A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to protect social security numbers disclosed to obtain concealed handgun permits by allowing the confidential release of the last four digits of the numbers for official law enforcement or court purposes.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Effective January 1, 2018, G.S. 14‑415.17 reads as rewritten:
"§ 14‑415.17.  Permit; sheriff to retain a list of permittees; confidentiality of list and permit application information; availability to law enforcement agencies.
(a)	The permit shall be in a certificate form, as prescribed by the State Bureau of Investigation, that is approximately the size of a North Carolina drivers license. It shall bear the signature, name, address, date of birth, and the drivers license identification number used in applying for the permit.
(b)	The sheriff shall maintain a listing, including the identifying information, of those persons who are issued a permit. Within five days of the date a permit is issued, the sheriff shall send a copy of the permit to the State Bureau of Investigation.
(c)	The list of permit holders and the information collected by the sheriff to process an application for a permit are confidential and are not a public record under G.S. 132‑1. 
(d)	The sheriff shall make the list of permit holders and the permit information available upon request, for official purposes only, to all State and local law enforcement agencies, which shall maintain the confidentiality of the information.
(e)	The State Bureau of Investigation shall make the list of permit holders and the information collected by the sheriff to process an application for a permit available to law enforcement officers and clerks of court on a statewide system. Only the last four digits of a permit holder's Social Security number shall be visible in the statewide system accessible to the clerks of court and to law enforcement agencies other than the State Bureau of Investigation."
SECTION 2.  By December 31, 2017, the State Bureau of Investigation shall have redacted the full nine‑digit Social Security number from any record that would not be in compliance with the provisions of G.S. 14‑415.17, as amended by this act.
SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.