BJA Programs

Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance Program: Formula Grant Program Guidance, FY 2004

General Information
Eligible Applicants

This funding source is allocated by formula only to states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa. Throughout this document, these entities are referred to simply as states (Sec. 502).*

Designation of Administering Agencies

In each state, the Governor or chief executive designates a state agency to apply for and administer these funds (Sec. 507). Throughout this document, these agencies are referred to simply as SAAs (state administering agencies).

Allocation Method

Of the amount available for formula grants, each state will receive a base amount of 0.25 percent or $500,000, whichever is greater. The remainder is divided among the states based on population (Sec. 506(a)).

Note: American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands together receive the allocation of one state, with 67 percent going to American Samoa and 33 percent going to the Northern Mariana Islands (Sec. 901(a)(2)).

*Statutory References
There are legal references throughout this document. They generally refer to the enabling legislation for the Byrne Program, Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 42 U.S.C. 3711 et seq.

Budget Considerations

The following rules and requirements apply to designing budgets for the Byrne Program.

Administrative Funds

Of the amount awarded to a state, the SAA may use up to 10 percent for costs associated with administering these funds. Such types of expenses might include salaries and fringe benefits for agency heads, planners, fiscal officers, statistical analysis center personnel (if part of the SAA by employment or contract), grant managers and monitors, and clerical staff, but only for the portion of time they spend on administering these funds. Funds also may be used for other administrative expenses associated with the program such as travel, training, supplies, equipment, and distribution of documents (Sec. 504(b)).

Pass-Through Requirement

The Act requires that an SAA pass through a certain amount of funds to local units of government. Furthermore, it sets out that the amount is to be determined by assessing the percentage of state funding as compared to local funding for criminal justice. These assessments are done by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), and the information is then provided to each state. If an SAA believes these assessments to be in error, the SAA may appeal the percentage by providing alternate, verifiable data that rebut BJS's conclusions (Sec. 506(b)).

The pass-through requirement is a minimum level of funding for local governments, not a ceiling. An SAA is free to pass through as much of its Byrne Award over that amount that it chooses. To calculate the pass-through, subtract administrative funds from the award and then multiply that amount by the pass-through percentage.

Waiver of Pass-Through

If the SAA wishes to fund a project that will be administered by the state but benefit local governments, then this project may be considered part of the pass-through amount if each local jurisdiction that benefits voluntarily signs a waiver. There is no specific format for this waiver, but it should certify that the local jurisdiction understands that the funds in question are set aside for local government use, believes that this program is for local benefit, and understands funding at the state level is a convenience to local government.

Match Requirements

Of the funds expended under this program, no more than 75 percent may be federal, with the remaining 25 percent in match from other allowable sources (Sec. 504(a)). The matching requirements for American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Native American Tribes with law enforcement functions that the federal government recognizes are waived (48 U.S.C. 1469a).

The rules listed here are not exhaustive. For more information, consult the OJP Financial Guide.

Criminal Justice Records Improvement Set-Aside

The Act requires each SAA to set aside 5 percent of its grant funds for criminal justice records improvement (CJRI) in its state (Sec. 509(a)). The Act also allows the BJA Director to waive the CJRI requirement under certain rare circumstances. These funds must be spent on programs that promote one or more of the following goals:

The CJRI plan previously submitted needs only to be updated and kept on file.

FYI Note: At this time, the Department of Justice is involved in a departmentwide effort to explore the use of biometric technology to enhance the timeliness and accuracy of criminal identification in the justice system.

Supplanting

Grant funds, which include matching funds, may not be used to replace state or local funds that would, in the absence of federal assistance, be available or forthcoming for law enforcement. Instead, grant funds must be used to increase the total amount of such other funds the grantee agency uses.

A grant recipient may not use federal grant funds to defray any costs that the recipient is already obligated to pay. For example, if a grantee, prior to applying to participate in the grant program, had committed to purchase 10 new computers for crime analysis, then the grantee must purchase those 10 computers in addition to any computers requested for the grant program (Sec. 503(a)(3)).

Length of Grants

All awards under the Byrne Program are for 4 years. Extensions beyond this point may be made on a case-by-case basis and will require unusual circumstances.

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The State Byrne Program Strategy

The Act requires SAAs to develop a statewide strategy for drug and violent crime control programs that intend to improve the functioning of the criminal justice system, with an emphasis on drug trafficking, violent crime, and serious offenders.

Strategy Timeframe and Updates

This requirement is accomplished through a 4-year strategy the SAA develops to outline the programs it will fund with the Byrne grant and provide data and explanations of the need for those programs. The first full strategy under this format is due along with the application 60 days after the President signs the Fiscal Year 2004 Consolidated Appropriations Act. This means that it will most likely be due in early 2004. Full strategies will then be due each fourth year after that (e.g., 2008, 2012).

In the years between full strategy submissions, the SAA is required to update BJA on its strategy, which can be accomplished either through a letter telling BJA that there are no changes to report or through a more detailed update. If the SAA wishes to update the strategy, it can either provide a fully updated strategy or can simply inform BJA of the changes using the same headings as the strategy (see Strategy Format). If a detailed update is provided, then the SAA must also submit a new executive summary.

Strategy Format

The strategy must be constructed using the following format:

  1. Executive Summary.

  2. Data and Analysis.

  3. Resource Needs.

  4. Priorities and the National Drug Control Strategy.

  5. Selected Programs.

  6. Coordination Efforts.

I. Executive Summary

This portion of the strategy is used to provide information to Congress and others interested in a state's activities. As a result, it need not be long, but the SAA should provide a general summary of the strategy.

II. Data and Analysis

In this section, the SAA should provide any data that support the need for the programs selected for funding under the Byrne Program. This discussion might include estimates of the availability of different types of drugs, major sources of drugs, violent crime trends, or any other information that supports the funding decisions. In doing so, the SAA should provide some information for at least a small selection of specific population centers that have major drug or violent crime problems to be addressed through Byrne programs (Sec. 503(a)(1)(A)).

It is not necessary for the SAA to provide data that support a criminal justice records improvement program.

Useful Links for Data

Office of National Drug Control Policy, State and Local Profiles

FBI's Uniform Crime Reports

Crime and Justice Data Online

Bureau of Justice Statistics

III. Resource Needs

After setting out the problems identified through data and analysis, the SAA should use this section to describe in general the resources the state uses to address them and then describe the gaps in those resources that need to be filled. In doing so, the SAA should provide any relevant discussion on the difficulty in providing these resources without Byrne funding (Sec. 503(a)(1)(D)).

IV. Priorities and the National Drug Control Strategy

The Act requires that a state strategy shows the relationship of its priorities to the National Drug Control Strategy (Sec. 503(a)(1)(F)). For this section, the SAA should consult the National Strategy and determine which of the priorities included are also priorities for the Byrne Strategy. To meet this requirement, the SAA must set out the priorities for Byrne funding and, under each, list the national priorities that tie to each (Sec. 503(a)(1)(F)).

The section on Selected Programs (see below) will ask the SAA to connect these priorities to each Byrne program.

Please check ONDCP's web site for the FY 2004 National Strategy.

V. Selected Programs

In this section, the SAA should set out each of the programs that it plans to fund using Byrne funds. A program is not an individual subgrant but a more general statement identifying a solution to address identified problems (Sec. 506(c)).

The SAA should use the following format in this section:

  1. Name of the program.

  2. Date BJA approved the program, if previously approved.

  3. List of the identified national priorities that connect to this program.

  4. List of the Byrne purpose areas that connect to this program.

  5. Description of the program.

  6. List of the performance measures that will be collected related to this program.

  7. The evaluation target date for completion or a request for waiver for the evaluation component (see Waiver Requests).

VI. Coordination Efforts

In this section, the SAA should discuss how the Byrne funds connect with or are coordinated with other federal programs and funding sources or plans for how this coordination will happen in future. If relevant, this should include a discussion of coordination efforts with drug abuse education, treatment, and prevention programs. The SAA also may include a discussion of coordination efforts with nonfederal programs (Sec. 503(a)(1)(C)).

Subgranting Byrne Formula Grant Funds

Funding Timelines—The 45-Day Rule

The statute specifically allows the SAA only 45 days to decline an application made by a local unit of government or a combination of local governments. While this does not mean that an SAA must actually issue an award within that 45 days, it does mean that an application is considered approved if the SAA does not send a denial letter within the 45 days (Sec. 508(a)).

The 45 days begin on the day that the SAA receives all of the information it needs to process an award. As a result, if it is the SAA's practice to send applicants information that describes deficiencies in an application, the 45-day clock does not begin until the SAA receives all of the requested information, clarification, or documents.

In addition, in the unusual situation that the SAA's Byrne grant is delayed for any reason, the 45-day clock would not begin for any applications the SAA has already received until the day the SAA receives its award from BJA (Sec. 508(b)).

Eligible Subgrant Applicants

The SAA may subgrant Byrne Program funds to state governments, local units of government, and Native American Tribes with law enforcement functions that the federal government recognizes (Sec. 501(b)).

Approval of Programs To Be Funded

If during the 4-year life of a strategy or in between updates an SAA wishes to add a new program under which it will award grants, the SAA may complete a Program Request form and send it to the BJA Program Manager for review and approval. The SAA should use the same format used in the strategy (see Selected Programs). When the new program is approved, the BJA Program Manager will forward an e-mail to the SAA within 10 working days of the request (Sec. 506(c)).

Length of Funded Projects

The statute imposes a maximum number of 4 years of funding for most Byrne-funded projects. The only exceptions are multijurisdictional drug task forces, multijurisdictional gang task forces, victims assistance programs, and projects funded under the Criminal Justice Records Improvement Program. While BJA will not routinely ask for documentation of this requirement, the SAA should keep appropriate records on file that demonstrate compliance (Sec. 504(f)).

Fiscal and Administrative Monitoring

Throughout the life of any Byrne-funded grant to a state, both BJA and the Office of the Comptroller may conduct either onsite or desk reviews of the grant. As a result, it is important for SAAs to maintain well-organized records that relate to the grant program.

Governing Directives

While this guidance is intended to provide SAAs with the major requirements of administering the Byrne program, the grants are governed by a variety of federal laws, rules, and guidance. They are:

Allowable Purpose Areas

The Act authorizes grants under the Byrne Program to enforce state and local laws and to improve the functioning of the justice system, with an emphasis on violent crime and serious offenders. Grants can provide additional personnel, equipment, supplies, training, technical assistance, and information systems in any of the approved Byrne Purpose Areas.

Confidential Subgrants

In some rare cases, it may be necessary to award a subgrant for a specific undercover law enforcement operation. In such cases and if it is needed, the SAA may award such a grant and only report to BJA that a confidential award has been made and the amount of that award. Later, when confidentiality is no longer an issue, the SAA must update its information with BJA by reporting all required information for a subgrant.

Funding Rules and Unallowable Expenses

The SAA staff responsible for the Byrne Program must read and have a working knowledge of the OJP Financial Guide, including the portions on Allowable Costs and Unallowable Costs.

Listed below are some of the other rules of interest:

Conditions on Subgrant Awards

BJA requires that SAAs pass down certain requirements to all subgrantees. Although the format can be altered to fit each SAA's needs, the requirements are provided below:

Samples of these forms can be found on the OJP web site.

Reporting Requirements. An SAA should also place special conditions on subgrants that require it to report the information required under the evaluation requirement of the Byrne Program.

Audit Requirements. Among the special conditions that the SAA must apply to its subgrantees is the requirement to conduct regular audits. This requirement is found in OMB Circular A-133.

Other Special Conditions. The SAA also is free to place any other special condition on a subgrant that it deems appropriate and is allowable under the program.

Evaluation Requirement—Performance Measurement

General Requirement

The Act requires an evaluation component for all programs funded through a formula grant (Sec. 501(c)). The National Institute of Justice developed general guidance on evaluations in Evaluating Drug Control and System Improvement Projects. The specific requirements for the Byrne Program evaluation component are included below.

The performance measures for the Byrne Formula Grant Program are in final review. The final version also will be posted at this site. Each purpose area will have a discrete set of performance measures, on which the SAAs will be expected to report. BJA also is requiring that the SAAs provide BJA with subrecipient grant reports.

If a program must be evaluated under this requirement, the SAA must seek out a qualified evaluator. Such an evaluator can be a state agency, a college or university, or other qualified researcher with evaluation expertise. The evaluation must be an impact evaluation, not a simple process evaluation, and must use scientifically accepted and rigorous practices. An SAA must evaluate at least one program within the first 4 years after receiving its fiscal year 2004 grant award. At least one or more programs must then be evaluated within each 4-year period following, unless all funded programs are waived from the requirement.

Evaluation Plan

To meet this requirement, an SAA will set out the plan for evaluating each program or request a waiver in its state strategies or subsequent program approval requests. This is accomplished through a simple statement either explaining the year in which the evaluation will be done or requesting a waiver and providing the reasons why. For more information on how to provide the evaluation plans, see the Program Approval Request section.

Waiver Requests

The BJA Director, at his or her discretion, may grant or delegate the authority to grant waivers to the evaluation requirement for any Byrne-funded program (Sec. 501(c)). The SAA may request a waiver through its program requests for a variety of reasons:

Reporting Requirements

Required Reports

Throughout the year, BJA requires certain reports from the SAA. Not including financial reporting, for which the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office of the Comptroller provides requirements, they are:

Program Approval Request

In the state strategy, the SAA sets out the programs it plans to fund. If, in between strategies and annual updates, the SAA wishes to fund a new program, it may submit a Program Approval Request to its BJA Program Manager. BJA suggests that these requests be submitted via e-mail to expedite their review. Each SAA's BJA Program Manager will respond to the request within 10 working days via e-mail. If the SAA does not receive a response within 10 working days, it may consider the request approved.

To submit a Program Approval Request, use the following format, which is identical to the format used in the state strategy:

Subaward Reports

To respond to congressional and other requests about the Byrne Program, BJA must collect some information related to subawards. OJP is currently developing an online system that will more easily collect this information; BJA will update these requirements when it is available. With the fiscal year 2003 grant awards, however, BJA began requiring that the SAA report this information to the BJA Program Manager 6 months after award and again 12 months after award. The SAA may submit the information in the most convenient format; however, BJA does appreciate receiving it in an electronic format, such as a spreadsheet.

Listed below is the information BJA will require on each subgrant:

State Annual Report

The Act requires the SAA to submit an annual report to BJA. This report describes the activities carried out under the formula grant. BJA uses it to prepare its annual report to Congress. While the general requirement is to submit this report for the period of June 1 through July 30, each SAA's BJA Program Manager is authorized to change this reporting period for a state if it better fits the state's needs or grant cycle.

The format for the State Annual Report is listed below:

Program Allocations List

This year-end report is generally due each year within 3 months after the end of the reporting period, which is usually June 1 to May 30, however, each SAA's BJA Program Manager is authorized to negotiate an alternate due date if it is more logical given the state's grant cycle. Listed below is the format for the Program Allocations List:

Additional Statutory Requirements of the Byrne Program

In addition to the general requirements of the Byrne Program, Congress also requires states to comply with a variety of other requirements. Except for the requirements under the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, all requirements are accomplished through certification at the time of award, but are subject to monitoring. These include:

new Additional OJP Requirements

Civil Rights Compliance

All recipients of federal grant funds must comply with nondiscrimination requirements contained in federal laws. If a court or administrative agency makes a finding of discrimination against a recipient of funds on grounds of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, disability, or age after a due process hearing, the recipient must forward a copy of the finding to the Office for Civil Rights of the Office of Justice Programs.

Limited English Proficiency

National origin discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of limited English proficiency (LEP). To ensure compliance with Title VI and the Safe Streets Act, recipients are required to take reasonable steps to ensure that LEP persons have meaningful access to their programs. Meaningful access may entail providing language assistance services, including oral and written translation when necessary. The U.S. Department of Justice has issued guidance for grantees to help them comply with Title VI requirements. The guidance document can be accessed on the Internet at www.lep.gov, or by contacting OJP's Office for Civil Rights at 202-307-0690, or by writing to the following address:

Office for Civil Rights
Office of Justice Programs
U.S. Department of Justice
810 Seventh Street NW., Eighth Floor
Washington, DC 20531

Faith-Based and Community Organizations

It is OJP policy that faith-based and community organizations that statutorily qualify as eligible applicants under OJP programs are invited and encouraged to apply for assistance awards. Faith-based and community organizations will be considered for awards on the same basis as any other eligible applicants and, if they receive assistance awards, will be treated on an equal basis with all other grantees in the administration of such awards. No eligible applicant or grantee will be discriminated against on the basis of its religious character or affiliation, religious name, or the religious composition of its board of directors or persons working in the organization.

Anti-Lobbying Act

The Anti-Lobbying Act (18 U.S.C. § 1913) recently was amended to expand significantly restrictions on the use of appropriated funding for lobbying. This expansion also makes the anti-lobbying restrictions enforceable via large civil penalties, with civil fines between $10,000 and $100,000 per each individual occurrence of lobbying activity. These restrictions are in addition to the anti-lobbying and lobbying disclosure restrictions imposed by 31 U.S.C. § 1352.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is currently in the process of amending the OMB cost circulars and the common rule (codified at 28 C.F.R. Part 69 for Department of Justice grantees) to reflect these modifications. However, in the interest of full disclosure, all applicants must understand that no federally appropriated funding made available under this grant program may be used, either directly or indirectly, to support the enactment, repeal, modification, or adoption of any law, regulation, or policy, at any level of government, without the express approval by OJP. Any violation of this prohibition is subject to a minimum $10,000 fine for each occurrence. This prohibition applies to all activity, even if currently allowed within the parameters of the existing OMB circulars.

Confidentiality and Human Subjects Protection

U.S. Department of Justice regulations (28 C.F.R. Part 22) require applicants for BJA funding to submit a Privacy Certificate as a condition of approval of any grant application or contract proposal that contains a research or statistical component under which personally identifiable information will be collected. In addition to the regulations in Part 22, regulations concerning protection of human subjects are set forth in 28 C.F.R. Part 46. In general, 28 C.F.R. Part 46 requires that all research involving human subjects conducted or supported by a federal department or agency be reviewed and approved by an Institutional Review Board before funds are expended for that research.

General information regarding Confidentiality and Human Subjects Protection can be found on the National Institute of Justice web site. Sample formats of the Privacy Certificate, Transfer Agreement, and Single Project Assurance for submission to BJA can be found on the OJP web site.

Additional Information

For general information about BJA programs, training, and technical assistance, contact the BJA Clearinghouse at 1-800-851-3420 or visit the BJA home page.

The OJP Financial Guide, which contains information on allowable costs, methods of payment, audit requirements, accounting systems, and financial records, is available online. This document governs the administration of funds by all successful applicants and their contractors.