National Reentry Justice Information Sharing (JIS) Initiative

This program is funded under both the Edward Byrne Memorial Competitive Grant Program (Byrne Competitive Program) and the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. Authorized by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 111-8), the Byrne Competitive Program helps local communities improve the capacity of state and local justice systems and provides for national support efforts including training and technical assistance programs strategically targeted to address local needs. The JAG Program (42 U.S.C. 3751(a)) is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions, and JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system. The JAG Program authorization also provides that 'the Attorney General may reserve not more than 5 percent, to be granted to 1 or more states or units of local government for 1 or more of the purposes specified in section 3751 of this title, pursuant to his determination that the same is necessary ' (1) to combat, address, or otherwise respond to precipitous or extraordinary increases in crime, or in a type or types of crime.' (42 U.S.C. 3756).

The National Justice Information Sharing Initiative, administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), helps improve criminal justice systems and provides national programs and national efforts such as training and technical assistance to strategically address the needs of state and local justice systems and communities.

The Association of State Correctional Administrators will support the development and implementation of information exchange capabilities between state institutional corrections agencies and law enforcement in at least three pilot sites. They will support the development of information sharing standards (based on the National Information Exchange Model, or NIEM) and implementation of information sharing at the local level to promote effective prisoner reentry strategies, including a focus on mental health and substance abuse issues. The Association of State Correctional Administrators will collaborate with relevant national partners and key stakeholders to promote interoperability among community corrections, criminal justice, and public safety agencies.

CA/NCF