The Emergency Federal Law Enforcement Assistance (EFLEA) Program assists state and/or local government units in responding to extraordinary law enforcement emergencies by authorizing the U.S. Attorney General to grant funding to help alleviate the costs incurred by law enforcement agencies in responding to emergency law enforcement challenges.

Program Assistance Eligibility

Key determining factors for a law enforcement emergency that qualifies for EFLEA resources are a situation that could escalate into a law enforcement emergency of epidemic proportion and subsequently pose an imminent threat to public safety. The threat must be of sufficient magnitude to overwhelm a state or local government’s ability to respond to the threat.

If a law enforcement emergency arises, a state may apply for assistance on behalf of itself or units of local government. The submission for EFLEA resources must be in writing and submitted by the State Administering Agency (SAA) Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) contact, acting on behalf of the chief executive officer for the state. The SAA JAG contact must send the signed written request to the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Director. The BJA Director, along with the Assistant Attorney General (AAG) for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), will expeditiously approve or disapprove the request upon its receipt. If the EFLEA request is approved, BJA will invite the SAA JAG contact to submit a formal application for funding through Grants.gov. The application will be processed and subsequently awarded through OJP’s JustGrants, the Department of Justice’s grants management system. BJA will provide written guidance to the JAG SAA contact on how to apply for EFLEA funds once the initial request is approved. See the EFLEA Fact Sheet for more information the application process and requirements.

Funding Opportunities

There are not currently any funding opportunities available through this program.

Examples of Recent Funding Awarded Through EFLEA

• The Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration received $123,677 in FY24 EFLEA funding to help offset local law enforcement overtime costs incurred during the response to the Covenant School mass shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 27, 2023, that resulted in six deaths.
• The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority received $37,661 in FY24 to help offset local law enforcement overtime costs incurred during the response to a mass shooting in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4, 2022, that resulted in seven deaths and 48 others wounded.
• The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services received $446,781 in FY23 to help offset overtime and fringe benefit costs associated with the law enforcement emergency response to the mass shooting at the Jefferson Avenue Tops Market in Buffalo, New York, on May 14, 2022. During this tragic event, 13 people were shot, 10 of them fatally, both outside and inside the market.
• The Michigan State Police received $223,211 in FY23 to reimburse 22 state and local first responder agencies, associated with the law enforcement response, that responded to the active shooter situation at Michigan State University on February 13, 2023. Three students lost their lives to gunshot wounds and an additional five students were shot and critically injured.
• The Wisconsin Department of Justice received $150,000 in FY22 to reimburse overtime costs incurred by state and local jurisdictions in response to the attack during the Waukesha Christmas Parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, on November 21, 2021. On that day, a driver drove through crowds of attendees and marchers, tragically resulting in the deaths of six people and serious injuries to more than 60 others.

Accessing EFLEA Awards Information

All EFLEA grants awarded since 2021 are available to view on the OJP Grant Awards site. To access this information:

1. Select the Awards Since FY21 by Award link.
2. Enter "EFLEA" in the Keyword Search field.
3. Click Reset Filters to view the list of EFLEA awards made since FY21.