Funding Opportunity Number: BJA-2014-3856
Opportunity Category: Discretionary
Funding Instrument Type: Grant
Category of Funding Activity: Law, Justice and Legal Services
Eligible Applicants: State governments | Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) | Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
Agency Name: USDOJ-OJP-BJA
Closing Date: 2014-05-22
Award Ceiling: $1,750,000

Description: Approximately 2.  2 million people were incarcerated in federal, state, and local prisons and jails in 2012, a rate of 1 out of every 108 adults.  The population declined for the fourth consecutive year, yet many state prison populations remain near all-time high levels.  And despite the decline in population, state spending on corrections has remained high.  Over the last 25 years, state corrections expenditures have increased exponentially?from $12 billion in 1988 to more than $53 billion estimated in 2013.  2
Justice reinvestment emerged as a way to address these issues through a targeted, data-driven policymaking process.  BJA, in a public/private partnership with The Pew Charitable Trusts, launched the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI) in 2010 as a multistaged process in which a jurisdiction increases the cost-effectiveness of its criminal justice system and reinvests savings into high-performing public safety strategies.
Under the JRI model, a governmental working group with bipartisan and interbranch representation analyzes the correctional population and its costs, develops cost-effective policy options, and implements reforms to manage correctional populations while enhancing public safety.  JRI jurisdictions reinvest these cost savings into high-performing initiatives that make communities safer.  In addition to reducing prison populations, justice reinvestment encourages states to embrace a culture of greater collaboration, data-driven decisionmaking, and increased use of evidence-based practices.
Link: www.grants.gov/view-opportunity.html?opp…