NIJ FY22 Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Justice System: A Study of Existing Evidence and Public Policy Implications | O NIJ 2022 171194

Opportunity Information: Apply for O NIJ 2022 171194

The NIJ FY22 Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Justice System: A Study of Existing Evidence and Public Policy Implications grant is a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) discretionary research funding opportunity under the Office of Justice Programs (OJP). It is framed around DOJ priorities to promote civil rights and racial equity, expand access to justice, support victims and people impacted by the justice system, strengthen community safety, and improve trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve. Rather than funding new data collection as the central purpose, this solicitation emphasizes an investigator-initiated, comprehensive analysis of existing evidence to clarify what is already known about racial and ethnic disparities across the justice system and, most importantly, what public policy options could realistically reduce those disparities. NIJ signaled that it expected to make one award, meaning the competition was designed to support a single, large synthesis effort with clear policy relevance.

The project focus is on taking observed racial and ethnic disparities in justice-system processes and outcomes and rigorously connecting the evidence base to actionable policy implications. Applicants are expected to examine existing research and available data in a way that helps decision-makers understand not only where disparities occur, but which interventions or policy levers have credible support, under what conditions they work, and what tradeoffs or implementation challenges might arise. Because the solicitation is investigator-initiated, NIJ leaves room for applicants to define the specific scope, justice-system decision points, and analytic approach, as long as the core deliverable is a thorough evidence assessment tied to practical public policy pathways to reduce disparities.

Partnerships are encouraged when the work involves criminal justice agencies or other government entities, but NIJ sets clear expectations for how those partnerships must be documented and managed. If an application proposes a partnership, it should include strong letters of support from each partnering agency, signed by an appropriate decision-making authority. These letters are not meant to be generic; they must include the agency's acknowledgement that any de-identified data derived from, provided to, or obtained through the project will be archived with the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (NACJD) at the end of the award. Applicants and partners are expected to review NACJD policies and protections in advance so they understand the privacy, documentation, and access controls associated with archiving. If selected, the grantee is expected to have formal agreements in place with partnering agencies by September 1, 2022, and those agreements must include provisions that enable the required data archiving.

The solicitation also clarifies application and subaward structure. Only one entity may apply as the applicant organization, even when multiple agencies are involved in carrying out the work; any additional participating entities must be included as subrecipients rather than co-applicants. Eligibility is broad within the U.S. research and policy ecosystem and includes public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status (other than universities), and for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), as well as other eligible entities. Federal agencies may apply, but any award to a federal agency would be made through an inter-agency reimbursable agreement. Foreign governments, foreign organizations, and foreign colleges and universities are explicitly not eligible to apply.

A major compliance condition in the solicitation relates to Executive Order 13929, Safe Policing for Safe Communities. For FY 2022 DOJ discretionary grant funding, state, local, and university or college law enforcement agencies must be certified by an approved independent credentialing body or have begun the certification process to be eligible. Certification requires at least two mandatory conditions: the agency's use-of-force policies must comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws, and the policies must prohibit chokeholds except in circumstances where deadly force is legally permitted. This requirement also applies when a law enforcement agency receives DOJ funds through a subaward, so applicants using subrecipients that are law enforcement agencies must account for this rule. The solicitation points applicants to DOJ resources listing certification standards, implementation guidance, and designated independent credentialing bodies.

In terms of funding details, the opportunity was offered as a grant in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category (CFDA 16.560). The posted award ceiling was $800,000, with an original closing date of April 26, 2022, and an opportunity number of O-NIJ-2022-171194. A key budgeting restriction is that all recipients and subrecipients, including for-profit organizations, must forgo any profit or management fee, meaning the award is intended to cover allowable project costs without generating profit. Overall, the solicitation is essentially a high-impact, policy-facing research synthesis effort backed by strict expectations around partner commitments, formal agreements, and public data stewardship through NACJD archiving.

• The National Institute of Justice in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIJ FY22 Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Justice System: A Study of Existing Evidence and Public Policy Implications" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.560.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-03-11.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-04-26. (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 $800,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Others.

Apply for O NIJ 2022 171194

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