(Washington, D.C.) - U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME) and Susan M. Collins (R-ME) today announced that a $384,000 grant has been awarded to the Maine Department of Public Safety by the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The grant will be used for the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP), which aims to improve the Nation's safety and security by enhancing the quality, completeness, and accessibility of criminal record history. "The ability to perform efficient and comprehensive background checks is an essential component of keeping communities safe," said Senators Snowe and Collins in a joint statement. "It is imperative that Maine receives federal assistance to upgrade its current system so that it can link with national records." BJS grants provide direct financial and technical assistance to the States to improve criminal history and other related records and to build their infrastructure to connect to national record check systems both to supply information and to conduct the requisite checks. ###