15jisttasol.pdf

OMB No. 1121-0329 Approval Expires 07/31/2016

U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is seeking applications for the Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance (JIS TTA) Program. This program furthers the Department’s mission by assisting state, local, and tribal jurisdictions in reducing crime and improving the functioning of the criminal justice system through more effective information sharing, multi-agency collaboration, and implementation of data-driven, evidence-based strategies.

Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance (JIS TTA) Program

FY 2015 Competitive Grant Announcement

Eligibility

Eligible applicants are limited to: public1 agencies that perform criminal justice functions; and public or private entities (including, but not limited to, for-profit (commercial) and non-profit organizations (including tribal non-profit and for-profit organizations), faith-based and community organizations, federally recognized Indian tribal governments (as determined by the Secretary of the Interior) that perform law enforcement functions, and institutions of higher education (including tribal institutions of higher education)) that support, on a national level, initiatives to improve the functioning of the criminal justice system. For-profit organizations must agree to forgo any profit or management fee.

Before an applicant develops a full application, it may contact BJA with questions regarding eligibility to receive funding. Responses will be limited in scope to questions regarding preliminary eligibility. In any event, applicants should submit any and all documentation it deems relevant in support of its assertions of eligibility.

BJA welcomes applications that involve two or more separate entities; however, one eligible entity must be designated as the responsible applicant, with any partners proposed as subrecipients. The applicant must be the entity with primary responsibility for administering the funding and managing the entire project. Only one application per lead applicant will be considered; however, subrecipients may be part of multiple proposals.

BJA may elect to make awards for applications submitted under this solicitation in future fiscal years, dependent on the merit of the applications and on the availability of appropriations.

1 Public agency means “any State, unit of local government, combination of such States or units, or any department, agency, or instrumentality of the foregoing.” 42 U.S.C. § 3791(a)(6). See also, definition of State (42 U.S.C. § 3791(a)(2)) and Unit of local government (42 U.S.C. § 3791(a)(3)), which includes, inter alia, “an Indian Tribe that performs law enforcement functions, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior.

http://www.justice.gov/ http://www.ojp.gov/ https://www.bja.gov/ https://www.bja.gov/

BJA-2015-4204

For additional eligibility information, see Section C. Eligibility Information.

Deadline

Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application. All applications are due to be submitted and in receipt of a successful validation message in Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on July 30, 2015.

All applicants are encouraged to read this Important Notice: Applying for Grants in Grants.gov.

For additional information, see How to Apply in Section D. Application and Submission Information.

Contact Information

For technical assistance with submitting an application, contact the Grants.gov Customer Support Hotline at 800-518-4726 or 606-545-5035, or via email to support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov Support Hotline hours of operation are 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except federal holidays.

Applicants that experience unforeseen Grants.gov technical issues beyond their control that prevent them from submitting their application by the deadline must email the BJA contact identified below within 24 hours after the application deadline and request approval to submit their application. Additional information on reporting technical issues is found under “Experiencing Unforeseen Grants.gov Technical Issues” in the How to Apply section.

For assistance with any other requirement of this solicitation, contact the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Response Center: toll-free at 1-800-851-3420; via TTY at 301-240-6310 (hearing impaired only); email at responsecenter@ncjrs.gov; fax to 301-240- 5830; or web chat at https://webcontact.ncjrs.gov/ncjchat/chat.jsp. The NCJRS Response Center hours of operation are 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. eastern time, Monday through Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. eastern time on the solicitation close date.

Grants.gov number assigned to this announcement: BJA-2015-4204

Release date: June 15, 2015 http://www.grants.gov/applicants/apply_for_grants.jsp http://ojp.gov/funding/Apply/Grants-govInfo.htm mailto:support@grants.gov http://www.grants.gov/applicants/apply_for_grants.jsp https://webcontact.ncjrs.gov/ncjchat/chat.jsp

Contents A. Program Description

Overview

Program-Specific Information

Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables

Evidence-Based Programs or Practices

B. Federal Award Information

Type of Award

Financial Management and System of Internal Controls

Budget Information

Cost Sharing or Match Requirement

Pre-Agreement Cost Approvals

Limitation on Use of Award Funds for Employee Compensation; Waiver

Prior Approval, Planning, and Reporting of Conference/Meeting/Training Costs

Costs Associated with Language Assistance (if applicable)

C. Eligibility Information

Cost Sharing or Match Requirement

Limit on Number of Application Submissions

D. Application and Submission Information

What an Application Should Include

How to Apply

E. Application Review Information

Selection Criteria

Review Process

F. Federal Award Administration Information

Federal Award Notices

Administrative, National Policy, and other Legal Requirements

General Information about Post-Federal Award Reporting Requirements

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contact(s)

H. Other Information

Provide Feedback to OJP

Application Checklist

Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance (JIS TTA) Program

(CFDA # 16.610, 16.752)

A. Program Description

Overview This FY 2015 competitive grant program seeks to support the efforts of state, local, and tribal criminal justice agencies to adopt innovative justice information sharing solutions through the provision of TTA services. Initiatives supported under this solicitation must adopt strategies consistent with the DOJ Global Standards Package (GSP) and support criminal justice policies, practices, and programs that are data-driven and evidence-based. Funding is being made available under two priority JIS TTA categories which BJA has identified below. Specific tasks and deliverables are unique to each category, and prospective applicants are encouraged to fully research and understand the scope of the underlying criminal justice challenges prior to applying. Applicants must adhere to all national guidelines and expectations as set forth by BJA under each category description.

For more information on the GSP, see www.it.ojp.gov/gsp. For more information about evidence-based programs and solutions, visit OJP’s’ CrimeSolutions.gov web site.

This program is funded through the Department of Justice Appropriations Act, 2015 (Pub. L. No.

113-235, 128 Stat. 2130, 2192), 42 U.S.C. § 3796h, and via funding provided by the Program Manager for the Information Sharing Environment.

Program-Specific Information

Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables Efficient and effective sharing of information between criminal justice agencies and their partners is critical to preserving public safety and ensuring the fair and expeditious administration of justice. In the current fiscal environment of reduced resources at all levels of government, the ability to share information and collaborate across organizations remains one of the most important factors that enables communities to address their most pressing criminal justice problems in cost-effective ways.

BJA’s commitment to providing effective implementation support to state, local, and tribal partners is reflected in the diversity and depth of its TTA programs. While each program category seeks to address a unique challenge facing criminal justice practitioners, each will promote innovation, improved efficiency and cost effectiveness, and leverage the collective evidence-based practices known to BJA and its research partners. Ultimately, the goal in every case is to enhance criminal justice policies and practice in ways that promote public safety and improve public trust.

Leveraging Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative (Global) Tools It is BJA’s expectation that grantees under this program will fully understand, promote, and assist in the implementation of DOJ’s Global Standards Package, which includes the Global Reference Architecture, the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM), Global Federated http://www.it.ojp.gov/gsp http://www.crimesolutions.gov/

Identity and Privilege Management, and the Global Privacy Technology Framework. For more information about the GSP, visit www.it.ojp.gov/gsp.

In addition, JIS TTA grantees may be utilized to support particular implementation sites across the country—including active BJA grantees—to promote the successful completion of project deliverables utilizing Global tools and methodologies that have been proven to enable effective multi-jurisdictional collaboration and data sharing.

Evidence-Based Programs or Practices OJP strongly emphasizes the use of data and evidence in policy making and program development in criminal justice, juvenile justice, and crime victim services. OJP is committed to:

Improving the quantity and quality of evidence OJP generates

Integrating evidence into program, practice, and policy decisions within OJP and the field

Improving the translation of evidence into practice

OJP considers programs and practices to be evidence-based when their effectiveness has been demonstrated by causal evidence, generally obtained through one or more outcome evaluations. Causal evidence documents a relationship between an activity or intervention (including technology) and its intended outcome, including measuring the direction and size of a change, and the extent to which a change may be attributed to the activity or intervention. Causal evidence depends on the use of scientific methods to rule out, to the extent possible, alternative explanations for the documented change. The strength of causal evidence, based on the factors described above, will influence the degree to which OJP considers a program or practice to be evidence-based. The OJP CrimeSolutions.gov website is one resource that applicants may use to find information about evidence-based programs in criminal justice, juvenile justice, and crime victim services.

National Scope Requirement In order to be eligible for funding under this solicitation, applicants must submit proposals that describe projects that are national in scope. For the purpose of this solicitation, “national in scope” is defined as projects whose goals and proposed TTA services are relevant to criminal justice agencies and their partners throughout the country, without restriction to geographic area or a particular jurisdiction.

Program Deliverables Program deliverables must include the following, in addition to the specific requirements addressed in the funding category descriptions:

A TTA service delivery plan that describes project purpose and subject matter, proposed services catalog, request/response model, and evaluation model as applicable. This plan should also enable BJA to determine the degree to which the successful applicant understands the existing TTA environment and has proposed organizational partnerships which complement current resources available to the field.

Development of artifacts (reports, white papers, webinars, etc.) that document individual TTA efforts and highlight issues of national importance from a policy, legal, technology, or implementation standpoint.

http://www.it.ojp.gov/gsp http://www.crimesolutions.gov/

All applicants acknowledge that deliverables may include tasks assigned by DOJ for the purpose of ensuring adequate security controls and privacy protection mechanisms are in place for web sites, in particular those within the .gov domain, and especially those that may include any personally identifiable information (PII) or involve direct communication with external users.

This may include but not be limited to certification and accreditation (C&A), quarterly certification statements, or other artifacts requested by OJP’s Office of the Chief Information Officer.

CATEGORY 1: STATE CYBERSECURITY TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. Grant maximum: $200,000. Project period: 12 months. Competition ID: BJA-2015-4205 With cyber threats escalating in their frequency and complexity, it has become apparent that cybersecurity must become a priority for government and the private sector alike in order to protect individual citizens and the nation as a whole. To help address this challenge, BJA is seeking a TTA provider to facilitate collaboration among national cybersecurity experts, technologists, and state information technology (IT) executives to improve state government prevention and response to a variety of cyber threats. State government has never been more digital than it is today, with investments moving forward in data systems (especially cloud services), integration, and information sharing. This movement toward online government services is a boon to citizens, but can also introduce vulnerabilities for cyber criminals.

Investments in IT must carefully examine the security considerations necessary to protect government services, and identify the steps which must be taken to secure these systems against threats both internal and external.

The successful applicant will propose a TTA strategy that will engage state Chief Information Officers (CIOs), Chief Security Officers (CSOs), their staff, and other IT executives at the state and local levels in order to identify and address the greatest needs concerning cybersecurity within their communities. This strategy should include a holistic view of the problem that starts with planning, focuses on investments in security and prevention, and speaks to tactical needs with respect to dealing with security breaches in progress or after the fact. The applicant should also propose methods of collaboration that will enable peers to communicate regarding best practices, sharing policies/procedures and software, and identification of common threats to improve governmental responses to known attackers.

The TTA strategy should consider information dissemination methods such as technical assistance engagements, trainings, documentation of best practices, delivery of webinars and/or focus groups, creation of issue briefs or development guides, and participation in conferences or other events. Ultimately, the TTA provider’s role is to enable states to manage their data (and the systems that house it) as a strategic asset to strengthen cybersecurity, identify and investigate cybercrime, and improve secure data sharing across the criminal justice system. Partnerships with criminal justice stakeholders, such as cybercrime investigators and task forces, is strongly encouraged. All solutions must follow DOJ Global guidelines, including compliance with the Global Standards Package (GSP).

Responsibilities and deliverables, at a minimum, include:

Establishing a comprehensive cybersecurity TTA program targeting chief executives in state IT agencies and their staff.

Working with states to implement Cybersecurity Disruption Response Plans that detail protocols, tools, roles, and responsibilities in the immediate aftermath of a suspected cyber incident, with a corresponding CIO checklist.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&sqi=2&ved=0CDoQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.investopedia.com%2Fterms%2Fc%2Fcso.asp&ei=kGvrVLK4JYOXgwSl_IKwDQ&usg=AFQjCNEcb42PG872yaM7rsMFK4LkPwBa7Q&sig2=Z20TcEvdq-xhnubYf6AhTQ&bvm=bv.86475890,d.eXY https://it.ojp.gov/GSP

Developing and implementing state guidelines across the country in the effective use of cyber threat analytics, working in collaboration with BJA and its cyber partners, DOJ’s Global, government cybersecurity experts, and private industry.

CATEGORY 2: IMPLEMENTING PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES PROTECTIONS FOR

INFORMATION SHARING PRACTITIONERS. Grant maximum: $1,250,000. Project period:

12 months. Competition ID: BJA-2015-4206 Improving information sharing and safeguarding capabilities is vital to the security of the United States. The proper management of information flow allows federal, state, local, and tribal entities to work together, in conjunction with the designated fusion centers and private sector entities, to protect our nation from terrorism. Yet, unless properly managed, these efforts have the potential to infringe on the privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties of Americans. Success of these information sharing initiatives depends on preserving these qualities as a critical foundation of any information sharing partnership.

Section 1016(d) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), as amended, established the dual mandate of sharing terrorism-related information and, in consultation with the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, of protecting privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties (P/CRCL) in the development and use of the ISE. The Program Manager for the Information Sharing Environment (PM-ISE), in consultation with the Information Sharing and Access Interagency Policy Committee (ISA IPC), has the statutory duty under IRTPA to plan for and oversee the implementation and management of the ISE, which is accomplished through ISE mission partners. To date, the PM-ISE has ensured that ISE mission partners have the tools and resources necessary to enable their efforts to fulfill the dual mandates established under IRTPA.

In December 2005, a Presidential Directive required that the information privacy and other legal rights of Americans be protected in the development and use of the ISE and instructed the development of further guidelines to address the acquisition, use, and storage of personally identifiable information (PII) in the ISE. To meet these mandates, the Guidelines to Ensure That the Information Privacy and Other Legal Rights of Americans Are Protected in the Development and Use of the Information Sharing Environment (ISE Privacy Guidelines) were released by the PM-ISE in December 2006 and are being implemented by federal, state, local, and tribal agencies and private sector entities participating in the ISE.

The 2007 National Strategy for Information Sharing (NSIS) further built upon this Presidential Directive by requiring coordinated information sharing among and between federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, international, and private sector partners, while protecting the privacy and other legal rights of Americans, and by integrating the ISE with counterterrorism and national security.

This strategy was enhanced by the 2012 National Strategy for Information Sharing and Safeguarding (NSISS).

The successful applicant will demonstrate the ability to support the ISE and related initiatives in the full implementation of the ISE Privacy Guidelines. The applicant will be responsible for providing expert advice and substantive input on the entire array of P/CRCL requirements for PM-ISE as defined by IRTPA and other relevant authorities; supporting the Privacy and Civil Liberties subcommittee of the ISA IPC to implement the NSISS and other related ISE initiatives;

establishing and sharing best practices for privacy policy adoption at the federal, state, and local http://www.ise.gov/ise-privacy-guidelines-implementation-manual http://ise.gov/blog/kshemendra-paul/white-house-releases-new-national-strategy-information-sharing-and-safeguarding http://ise.gov/blog/kshemendra-paul/white-house-releases-new-national-strategy-information-sharing-and-safeguarding levels of government and the private sector; and implementing tools to standardize and streamline ISE agency compliance monitoring.

The successful applicant must demonstrate subject matter expertise in both development and practical execution of privacy policies. The applicant must also demonstrate the capacity to provide research, and support for development and implementation of P/CRCL-related national policy. Expected areas of programmatic support include, but are not limited to, preparation and logistical needs for staffing meetings, strategic planning focus groups, trainings, and technical assistance engagements that support the shared mission of PM-ISE and BJA. Engagements will be planned as far in advance as practical; however, the applicant should expect that many activities will be performed at the request of PM-ISE and/or BJA, and therefore should propose a flexible TTA provisioning structure that can easily accommodate the rapidly changing needs of the field. Legal analysis and conclusions are reserved to the appropriate federal agencies.

Establishing and operating a comprehensive TTA program to provide expert advice to advance P/CRCL requirements; support the P/CRCL subcommittee of the Information Sharing and Access Interagency Policy Committee (ISA IPC); enable state, local, federal, and private sector implementation of privacy policies; respond to request for assistance from ISE stakeholders; and implement tools to support ISE compliance with such policies and guidelines.

Coordinating mission critical processes that support development and implementation of ISE P/CRCL initiatives, including developing reports, conducting outreach and communication, reviewing content, and providing expertise to ISE staff and stakeholders.

Maintaining and disseminating ISE Privacy Guidelines and assist with compliance monitoring activities by supporting the P/CRCL subcommittee, conducting reviews of information sharing agreements, and implement/monitor the Compliance Review Self- Assessment tool to streamline agency adoption.

Providing P/CRCL expertise to inform updates and enhancements to ISE Core Awareness Training, developing an ISE P/CRCL core curriculum, and inventory analysis of relevant available training resources.

Educating state and local agencies, as well as the private sector, about ISE Privacy Guidelines and established best practices. This support may include supporting outreach, training events, meeting hosting/facilitation, website content creation, and other activities required to enable non-federal involvement in P/CRCL initiatives.

Coordinating all TTA service engagements with PM-ISE and BJA, and serving as a direct responder to inquiries for information and requests for assistance from federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies and private sector entities in support of P/CRCL implementation.

CATEGORY 3: REGIONAL INFORMATION SHARING SYSTEMS (RISS) SUPPORT. Grant maximum: $4,071,000. Project period: 12 months. Competition ID: BJA-2015-4292

The RISS Technology Support Center (RTSC) provides the technology support backbone to the six RISS Centers. Operational responsibilities include 24/7 hosting and maintenance of the RISSNet infrastructure, including database administration, application deployment, and system monitoring. In addition to the RTSC, the RISS Centers also require policy support to include research, policy, evaluation, program analysis, and other administrative functions. RISS provides critical services to federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial public safety agencies to include investigative support and criminal intelligence information sharing (per 28 CFR Part 23).

This is a federally funded program that is regionally managed through the six RISS Centers.

These services include, but are not limited to, the development and dissemination of information sharing tools, training, investigative support, and case preparation.

BJA is seeking applicants to provide both technical and policy support to the RISS Program.

The successful applicant will be able to perform a wide range of duties that are directly responsive to the needs of the RISS Program and its stakeholders. These duties include coordination of certain activities related to RISS Policy Board Group meetings, its subcommittees, and the RISS Directors Association (RDA). RISS Policy Board Group meeting responsibilities include development of agendas, policy research and recommendations, and outreach deliverables.

Applicants must be able to demonstrate the capacity to support the complete RISS mission and the services provided, fulfill the grant reporting requirements for BJA, and have the capability to develop comprehensive reports by aggregating information from the six RISS Centers.

The successful applicant must have the technical knowledge, skills, and experience to manage current RISSNet operations and connections, implement required enhancements as needed for the RISSNet secure infrastructure, and facilitate expansion of the variety of data sources currently provided over the network (e.g., RISSafe, RISSGang, RISSIntel, etc.). The applicant’s skill set must also include knowledge on how to maintain and enhance technical services specifically involving identity management, encrypted virtual private network (VPN) connections, secure e-mail systems, and leveraging the Global Standards Package (GSP), which includes the National Information Exchange Model (NIEM). An overview of RISS, RISSNet, and the services provided is available at www.riss.net/Default/Overview.

Applicants must be familiar with event deconfliction and the three existing deconfliction systems:

RISSSafe, which is operated by RISS and used by RISS member law enforcement agencies, including some High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA), fusion centers, and other entities;

Case Explorer, which is operated by the Washington/Baltimore HIDTA and used by other HIDTAs and law enforcement agencies around the country; and SAFETNET, which is also used by some HIDTAs throughout the country. Event deconfliction is the process of determining whether multiple law enforcement entities are conducting an enforcement action in close proximity to one another during a specified time period. When certain elements are matched, it is referred to as a positive hit or conflict. The process includes timely notification of each involved agency’s personnel of the identified conflict. The three deconfliction systems have different users and stakeholders, but must be able to interconnect using a NIEM-conformant specification. The systems are not duplicative but rather work together to help ensure nationwide event deconfliction coverage. Applicants will be expected to assist in the development of an outreach component to educate agencies and officers about event deconfliction, its ease of use and availability, and its importance in their operations.

http://www.riss.net/Default/Overview

Conducting reviews, policy evaluation, and program analysis to inform RISS operational functions, improve RISS levels of service to the field, and provide a basis for strategic planning of future capabilities.

Facilitating collaborative efforts with RISS partner organizations to support national and regional meetings and events to include scheduling and coordination of the RISS Directors Meetings.

Coordinating and facilitating RISS Policy Board Group and other working group meetings, committee meetings, and project meetings as directed by the RISS Directors and BJA to include assisting with agenda development, identifying meeting locations, sending meeting invitations, and other meeting management responsibilities.

Developing RISS national reports and submitting aggregated RISS Center statistics as required by the performance measures set forth by BJA in the RISS Center grant awards.

Planning and collaborating with RISS Center Directors to support national and regional meetings and events to include scheduling, identifying meeting locations, sending invitations to attendee, and meeting management. This would include RISS National Policy Board and information technology meetings with the RISS Directors, technical staff, partners, and other representatives.

Developing deliverables and publications for the RISS Program, RISS data sources, and working groups when specifically identified by RISS or BJA or where RISS is a partner in the project. This would include, but not be limited to, print and electronic materials, document printing and distribution, CDs/DVDs, online seminars (webinars), and other tools. This would also include the continued management of the public RISS web site and other online materials.

Maintaining, at a minimum, all online content pertaining to the RISS National Policy Board, RISS national initiatives, and other RISS-related materials and reports.

Developing and disseminating outreach materials as directed by the RISS Directors and BJA to RISS Centers and national groups upon request. These materials shall be informative about the RISS Program and/or a specific RISS project (e.g., RISSafe, RISSGang, etc.).

Serving as the fiscal agent on behalf of the RISS Policy Board for RISS Technology with responsibility for payroll, health benefits, pension, travel for RTSC staff, purchase of hardware/software or other technology services, signature of lease agreements for RISS facilities, and provision of legal services.

Operating, maintaining, and upgrading RISSNET; supporting member connectivity and access; maintaining and enhancing the functionality, resources, and capabilities of the RISS portal and infrastructure; and other services as needed to further enhance RISS applications as directed by the RDA members and the RDA Chair.

Collaborating with partners to coordinate national programs where RISS is a partner or participant to include the secure sharing of information with other secure but unclassified (SBU) systems. This would also include connecting additional intelligence data sources to the existing RISS nationwide federated intelligence search tool.

Developing a web-based online registration process (OLR) for the purposes of creating a law enforcement Identity as a Service (IDaaS) to support law enforcement vetting options, creating electronic workflows that aid in the vetting process, and creating the capability to create accounts from the initial registration site, post-vetting process.

Developing an event deconfliction multimedia (video) outreach training piece that will be distributed and posted to various locations and sites, can be leveraged for roll call purposes, and will be used for training and other educational opportunities. It is anticipated that this video will be 4-5 minutes in length and will incorporate professional voice-over services, a combination of photos and live video, interviews with officers/users, and other elements.

B. Federal Award Information

BJA estimates that under Category 1 it will make one award of up to $200,000 for a 12-month project period; for Category 2 one award of up to $1,250,000 for a 12-month project period; and for Category 3 one award of up to $4,071,000 for a 12-month project period. The project period for all awards should begin on September 1, 2015. Each application must clearly identify the funding category being addressed, and a single application may not seek to address multiple categories. Applicants are free to submit applications for each category separately.

Due to the high profile nature of the work and national scope focus, grantees may be asked to participate in TTA coordination efforts including BJA’s Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance Committee (JTTAC) and/or National Training and Technical Assistance Center (NTTAC). NTTAC also serves as the coordinator for the TTA reporting portal, which assists BJA in performance measurement of TTA initiatives.

Applicants should note that one or more awards made from this solicitation may contain funding contributed by Inter-Agency Agreement (IAA) from other federal agency sources. As such, there may be requirements with respect to progress reporting and task approval that are in addition to BJA’s own requirements. Such stipulations will be communicated to the grantee shortly after awards are announced.

BJA may, in certain cases, provide supplemental funding in future years to awards under this solicitation. Important considerations in decisions regarding supplemental funding include, among other factors, the availability of funding, strategic priorities, assessment of the quality of the management of the award (for example, timeliness and quality of progress reports), and assessment of the progress of the work funded under the award.

All awards are subject to the availability of appropriated funds and to any modifications or additional requirements that may be imposed by law.

https://www.bjatraining.org/ https://www.bjatraining.org/

Type of Award2 BJA expects that it will make any award from this solicitation in the form of a cooperative agreement, which is a particular type of grant used if BJA expects to have ongoing substantial involvement in award activities. Substantial involvement includes direct oversight and involvement with the grantee organization in implementation of the grant, but does not involve day-to-day project management. See Administrative, National Policy, and other Legal Requirements, under Section F. Federal Award Administration Information, for details regarding the federal involvement anticipated under an award from this solicitation.

Financial Management and System of Internal Controls

If selected for funding, the award recipient must:

(a) Establish and maintain effective internal control over the federal award that provides reasonable assurance that the non-federal entity is managing the federal award in compliance with federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal award. These internal controls should be in compliance with guidance in “Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government” issued by the Comptroller General of the United States and the “Internal Control Integrated Framework”, issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).

(b) Comply with federal statutes, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the federal awards.

(c) Evaluate and monitor the non-Federal entity's compliance with statute, regulations and the terms and conditions of federal awards.

(d) Take prompt action when instances of noncompliance are identified including noncompliance identified in audit findings.

(e) Take reasonable measures to safeguard protected personally identifiable information and other information the federal awarding agency or pass-through entity designates as sensitive or the non-federal entity considers sensitive consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws regarding privacy and obligations of confidentiality.

In order to better understand administrative requirements and cost principles, award applicants are encouraged to enroll, at no charge, in the Department of Justice Grants Financial Management Online Training available here.

Budget Information

Cost Sharing or Match Requirement This solicitation does not require a match. However, if a successful application proposes a voluntary match amount, and OJP approves the budget, the total match amount incorporated into the approved budget becomes mandatory and subject to audit.

2 See generally 31 U.S.C. §§ 6301-6305 (defines and describes various forms of federal assistance relationships, including grants and cooperative agreements (a type of grant)).

http://gfm.webfirst.com/

Pre-Agreement Cost Approvals OJP does not typically approve pre-agreement costs; an applicant must request and obtain the prior written approval of OJP for all such costs. If approved, pre-agreement costs could be paid from grant funds consistent with a grantee’s approved budget, and under applicable cost standards. However, all such costs prior to award and prior to approval of the costs are incurred at the sole risk of an applicant. Generally, no applicant should incur project costs before submitting an application requesting federal funding for those costs. Should there be extenuating circumstances that appear to be appropriate for OJP’s consideration as pre-agreement costs, the applicant should contact the point of contact listed on the title page of this announcement for details on the requirements for submitting a written request for approval. See the section on Costs Requiring Prior Approval in the Financial Guide, for more information.

Limitation on Use of Award Funds for Employee Compensation; Waiver With respect to any award of more than $250,000 made under this solicitation, recipients may not use federal funds to pay total cash compensation (salary plus cash bonuses) to any employee of the award recipient at a rate that exceeds 110% of the maximum annual salary payable to a member of the Federal Government’s Senior Executive Service (SES) at an agency with a Certified SES Performance Appraisal System for that year.3 The 2015 salary table for SES employees is available at the Office of Personnel Management website. Note: A recipient may compensate an employee at a greater rate, provided the amount in excess of this compensation limitation is paid with non-federal funds. (Any such additional compensation will not be considered matching funds where match requirements apply.) For employees who charge only a portion of their time to an award, the allowable amount to be charged is equal to the percentage of time worked times the maximum salary limitation.

The Assistant Attorney General for OJP may exercise discretion to waive, on an individual basis, the limitation on compensation rates allowable under an award. An applicant requesting a waiver should include a detailed justification in the budget narrative of the application. Unless the applicant submits a waiver request and justification with the application, the applicant should anticipate that OJP will request the applicant to adjust and resubmit the budget.

The justification should include the particular qualifications and expertise of the individual, the uniqueness of the service the individual will provide, the individual’s specific knowledge of the program or project being undertaken with award funds, and a statement explaining that the individual’s salary is commensurate with the regular and customary rate for an individual with his/her qualifications and expertise, and for the work to be done.

Prior Approval, Planning, and Reporting of Conference/Meeting/Training Costs OJP strongly encourages applicants that propose to use award funds for any conference-, meeting-, or training-related activity to review carefully—before submitting an application—the OJP policy and guidance on conference approval, planning, and reporting available at http://www.ojp.gov/funding/confcost.htm. OJP policy and guidance (1) encourage minimization of conference, meeting, and training costs; (2) require prior written approval (which may affect project timelines) of most such costs for cooperative agreement recipients and of some such costs for grant recipients; and (3) set cost limits, including a general prohibition of all food and beverage costs.

3 This limitation on use of award funds does not apply to the non-profit organizations specifically named at Appendix VIII to 2 C.F.R. part 200.

http://ojp.gov/financialguide/index.htm http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/salary-tables/15Tables/exec/html/ES.aspx http://www.ojp.gov/funding/confcost.htm

Costs Associated with Language Assistance (if applicable) If an applicant proposes a program or activity that would deliver services or benefits to individuals, the costs of taking reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to those services or benefits for individuals with limited English proficiency may be allowable. Reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to services or benefits may include interpretation or translation services where appropriate.

For additional information, see the "Civil Rights Compliance" section under “Solicitation Requirements” in OJP's Funding Resource Center.

C. Eligibility Information For additional eligibility information, see title page.

Cost Sharing or Match Requirement For organizational eligibility restrictions, please see Title page.

For additional information on cost sharing and match requirement, see Section B. Federal Award Information.

Limit on Number of Application Submissions If an applicant submits multiple versions of the same application, BJA will review only the most recent system-validated version submitted. For more information on system-validated versions, see How to Apply.

D. Application and Submission Information

What an Application Should Include Applicants should anticipate that if they fail to submit an application that contains all of the specified elements, it may negatively affect the review of their application; and, should a decision be made to make an award, it may result in the inclusion of special conditions that preclude the recipient from accessing or using award funds pending satisfaction of the conditions.

Moreover, applicants should anticipate that applications that are determined to be nonresponsive to the scope of the solicitation, or that do not include the application elements that BJA has designated to be critical, will neither proceed to peer review nor receive further consideration. Under this solicitation, BJA has designated the following application elements as critical: Program Narrative, Budget Detail Worksheet, and Budget Narrative. Applicants may combine the Budget Narrative and the Budget Detail Worksheet in one document. However, if an applicant submits only one budget document, it must contain both narrative and detail information. Please review the “Note on File Names and File Types” under How to Apply to be sure applications are submitted in permitted formats.

OJP strongly recommends that applicants use appropriately descriptive file names (e.g., “Program Narrative,” “Budget Detail Worksheet and Budget Narrative,” “Timelines,” “Memoranda of Understanding,” “Resumes”) for all attachments. Also, OJP recommends that applicants include resumes in a single file.

1. Information to Complete the Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424) http://ojp.gov/funding/index.htm

The SF-424 is a required standard form used as a cover sheet for submission of pre-applications, applications, and related information. Grants.gov and OJP’s Grants Management System (GMS) take information from the applicant’s profile to populate the fields on this form. When selecting "type of applicant," if the applicant is a for-profit entity, select "For-Profit Organization" or "Small Business" (as applicable).

Intergovernmental Review: This funding opportunity is subject to Executive Order 12372.

Applicants may find the names and addresses of their state’s Single Point of Contact (SPOC) at the following website: www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc/. Applicants whose state appears on the SPOC list must contact their state’s SPOC to find out about, and comply with, the state’s process under Executive Order 12372. In completing the SF-424, applicants whose state appears on the SPOC list are to make the appropriate selection in response to question 19 once the applicant has complied with their state’s E.O. 12372 process. (Applicants whose state does not appear on the SPOC list are to make the appropriate selection in response to question 19 to indicate that the “Program is subject to E.O. 12372 but has not been selected by the State for review.”)

2. Project Abstract Applications should include a high-quality project abstract that summarizes the proposed project in 400 words or less. Project abstracts should be—

Written for a general public audience

Submitted as a separate attachment with “Project Abstract” as part of its file name

Single-spaced, using a standard 12-point font (Times New Roman) with 1-inch margins

As a separate attachment, the project abstract will not count against the page limit for the program narrative.

All project abstracts should follow the detailed template available at ojp.gov/funding/Apply/Resources/ProjectAbstractTemplate.pdf.

Permission to Share Project Abstract with the Public: It is unlikely that BJA will be able to fund all promising applications submitted under this solicitation, but it may have the opportunity to share information with the public regarding promising but unfunded applications, for example, through a listing on a web page available to the public. The intent of this public posting would be to allow other possible funders to become aware of such proposals.

In the project abstract template, applicants are asked to indicate whether they give OJP permission to share their project abstract (including contact information) with the public.

Granting (or failing to grant) this permission will not affect OJP’s funding decisions, and, if the application is not funded, granting permission will not guarantee that abstract information will be shared, nor will it guarantee funding from any other source.

Note: OJP may choose not to list a project that otherwise would have been included in a listing of promising but unfunded applications, should the abstract fail to meet the format and content requirements noted above and outlined in the project abstract template.

3. Program Narrative http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/codification/executive-order/12372.html http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc/ http://ojp.gov/funding/Apply/Resources/ProjectAbstractTemplate.pdf

The Program Narrative must respond to the solicitation (see JIS TTA Program-Specific Information) and the Selection Criteria (described below) in the order given. The Program Narrative should be double-spaced, using a standard 12-point font (Times New Roman is preferred) with 1-inch margins, and should not exceed 10 pages. Number pages “1 of 10,” “2 of 10,” etc.

If the program narrative fails to comply with these length-related restrictions, BJA may consider such noncompliance in peer review and in final award decisions.

The following sections should be included as part of the program narrative:

a. Statement of the Problem

b. Project Design and Implementation

c. Capabilities and Competencies

d. Plan for Collecting the Data Required for this Solicitation’s Performance Measures

To assist the Department with fulfilling its responsibilities under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), Public Law 103-62, and the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010, Public Law 111–352, applicants that receive funding under this solicitation must provide data that measure the results of their work done under this solicitation. Recipients will be required to submit performance metric data quarterly through BJA’s online Training and Technical Assistance Reporting Portal located at www.bjatraining.org. To assist applicants in developing their plans for collecting and reporting performance measurement data that will meaningfully evaluate progress, the following measures are the core performance measures for the Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance (JIS TTA) Program.

Objective

Catalog

ID

Performance Measures

Data Grantee Provides

Improve the quality and effectiveness of criminal justice practices by expanding the use of information sharing to improve decision making at multiple levels of government

Number of trainings conducted

Number of participants who attend the training

Percentage of participants who successfully completed the training

Percentage of participants who rated the training as satisfactory or better

Percentage of participants trained and subsequently demonstrated performance improvement

Percentage of scholarship recipients surveyed who reported that the training provided information that could be utilized in their job.

Number of curricula developed

For the current reporting period:

Number of trainings (by type):

In-person

Web-based

CD/DVD

Peer-to-peer

Workshop

Number of individuals who:

Attended the training (in-person) or started the training (web- based)

Completed the training

Completed an evaluation at the conclusion of the training

Completed an evaluation and rated the training as satisfactory or better

Completed the post-test with an improved score over their pre-test http://www.bjatraining.org/

Number of curricula that were pilot tested

Percentage of curricula that were revised after pilot testing

For the current reporting period, number of individuals who:

Received a scholarship

Completed the training

Completed a survey at the conclusion of the training

Reported the training provided information that could be utilized in their job

Number of training curricula:

Developed

Pilot tested

Revised after being pilot tested

Percentage of requesting agencies who rated services as satisfactory or better

Percentage of requesting agencies that were planning to implement one or more recommendations

For the current reporting period:

Number of onsite visits completed

Number of reports submitted to requesting agencies after onsite visits

Number of requesting agencies who completed an evaluation of services

Number of agencies who rated the services a satisfactory or better o in terms of timeliness o quality

Number of follow-ups with requesting agencies completed 6 months after onsite visit

Number of agencies that were planning to implement at least one or more recommendations 6 months after the onsite visit

Percentage of peer visitors who reported that the visit to the other agency was useful in providing information on policies or practices

Percentage of peer visitors that were planning to implement one or more policies or practices 6 months after they were…