司法部定版新规：持牌枪商可自愿用联邦背景调查系统核查员工，11月27日生效
美国司法部10月30日宣布一项最终规则，授权联邦持牌枪商（FFL）自愿使用联邦调查局（FBI）的全国即时犯罪背景调查系统（NICS），对特定的现任与拟聘员工进行背景调查。该规则落实《两党安全社区法》的相关条款，将在《联邦公报》刊登30天后、即11月27日生效。
此前，司法部规定禁止枪商为购枪交易以外的任何目的联系NICS。新规下，枪商可以提交「枪械经手人背景调查」（FHC）。符合条件的员工包括经手枪械的人员、可接触未完成枪械部件或制造工具的持牌制造商员工，以及职务上可接触枪支、弹药或其制造部件的承包商与代理人。枪商的「负责人」不在此列，因为他们已由烟酒枪炮及爆炸物管理局（ATF）审查。
参与完全自愿，且必须取得员工本人的书面同意。NICS将查询与购枪交易相同的数据库，包括NICS索引、全国犯罪信息中心与州际身份识别索引；枪商只会收到一个交易编号与「通过」「待定」或「未通过」三类回复之一，看不到底层记录。一般情况下，每名员工每12个月可调查一次；若有合理理由相信员工发生了可能丧失持枪资格的事件，可提前再查。FBI不收取费用，ATF将另行发布枪商如何记录此类调查的指引。
DOJ Final Rule Lets Licensed Gun Dealers Voluntarily Run Federal Background Checks on Employees, Effective November 27
The U.S. Department of Justice announced a final rule on October 30 authorizing federal firearms licensees (FFLs) to voluntarily use the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) to run background checks on certain current and prospective employees. The rule implements a provision of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act and takes effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, on November 27.
Until now, Justice Department regulations barred FFLs from contacting NICS for any purpose other than a proposed firearm transfer. Under the final rule, an FFL may submit Firearm Handler Background Checks (FHCs) on eligible employees, including firearm handlers, employees of licensed manufacturers with access to unfinished components or manufacturing tools, and contractors or agents whose duties give them access to firearms, ammunition, or components. Responsible persons of an FFL are excluded because they already undergo ATF vetting.
Participation is optional and requires the employee's written consent. NICS searches the same databases used for firearm transfers — the NICS Indices, the National Crime Information Center, and the Interstate Identification Index — and the FFL receives only a transaction number and one of three responses. Generally, one check per employee is allowed every 12 months unless there is reasonable cause to believe a prohibiting event has occurred. The FBI charges no fee, and ATF will issue separate guidance on documenting the checks.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：枪械零售店内景（资料图）。Proarms Armory 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / A firearms retail store (file photo). By Proarms Armory, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
