GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2021

S                                                                                                                                                     1

SENATE BILL 302

 

 

Short Title:      CJIN Changes.

(Public)

Sponsors:

Senators Steinburg, Burgin, and Ford (Primary Sponsors).

Referred to:

Rules and Operations of the Senate

March 16, 2021

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to provide budgetary and administrative authority in accordance with the powers and duties of the criminal justice information network governing board.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 143B‑1393 reads as rewritten:

"§ 143B‑1393.  Powers and duties.

(a)        The Board shall have the following powers and duties:

(1)        To establish and operate the Network as an integrated system of State and local government components for effectively and efficiently storing, communicating, and using criminal justice information at the State and local levels throughout North Carolina's law enforcement, judicial, juvenile justice, and corrections agencies, with the components of the Network to include electronic devices, programs, data, and governance and to set the Network's policies and procedures.

(2)        To develop and adopt uniform standards and cost‑effective information technology, after thorough evaluation of the capacity of information technology to meet the present and future needs of the State and, in consultation with the Department of Information Technology, to develop and adopt standards for entering, storing, and transmitting information in criminal justice databases and for achieving maximum compatibility among user technologies.

(3)        To identify the funds needed to establish and maintain the Network, identify public and private sources of funding, and secure funding to:

a.         Create the Network and facilitate the sharing of information among users of the Network; and

b.         Make grants to local government users to enable them to acquire or improve elements of the Network that lie within the responsibility of their agencies or State agencies; provided that the elements developed with the funds must be available for use by the State or by local governments without cost and the applicable State agencies join in the request for funding.

(4)        To provide assistance to local governments for the financial and systems planning for Network‑related automation and to coordinate and assist the Network users of this State in soliciting bids for information technology hardware, software, and services in order to assure compliance with the Board's technical standards, to gain the most advantageous contracts for the Network users of this State, and to assure financial accountability where State funds are used.

(5)        To provide a liaison among local government users and to advocate on behalf of the Network and its users in connection with legislation affecting the Network.

(6)        To facilitate the sharing of knowledge about information technologies among users of the Network.

(7)        To take any other appropriate actions to foster the development of the Network.

(a1)      Notwithstanding G.S. 143B‑1322(c)(19) and (d) or any other provision of law to the contrary, the Board shall do all of the following:

(1)        Exercise administrative control over the transportation and subsistence budget established by the Board and appropriated by the General Assembly.

(2)        Establish qualifications, classification, and salary levels for its employees and determine appropriate methods of screening for candidates, interviewing, hiring, and day‑to‑day management of Board employees.

(b)        All grants or other uses of funds appropriated or granted to the Board shall be conditioned on compliance with the Board's technical and other standards."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 143B‑1394 reads as rewritten:

"§ 143B‑1394.  Election of officers; meetings; staff, etc.

(a)        The Governor shall call the first meeting of the Board. At the first meeting, the Board shall elect a chair and a vice‑chair, each to serve a one‑year term, with subsequent officers to be elected for one‑year terms. The Board shall hold at least two regular meetings each year, as provided by policies and procedures adopted by the Board. The Board may hold additional meetings upon the call of the chair or any three Board members. A majority of the Board membership constitutes a quorum.

(b)        The staff of the Criminal Justice Information Network shall provide the Board with professional and clerical support and any additional support the Board needs to fulfill its mandate. The Board's staff shall use space provided by the Department of Information Technology. The Department of Information Technology shall provide technical assistance to the Board at the request of the Board."

SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.