FY25 Second Chance Act Grant Programs Notice of Funding Opportunities Webinar

Serena Roche: Hello everyone. Today's webinar, BJA's fiscal Year 2025 combined Second Chance Act notice of funding opportunity will be presented by BJA's Senior Policy Advisors Meg Chapman and Andre Bethea and will provide an overview of information on the various SCA programs, application requirements, allowable uses of funding, individual program goals and objectives, and tips and resources for navigating the application process. Thank you for watching! Now, let's turn things over to Meg and Andre. 

Meg Chapman: Thank you all for joining this webinar to review the suite of Fiscal Year 2025 Second Chance Act or "SCA" grant programs. My name is Meg Chapman. I'm going to get us started. You'll also be hearing from Andre Bethea a little later in the webinar. We'll be covering a lot of information during this webinar. We're going to start with some background information on the Office of Justice Programs or "OJP" and the Bureau of Justice Assistance or "BJA." Then we will provide an overview of the full set of SCA grant programs. We will then walk through each program, highlighting the specifics of the programs as described in their notices of funding opportunities or "NOFOs." After that, we will walk through the funding process and then we'll wrap things up by identifying different resources available to support you during the application process. 

Let's start by talking about the Office of Justice programs, or "OJP." OJP provides grant funding, training, research, and statistics to the criminal justice community. BJA is one of a number of grant making agencies located within OJP. BJA strengthens the Nation's criminal justice system and helps America's state, local and tribal jurisdictions reduce and prevent crime, reduce recidivism, and promote a fair and safe criminal justice system. BJA's Acting Director is Tammie Gregg. BJA supports the field in several ways. We do so through investments, which is what we're going to be talking about today, as well as by sharing knowledge to build agency capacity and improve outcomes and by supporting opportunities to connect with the field. 

Let's transition to the SCA grant programs. The Second Chance Act legislation provides funding to enhance reentry services for youth and adults leaving detention and incarceration to reduce recidivism and improve public safety. Programs that target the adult population are administered by BJA and those that target youth are administered by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. 

In fiscal year 2025, BJA is releasing six NOFOs to support adults in reentry in different ways. Eligibility, or who can apply to which program varies. As reflected here, while tribal governments can apply to all six programs, nonprofit organizations, and state and local governments can only apply to specific programs. Eligibility is important because applications from ineligible organizations will not be accepted. We are also competing for Second Chance Act training and technical assistance to primarily support Smart Reentry grantees as well as other grantees working on three highly technical activities. The types of entities eligible for this program are different from the six SCA grant programs we just went through and includes educational and for profit organizations as well as nonprofit organizations. 

Later in the webinar, we'll talk about specific elements of a grant application but I'm going to jump ahead for a second to flag something new. This year, applicants applying to more than one of the SCA grant program NOFOs may reuse all or portions of the proposal narrative, as applicable. All other required application materials must still be submitted in response to each NOFO of interest. This may change your approach in deciding which or how many SCA grants to apply for. So I'm saying this now to be sure you don't tune out on any information that may actually be of interest. 

Something else to consider as you learn about the suite of SCA programs is that - in order to advance public safety and help meet its mission, OJP will provide priority consideration to: applicants that propose projects designed to advance an identified set of goals. These goals include: directly supporting law enforcement operations, including immigration, law enforcement operations; combatting violent crime; supporting services to American citizens; protecting American children; and, supporting American victims of trafficking and sexual assault. Applicants seeking priority considerations should specify in the proposal narrative which of the goals the project is intended to advance and how it will do so. As we go through each program, we will identify other priorities specific to that NOFO that you may also consider. 

Let's get into the details of the different NOFOs. But before we get started, I want to provide a road map of sorts to give you a sense of what we'll be sharing about each NOFO. You'll see three slides for each NOFO containing the types of information shown here. The first slide will include the NOFO title and purpose. The second slide will cover who is eligible to apply, how much money we anticipate will be available, for how many awards, and the length of the award. And the third will cover specific activities that may be supported through that grant program. 

Let's start walking through the NOFOs for each of the six grant programs. We'll start with the Community-based Reentry Program. 

The Community-based Reentry Program seeks to create safer communities by improving reentry outcomes and reducing recidivism for people who have been incarcerated. It has two objectives. One is to provide mentoring and other transitional services. The other is to prioritize services to people at moderate to high risk of recidivism. 

Eligible applications include federally recognized Native American tribal governments and nonprofit organizations. BJA anticipates awarding up to $12.5 million total, making approximately 13 awards for up to $1 million each. Each award will be for a 36-month period. 

The Community-based Reentry program supports partnerships with correctional agencies to provide: mentoring; transitional job strategies; behavioral health treatment and services; vocational, literacy, and educational services; family reunification and restoration; and housing and other service referrals. It also requires a final report at the end of the award that describes the types of programmatic activities that were implemented, clients served, and overall lessons learned, including milestones and outcomes. 

Note that applicants are required to demonstrate a partnership with correctional agencies by including a copy of a signed Memorandum of Understanding. The NOFO has more information on this requirement, but note that applications will not move forward to the next stage of review without this attachment. 

We mentioned earlier when we were talking about agency priorities that there may also be NOFO-specific priorities. This NOFO has an additional priority consideration per the Second Chance Act that will be given to applications that: include a plan to implement activities that have been demonstrated effective in supporting successful reentry and provide for an independent evaluation that includes, to the maximum extent feasible, random assignment of program participants to program delivery and control groups. 

The second SCA NOFO that I'm going to discuss is the Family-based Substance Use Disorder Treatment Program. The goal of the Family-based Substance Use Disorder Treatment Program is to address underlying substance use disorders to reduce crime and recidivism by justice-involved parents of minor children. This program has two different objectives. One is to implement or enhance prison-based substance use disorder treatment and recovery support services to parents and their minor children and families. The other is to develop, implement, or expand family-based substance use disorder treatment as part of an alternative to incarceration program for parents with nonviolent drug or drug related offenses and their children and families. 

Eligible applicants include local, state, and Native American tribal governments and nonprofit organizations. BJA anticipates awarding up to $10 million total - making approximately 10 awards for up to $1 million each. Each award will be for a 36-month period. 

Applicants to this grant program must propose to: offer family focused treatment; to use validated tools to assess the strengths and needs of the participant and their families; offer a wide range of services to meet needs; include a system of incentives and sanctions; track program completion; and conduct a process and outcome evaluation. Applicants must also deliver a final report that presents the results of an assessment of the effectiveness of the program. 

This is another instance of a NOFO-specific priority consideration. For this program, priority consideration will be given to applicants in states and units of local government that actively meet the following criteria to the maximum extent permitted by law: enforce prohibitions on open illicit drug use; enforce prohibitions on urban camping and loitering; enforce prohibitions on urban squatting; or enforce, and where necessary, adopt, standards that address individuals who are a danger to themselves or others and suffer from serious mental illness or substance use disorder, or who are living on the streets and cannot care for themselves, through assisted outpatient treatment or by moving them into treatment centers or other appropriate facilities via civil commitment or other available means, to the maximum extent permitted by law; or for state applicants, substantially implement and comply with, to the extent required, the registration and notification obligations of the Sex Offender Registry and Notification Act, particularly in the case of registered sex offenders with no fixed address, including by mapping and checking the location of homeless sex offenders. 

Please note that if you are seeking this additional priority consideration, you should complete the Agency Funding Priorities Inventory _ Ending Crime and Disorder in JustGrants to indicate which criteria you're actively meeting. 

Another important note is that all applicants to this program must include a signed Mandatory Treatment Service Provider Certification. The application will not be reviewed without this attachment, so be sure to review the NOFO and its Appendix A for more details. 

I also want to highlight the different requirements for programs operating in and outside of a correctional facility. Applicants proposing a program in a correctional setting must operate the program in an area separate from the general population and provide continued care for participant transfers to a different facility. Applicants proposing a program in an alternative to incarceration setting must: serve people charged with nonviolent drug offenses; provide treatment in a residential setting; ensure all providers are licensed by the relevant State or Tribe; and ensure that those who do not complete the program serve an appropriate sentence of imprisonment. 

We have a few more opportunities to walk through, but I'm going to turn things over to Andre for a bit. 

Andre Bethea: The next program is the SCA improving Reentry Education and Employment Outcomes Program. The goal of this program is to improve educational attainment and employment outcomes for people in reentry to reduce recidivism. There are two objectives. One is to implement strategies to increase education or employment success for individuals currently incarcerated with two years or less before release into the community. The other is to create a career pathway system or a workforce development network that will implement opportunities for current incarcerated people with two years or less before release into the community. 

Eligible applicants include local, state, and federally recognized Native American tribal governments; nonprofit organizations; and for profit organizations, as well as small businesses. BJA anticipates awarding up to $19.8 million total - making approximately 22 awards for up to $900,000 each. Each award will be for 36-month period. 

Applicants may propose to increase employability through education under Category One and/or workforce training and support under Category Two, including to: attain diplomas, certifications, and credentials, including vocational education; assess local demand for employees and skills; align workforce and training with demand; develop a network of prospective employers; or use job readiness assessments, individualized case plans, and responsive services to improve employment readiness, attainment, and retention. 

There are additional priority considerations for this NOFO as well. OJP will provide priority consideration to: Category One applicants that propose to focus on vocational/trade education and training. Category Two applicants that: provide an assessment of local demand for employees in the geographic areas to which incarcerated individuals are likely to return, as well as provide job-training that look at the local labor/job markets and communities where individuals leaving incarceration are returning; conduct individualized reentry career planning upon the start of incarceration or post-release employment planning for each individual served under the grant; demonstrate connections to employers with the local community; and track and monitor employment outcomes. 

Next, we are going to walk through the SCA Pay For Success Initiative. This NOFO supports the use of performance-based and outcomes-based contracting to implement or enhance programs and services to reduce recidivism, including to address housing needs of individuals leaving incarceration. Contracts may be newly created, expanded, or transitioned from direct payment to performance-based and outcomes-based and must serve individuals leaving incarceration with the goal of reducing recidivism and supporting long-term reentry success. There are two funding categories that applicants may consider. The first is to support contracting for reentry services. The second category is to support contracting for reentry housing services. 

Eligible applicants include local, state, and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. BJA anticipates making approximately 1 award for up to $1.25 million for reentry services and approximately 5 awards for up to $1 million per award for housing services for a total of up to $6.25 million. Each award will be for a 54-month period. 

The goals and objectives for the two categories of funding are different. The goal for Category One, which is directed towards contracting for reentry services, is to enhance public safety by reducing recidivism and supporting long-term success of individuals leaving incarceration through individualized case planning and comprehensive transitional outcomes-based contracts for reentry support services. There are two related objectives. The first is to tie payment for reentry services to service provider performance and recipient outcomes. The second is to address the needs of individuals in reentry to reduce the likelihood of reoffending. 

The goal for Category Two, which is focused on contracting for reentry housing, is to enhance public safety and reduce recidivism by increasing housing and supportive services for individuals leaving incarceration. There are two related objectives. The first is also to tie payment for service provider performance and service recipient outcomes. The second is to improve housing outcomes post-release during the reintegration process and deliver evidence-based services. 

Whether you propose to establish or enhance performance-based or outcomes-based contracts focus on reentry or housing-specific services, applicants must plan to include: regular review and validation; on- an off-site monitoring; outcomes reviews and validation; and, incentivizing payment approvals and results. There are also two required deliverables. The first is an executed contract between the government entity and service provider. The second is a final report at the end of the grant. 

Next is the SCA Smart Reentry Demonstration Program. The goal of the Smart Reentry Demonstration Program is to implement a plan for comprehensive approaches to reentry that reduce recidivism and enhance public safety. There are three objectives under this program. The first is to identify a target population of people preparing to reenter society after incarceration or supervision that drives recidivism rates. The second is to implement a reentry program that promotes successful reentry in collaboration with state or local government agencies, nonprofit organizations, or other stakeholders. And the third is to assess the impact of the reentry program by tracking outcomes for those in the target population and identify patterns and the factors driving success or failure. 

Eligible applicants include local, state and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. BJA anticipates awarding up to $4 million total, making approximately 4 awards for up to $1 million each. Each award will be for a 36-month period. 

There are three deliverables for this program. The first deliverable is a comprehensive strategic plan for adult reentry. The second is a plan to establish or expand an intervention to address reentry needs of a subpopulation that drives recidivism rates. The third is a final report that assesses reentry needs and measurable performance outcomes to determine effectiveness. We encourage you to review the NOFO for specific requirements associated with each of these deliverables. 

There are two other important notes regarding this program. The first is that awardees must financially match at least 50% of the Federal award amount. Half of this match can be "in-kind" services. Applicants may seek a waiver for the match requirement. More detail on the match requirement can be found in the NOFO. The other is, per the Second Chance Act statute, priority consideration will be given to applicants that propose to: partner with a local evaluator; serve communities with a high number of people returning from incarceration; review supervision violation responses and sanctions; and target individuals (A) assessed at moderate and high risk of recidivism and (B) with histories of homelessness, substance use, or mental illness. 

The final grant program we will go through is uniquely focused on community supervision - SCA Strengthening Community Supervision Outcomes Program. This program will support state, local and tribal community supervision agencies to develop more effective probation and parole programs and improve supervision outcomes by strengthening operations to prevent recidivism and reduce violent crime. This NOFO includes two funding categories. The first, Smart Supervision will support the development, implementation, and/or testing of strategies to reduce recidivism among probation and/or parole populations. The second, Implementing Swift, Certain, and Fair Principles will support replication of the Hawaii Opportunity Probation with Enforcement or HOPE model of responding to behavior of individuals on supervision with swift, certain, and fair consequences. 

Eligible applicants include local, state, and federally recognized Native American tribal governments and organizing body or association of supervision. BJA anticipates awarding up to $10.7 million total - making approximately 11 awards for up to $1 million each. Each award will be for a 36-month period. 

The goals and objectives for the two categories of funding are different. The goal for the first category - Smart Supervision - is to strengthen supervision agencies' capacity to reduce recidivism by enhancing both external partnership collaboration and internal workforce capabilities. There are two objectives. One is to increase collaboration with justice, health, and non-profit organizations to address needs of people on supervision to reduce crime committed by and improve outcomes for people under supervision. The other is to support the recruitment, training, retention, and wellness of supervision agency staff to perform critical public safety functions. And there's one deliverable, which is a final report that is submitted at the end of the grant. 

The goal for the second category - Swift, Certain, and Fair Principles - is to improve community supervision agencies' operational capacity to reduce recidivism and violent crime. There are two objectives. One is to improve effective supervision strategies, such as by implementing best practices that incorporate key swift, certain, and/or fair principles. The other is to focus resources on individuals at high risk of recidivating and at higher risk of committing violence. And there is one deliverable, which is a final report that is submitted at the end of the grant. 

The final program we will walk through is the NOFO providing funding to a technical expert. The goal of this program is to improve grantees capacity, particularly Smart Reentry grantees, to implement effective programs that improve outcomes. There are three objectives of this program. The first is to assist with the adoption and/or enhancement of technology/technical solutions to support individuals reentering and the professionals supporting them. The second is to provide technical guidance on methodologies and analytics to support validation studies, assessing impact, and linking and matching across large administrative datasets that requires advanced statistical and modeling skills. The third is to help grantees to execute formal agreements to ensure direct service delivery is not unnecessarily delayed and to support required program evaluations. 

Eligible applicants include public and private educational organizations, for-profit organizations, other than small businesses, and nonprofit organizations. BJA anticipates making a single award for up to $605,000 for one year. Each award will be for a 36-month period. 

The award recipient will be expected to establish a responsive technical assistance framework for responding to Smart Reentry and other Second Chance Act grantee requests for specialized assistance that includes communication protocols, prioritization processes, and timelines for support delivery. 

As you begin to consider your needs and how one or more of these grant programs can help to address those needs, we thought it might be helpful to mention a few ways in which Second Chance Act grant funds may be used. Second Chance Act funds may be used to cover costs associated with salary and benefits, workforce development, procurements, direct service provision, data collection, or measuring performance indicators and data sharing. That is not an exhaustive list. It's just a start. You should review the NOFO for specific examples of how funds may be used. NOFOs also include guidance on unallowable uses of funds. The DOJ Grants Financial guide is your go to resource to confirm allowability. 

Now I am going to transition back to Meg to walk you through the application review process. 

Meg Chapman: Thanks Andre. I'm going to take the next few minutes to walk through the application review process. All applicants must: be submitted by an eligible type of applicant; must request funding within programmatic funding constraints; must be responsive to the scope of the NOFO; and, must include all items necessary to meet the basic minimum requirements. 

The basic minimum requirements, which are listed in every NOFO are important, because your application will not advance to peer review and be considered for funding unless you meet all stated requirements. All applicants are required to submit: an application for federal assistance or SF-424; proposal narrative; budget detail form; and in the case of SCA grants, a Mandatory Chief Executive Assurance to Collect and Report on Recidivism Indicator Data. A form for signature is included as an appendix in all SCA grant program NOFOs. And note there may be additional requirements listed in the NOFO. For example, applicants may be required to provide Documentation of Proposed Subrecipients, so be sure to review the NOFO carefully. 

All applications that meet the basic minimum requirements will be reviewed based on the same criteria. Statement of the problem, which accounts for 10% of the application score; project goals and objectives, which accounts for 15% of the score; project design and implementation, which accounts for 30%; capabilities and competencies, which accounts for 15%; the plan for collecting the required data and information, which accounts for 10%; budget, which accounts for another 10%; and the sustainability plan, which counts for the final 10% of the score. All NOFOs include a checklist on the last few pages. We encourage you to use it to ensure your application is complete. 

Now I'm going to spend the next few minutes providing an overview of the OJP funding process. To apply, your entity must register with SAM.gov and obtain a Unique Entity Identifier, and you must maintain an active SAM.gov registration status at all times. For entities new to SAM.gov, the registration process may take several weeks, so plan accordingly. For those not new to SAM,gov, remember that your registration in SAM.gov must be renewed every 12 months. And be sure that your organization's points of contact in SAM.gov are current. 

Applications are submitted to OJP electronically through a two-step process, which means you'll be required to register/confirm users can access two different systems. For Step One, you need to complete an Application for Federal Assistance or SF-424, in Grants.gov. For Step Two, you will need to complete the full application, including required attachments in JustGrants, which is OJP's grant management system. Note that we recommend completing each step at least 48 hours before the deadline. And also be aware that the Grants.gov deadline is earlier than the JustGrants deadline. 

I want to share a few important points about Grants.gov. Be sure to confirm your registration or register if you are new to the system. Add or confirm users and rules for everyone you plan to have work on your funding application. You can register and/or confirm users/roles at any time, so don't wait. And this is important because Grants.gov is where you complete the Application for Federal Assistance or the SF-424, which is the first step of the application process. You can check the Grants.gov Quick Start Guide for more tips. 

After you complete the SF-424 in Grants.gov, the next step is to complete the full application in JustGrants. This includes the: standard application information, proposal abstract, proposal narrative, budget and associated documentation, and any additional application components specified in the NOFOS, as well as disclosures and assurances. 

Before we move on, I want to flag additional application components relevant to the SCA programs. As mentioned earlier, the Mandatory Chief Executive Assistance to Collect and Report Recidivism Indicator Data Form is required for all applicants applying to any of the SCA programs. There are two others that may be required, depending on the SCA program. For example, some programs require a Memorandum of Understanding with correctional agencies. Others mandatory treatment provider certification. Again, review the NOFO and appendices to make sure you meet all requirements. 

Once you submit your application into JustGrants, you may be wondering what happens next. After the JustGrants deadline has passed, OJP will thoroughly review all applications. This process typically takes several months. First, we check to confirm that the application contains those basic minimum requirements that we described earlier. Then peer reviewers assess the technical merits of an application. OJP staff then conduct a programmatic review and fiscal review, and finally, OJP conducts a risk review. 

How will you know if you've been successful? You can visit OJP's Grant Awards website to see all OJP awards made by year, program, and even locality. That site is updated as awards are made. Successful applicants will also be notified through JustGrants. If you receive notice of an award, you must take specific steps in JustGrants to accept or decline it within 45 days. The DOJ Award Acceptance Checklist on the JustGrants Resource website can walk you through those next steps. 

Before we closeout the webinar, we just want to flag a few resources that you may find helpful as you move through the application process. One helpful resource is the OJP Grant Application Resource Guide, which provides additional information for applicants to prepare and submit applications to OJP for funding. The JustGrants Resources Website offers tools to support use of JustGrants, as was discussed is one of the two systems used to submit your application. We also provide technical support for the two systems you will need to access to apply for funding. Both Grants.gov and JustGrants offer a customer support hotline and a means to request support via their website as well as e-mail. 

We covered a lot of information during this webinar. Feel free to reach out to the OJP Response Center with any questions you may have based on what you heard. And please leverage social media or other approaches to stay connected to BJA and OJP. 

Serena Roche: Thank you, Meg and Andre for that thorough overview of these important funding opportunities. We hope you found the information presented here today to be helpful. If you're interested and eligible for these any of these NOFOs here are the next steps to take: access the NOFOs at Grants.gov and OJP.gov; Register in Grants.gov early; this process may take several weeks; Review program-specific application deadlines and requirements; and contact the OJP Response Center for any support. For more information on the Office of Justice programs, please visit OJP.gov. Thank you for your time and we hope to see you again.