Connect and Protect: Law Enforcement Behavioral Health Response Program

Link

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/o-bja-2025-172325

Additional Links

Notice of Funding Opportunity (Grants.gov)

Deadline

Application Deadline: Apr 3, 2025

Sponsor

Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)

Purpose

Provides funding to develop new or enhance existing law enforcement and behavioral health collaboration initiatives designed to improve public safety responses to and outcomes for individuals with behavioral health conditions, intellectual disabilities, developmental disabilities, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and/or traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) who interact with the criminal justice system. Supports the development of new or improved deflection and diversion initiatives that engage people at their first point of contact with law enforcement.

Program objectives include:

Designing and implementing crisis response programs based on current best practice to assist law enforcement responding to the needs of people with behavioral health disorders that includes various services like call centers, mobile outreach, and trauma-informed community-based crisis support, etc.
Improving behavioral health and law enforcement response systems to work effectively with services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and other cognitive challenges like TBI or dementia
Enhancing officer knowledge and skills in responding to community members with behavioral health disorders
Conducting outreach and education to improve public health and safety, building positive community relations and trust through effective communication strategies
Connecting with the Bureau of Justice Assistance's 14 law enforcement-mental health learning sites
Improving services for veterans by expanding Veteran Response and Treatment Teams and involving veterans with similar experiences in crisis response
Developing strategic planning initiatives for police officers and mental health professionals to respond together through multidisciplinary teams at state, tribal, and local levels
Utilizing training and technical assistance (TTA) providers to enhance systems for tracking calls for service, improving resource allocation, assessing workforce needs, and providing a clearer picture of community responses
Implementing software programs and data collection methods to better track calls for service involving people with behavioral health needs and support the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Increasing the capacity of public safety and health agencies to develop and maintain the program by collecting data to inform practices, creating stakeholder groups, developing policies, and promoting ongoing professional development

Amount of Funding

Award ceiling: $550,000 per year
Project period: 36 months
Estimated number of awards: 25
Estimated total program funding: $13,750,000

Applicants must provide matching funds for a portion of the project. In years 1 and 2 of the grant a 20% match is required, and a 40% match is required in year 3. Matching funds can be cash and/or in-kind contributions and must be from non-federal sources.

Who Can Apply

Eligible applicants include:

States
City, township, county, and special district governments
Federally recognized Native American tribal governments
Public and state-controlled institutions of higher education
Agencies with a different legal status are eligible to apply only if they meet the following 2 requirements:
- Applicant is designated by the state mental health authority to provide services as a unit of the state or local government
- Applicant must attach documentation to support this designation

The programmatic funding priority areas for consideration align with the funder's mission and goals, and include proposals that:

Promote effective strategies for identification and treatment of females with behavioral health disorders who are involved with the criminal justice system
Promote effective strategies to expand the use of mental health courts and related services
Propose interventions that have been shown by empirical evidence to reduce recidivism
When appropriate, use validated assessment tools to identify and prioritize individuals with a moderate or high risk of recidivism and a need for treatment services
Demonstrate and ensure that funds are used for public health and public safety.
Demonstrate active participation of co-applicants in administering the program
Document, in whole or in part, that funds used for treatment of incarcerated populations will provide transition and reentry services for such individuals

Geographic Coverage

Nationwide

What This Program Funds

Capacity Building • Equipment • New Program • Operating Costs and Staffing

Application Process

Application instructions, requirements, and other information about the online application process can be found in the funding announcement.

Applications must be submitted electronically through a 2-step process:

Step 1: Applicants will submit an SF-424 and an SF-LLL in grants.gov by the April 3, 2025 deadline.
Step 2: Applicants will submit the full application, including attachments, in the JustGrants grants management system by the April 10, 2025 deadline.

Applicant webinar
(Registration required)
February 27, 2025
1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Eastern

Contact

For questions on submitting in grants.gov:
800-518-4726
support@grants.gov

For questions on submitting in JustGrants:
833-872-5175
JustGrants.Support@usdoj.gov

For programmatic and technical questions:
Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Response Center
800-851-3420
TTY at 301-240-6310
grants@ncjrs.gov

Topics This Program Addresses

Community Planning and Coalition Building • Crisis Response • Law Enforcement • Mental Health • Substance Use Disorder