (This includes only the
tribal agencies or departments that are created and governed under a
memorandum of agreement.)
The bill extends existing law’s NIBIN databank provisions for police
departments to law enforcement units. This includes:
1. allowing units to ask a laboratory to verify any matching result
of cartridge cases, bullets, or other projectiles and to produce a
report on the results; and
2. requiring units, before issuing a handgun, to (a) test fire it and
collect the fired ammunition (the department may ask the State
Police or the laboratory to assist) and (b) seal the fired
ammunition in a tamper-evident manner, label the package with 2024HB-05280-R000232-BA.DOCX
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certain identifying information, and submit it along with two
intact cartridges.
BACKGROUND
NIBIN Databank
The NIBIN databank is maintained by the federal Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Among other things, NIBIN is an
interstate automated ballistic imaging network that automates ballistics
evaluations.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Public Safety and Security Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 25 Nay 0 (03/19/2024)