Combatting Contraband Cell Phone Use in Prisons

Provide best practices including: • technological solution implementation on comprehensive contraband interdiction systems for state and local governments; • Resources and tools to enhance staff training for institutional corrections staff; • Make available competitive sub-awards to correctional facilities to implement technologies that prevent and limit cell phone contraband and provide technical assistance on reviewing policies, procedures and technology implementation; • Conduct effective case studies and maintain documentation on the interactions, training, procurements, developments and other processes with the grantees selected to receive sub-awards; • Develop model policies, operational orders, and training curricula for state and local correctional agencies, to include cataloguing warrant language and state-level statutes, based on the respective case studies conducted for grantees selected to receive sub-awards; • Make information publically available including via an online toolkit or other agreed upon means.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) will select a TTA provider to assist correctional agencies as they seek strategies, train staff, develop operational orders, draft warrants, and establish policy to seize and end the use of contraband cellphones, or take greater advantage of lawfully intercepted information from contraband cellphones.

Eligible applicants are limited to nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations (including tribal nonprofit or for-profit organizations), institutions of higher education (including tribal institutions of higher education), faith-based organizations, and consortiums with demonstrated experience in providing training and technical assistance on a national level in the identified subject areas. All recipients and subrecipients (including any for-profit organization) must forgo any profit or management fee. BJA welcomes applications under which two or more entities would carry out the federal award; however, only one entity may be the applicant. Any others must be proposed as subrecipients (subgrantees). The applicant must be the entity that would have primary responsibility for carrying out the award, including administering the funding and managing the entire program. Only one application per lead applicant will be considered; however, an applicant may be proposed as a subrecipient (subgrantee) in multiple proposals.

Provide training and technical assistance to correctional agencies as they seek strategies, train staff, develop operational orders, draft warrants, and establish policy to seize and end the use of contraband cellphones, or take greater advantage of lawfully intercepted information from contraband cellphones.

3 years from the start of the federal fiscal year. October 1, 2019 - September 30, 2022.

See the current fiscal year's solicitation available at the Office of Justice Programs web site at https://ojp.gov/funding/Explore/CurrentFundingOpportunities.htm and https://ojp.gov/financialguide/DOJ/PreawardRequirements/index.htm for additional information.

After meeting the eligibility listed in the solicitation, the applicant must have be a national provider organization that has experience with the subject matter and working with correctional leaders and vendors nation-wide.

After an external peer review, the submitted applications are tiered based on scores. Then an internal review will be conducted by BJA Policy team and they will make a recommendation to the BJA Director.

From 30 to 180 days. Awards determination are made within 180 days but no later than September 30th. Contact the Bureau of Justice Assistance at https://www.bja.gov/About/contact.html for specifics.

In some cases, award periods may be extended if specific criteria are met. For details, please review the discussion of no-cost extensions in the Criteria for Award Extension section of the Department of Justice Grants Financial Guide available at http://ojp.gov/financialguide/DOJ/PostawardRequirements/chapter3.2d.htm.

There are no appeal rights for rejection of a discretionary application. Please see section 28 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 18.