Runs 10,000+ Gun Traces at Once, Can't Tell If They Solve Crimes
Summary
A inspector general audit of the National Tracing Center, the only federal facility that traces crime guns, found it carrying 10,000 to 15,000 active traces at any moment while leaning on manual, paper-based workflows. Its backlog of unscanned records from out-of-business gun dealers has grown past 38,000 boxes, each searched by hand. And the center has no metric for what should be the whole point: whether the traces it runs actually help solve crimes.
Paper records from dead gun dealers, searched by hand
Nearly half of completed traces⧉ rely on paper records from dealers that have since closed. Federal law requires those records shipped to the center, where staff disassemble and scan them by hand. The backlog of unscanned boxes has grown from over 18,000 in FY2020 to over 29,000 by September 2024 -- a 65% rise⧉ -- and past 38,000 by March 2026⧉.
View data as table
| FY 2020 | 18,000 | 'Over 18,000' unscanned OBR boxes -- the baseline for the audit's 65% growth figure |
|---|---|---|
| September 2024 | 29,000 | 'Over 29,000' boxes -- a 65% increase over 2020, and the endpoint of the 's audit scope |
| September 2025 | 32,000 | 'Over 32,000' boxes, per the report's footnote tracking the backlog past the audit period |
| March 2026 | 38,000 | 'Over 38,000' boxes -- the backlog is still growing faster than contract workers can scan |
An unscanned record takes staff an average of 2 days to locate by hand, versus same-day once scanned⧉ -- and officials estimate 18 months to clear the backlog⧉ even if nothing new arrived. Even scanned records aren't searchable: the 1986 Firearms Owners' Protection Act bars a federal firearms registry, so scans are stored as non-searchable images⧉, and the paper originals -- the only copy -- have no backup.
Keeping pace, short of its own targets
Trace requests rose 30% and completed traces 34% from FY2020 to FY2024⧉, as agencies using eTrace grew from about 8,200 to over 10,000. The center's budget grew only about 20% over the same span, from roughly \$31 million to \$38 million⧉. In FY2024 it hit 92% of urgent traces within 48 hours (target: 95%) and 62% of routine traces within 7 days (target: 75%)⧉ -- improving year over year, but still short.
View data as table
| Urgent traces on time (actual) | 92% | 92% of urgent requests completed within 48 hours in 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Urgent target | 95% | 's target for urgent traces completed within 48 hours |
| Routine traces on time (actual) | 62% | 62% of routine requests completed within 7 days in 2024 |
| Routine target | 75% | 's target for routine traces completed within 7 days |
No way to know if any of it solves crimes
The center doesn't measure whether its traces help solve crimes⧉ -- its two metrics track speed, not outcome -- and doesn't document with requesting agencies what a lead produced⧉. The 's three recommendations⧉: standardize tracing procedures now passed along by word of mouth, keep shrinking the backlog, and measure the return on investment the center currently can't.
- The National Tracing Center -- the only federal facility that traces crime guns -- receives 1,500 to 2,000 requests a day and holds 10,000 to 15,000 active traces at any given time, per an August 2026 audit (report 26-079).
- Nearly half of all completed traces rely on paper records from out-of-business dealers, and the backlog of unscanned record boxes grew from over 18,000 in FY2020 to over 29,000 by September 2024 (a 65% rise), then past 38,000 by March 2026.
- Because unscanned records cannot be searched electronically, staff locate them by hand -- an average of 2 days per record versus same-day for scanned ones -- and officials estimate 18 months to clear the current backlog even with no new arrivals.
- Federal law (the 1986 Firearms Owners' Protection Act) bars a searchable federal firearms registry, so even scanned records are stored as non-searchable images; the paper originals have no backup.
- Trace requests rose 30% and completed traces 34% from FY2020 to FY2024, while the center's budget rose only about 20%; it hit 92% of its 95% target for urgent traces and 62% of its 75% target for routine ones in FY2024.
- The center does not track whether its traces help solve crimes, and does not document with requesting agencies what its leads produced; the made three recommendations, including adopting outcome-based performance metrics.
This piece describes findings from a single performance audit by 's independent statutory Office of Inspector General (report 26-079, August 2026), covering fiscal years 2020 through 2024. Every figure is drawn from that report. The report frames its findings as efficiency, records-management, and performance-measurement gaps -- not as allegations of fraud or misconduct by any individual, and no person is named here as a wrongdoer. The audit notes real improvements in trace turnaround times over the period and states that the center kept pace with rising demand; the shortfalls described are against 's own internal targets and the 's assessment of best practice. Backlog counts are the report's 'over N' floor figures and understate the true totals. The report does not state a dollar cost for the backlog or the manual workflows, and this piece does not estimate one.
Sources(2) ▾
- U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General, Audit of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' Management of Firearm Trace Requests at the National Tracing Center (Report 26-079) (2026-08-01) — audit (report 26-079, August 2026) of 's management of firearm trace requests at the National Tracing Center (NTC) in Martinsburg, West Virginia, covering fiscal years 2020-2024. Evidences the 10,000-15,000 active ongoing traces and 1,500-2,000 daily requests, the unscanned out-of-business-records (OBR) box backlog and its growth, the two-day manual-locate delay, the share of traces relying on OBRs, the FY2020-2024 request-volume and budget growth, the urgent/routine timeliness metrics against targets, the non-searchable image-file digitization, and the finding that the NTC does not measure whether its traces contribute to solving crimes. Three recommendations. Hosted on oversight.gov, the official Inspectors General portal. oversight.gov · original document
- U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the Inspector General, Audit of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' Management of Gun Trace Requests at its National Tracing Center -- report page (2026-08-01) — 's own report page on oig.justice.gov (the issuing office's primary domain), confirming the report title, component (), and subject (National Tracing Center gun trace requests). Used to corroborate that the oversight.gov PDF is the issuer's official copy. oig.justice.gov · original document
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The National Tracing Center⧉ in Martinsburg, West Virginia is the only federal facility that traces crime guns. It fields 1,500 to 2,000 requests a day and carries 10,000 to 15,000 active traces at once⧉, per a DOJ Inspector General audit⧉ released August 2026. It's keeping pace -- through manual, paper-heavy work, a growing records backlog, and no measure of whether any trace actually helps solve a crime.