Vermont Judiciary modernizes FBI background check interface to enhance public safety with Microsoft Azure

The Vermont Judiciary (VTJ) developed an innovative solution to automatically publish court records to the U.S. National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). This system is used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to determine whether individuals can legally purchase firearms in the United States. Previously, VTJ relied on manual entry of records from family and mental health court cases, but it was difficult to publish accurate information within the mandated 48 hours. VTJ reached out to Microsoft with an ambitious plan to create a new site-to-site communication interface that would automatically publish information within the required time frame. The solution aimed to help more states meet reporting requirements and prevent unauthorized firearm sales across state lines.

Leaning into innovation to reduce administrative burdens

Vermont might be the second-smallest U.S. state by population, but VTJ has big ambitions to automate manual processes and thus better serve its community. VTJ is dedicated to protecting individual rights and promoting public safety through its appellate and trial courts. Like all U.S. states, VTJ is required to notify the FBI when a family or mental health court terminates a person’s right to purchase and carry a firearm. To help prevent unauthorized purchases, VTJ must publish the court record to the FBI’s NICS within 48 hours.

VTJ’s legacy case-management system required court docket clerks to navigate its complex NICS-supported interface to enter records manually. This time-consuming process often meant that records were not published within 48 hours, making it possible for an unauthorized sale to proceed. It was also prone to errors and incomplete records, which the system was slow to flag.

Therefore, the VTJ leadership boldly leaned into technology to streamline this critical process. This move underscores VTJ’s commitment to keeping firearms out of the reach of individuals who posed a potential risk to the community. “As a state government, we’re limited in our resources,” says Marcia Schels, Chief Technology Innovation Officer at VTJ. “We try to solve our problems with innovations that are efficient, reliable, and secure. It takes courage to do something new, but it is worth it to keep guns out of the hands of people that shouldn’t have them.”

Pioneering a secure communication interface

VTJ embarked on an ambitious journey to develop a modern interface that securely connects with NICS sites, automates record entry, and meets the FBI’s stringent security requirements. VTJ was already working with Microsoft and values the security and compatibility of its back-end tools and products, so the VTJ team began discussing its aspirations with the Microsoft team. “We had an enterprise support contract, and we engaged with Microsoft early on,” says Schels. “We talked through the architecture, how to connect services, and what security would look like.”

VTJ developed its cloud-based interface using Microsoft Azure services and migrated its messaging and query tooling to secure apps with Azure SQL and Azure Functions. To establish a secure communication channel, VTJ designed a site-to-site connection with the NICS using Azure Virtual WAN, which supplies robust connectivity and security. With support from Microsoft, VTJ regularly interacted with the FBI throughout the project to receive approval for this innovative, secure, and streamlined interface.

The VTJ team built its interface entirely from off-the-shelf Azure services, optimizing cloud-based capabilities on a limited state budget. VTJ tested its automated process to make sure that it captures and publishes all necessary information to the NICS, with the flexibility to update templates as reporting standards change. “We can, at the click of a button, test changes and have it up and running overnight,” says Zheng Xia, Lead Software Engineer at VTJ.

VTJ’s new, FBI-approved interface can help states ensure that the NICS is as accurate and up to date as possible. Since implementing the solution, VTJ has successfully posted 100% of records from the family and mental health court cases that resulted in a firearm ban to the NICS well within the 48-hour deadline. “Now the people of Vermont can be assured that VTJ is doing its best to keep firearms out of the hands of those whose rights were revoked,” says Xia.

The organization believes that other states can easily adopt its new solution in weeks or months. “As a government organization, we are happy to share,” says Schels. “There’s no competition, and I would love for others to benefit from what we have done.”

The leadership’s bold decision has also improved the work-life balance for VTJ’s employees who previously had to work evenings or weekends to manually enter data. With the automated process, docket clerks no longer need to make an extra effort to meet the 48-hour deadline. Additionally, VTJ saves money on overtime costs and no longer requires third-party software, an estimated savings of $45,000 to $50,000.

Reimagining court processes and technology to advance community services

VTJ is boldly reimagining court processes and technology to better serve its community. By deploying the new solution, the organization is sparking continuous innovation as employees explore new opportunities to apply advanced tools to future projects. Committed to digital transformation, VTJ embraces a cloud-centric IT strategy that uses large language models and empowers people to query data seamlessly.

The collaboration between VTJ and Microsoft serves as a blueprint for state and local governments to reshape processes, enhance public safety, and improve community services. VTJ attributes its success to dedicated leadership. “This is not a technology push; this is a leadership push,” says Xia. “Without forward-looking leaders at VTJ, this innovation would not have happened.”

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