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Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance (JAG) Program: Past and Present

The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program has been a staple in the public safety landscape since it was created in 2005. With its range of program areas including law enforcement, planning, evaluation, technology improvement and crime victim and witness initiatives it is a program that is appealing and accessible to grantseekers. JAG is the leading source of federal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions.  

JAG Formula funding is calculated by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) for each state and territory, a minimum base allocation which, based on congressional mandated JAG formula, can be enhanced by the state's share of the national population and the state's share of the country's Part 1 violent crime statistics. Once the state funding is calculated, 60 percent of the allocation is awarded to the state and 40 percent to eligible units of local government.. If your state government is not listed to qualify for a direct award, you may be eligible for the allocation that is required to be "passed-through" to units of local government.

One of the major changes in the program for FY2012 is the fact that JAG funds can now be used to purchase bulletproof vests. In order to purchase vests with JAG funds, jurisdictions must certify that law enforcement agencies receiving vests purchased with JAG funds, have a written "mandatory wear" policy in effect. Bulletproof vests purchased with JAG funds may be purchased at any threat level, make, or model from any distributor or manufacturer, as long as the vests have been tested and found to comply with applicable National Institute of Justice ballistic or stab standards. This new aspect may be a factor that helps to open up the program to law enforcement agencies who had hoped to use the funds for this purpose in the past.

Both the Local and State solicitations have been released and are due on May 14, 2012. Allocations for both programs can be found here: https://www.bja.gov/programs/jag/12jagallocations.html. For an FY 2012 award, the project start date will be October 1, 2011 with a project end date of September 30, 2015. Each state may hold separate completive programs so be on the lookout in your state for these local competitions. Although state programs may have different names or different sounding initiatives, they will still fall under the blanket of the program areas listed in the federal guidance.

JAG Local Solicitation: https://www.bja.gov/Funding/12JAGLocalSol.pdf.

JAG State Solicitation: https://www.bja.gov/Funding/12JAGStateSol.pdf.