Paul Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Grant Program
Active
- Assistance listing
- 16.742
- Agency
-
Bureau of Justice Assistance
Office of Justice Programs, Department of Justice
- Grant awards
- 1,527 $387,625,534 in federal obligations
Program facts
- Also known as
- Coverdell Program
- Assistance types
-
- Formula Grant
- Project Grant
- Block Grant
- 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 Bureau of Justice Assistance funds forensic science and medical examiner/coroner service improvements through the Paul Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Grant Program (CFDA 16.742), with the most recent award disbursed on May 1, 2026.
The program distributes $387.6 million in combined federal obligations across 1,527 awards since its inception in 2005. Recent award velocity has declined—14 awards in 2026 year-to-date compared to an annual average of 67 awards across 2021–2024—but the program remains active. Solicitations are posted annually each spring with typical 24-month project periods.
The program funds concrete operational improvements: latent print examination infrastructure modernization (new workstations, forensic imaging systems, automated scanning equipment); toxicology and controlled-substance testing capacity (gas chromatographs, mass spectrometers, liquid chromatographs); firearms and toolmark analysis (ballistic imaging systems, firing ranges, NIBIN integration); trace evidence processing (comparison microscopes, crime-lite alternate light sources); medicolegal death investigation (portable X-ray systems, postmortem CT scanning, body lift equipment, fingerprint scanners); personnel hiring and overtime to reduce backlogs; staff training and accreditation maintenance; and laboratory information management system upgrades. Opioid-related testing and death investigation are recurring funding priorities across recent awards.
The assistance-type mix is predominantly Project Grants (60% of awards, 909 total) with a substantial Formula Grant component (38%, 583 awards), and a small Block Grant share (2%, 35 awards). The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance dominates by far, accounting for 1,082 awards and $302.1 million in federal dollars obligated (71% of award count and 78% of federal dollars). The remaining agencies—DOJ OJP proper ($48.9 million across 281 awards) and DOJ OJP National Institute of Justice ($36.4 million across 162 awards)—together represent under 30% of total funding.
Recent representative awards include Huntington Beach PD (California) receiving $500 thousand to expand latent print and digital forensics capacity; Onondaga County (New York) receiving $85 thousand for a forensic photonics lift system; Kansas Bureau of Investigation receiving $500 thousand for two liquid chromatograph tandem mass spectrometers for toxicology; Pitkin County (Colorado) receiving $486 thousand for medicolegal death investigator hiring and postmortem toxicology instrumentation; and Cape Coral PD (Florida) receiving $500 thousand to establish a latent print unit.
Two competitive grant opportunities are currently open with deadlines in late October 2026: BJA FY 2026 Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement-Competitive Grants Program (O-BJA-2026-172711, due October 29, 2026), eligible to state and local governments including tribes and special districts; and BJA FY26 Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement-Formula Grants Program (O-BJA-2026-172759, due October 30, 2026), restricted to state administering agencies. Both NOFOs were posted September 21, 2026.
Objective and description
- Objective
Program goal(s) name: Improve forensic science and medical examiner/coroner services. Program goal(s) description: Demonstrate improvement over current operations in forensic science or medical examiner/coroner services, including services provided b
- Description
This program provides formula and competitive funding to states and units of local government to improve the quality and timeliness of forensic science and medical examiner/coroner services.
Eligibility
- Length and time phasing of assistance
Coverdell solicitations are typically announced annually each spring and awards are. In general, the project period for grants under the Coverdell program is 24 months. See the current fiscal year's solicitation available at https://bja.ojp.gov/funding. Method of awarding/releasing assistance: See the current fiscal year's NOFO available at https://bja.ojp.gov/funding and the Department of Justice Grants Financial Guide, available at https://www.ojp.gov/funding/financialguidedoj/overview
How to apply
- Preapplication coordination
Potential applicants are encouraged to request the program announcement for additional information about eligibility requirements and application and selection procedures. Applicants must contact their SAA to determine if the program has been selected for review by the State. The date that the application was sent to the SAA, or the reason such submission is not required, must be included in the application.
- 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
Grant opportunities
Show all 16
Grant awards
Latest 10 of 1,527 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Top recipients by federal obligations
| Rank | Recipient | Federal obligations | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Office Of Emergency Services | $27,515,130 | 7% |
| 2 | Texas Office Of The Governor | $18,306,113 | 5% |
| 3 | Florida Department Of Law Enforcement | $17,039,678 | 4% |
| 4 | New York State Division Of Criminal Justice Services | $12,698,891 | 3% |
| 5 | Crime & Delinquency Pa Commission On | $9,771,078 | 3% |
| 6 | Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority | $9,456,582 | 2% |
| 7 | Ohio Office Of Criminal Justice Services | $8,921,935 | 2% |
| 8 | Criminal Justice Coordinating Council | $7,803,774 | 2% |
| 9 | New Jersey Department Of Law & Public Safety | $7,230,102 | 2% |
| 10 | Department Of State Police Michigan | $7,127,106 | 2% |
10 of 296 recipients listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Federal obligations by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Federal obligations |
|---|---|
| FY2026 | $2,641,730 |
| FY2025 | -$1,542,107 |
| FY2024 | $28,087,585 |
| FY2023 | $30,712,959 |
| FY2022 | $58,756,175 |
| FY2021 | $21,308,970 |
| FY2020 | -$833,327 |
| FY2019 | $26,356,176 |
| FY2018 | $26,911,843 |
| FY2017 | $9,865,011 |
| FY2016 | $8,565,073 |
| FY2015 | $14,314,148 |
| FY2014 | $10,504,868 |
| FY2013 | $9,687,157 |
| FY2012 | $10,390,898 |
| FY2011 | $27,660,236 |
| FY2010 | $33,285,824 |
| FY2009 | $23,259,104 |
| FY2008 | $16,433,405 |
| FY2007 | $16,356,111 |
| FY2006 | $14,903,695 |
Show all 21
Quick answers
What is Assistance Listing 16.742?
Assistance Listing 16.742 is Paul Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Grant Program, a federal grant program run by Bureau of Justice Assistance (Office of Justice Programs).
What is the CFDA number for Paul Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Grant Program?
Its CFDA number is 16.742: Assistance Listing numbers were called CFDA numbers before 2018.
How much funding has Assistance Listing 16.742 awarded?
1,527 grant awards under 16.742 have obligated $387,625,534 in federal funds to 296 recipients.
Who receives the most funding from 16.742?
The recipients obligated the most under Paul Coverdell Forensic Sciences Improvement Grant Program are Office Of Emergency Services ($27,515,130), Texas Office Of The Governor ($18,306,113) and Florida Department Of Law Enforcement ($17,039,678).
How much did 16.742 obligate in fiscal year 2025?
Grants under 16.742 obligated -$1,542,107 in federal funds in fiscal year 2025.
Are there open grant opportunities under 16.742?
2 listed opportunities under 16.742 are open or forecasted. The latest, BJA FY 2026 Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement- Competitive Grants Program, was posted on September 21, 2026.
On GovTribe
See this program's full record
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