[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 83 (Friday, April 29, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 25718]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10121]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
National Institute of Justice
[OJP (NIJ) Docket No. 1709]
Draft Test Procedures for the Gun Safety Technology Challenge
AGENCY: National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice, Programs,
Department of Justice.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) seeks feedback from
the public on the draft test procedures developed for the Gun Safety
Technology Challenge, published here: http://www.nij.gov/funding/pages/fy16-gun-safety-challenge.aspx. The document describes test methods to
provide a basis to determine whether the addition of a smart gun
technology does or does not significantly reduce the reliability of the
firearm system compared to existing firearms.
DATES: Comments must be received by 5 p.m. Eastern Time on June 13,
2016.
How to Respond and What to Include: The draft test procedures
document in both Word and pdf formats can be found here: http://www.nij.gov/funding/pages/fy16-gun-safety-challenge.aspx. To submit
comments, please send an email to [email protected]. Please
indicate the page number, section number, and the line number
associated with each comment. Comments may also be provided as a markup
of the Word document. Please provide contact information with the
submission of comments.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NIJ was tasked with supporting the
President's Plan to Reduce Gun Violence, specifically:
``The President is directing the Attorney General to work with
technology experts to review existing and emerging gun safety
technologies, and to issue a report on the availability and use of
those technologies. In addition, the Administration will issue a
challenge to the private sector to develop innovative and cost-
effective gun safety technology and provide prizes for those
technologies that are proven to be reliable and effective.''
In support of this Executive action, NIJ has conducted a technology
assessment and market survey of existing and emerging gun safety
technologies that would be of interest to the law enforcement and
criminal justice communities and others with an interest in gun safety
and advanced firearm technology. These firearms or firearms accessories
can be understood to use integrated components that exclusively permit
an authorized user or set of users to operate or fire the gun and
automatically deactivate it under a set of specific circumstances,
reducing the chances of accidental or purposeful use by an unauthorized
user. The integrated gun safety technology may include different
authentication technologies, such as radio frequency identification and
fingerprint sensors.
A report published in June 2013 by NIJ entitled A Review of Gun
Safety Technologies (https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/242500.pdf)
examined existing and emerging gun safety technologies, and their
availability and use, to provide a comprehensive perspective on
firearms with integrated advanced safety technologies. Following the
report, NIJ published a Federal Register Notice (https://federalregister.gov/a/2014-27368) to receive information regarding
which firearms and firearms accessories, that incorporate advanced
safety technologies, could be made available by industry for testing
and evaluation in the Challenge.
NIJ now seeks an objective demonstration of the reliability of
firearms available today with advanced gun safety technology integrated
into the firearm. The reliability of firearms with integrated advanced
safety technologies has been cited as a concern regarding the potential
performance and user acceptance of products that may incorporate such
technologies, as discussed in the 2013 NIJ report. It is anticipated
that the results of the Challenge will provide a basis to improve the
general understanding of whether the addition of a smart gun technology
does or does not significantly reduce the reliability of the firearm
system compared to existing firearms. It is believed that this is the
first effort to apply a methodology to provide a rigorous and
scientific assessment of the technical performance characteristics of
these types of firearms.
With this Challenge, manufacturers and developers of (1) firearms
that incorporate advanced safety technologies or (2) firearms
accessories utilizing advanced safety technologies that are intended to
modify firearms were able to submit their products for testing and
evaluation. The Challenge is designed to proceed in an escalated manner
in three stages, including an informational and safety review, light
duty single product testing, and more heavy duty expanded product
testing. To assess the reliability of smart gun technology, the U.S.
Army Aberdeen Test Center (ATC) plans to perform firearm testing and
evaluation. The Challenge was published on October 7, 2015, and closed
to submissions on January 5, 2016.
NIJ hopes to better understand the effect of smart gun technology
on the reliability of the firearm versus the same or similar firearms
without the added safety technology. This Challenge seeks ``apples to
apples'' comparisons to the greatest extent possible. Testing and
evaluation is designed to prioritize the collection and use of data
that can substantiate conclusions about the relative performance of
firearms, so that firearms with and without advanced gun safety
technology that are similar with respect to type, form factor, caliber,
and other physical characteristics are tested and evaluated using a
common methodology and equivalent ammunition. Testing and evaluation is
not designed to provide comparison of test results against absolute
performance requirements or safety criteria, but rather to provide a
meaningful comparison of test results of one firearm against another
similar firearm, or a firearm with and without a relevant safety
accessory.
Nancy Rodriguez,
Director, National Institute of Justice.
[FR Doc. 2016-10121 Filed 4-28-16; 8:45 am]
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