On this page:
   Current solicitations | Previous solicitations | Applications and forms | BJS funding programs

Current Solicitations

FY 2017 Current Solicitations

• FY 2017 Graduate Research Fellowship Program for Criminal Justice Statistics
• FY 2017 BJS Faculty Research Fellowship Program in Criminal Justice Statistics
• State Justice Statistics Program for Statistical Analysis Centers, 2017
• FY 2017 National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP)
• FY 2017 NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP)

FY 2017 Graduate Research Fellowship Program for Criminal Justice Statistics

• BJS-2017-11485
  The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is seeking applications under its Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) Program. This program provides awards to accredited universities for doctoral research that uses BJS's criminal justice data or statistical series and focuses on crime, violence, and other criminal justice-related topics. BJS invests in doctoral education by supporting universities that sponsor students who demonstrate the potential to complete doctoral degree programs successfully in disciplines relevant to the mission of BJS, and who are in the final stages of graduate study. The primary goal of this solicitation is to increase the pool of researchers using criminal justice statistical data generated by BJS, thereby contributing solutions that better prevent and control crime and help ensure the fair and impartial administration of criminal justice in the United States.

  Applicant institutions sponsoring doctoral students are eligible to apply if the doctoral research dissertation has direct implications for criminal justice policy and practice in the United States. BJS encourages institutions to consider sponsoring qualified doctoral students from social and behavioral sciences, mathematics, or statistics for their applications. Applicant institutions are strongly encouraged to sponsor minority and female student candidates. Awards are anticipated to be made to successful applicant institutions in the form of a grant to cover a doctoral student fellowship. Awards are anticipated to be made to successful applicant institutions on behalf of the sponsored doctoral student. Awards will not exceed the amount of $45,000. Awarded funds are to be used to cover all allowable expenses over the project period. Additional funds will not be provided (see B. Federal Award Information). If the doctoral student's dissertation is not completed and delivered to BJS within 5 years from the date of the fellowship award, the academic institution may be required to return the full award amount to BJS. The Director of BJS will make final award decisions.
  
  Deadline: Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application. All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on February 24, 2017.
  
  Eligibility: Eligible applicants are limited to degree-granting educational institutions in the United States. To be eligible, the institution must be fully accredited by one of the regional institutional accreditation agencies recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education. Historically black colleges and universities historically black colleges and universities, and Hispanic-serving institutions and tribal universities are encouraged to apply for a fellowship.
  
  Contact Information: For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact Dr. Gerard F. Ramker, Deputy Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics by telephone at 202-307-0765, or by email at askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "2017GRFPCJS" in the subject line.
  
  Full solicitation in PDF format (PDF 375K)

FY 2017 BJS Faculty Research Fellowship Program in Criminal Justice Statistics

• BJS-2017-11501
  Through this competitive solicitation the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is seeking a non-profit professional or scientific membership organization to administer a BJS- sponsored Faculty Research Fellowship Program. The ultimate goal of the fellowship program is to increase the pool of researchers using criminal justice statistical data generated by BJS, thereby contributing solutions that better prevent and control crime and help ensure the fair and impartial administration of criminal justice in the United States. The research fellowships envisioned will be relatively small-scale projects that can be completed within 6 months.
  
  Deadline: Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application. All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on March 2, 2017.
  
  Eligibility: Eligible applicants are non-profit professional or scientific membership organizations based in the United States whose members pursue scholarly, scientific, and professional knowledge concerning the measurement, etiology, consequences, prevention, control, and treatment of crime and delinquency. The organization should also have a history of promoting criminal justice education, scholarly research and policy analysis.
  
  Contact Information: For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact Dr. Gerard F. Ramker, Deputy Director, BJS by telephone at 202-307-0765, or by email at askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "2017FRFPCJS" in the subject line.
  
  Full solicitation in PDF format (PDF 275K)

State Justice Statistics Program for Statistical Analysis Centers, 2017

• This program announcement describes the guidelines and requirements of the fiscal year (FY) 2017 State Justice Statistics (SJS) Program for Statistical Analysis Centers (SACs). Since 1972, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) and its predecessor agency, the National Criminal Justice Information and Statistics Service, have provided support to state and territorial governments to establish and operate SACs to collect, analyze, and report statistics on crime and justice to federal, state, and local levels of government and to share state-level information nationally. The information produced by SACs and their involvement in criminal justice projects are critical to federal, state, and local criminal justice agencies and community organizations as they develop programs and policies related to crime, illegal drugs, victim services, and the administration of justice.
  
  Deadline: All registrations and applications are due by 5:00 p.m. eastern time on March 15, 2017.
  
  Eligibility: Eligible applicants are limited to Statistical Analysis Centers established by state legislation or executive order.
  
  Contact Information: For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact Devon B. Adams, Chief, Criminal Justice Data Improvement Program by telephone at 202-307-0765, or by email at askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "SJSSAC17" in the subject line.
  
  Full solicitation in PDF format (PDF 539K)

FY 2017 National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP)

• BJS-2017-11621
  The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is publishing this notice to announce the continuation of the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) in fiscal year (FY) 2017, identify the program priorities, and provide information on application requirements.

  The NCHIP grant program aims to improve the nation's safety and security by enhancing the quality, completeness, and accessibility of criminal history record information and by ensuring the nationwide implementation of criminal justice and noncriminal justice background check systems.
  
  Deadline: Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application. All applications are due 11:59 p.m. eastern time on April 5, 2017.
  
  Eligibility: The NCHIP application must be submitted by the agency designated by the governor to administer the NCHIP program or a federally recognized Indian tribe. States and tribes may choose to submit applications as part of a multi-state consortium, multi-tribe consortium, or other entity.
  
  Contact Information: For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact Devon B. Adams, Chief, Criminal Justice Data Improvement Program, by telephone at 202-307-0765, or by email at askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "NCHIP17" in the subject line.
  
  Full solicitation in PDF format (PDF 313K)

FY 2017 NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP)

• BJS-2017-11590
  The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is publishing this notice to announce the continuation of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP) in fiscal year (FY) 2017, identify the program priorities, and provide information on application requirements.

  The NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, Pub. L. 110-180 (NIAA or the Act), was signed into law on January 8, 2008, in the wake of the April 2007 shooting tragedy at Virginia Tech. The Virginia Tech shooter was able to purchase firearms from a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) because information about his prohibiting mental health history was not available to the NICS, and the system was therefore unable to deny the transfer of the firearms used in the shootings. The NIAA seeks to address the gap in information available to NICS about such prohibiting mental health adjudications and commitments, and other prohibiting factors. Filling these information gaps will better enable the system to operate as intended to keep guns out of the hands of persons prohibited by federal or state law from receiving or possessing firearms. The automation of records will also reduce delays for law-abiding persons to purchase firearms.
  
  Deadline: Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application. All applications are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on April 19, 2017.
  
  Eligibility: Eligible applicants are limited to (a) the agency designated by the Governor to administer the NARIP, (b) the state or territory central administrative office or similar entity designated by statute or regulation to administer federal grant funds on behalf of the jurisdiction's court system, or (c) federally recognized Indian tribal governments as determined by the Secretary of the Interior.
  
  Contact Information: For assistance with any other requirements of this solicitation, contact Devon B. Adams, Chief, Criminal Justice Data Improvement Program, by telephone at 202-307-0765, or by email at askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "NARIP17" in the subject line.
  
  Full solicitation in PDF format (PDF 293K)

Previous solicitations and announcements

Applications and forms

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) requires that applications for funding be submitted through the OJP Grants Management System (GMS).

Applicants for financial assistance from BJS should also review:

• Instructions for Applications for Federal Assistance
  
  
• BJS Human Subjects/Confidentiality Requirements
  
  

BJS funding programs

Criminal justice statistics programs | Assistance to state, local, and tribal governments | IPA Mobility Program

Criminal justice statistics programs

Data collection and processing

BJS maintains nearly three dozen major statistical series designed to cover each stage of the criminal justice system. A description of the various BJS data series can be found under the topical references on the BJS home page. The U.S. Census Bureau carries out the majority of BJS's data collection activities. However, BJS conducts several statistical programs for which other non-profit organizations serve as BJS data collection agents. BJS periodically announces solicitations for these programs in the Federal Register and current solicitations are listed at the top of this page.

Statistical and methodological research

BJS conducts, supports, and implements methodological research and initiatives designed to improve the quality of justice statistics, records, and information systems.

BJS, in partnership with the American Statistical Association (ASA), sponsors research projects designed to foster improvements in the methods used to obtain, analyze, and report national-level data on crime and criminal justice. Each year, new topics for methodological research are identified by BJS and ASA. Solicitations for new research projects are announced each year in February and October.

The BJS Visiting Fellows Program promotes criminal justice statistical research among the academic and professional justice community. Visiting Fellows participate in a specifically designed research project of particular operational relevance to the national or international justice system. The program offers criminal justice researchers an opportunity to have a significant impact on specific BJS projects as well as a chance to examine innovative approaches to the analysis and dissemination of BJS data.

Assistance to state, local, and tribal governments

National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) provides financial and technical support to states in improving the accuracy, utility, and interstate accessibility of criminal history records and enhancing records of protective orders involving domestic violence and stalking, sex offender records, automated identification systems, and other state systems supporting national records systems and their use for background checks.

State Justice Statistics (SJS) Program for Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) offers technical and financial support to states to establish and maintain a state-level capacity to collect, analyze, and report statistics on crime and justice in order to contribute to effective state policies and programs and to participate in national data series. Through the creation of SACs, BJS encourages analyses of evolving criminal justice topics of interest within the state using data gathered from state and local agencies and promotes statistical inquiries into improved measures of crime incidence and prevalence.

Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Mobility Program

Through the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Mobility Program, BJS invites individuals interested in pursuing criminal justice issues to apply for temporary assignments. Projects will be designed to focus on improving BJS's statistical programs. Assignments may vary in duration, up to 2 years, and may be intermittent, part-time, or full-time. Visit the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Mobility Program page for deadlines and eligibility requirements.