Support for Adam Walsh Act Implementation Grant Program

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (AWA) (Pub. L. 109-248, 42 U.S.C. § 16901, et seq) authorizes the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) to administer sex offender management grants. These grants assist state, local and tribal jurisdictions in developing and/or enhancing sex offender registration and notification programs that support substantial implementation of Title I of the AWA, known as the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). SORNA was enacted to protect the public from convicted sex offenders and offenders against children by establishing a comprehensive national system for the registration of those offenders.

The State of New Mexico is working to enhance its registration system to an electronic form from a paper-based one. To achieve this goal, New Mexico Department of Public Safety (NMDPS) identified the following three goals: 1) provide support personnel responsible for scanning all sex offender related documents, creating digital records as required for SORNA; 2) acquire new computers, LiveScan fingerprint scanners and flatbed scanners for documents; and 3) enhance jurisdiction-wide implementation of SORNA through technological advancements and features of the Sex Offender Registration Program in the State of New Mexico by implementing sex offender management software. NMDPS plans to provide a framework for electronic messaging between the local agencies and the State to provide automated messaging as offenders move between jurisdictions, via the Exchange Portal and via direct email alerts. ca/ncf