Technology Innovation for Public Safety (TIPS) | BJA 2016 8994

Opportunity Information: Apply for BJA 2016 8994

Technology Innovation for Public Safety (TIPS), offered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), is a discretionary grant opportunity under CFDA 16.738 focused on strengthening the criminal justice system through modern technology and better information sharing. The program is formally described as the Justice Information Sharing Solutions Implementation Program, and its central aim is to move the field forward by funding practical innovations that improve how justice agencies collect, exchange, and use information. In plain terms, it supports projects that help agencies respond more effectively to public safety problems, especially where crime trends are changing quickly, and it also supports efforts that help grantees implement those projects well and document what works.

The solicitation is structured around two distinct categories. Category 1 funds innovative technology implementation efforts intended to address precipitous increases in crime. This category is geared toward hands-on deployment of technology solutions, meaning the money is meant to turn ideas into operational systems or capabilities that can be used by criminal justice practitioners. While the summary does not list specific technologies, the emphasis on "information sharing solutions" points to projects that improve interoperability, data exchange, and coordinated decision-making across justice partners, such as law enforcement, courts, corrections, and other public safety stakeholders.

Category 2 focuses on training and technical assistance (TTA). Instead of buying or deploying technology directly, this category supports organizations that can help the Category 1 grantees succeed with implementation and strengthen their ability to collect and report data. A key purpose of this support is to help BJA identify "promising practices," which typically means approaches that show measurable value and can be replicated by other jurisdictions. Category 2 recipients are therefore expected to provide practical implementation support and help establish consistent data collection so outcomes can be compared and lessons can be shared.

Eligibility differs by category. For Category 1, applicants are limited to public agencies of state governments, units of local government, and tribal entities that perform criminal justice functions. The solicitation also allows government agencies to apply as fiscal agents on behalf of otherwise eligible applicants, which can be helpful when the implementing entity needs a different agency to handle grant administration. For Category 2, eligibility is broader and includes national and regional public and private entities. That group can include for-profit (commercial) organizations, nonprofit organizations (including tribal nonprofit or for-profit organizations), faith-based and community organizations, and institutions of higher education (including tribal institutions). A notable condition applies to for-profit entities: they must agree to forgo any profit or management fee, meaning the award must be used strictly to cover allowable project costs rather than generating profit.

Key administrative details from the posting include the funding opportunity number (BJA 2016 8994), an award ceiling of $500,000, and an expectation of about six total awards. The opportunity was created on March 3, 2016, and had an original closing date of April 20, 2016. Overall, TIPS is designed to accelerate the adoption of effective justice information-sharing technology while also building a support structure of training, technical assistance, and data collection that helps identify and spread solutions that demonstrably improve criminal justice operations and public safety outcomes.

• The Bureau of Justice Assistance in the law, justice and legal services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Technology Innovation for Public Safety (TIPS)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.738.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-03-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2016-04-20. (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 $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 6 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Others.

Apply for BJA 2016 8994

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