Gov. Phil Murphy has repeatedly vowed to make New Jersey a national model for gun control. On Wednesday, the Democrat's administration took his latest step in that crusade.

Murphy's state attorney general Gurbir Grewal, announced it is now mandatory for all state and local law enforcement agencies in New Jersey to share information about who manufactured, sold, and purchased guns used in crimes committed in the Garden State.

Grewal said while firearms crimes are down in the state compared to this time last year, firearms trafficking "remains a major problem.

"And the directive gives us a new, strong tool to fight it," he added in a statement.

Law enforcement agencies across New Jersey were already required to trace all guns recovered from crimes committed in the state. But this is the first time they are required to share the results with one another for guns that were sold in other states.

New Jersey has some of the strictest gun laws in the nation and one of the country's lowest gun mortality rates. But Murphy has repeatedly cited how the majority of gun deaths in the state involved a firearm that came from out of state.

This directive requires agencies to share information regarding the manufacturer, importer, dealer, and the first purchase for such crimes. That will allow the State Police to identify any patterns and identify those who have unlawfully sold or bought the guns, according to the attorney general's office.

"By sharing critical information regarding the origins of crime guns, New Jersey law enforcement now has a powerful tool, which will greatly aid in disrupting the flow of firearms trafficking and arresting those responsible for it," Col. Patrick Callahan, superintendent of the State Police, said in a statement.

Jon Shane, an associate criminal justice professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, described the attorney general's action as "a step in the right direction" that will help authorities identify repeat offenders and criminal patterns.

Shane said he hopes to see the information used to mount more statewide investigations and prosecutions.

"If you coordinate that strategy, you will have more seamless prosecutions and draw upon more resources at the State Police," he said. "It takes more sense to do this at the state level. You have such disparate systems working together and all sorts of jurisdictions and lines of authority."

Corrections officials should be involved, as well, Shane added.

"Don't think for one minute they give up their criminal ways -- they are corrupting jail officials, there's contraband coming in," he said. "Corrections has a lot to offer."

The announcement comes a little less than five months after Murphy signed signed an executive order for the state to issue monthly reports online about gun crimes, showing where they occur, how many people were killed or injured, and the type of weapon involved.

The order also calls for the state to publish a report every three months listing the states from which those guns originated.

The first report, released in May, showed more than three-quarters of guns connected to crimes in New Jersey come from outside its borders.

"We're going to name and shame," Murphy said at the time. "I'm sick of our -- mostly young -- people getting wounded or killed by guns that are illegally trafficked into New Jersey."

Murphy has made tighter gun control one of his core missions since succeeding Republican Chris Christie as governor in January.

He has also signed six bills to further toughen the state's gun laws, had New Jersey join a multi-state consortium to crack down on gun violence, and named a special adviser on firearms.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.