NORWICH – Pistol permits may soon come in the form of plastic cards rather than paper.

The Chenango County Clerk’s Office is proposing to spend about $38,000 for a technological upgrade that would produce laminated licenses to carry or possess a pistol.

The current software program for issuing permits is obsolete and can no longer be maintained, said Clerk Mary Weidman.

The new system, which could be up and running in the fall, would also enable public safety officials and judges better access to a list of local pistol owners, she said.