NEWS RELEASE For Immediate Release
	Contact: Lynn M. Childs ACJIC (334) 353-4732 Sloane Wright www.alabama.gov (334) 261-1989 sloane@nicusa.com

MONTGOMERY, Ala., July 22, 2008 – Employers now have a quick and secure way to check an applicant or employee’s official Alabama arrest and conviction records, thanks to a new online system unveiled by the Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center (ACJIC) at http://www.background.alabama.gov.

Known as the Alabama Background Check (ABC) system, the secure, web-based program provides qualifying employers with Alabama felony and misdemeanor arrest and court conviction records of employees or prospective employees who provide the employer with a signed waiver authorizing the “right to know” this information.

The ABC system, Alabama’s official criminal history records site for employers, is administered under the legal authority of ACJIC in partnership with the Alabama Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) and the Alabama Department of Public Safety (DPS). Further details about the system may be found at http://www.background.alabama.gov.

“The Alabama criminal information found in the ABC system normally is available only to authorized law enforcement agencies,” said Maury Mitchell, ACJIC director. “An exception in Alabama law allows our agency to also provide this information to employers or prospective employers.”

Employers must meet certain qualifications to be approved to use the ABC system, and must also have a signed waiver from the employee or prospective employee authorizing each search. In accordance with state law, ABC system background checks are available at a cost of $25 each. The ABC program is available as an Alabama eGovernment subscriber service.

“ABC system reports include felony and misdemeanor arrests compiled from information provided by Alabama law enforcement agencies,” stated Mitchell. “ACJIC has also gone a step further by combining forces with Alabama’s court and public safety agencies to provide employers with a more comprehensive Alabama records check, including available Alabama circuit, district, and local court records for the past seven years and court cases that are currently pending.”

In the event an individual disputes the accuracy of the criminal records identified by the ABC system, the individual will then be able to submit to a state fingerprint based criminal background check for verification, provided by DPS through this partnership, at no additional cost.

All transactions made through the ABC system are monitored and logged by ACJIC, which may also investigate and refer for prosecution any alleged misuse of the system. Under Alabama law, persons who willingly request, obtain, or seek to obtain criminal offender record information under false pretenses may be subject to felony criminal penalties.

“This system’s ability to provide business owners with an effective tool to maintain a safer, more profitable workforce is important, but the true value of the product is that it is secure and is monitored to ensure it is used correctly,” said Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb. “The partnership between the courts, ACJIC and ADPS is designed to look out for the employer – and to make sure that the information returned is accurate for the protection of the individual employee or prospective employee.”

“To be able to work together on a system that can help employers know critical information about who they hire and trust -and to ensure that the individuals can challenge and we can confirm the data in our state’s criminal history repository- is a win-win for everyone,” said Col. J. Christopher Murphy, director of the Alabama Department of Public Safety.

The ABC system conducts the name-based background checks by using basic identifying information and specific numeric identifiers provided by the employee and employer. ABC reports normally are available immediately to the requesting employer; in the event the provided information appears to conflict with other Alabama criminal records, however, the system has been designed to direct the request for review by ACJIC before an ABC report is returned via the online system to the requesting employer.

About ACJIC
The Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center is the state technology agency primarily responsible for providing timely and accurate mission-critical data services to state, local and federal criminal justice agencies. ACJIC operates information systems which process more than 15 million transactions per month, and are accessed by more than 15,000 sworn law enforcement officers in over 900 criminal justice entities within Alabama and across the nation. The agency systems are connected nationally to the FBI, and to all 50 states via the International Justice and Public Safety Network, also known as Nlets. For more information, visit www.acjic.alabama.gov

About ADPS
The Alabama Department of Public Safety is a full-fledged, statewide law enforcement agency comprising six divisions: Administrative, Alabama Bureau of Investigation, Driver License, Highway Patrol, Protective Services and Service. For more information, visit www.dps.alabama.gov

About AOC
The Alabama Administrative Office of Courts created in 1977 to oversee the administration of daily operations of Alabama's Unified Judicial System. The agency also serves to assist with the administrative duties of the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.

About Alabama.gov
Alabama.gov is the state of Alabama’s official Web portal (http://www.alabama.gov) and a collaborative effort between the state of Alabama and Alabama Interactive. It was built and is marketed, operated, and maintained by Alabama Interactive, a Montgomery-based wholly owned subsidiary of eGovernment firm NIC (NASDAQ: EGOV).

About NIC
NIC manages more eGovernment services than any provider in the world. The company helps government communicate more effectively with citizens and businesses by putting essential services online. NIC provides eGovernment solutions for 2,900 state and local agencies that serve more than 70 million people in the United States. Additional information is available at www.nicusa.com.

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