NIJ FY 2026 Research and Evaluation on Drones as First Responders
Open Posted
- Opportunity number
- O-NIJ-2026-172805
- Agency
-
National Institute of Justice
Office of Justice Programs, Department of Justice
- Applications due
- Award size
- Up to $3,500,000
Opportunity facts
- Assistance listings
- Funding instrument
- Grant
- Category
-
- Science and Technology and other Research and Development
- Eligible applicants
-
- Small Businesses
- Independent School Districts
- Non-501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- City/Township Governments
- Public or Indian Housing Auth.
- Special District Governments
- Higher Education Inst. (Private)
- State Governments
- 501(c)(3) Nonprofits
- Higher Education Inst. (Public)
- Tribal Organizations (Not Federally Recognized)
- Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized)
- Other
- For Profit Organizations
- County Governments
- Points of contact
-
- OJP Response Center ojp.responsecenter@usdoj.gov (800) 851-3420
- Full announcement
Opportunity details come from Grants.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
The National Institute of Justice is soliciting applications for research and evaluation on drones as first responders, with a Step 1 application deadline of November 30, 2026. This opportunity funds 5–6 awards totaling $3.5 million over up to 36 months beginning February 1, 2027, and carries no cost-share requirement.
Eligible applicants include small businesses, nonprofits (501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)), for-profit organizations, higher education institutions (public and private), state and local governments, Tribal governments (federally and non-federally recognized), public housing authorities, and special district governments. Applicants must register with SAM.gov by November 16, 2026.
NIJ seeks rigorous evaluations of drone technology implementations to combat violent crime, immigration enforcement, and other law enforcement activities. Projects must involve collaboration between law enforcement agencies and research entities to evaluate existing drone capabilities or pilot programs, or to implement new pilots and demonstrations. All projects must include cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness analyses. Law enforcement partners retain the option to keep purchased DFR technology at study conclusion. Priority consideration flows to projects advancing law enforcement operations, violent crime reduction, citizen services, child protection, and human trafficking victim support.
The proposal narrative is limited to 30 pages and is evaluated on statement of problem (5%), project design and implementation (40%), capabilities and competencies (15%), potential impact (25%), and budget (15%). Step 1 requires SF-424 submission via Grants.gov by November 30, 2026, 11:59 p.m. ET. Step 2 requires full application submission in JustGrants by December 7, 2026, 8:59 p.m. ET. This opportunity is assigned to CFDA 16.560, National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and Development Project Grants.
Synopsis
This is a notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for the NIJ FY 2026 Research and Evaluation on Drones as First Responders. This opportunity seeks proposals for rigorous evaluations of implementations of drone technology to combat violent crime, immigration enforcement, and other law enforcement activities. The goal of this NOFO is to provide actionable information about police implementation of small drones through a collaboration between law enforcement agencies and researchers. NIJ welcomes research and evaluation of drones as first responders (DFR) capabilities, including evaluation of existing capabilities or pilot programs at police departments already using DFR, as well as implementation of new pilot programs or demonstrations. NIJ expects research entities and law enforcement agencies to collaborate on implementing DFR and evaluating operational performance. Law enforcement agencies participating in evaluations will have the option to retain any DFR technology purchased through the NOFO at the study's conclusion.
Eligibility
Other Units of Local Government
Files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| PKG00294441.pdf |
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