FY25 Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities Program Notice of Funding Opportunity

BJA Fiscal Year 2025 Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities 

Serena Roche: Hello everyone. Today's webinar, BJA Fiscal Year 2025 Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities will be presented by BJA's Grant Management Specialist Luis Diaz and will provide information on the investigating and prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities program. The application requirements, the allowable uses of funding, the program goals and objectives and the tips and resources for navigating the application process.

Thank you again for watching. Now let's turn things over to Luis.

Luis Diaz: Thank you for joining this webinar to review the Fiscal Year 2025 Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities Grant program. My name is Luis Diaz, a senior policy advisor with the Bureau of Justice Assistance, or BJA. I'll be covering a lot of information during this webinar. I'm going to start with some background information on the Office of Justice Programs, or OJP, and the Bureau of Justice Assistance, or BJA.

I'll then provide an overview of the new Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities Program and highlight specific aspects of the program as described in the notice of funding opportunity, also known as a NOFO. Next, I'll walk through the funding process and then I'll wrap things up by identifying different resources available to support you during the application process.

Let's start by talking about the Office of Justice Programs, or OJP.

OJP provides grant funding, training, research and statistics to the criminal justice community. BJA is one of a number of grant making agencies located within OJP.

BJA strengthens the nation's criminal justice system and helps America's state, local and tribal jurisdictions reduce and prevent crime, reduce recidivism and promote a fair and safe criminal justice system. BJA's acting director is Tammy Gregg. BJA supports the field in several ways. We do so through investments, which is what we're talking about today, as well as by sharing knowledge on research on what works to build capacity and improve outcomes, and also by supporting opportunities to connect with the field.

So, let's transition to an overview of the Investigating and Prosecuting Sexual Assaults in Confinement Facilities Program.

Incidents of sexual abuse in confinement facilities have severe consequences for victims, for the security of correctional facilities and for the safety and well-being of the communities to which incarcerated persons return. The Prison Rape Elimination Act, or PREA, was signed into law in 2003 to make the prevention of and response to sexual assault a priority in confinement facilities across the nation.

The PREA standards provide guidance and mandatory minimum requirements for confinement facilities, with the goals of preventing sexual abuse in confinement and having trained professionals and established protocols in place to respond to reports of sexual abuse. Reducing the incidence of sexual abuse also necessitates collaboration between correctional institutions, agencies and prosecutors to conduct thorough investigations that result in successful prosecutions.

This NOFO supports state, local and tribal efforts to enhance their capacity to investigate and prosecute incidents of sexual assault in confinement facilities. State agencies, law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies may utilize this funding for investigative and prosecutorial activities to decrease incidents of sexual assault in confinement facilities and increase the rate of successful prosecutions of such cases. There are three related objectives to the goal of enhancing prosecutorial and investigative operations and capacity for the processing and disposition of sexual assault cases in confinement settings.

One is to increase the number of incidents of sexual assault that are investigated and referred for potential prosecution. Two, increasing the rate of successful prosecutions of cases involving sexual assault in confinement facilities. And three, improving collaboration and operations among state agencies, correctional institutions, law enforcement and prosecutorial agencies in investigating instances of sexual assault in confinement facilities.

As you begin considering your needs and how this grant program can help address those needs, it might be helpful to mention a few ways in which grant funds may be used. Permissible uses of grant funding include establishing or enhancing prosecution units for sexual assault; supporting evidence collection, retention, and victim or witness interviewing efforts; educating and training law enforcement, prosecutors' offices and their partners in responding to and investigating and prosecuting cases involving sexual assault in confinement settings; establishing or supporting existing coordinated interagency responses such as multi-disciplinary sexual assault response teams, or SARTs, in confinement facilities; acquiring resources or equipment to support effective sexual assault investigations such as security cameras or training for prosecutors for cases involving sexual assault in confinement facilities. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list. It's just a start. You should review the NOFO for specific examples of how funds may be used.

Now we'll talk a bit more about other information included in this NOFO.

Here's a list of eligible entities that may apply for funding under this program. And I'll just highlight some of the definitions for a few of these. So, state government entities. For the purposes of this NOFO, state means any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Publicly funded law enforcement agencies.

For the purposes of this NOFO, publicly funded law enforcement agencies are law enforcement agencies funded by states, federally recognized tribes or units of local government. Now, note that eligibility is important since applications from ineligible organizations will not be accepted. BJA anticipates awarding up to approximately a total of $6,100,000 under this program, making approximately four awards of up to $2 million each.

Each award will be for a 36-month period. Something else to keep in mind as you review program NOFOs is that in order to advance public safety and help meet its mission, OJP will provide priority consideration to applicants that propose projects designed to advance an identified set of goals.

The identified set of goals include directly supporting law enforcement operations, including immigration law enforcement operations, combating violent crime, supporting services to American citizens, protecting American children and supporting American victims of trafficking and sexual assault. Applicants seeking priority consideration should specify in the proposal narrative which of these goals the project is intended to advance, and how the applicant will do so.

This NOFO includes guidance on unallowable uses of funds. The DOJ Grants Financial Guide is your go-to resource to confirm allowability. Recipients under this funding opportunity will not submit any deliverables beyond the standard post-award requirements for most awards.

All award recipients under this funding opportunity will be required to submit the following reports and data: Quarterly financial reports, semiannual performance reports, and final financial and performance reports. I encourage you to review the NOFO for specific requirements associated with each of these deliverables. Applications under this NOFO should include some key attachments, which include the resumes of key personnel who will work on the proposed project or a description of the experience and skills of key personnel necessary to implement the project.

A tribal authorizing resolution documentation, if applicable, should be uploaded to JustGrants. More information on tribal authorizing resolutions can be found in the Application Resource Guide. (The application) should also include a timeline listing key activities and milestones and letters of support and a memorandum of understanding, if applicable. Letters of support should come from entities or individuals that know the applicant's work.

For each named partner involved in the project, applicants should include either a signed Memorandum of Understanding or MOU, a letter of intent that confirms the partners agreement to support the project through commitments of time, space, services and other project needs, or include information in your application narrative that confirms that each partner agrees to participate in the proposed project.

Now, I'm going to take a few minutes to walk through the application review process. All applications must be submitted by an eligible type of applicant. Must request funding with programmatic funding constraints. Must be responsive to the scope of the NOFO. And must include all items necessary to meet the basic minimum requirements. And these are listed in the NOFO.

Your application will not advance to peer review and be considered for funding unless you meet all stated requirements. All applicants are required to submit an application for federal assistance, also known as the SF-424 form, a proposal narrative, and a budget detail form, which includes the budget items, their calculations and explanations.

All applications that pass basic minimum review will be reviewed based on the same criteria. A statement of the problem, which accounts for 15% of the application score. Project goals and objectives, which accounts for 5% of the score. Project design and implementation, which accounts for 45%. Capabilities and competencies, which accounts for 20%. And the budget, which accounts for another 15%.

This NOFO includes an application checklist, and I encourage you to use it to ensure your application is complete. I'm going to spend the next few minutes providing an overview of the OJP funding process. To apply, your entity must register with SAM.gov and obtain a unique entity identifier. And you must maintain an active SAM.gov registration status at all times.

For entities new to SAM.gov. The registration process may take several weeks. For those not new to SAM.gov. Remember that your registration must be reviewed every 12 months. Also, be sure that your organization's points of contact in SAM.gov are current.

Applications are submitted to OJP electronically through a two-step process, which means that you will be required to register and confirm users who can access two different systems. For step one, you need to complete an application for federal assistance or SF-424 in Grants.gov. For step two, you will need to complete the full application, including required attachments in JustGrants, which is OJP's grants management system.

Please note that we recommend completing each step at least 48 hours before the deadline. Also note that the Grants.gov deadline is earlier than the JustGrants deadline. A few important points about Grants.gov. Be sure to confirm your registration or register if you are new to the system. You should add or confirm users and roles for everyone you plan to have work on your funding application.

Please note that you can register or confirm users or roles at any time, so don't wait. You can check the Grants.gov quick start guide for more tips. One common question we receive about the SF-424 is, do I need a firm budget amount to submit this form? The answer is no. You can provide an estimate on this form and then update your funding request in JustGrants.

You will then need to complete the full application in JustGrants. This includes the standard applicant information, which is pre-populated with data from your SF-424. You'll need to review and make edits as needed to the information in JustGrants. You do not need to go back and make changes to your SF-424 in Grants.gov. Just be sure that the information in the JustGrants application is accurate and complete.

The proposal narrative provides much more detail about your proposed project, including the problems and needs it will address, the goals and objectives, project design and your organization's ability to implement the project. Your budget should align with your proposal narrative and clearly explain how each cost will support the project. Costs should be reasonable and necessary for the performance project.

Since allowable costs will vary by DOJ program, you should look to the NOFO for more details on allowable and unallowable costs. For some DOJ programs, MOUs or partner letters of intent are required. Generally, these should reflect partnerships and show agreement to support your project through commitment of staff, time, space, services or other project needs.

Additional application components may be required for certain DOJ programs, so please be sure to read through this section in the NOFO carefully. You'll also need to address multiple disclosures and assurances in your application. These questions guide applicants through programmatic, financial and legal topics to ensure applicants understand what's required of them. Please read those carefully and seek clarification whenever needed.

After the JustGrants deadline has passed, OJP will thoroughly review all applications. This process typically takes several months. First, we check to confirm that the application contains the basic minimum requirements that were described in the funding opportunity. For applications that miss these requirements, you will receive notice that your application has been eliminated from further review.

For competitive opportunities, peer reviewers who are subject matter experts will assess the technical merits of each application. OJP staff then assess applications based on factors such as geographic diversity, past performance and whether applications are likely to meet the funding opportunities, goals and objectives.

We then evaluate the fiscal integrity of the applicant, examine proposed costs and determine whether the budget and budget narrative accurately explain the project's costs and whether these costs are allowable and reasonable.

Finally, OJP reviews potential risks presented by applicants prior to making an award. This pre-award risk assessment takes into account a variety of factors, including an applicant's financial capability and past performance. During the review process, OJP may contact you to clarify program or budget details. Applicants are often eager to learn how their application is progressing through the review process.

Unfortunately, DOJ staff, including user support and the OJP Response Center, cannot share information with you until final awards have been made public. You can visit OJP's grants awards website to see all OJP awards made by year, program and even locality. This site is updated as awards are made. If your application is selected, specific JustGrants users for your organization will be notified by email of an award.

They will also see the award in their JustGrants account. If you receive notice of an award, you must take steps in JustGrants to accept or decline. The DOJ award acceptance checklist on the JustGrants resources website can walk you through those steps. Before we close out the webinar, I just wanted to flag a few resources that you may find helpful as you move through the application process.

One helpful resource is the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide, which provides additional information for applicants to prepare and submit applications to OJP for funding. The JustGrants resources website is an entry way into information about JustGrants, and the system itself.

Through this portal, both award recipients and applicants can access training resources and user support options and find answers to frequently asked questions. Users can also log in to JustGrants through the site.

We also provide support for the two systems you will need to access to apply for funding. For Grants.gov, where you can submit the application for Federal Assistance SF-424, we provide contact information you can see here to call or email for help.

And in JustGrants where you submit your full application, again we have contact information here where you can reach out with any assistance required for your application.

We covered a lot of information during this webinar. So please feel free to reach out to the OJP Response Center (on) the information provided here with any questions. And please use social media and other approaches to stay connected to BJA and OJP.

Serena Roche: All right. Thank you, Luis, for that thorough overview of this important funding opportunity. We hope you found the information presented here today to be helpful.

If you are interested and eligible for this NOFO, here are the next steps to take. Access to NOFOs at Grants.gov and OJP.gov. Register in Grants.gov. early as this process can take several weeks. Review program specific application deadlines and requirements.

Contact the BJA Training and Technical Assistance Center for support at [email protected]. For more information on the Office of Justice Programs, please visit OJP.gov.

Thank you for your time and we hope to see you again.