Requirements
The terms “unmanned aircraft system,” “drone,” and “unmanned aerial vehicle” all have the meaning given to the term “unmanned aircraft system” in 49 U.S.C. § 44801(12), “an unmanned aircraft and associated elements (including communication links and the components that control the unmanned aircraft) that are required for the operator to operate safely and efficiently in the national airspace system.” (Hereinafter, “UAS”).
The purchase of UAS is allowable under Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) programs only with express prior approval from BJA. To request such approval, the recipient (or subrecipient, at any tier) must submit to BJA a written certification that only UAS verified by the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Innovation Unit’s Blue UAS Cleared List as not manufactured by a “covered foreign entity” may be purchased or operated under the federal award and, further, that no modifications or additional accessories may be introduced to the UAS. The recipient also, in its submission to BJA, must assure OJP that it has sufficient policies and procedures regarding privacy, civil liberties, and information technology cybersecurity policies related to operation of the UAS. (Note: A recipient may not make the required certifications or assurances on behalf of any subrecipient unless it (or any lower-tier pass-through entity) has first obtained such certifications and assurances from an authorized subrecipient official.) Finally, the recipient may be required to provide additional documentation to verify purchase and the related policies for the UAS.
The required certification form is available here: Unmanned Aircraft System Certification.
Additional Requirement for JAG Awards
For awards under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program, in addition to complying with the requirements above, the recipient or subrecipient may not use JAG funds for UAS unless the Department of Justice first certifies in writing that extraordinary and exigent circumstances exist that make the use of JAG award funds to provide such matters essential to the maintenance of public safety and good order. See instructions for requesting such a waiver from BJA.
Prior Approval
The method of requesting prior approval from BJA to use funds to purchase UAS will depend on the status of the grant award.
At time of application:
- Applicants requesting to use BJA funds to purchase UAS must provide the required information in the application, to include in the proposal and budget, as detailed in the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) instructions. Further, the applicant must provide the completed UAS certification form as an attachment with their submitted application.
- JAG applicants are required to submit the necessary information to request a Department of Justice certification (“waiver”) that extraordinary and exigent circumstances exist that make the use of JAG award funds to provide such matters essential to the maintenance of public safety and good order, as detailed in the NOFO and JAG Prohibited Expenditure Guidance.
- If the application is funded and BJA deems that the information provided in the application is complete and sufficient, BJA will issue an award agreement without withholding of funds related to UAS and this will signify approval of the request.
- If the applicant is requesting to use funds for UAS in the application but the necessary information including the certification form cannot be submitted at time of application, then BJA will issue an award agreement with a withholding award condition related to the proposed purchase. The recipient would need to provide the required information after an award is made and, once BJA deems that the information provided is complete and sufficient, an award condition modification (ACM) will be issued to approve the request and remove the hold on funds.
Existing awards:
For awards made under which the approved project and budget did not previously include UAS, the recipient must submit a grant award modification (GAM) in JustGrants to request the changes. The assigned BJA grant manager will need to be consulted regarding the specific type of GAM(s) and information needed, as it may differ depending on the grant program. Once BJA deems that the information provided is complete and sufficient to approve the UAS, the GAM will be approved in JustGrants.