SSAA NSW

Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (NSW) Inc. 17 Update when you Relocate As part of its regular program of performance audits, the NSW Auditor General's Office conducted an audit of the NSW Firearms Registry. A report was tabled by the Auditor General in Parliament on 28 February 2019. The audit assessed how well the Registry administers the requirements of the Act and Regulation for existing firearms licence holders. In making this assessment, the Audit Office considered the following lines of inquiry: 1. Does the Registry's database (the register) support the firearms licensing and registration scheme by having readily accessible, accurate and up-to-date information regarding the status of firearms licence holders and their registered firearms? 2. Does the Registry have, and comply with, appropriate risk-based policies and procedures for identifying and acting consistently on status changes of existing firearms licence holders? In response to the audit findings, the Firearms Registry has committed to a range of initiatives to support its continuous improvement approach to customer service, compliance and data management. One of our major initiatives is the "Update when you Relocate" campaign. The Audit Office found that over the course of a licence cycle, which is typically five years, information about a licence holder may change. For example, licensees may change mailing or residential address or change their name. These changes are important for the Firearms Registry to know so we can keep our systems up to date. The Firearms Registry has put in place various initiatives to keep our data up to date, such as validating an address when you apply for a Permit to Acquire and renew your licence using the online entry point through Service NSW (the Firearms and Licensing Information Management System). We have easy to find change of detail forms on our website and now we have a one-click-link to change your details on our automatic response email. But we can do more. Launching soon will be our "Update when you Relocate" campaign. This reminds you to update your mailing details with us any time you move. Information such as this article, banners on our website and SMS alerts to your mobile will form a part of an ongoing program to help us keep current. We are also working with Service NSW to identify if we can make it easier for firearms licence holders so that if they change their mailing or residential information for their driver's licence they can opt in to change their details for their firearm's licence too. This will reduce double handling for you and make sure we have your up-to-date details. The Firearms Registry has also committed to working with industry stakeholders, such as the SSAA, to promote compliance-based messaging and reminders to customers. Our regular piece in the NSW Shooter Quarterly Review is one of the channels to do this and we will be exploring more ways to communicate with our customers. As a firearm licence holder, it's your legislative obligation to keep us up to date with your current details so that we can communicate directly with you and provide you with the necessary information you need to remain law abiding and compliant with the firearm licensing and regulation scheme. The Firearms Act 1996 provides for a range of enforcement actions, from official cautions to fines (penalty notices) to commencing prosecutions for non- compliance. To reduce future non-compliance, we will work with operational police to increase their awareness of the range of enforcement action available to them. So, please, update when you relocate. NSW Police Force Firearms Registry link: https://www.police.nsw.gov.au/online_services/ firearms/change_of_personal_details_form Service NSW link: https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/ change-personal-details-nsw-firearms-licence Email us at: firearmsenq@police.nsw.gov.au Georgina Gold General Manager, Operations NSW Police Force Firearms Registry NSW Police Firearms Registry

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