Federal Cooperative Agreement Summary

The Bureau of Justice Statistics awarded a Cooperative Agreement totaling $2,064,228 to the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) under the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP), CFDA 16.554, effective July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. The award funds two interconnected criminal justice data system improvement initiatives. The first project, Improving Disposition Matching in the Commonwealth, enhances the accuracy and completeness of criminal history records by standardizing tracking number usage across law enforcement systems, improving data quality through systems integration and training, and strengthening data sharing between arrest, fingerprinting, and court systems. Quality assurance audits will verify that arrest records are correctly linked with corresponding court outcome dispositions.

The second project involves the procurement and deployment of 70 replacement live scan fingerprint devices for law enforcement agencies throughout Massachusetts. The new biometric devices will support both fingerprint and palm print submissions and ensure full compatibility with current software requirements, including Windows 11 operating systems. Together, these initiatives address critical infrastructure and data quality gaps in the Commonwealth's criminal history record systems, supporting more accurate background checks and improved criminal justice operations.