Wisconsin JRJ Grant

After several years of the program being administered by the Higher Educational Aids Board, the Governor has designated the Wisconsin Department of Administration's State Prosecutors Office (SPO) as the state administering agency of the BJA FY24 John R. Justice (JRJ) Formula Grant program. As the governor-designated state administering agency, the SPO will be the primary recipient and will collaborate with the Office of the State Public Defender (SPD) to manage the program in a centralized manner allowing a consistent and standard approach statewide. The state of Wisconsin currently employs 431.4 FTE prosecutors in 71 different district attorneys offices that cover all 72 counties in Wisconsin; and 376 public defenders who work in 40 local offices providing representation in all 72 counties across the state. Qualified state prosecutors and public defenders with the least ability to repay their student loans, taking geographic diversity and household income into account, are the intended beneficiaries of the JRJ program. The program will serve to recruit and retain eligible prosecutors and public defenders by decreasing their student loan debt. Outreach to prospective applicants will be conducted and prospective beneficiaries will be asked to submit an application, provide supporting documentation on loans, and submit a recent Student Loan Report (proof of income, expenses, debt obligations and loan documentation). A review panel consisting of Wisconsin SPO, District Attorney and SPD staff will screen applicants, review applications and rank those applications to determine award recipients. An effort will be made to fairly allocate the awards between prosecutors and public defenders based on state allocation and number of applicants. Selected beneficiaries must meet the service agreement criteria, including committing to an additional three years of qualifying service in exchange for partial loan repayment directly to the beneficiary's loan service provider.