Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance Grant Program
Read about Officer Edward R. Byrne
FY 2004 Byrne State Allocations
FY 2004 Byrne Formula Program Variable Passthrough (VPT) Percentages
FY 2004 Byrne Guidelines
Overview:
The Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance Grant Program (Byrne Formula Grant Program) is a partnership among federal, state, and local governments to create safer communities. BJA is authorized to award grants to states for use by states and units of local government to improve the functioning of the criminal justice system—with emphasis on violent crime and serious offenders—and enforce state and local laws that establish offenses similar to those in the federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802(6) et seq.).
Grants may be used to provide personnel, equipment, training, technical assistance, and information systems for more widespread apprehension, prosecution, adjudication, detention, and
rehabilitation of offenders who violate such state and local laws. Grants also may be used to provide assistance (other than compensation) to victims of these offenders. Twenty-nine legislatively authorized purpose areas were established to define the nature and scope of programs and projects that may be funded under the Byrne Formula Grant Program.
Legislation: The Byrne Formula Grant Program was created by the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 (Public Law 100-690).
Eligibility: The 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for formula grant funds.
Local jurisdictions are not eligible for direct Byrne Formula Grant Program funding; however, local practitioners may seek funding for innovative projects through subgrants. In each state, the governor appoints a State Administering Agency (SAA) to handle the subgranting of these funds to local and state criminal justice operations. Local practitioners should contact the appointed SAA office to obtain application information. Typically, overall funding plans and funding decisions are made by advisory boards consisting of a community's leading criminal justice officials, including police chiefs, prosecutors, chief justices, and corrections commissioners. These advisory boards should be contacted and apprized of the project's value and level of support. Alternatively, in many states, funds are subgranted to local units of government in block form with decisions made locally on individual projects. In this instance, local practitioners should contact these local agencies and any advisory boards they appoint for application information.
Related Publications/Information:
Byrne Draft Performance Measures by Purpose Area
FY 2003 Byrne Formula Grant Program State Allocations (PDF)
FY 2003 Byrne Formula Grant Program Variable Passthrough Percentages (PDF)
FY 2003 Byrne Formula Grant Program Guidance (PDF)
Jacob Wetterling Act Resource Guide
Contact Information:
Bureau of Justice Assistance
Programs Office
810 Seventh Street NW.
Washington, DC 20531
202-514-6638
Fax: 202-305-2543
E-mail: AskBJA@usdoj.gov
or
State Administering Agency (SAA)
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