Virginia § 9.1-912 - Registry access and dissemination; fees

§ 9.1-912. Registry access and dissemination; fees

A. Except as provided in § 9.1-913 and subsection B or C of this section, Registry information shall be disseminated upon request made directly to the State Police or to the State Police through a local law-enforcement agency. Such information may be disclosed to any person requesting information on a specific individual in accordance with subsection B. The State Police shall make Registry information available, upon request, to criminal justice agencies including local law-enforcement agencies through the Virginia Criminal Information Network (VCIN). Registry information provided under this section shall be used for the purposes of the administration of criminal justice, for the screening of current or prospective employees or volunteers or otherwise for the protection of the public in general and children in particular. The Superintendent of State Police may by regulation establish a fee not to exceed $15 for responding to requests for information from the Registry. Any fees collected shall be deposited in a special account to be used to offset the costs of administering the Registry.

B. Information regarding a specific person shall be disseminated upon receipt of an official request form that may be submitted directly to the State Police or to the State Police through a local law-enforcement agency. The official request form shall include a statement of the reason for the request; the name and address of the person requesting the information; the name, address and, if known, the social security number of the person about whom information is sought; and such other information as the State Police may require to ensure reliable identification.

C. Registry information regarding all registered offender's electronic mail address information, any instant message, chat or other Internet communication name or identity information may be electronically transmitted by the Department of State Police to a business or organization that offers electronic communication or remote computing services for the purpose of prescreening users or for comparison with information held by the requesting business or organization. In order to obtain the information from the Department of State Police, the requesting business or organization that offers electronic communication or remote computing services shall agree to notify the Department of State Police forthwith when a comparison indicates that any such registered offender's electronic mail address information, any instant message, chat or other Internet communication name or identity information is being used on their system. The requesting business or organization shall also agree that the information will not be further disseminated.

2003, c. 584; 2007, cc. 759, 823; 2020, c. 829.