Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program
Active
- Assistance listing
- 16.738
- Agency
-
Office of Justice Programs
Department of Justice
- Grant awards
- 23,390 $7,334,378,316 in federal obligations
Program facts
- Also known as
- Byrne JAG Program
- Assistance types
-
- Project Grant
- Block Grant
- Formula Grant
- Cooperative Agreement
- Treasury account
-
- 15-0404-0-1-754
- More information
Program details come from SAM.gov Assistance Listings. Updated . Grant award figures come from USAspending.gov.
About this program
The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs administers the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (CFDA 16.738), which funds law enforcement programs, prosecution and court initiatives, corrections, drug treatment, crime victim services, and mental health and crisis intervention programs through a mix of Project Grants (61% of awards), Block Grants (23%), Formula Grants (15%), and Cooperative Agreements (1%), with the most recent award issued on October 1, 2025.
The program has distributed $7.33 billion in combined federal dollars across 23,390 awards since 2004, though award volume dropped sharply in 2024 to 165 grants, rising to only 1 in 2025 through October. The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance dominates funding, obligating $3.74 billion across 9,070 awards. Recent awards show the program's breadth: Petersburg, Virginia received $27,864 for weapon-mounted lights and duty holsters to improve officer safety during nighttime operations; South Dakota's Department of Corrections received $25,332 to improve Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) staff training and visual aids; and Kentucky received $72,601 to equip two juvenile facilities with PREA-compliant shower doors. Other recipients funded PREA compliance infrastructure, mental health treatment workshops for incarcerated individuals, crisis intervention training, digital forensics equipment, community violence intervention programs, and specialty drug and mental health courts.
Multiple grant opportunities remain open. The BJA FY 2026 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program-State Formula (due September 23, 2026) and Local Formula (due November 3, 2026) solicit applications from states and eligible local units to support personnel hiring, equipment, training, and information systems across the nine statutorily required program areas. The BJA FY 2026 Byrne State Crisis Intervention Formula Program (due October 6, 2026) funds state crisis intervention court proceedings, mental health courts, drug courts, veterans courts, and extreme risk protection order programs. Additional open opportunities address crime gun intelligence centers, rural violent crime reduction, and prison rape elimination compliance. Combined federal and non-federal obligated dollars total $7.42 billion, indicating recipients typically match federal funds.
Objective and description
- Objective
Program goal(s) name: Improve the functioning of the criminal justice system to prevent and reduce crime. Program goal(s) description: Provide critical funding to state, local, and tribal governments under nine statutorily required program areas to
- Description
This program provides formula and competitive grant funding to states and eligible units of local government, respectively, to support hiring additional personnel and/or purchase equipment, supplies, contractual support, training, and information systems for criminal justice or civil proceedings, including for any one or more of the following nine program areas: Law enforcement programs; Prosecution and court programs; Prevention and education programs; Corrections and community corrections programs; Drug treatment and enforcement programs; Planning, evaluation, and technology improvement programs; Crime victim and witness programs (other than compensation); Mental health programs and related law enforcement and corrections programs, including behavioral programs and crisis intervention teams; Implementation of state crisis intervention court proceedings and related programs or initiatives, including but not limited to mental health courts, drug courts, veterans courts, and extreme risk protection order programs.
Eligibility
- Beneficiary eligibility
JAG formula grants States, including the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa, as well as eligible units of local government (including tribes). JAG project grants: Varies by NOFO, see https://www.ojp.gov/funding/explore/current-funding-opportunities.
- Length and time phasing of assistance
JAG Formula grants: Formula awards of at least $25,000 or more begin October 1 of the fiscal year and are four years in length. Awards that are less than $25,000 begin October 1 of the years and are two years in length. Requests for up to two additional years to complete performance of the award will be granted automatically. Extensions beyond a four-year period for all JAG awards may be approved on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of BJA. JAG project grants: Varies by NOFO, see https://www.ojp.gov/funding/explore/current-funding-opportunities.
How to apply
- Preapplication coordination
An applicant may find the names and addresses of State Single Points of Contact (SPOCs) at the following website: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SPOC-4-13-20.pdf.
- Criteria for selecting proposals
Criteria for selecting proposals is determined as part of the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO).
- Award procedure
All final award decisions will be made by the Assistant Attorney General, unless a statute explicitly authorizes award decisions by another official or there is written delegation of authority to another official. For successful applicants, JustGrants will send a system-generated email to the Application Submitter, Authorized Representative, and Entity Administrator with information on accessing their official award package in JustGrants. The award package will include key information (such as funding amount and period of performance) as well as award conditions that must be followed. The Authorized Representative for the entity should accept or decline the award within 45 days of the notification.
- Time to approval or disapproval
The review procedure for applications is specified in the notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) and generally includes eligibility and responsiveness, merit, programmatic, budget, and risk reviews.
- Renewals
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 https://www.ojp.gov/funding/financialguidedoj/overview
- Appeals
Applicable rights to appeal are provided in the notice of denial of funding.
Grant opportunities
Show 40 more
Latest 50 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Grant awards
Latest 10 of 23,390 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Top recipients by federal obligations
| Rank | Recipient | Federal obligations | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Board Of State And Community Corrections | $294,324,933 | 4% |
| 2 | Texas Office Of The Governor | $252,261,665 | 3% |
| 3 | Florida Department Of Law Enforcement | $200,673,573 | 3% |
| 4 | New York State Division Of Criminal Justice Services | $189,459,068 | 3% |
| 5 | Crime & Delinquency Pa Commission On | $143,412,614 | 2% |
| 6 | City Of Chicago | $122,311,702 | 2% |
| 7 | Department Of State Police Michigan | $119,704,508 | 2% |
| 8 | Criminal Justice Coordinating Council | $113,980,778 | 2% |
| 9 | The Institute For Intergovernmental Research, Inc. | $113,193,048 | 2% |
| 10 | Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority | $110,325,060 | 2% |
10 of 2,884 recipients listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Federal obligations by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Federal obligations |
|---|---|
| FY2026 | $3,154,696 |
| FY2025 | $288,952,170 |
| FY2024 | $353,016,991 |
| FY2023 | $644,985,204 |
| FY2022 | $467,652,208 |
| FY2021 | $182,103,484 |
| FY2020 | $318,910,736 |
| FY2019 | $325,128,937 |
| FY2018 | $333,135,348 |
| FY2017 | $287,216,459 |
| FY2016 | $297,759,538 |
| FY2015 | $277,692,441 |
| FY2014 | $212,776,332 |
| FY2013 | $254,067,152 |
| FY2012 | $265,922,315 |
| FY2011 | $351,816,706 |
| FY2010 | $478,232,722 |
| FY2009 | $500,461,881 |
| FY2008 | $148,179,695 |
| FY2007 | $492,173,160 |
| FY2006 | $435,599,143 |
| FY2005 | $477,608,377 |
Show all 22
Quick answers
What is Assistance Listing 16.738?
Assistance Listing 16.738 is Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, a federal grant program run by Office of Justice Programs (Department of Justice).
What is the CFDA number for Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program?
Its CFDA number is 16.738: Assistance Listing numbers were called CFDA numbers before 2018.
How much funding has Assistance Listing 16.738 awarded?
23,390 grant awards under 16.738 have obligated $7,334,378,316 in federal funds to 2,884 recipients.
Who receives the most funding from 16.738?
The recipients obligated the most under Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program are California Board Of State And Community Corrections ($294,324,933), Texas Office Of The Governor ($252,261,665) and Florida Department Of Law Enforcement ($200,673,573).
How much did 16.738 obligate in fiscal year 2025?
Grants under 16.738 obligated $288,952,170 in federal funds in fiscal year 2025.
Are there open grant opportunities under 16.738?
2 of the latest 50 opportunities under 16.738 are open or forecasted. The latest, OJP FY 2026 Integrity in American Elections Grant Program, was posted on October 15, 2026.
On GovTribe
See this program's full record
- Every grant award and opportunity under it
- Funding by recipient, agency and assistance type
- Alerts for new opportunities
- Ask GovTribe AI about this program