BJA FY 20 Safeguarding Correctional Facilities and Public Safety by Addressing Contraband Cellphones Program | BJA 2020 18018

Opportunity Information: Apply for BJA 2020 18018

The BJA FY 20 Safeguarding Correctional Facilities and Public Safety by Addressing Contraband Cellphones Program (Funding Opportunity Number BJA 2020 18018) is a discretionary grant offered by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance. It was created on March 10, 2020, with an original application deadline of May 11, 2020. The program focuses on a persistent correctional security and public safety problem: the presence and use of contraband cellphones by detainees and inmates, which can enable criminal coordination, intimidation, trafficking, and other illegal activity both inside facilities and in the community.

The core purpose of the opportunity is to provide site-based funding to help jurisdictions operationalize effective and secure managed access systems in correctional environments. In practical terms, the grants are intended to move beyond planning or discussion and into real-world deployment and operations that prevent, detect, seize, and stop contraband cellphone use. Managed access solutions are aimed at controlling or restricting unauthorized cellular communications within a facility while maintaining the integrity and security of legitimate communications, and the opportunity emphasizes implementation in live correctional settings rather than purely research-oriented work.

A key expectation embedded in the grant description is that award recipients will actively test, implement, and document changes to policy, practice, and tactics related to contraband cellphone interdiction. That means applicants are not only expected to acquire or operate technology, but also to examine how procedures, staff workflows, training, enforcement practices, evidence handling, and operational tactics may need to change to make the overall strategy effective. The documentation component signals that recipients should produce usable lessons learned and clear records of what was changed, how it was carried out, and what outcomes or operational impacts were observed.

Eligible applicants are broad within government, covering state governments and multiple forms of local government such as counties, cities or townships, and special district governments. Federally recognized Native American tribal governments are also eligible when they serve a law enforcement function. This eligibility structure reflects the reality that correctional facilities are operated across many jurisdictional levels, and it allows both traditional state and local correctional agencies and tribal jurisdictions to apply.

Awards under this opportunity have a ceiling of $400,000, and the program anticipated making about four awards. The funding activity categories associated with the solicitation span information and statistics, law/justice/legal services, and science and technology and other research and development, which reflects the program's blend of operational corrections work and technology-focused implementation. The CFDA number associated with the program is 16.844, which is commonly used for Bureau of Justice Assistance-related funding and can be helpful for tracking or matching the opportunity within grants management systems.

Overall, this solicitation is geared toward correctional agencies and jurisdictions that are ready to take measurable, on-the-ground steps to reduce contraband cellphone availability and usage through secure managed access operations, while simultaneously strengthening institutional policy and tactical responses and producing documentation that can inform future efforts in other facilities.

• The Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance in the information and statistics, law, justice and legal services, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "BJA FY 20 Safeguarding Correctional Facilities and Public Safety by Addressing Contraband Cellphones Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.844.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 10, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 11, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $400,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 4 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized).

Apply for BJA 2020 18018

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: