The colorado division of criminal justice (DCJ), within the colorado department of public safety, administers the national criminal history improvement program (NCHIP) cooperative agreement in…

The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics awarded the Colorado Department of Public Safety Division of Criminal Justice a $1.006 million cooperative agreement on July 1, 2026, to administer the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP, CFDA 16.554) in partnership with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

The Division of Criminal Justice will provide statewide grant management, oversight, monitoring, reporting, and technical assistance to support activities that improve the accuracy, completeness, and accessibility of Colorado's criminal history records and related systems. Funded work includes recovery and processing of historical fingerprint records submitted to the FBI but never received by Colorado, reducing delays and inaccuracies in criminal background checks. The award will support a phased modernization effort to assess and improve Colorado's criminal history record systems by reducing backlog issues, improving criminal record data exchange processes, and developing tools for more accurate record matching and disposition updates. Two full-time data management employees will process adult and juvenile disposition and arrest record updates received from the FBI NICS program and other authorized requests. Performance occurs in Denver, Colorado. The period of performance runs from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029.

The colorado division of criminal justice (DCJ), within the colorado department of public safety, administers the national criminal history improvement program (NCHIP) cooperative agreement in partnership with the colorado bureau of investigation (CBI), the agency responsible for maintaining colorados criminal history records. Through this project, DCJ will provide statewide grant management, oversight, monitoring, reporting, and technical assistance to support activities that improve the accuracy, completeness, and accessibility of colorados criminal history records and related systems. Colorados FY 2025 consolidated national criminal history improvement program proposal includes projects that support public safety, improve criminal history record quality, and strengthen records used by law enforcement agencies and the national instant criminal background check system (NICS). Funding will support efforts to recover and process historical fingerprint records that were submitted to the FBI but never received by colorado. This work will improve the completeness of criminal history records in state and federal systems and help reduce delays and inaccuracies related to criminal background checks. Funding will also support a phased modernization effort to assess and improve colorados criminal history record systems by reducing backlog issues, improving criminal record data exchange processes, and developing tools to support more accurate record matching and disposition updates. In addition, the project will support two full time data management employees who will process adult and juvenile disposition and arrest record updates received from the FBI NICS program and other authorized requests. Together, these activities will improve record completeness, increase the accuracy of criminal history information, and strengthen the quality of records available to law enforcement agencies and criminal justice partners throughout colorado and the nation.