ALBANY — A legislative push to give law enforcement officers around the clock access to pistol permit information is the latest controversy over implementation of the SAFE Act.

The issue stems from a narrow interpretation of the 2013 gun control law, which has resulted in most local departments only having access to the pistol information from the State Police during weekday business hours. The information was supposed to be available in a statewide database authorized by the law, but it was never created.

Legislation advanced last month — passed largely with the backing of Democratic state lawmakers — would circumvent this narrow window of availability by requiring county clerks to make the information preemptively available to law enforcement upon request.

The proposal is being reviewed by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's office.

Most county clerks have withheld the information, citing language in the SAFE Act that allowed records of licensed handgun owners and applicants to be exempt from freedom of information requests. The law never addressed requests from law enforcement officials, who may want to know whether to expect a handgun when responding to a distress call.

"It was the intent of the original law to give law enforcement that information," said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, a Westchester County Democrat, who sponsored the legislative fix.

"We know that none of the clerks have given (the information) out," Paulin added.

She introduced the legislation after a department in her district tried unsuccessfully to get the records from the county clerk. If enacted into law, she envisions police departments will preemptively request the information so it is readily available when responding to emergencies.

Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said the process of obtaining the information might still be challenging in some counties due to automation issues, but he believed the proposal would have a positive effect.

While his deputies always take certain precautions, Apple said knowing how many handguns are in a house after responding to a domestic violence call is very important. He laid out a hypothetical instance where one handgun is turned over by a perpetrator to police, but access to records allows officers to know that four weapons are in the home.

But not all law enforcement officers are clamoring for access to this information, as Saratoga County Sheriff Michael Zurlo said it won't change how his department approaches their job.

"We are trained to be prepared for any scenario and our deputies work hard to ensure everyone's safety, including their own," Zurlo said. "Our primary, most reliable, and most expeditious sources of information are from the person calling in the emergency or the first deputy on site."

Assemblyman Kieran Michael Lalor, a Dutchess County Republican, contended during the floor debate on the bill that the pistol information would give officers a "false sense of security."

"The more dangerous situation would be that person who has an unregistered firearm or an illegal gun," Lalor said.

This debate would have been avoided if the database promised with the SAFE Act was ever realized. At the time, Cuomo said, "We'll have for the first time a statewide handgun database that will allow the state, allow local officials to check periodically."

Paulin said her preference would be for the statewide database to be created, but she doesn't know what's been holding it up for more than six years.

A State Police spokesman said the database is under development, but didn't have additional details immediately available.

The language in the SAFE Act addressing disclosure of pistol permit records was added in response to the controversial decision by the Journal News in the lower Hudson Valley to publish an interactive map with the names and addresses of registered handgun owners in Westchester and Rockland counties after the mass shooting in 2012 at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

The records were compiled through Freedom of Information requests.

If the new legislation is approved by Cuomo, any records obtained by law enforcement would not be subject to the state's Freedom of Information law.

David.Lombardo@timesunion.com - 518.454.5427 - @poozer87