FY 2023 National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) Estimation Project (EP) | O BJS 2023 171803

Opportunity Information: Apply for O BJS 2023 171803

The FY 2023 National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) Estimation Project (EP) is a continuation grant opportunity from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), offered through the Office of Justice Programs (OJP). The central purpose is to fund additional development and methodological work that supports the statistical procedures used to produce national crime estimates from the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS). This work builds directly on a major milestone reached in September 2022, when BJS released the first national crime estimates generated using a new methodology where NIBRS served as the sole data source for crimes known to law enforcement across the United States. In other words, the project is about improving, maintaining, and expanding the methods that turn incident-based police reporting into reliable national-level statistics.

The scope of work emphasized in the solicitation includes three main areas. First, it calls for system maintenance activities, meaning the upkeep and refinement of the estimation infrastructure and processes that are already in place. Second, it supports additional estimation development, which generally means further research and improvements to the statistical approach used to produce national estimates from NIBRS data, especially as NIBRS coverage and reporting practices evolve. Third, it seeks assessment of data on indicators that were not included in the "Year One" estimates, signaling an intent to examine additional measures or crime-related indicators that may become candidates for future national estimation products once their quality and consistency can be evaluated.

This opportunity is framed within OJP's broader priorities, including advancing civil rights and racial equity, increasing access to justice, supporting crime victims and people impacted by the justice system, strengthening community safety, protecting the public from evolving threats, and building trust between law enforcement and communities. While the solicitation is technical and statistics-focused, these priorities reflect why the work matters: national crime statistics are widely used for policy decisions, resource allocation, public accountability, and understanding how crime and enforcement patterns affect different communities.

The award is offered as a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates substantial federal involvement during the project period compared to a standard grant. It is listed under the funding activity category "Information and Statistics" and carries CFDA number 16.734. The opportunity anticipates a single award, with an award ceiling of $3,000,000, meaning up to three million dollars is available for the selected recipient. The opportunity was created on June 30, 2023, with an original closing date of July 13, 2023, and it is labeled as a continuation opportunity, suggesting it is intended to extend or expand ongoing work rather than start an entirely new effort from scratch.

Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others," with the note to consult the solicitation's additional eligibility details for clarification. The statutory authority cited indicates that BJS has the legal authority to fund the collection and analysis of criminal justice statistics and to support the development and enhancement of national information systems like NIBRS. The solicitation also notes the FBI's authority to provide funds to BJS for these purposes and its authority to support activities related to the transfer and sharing of criminal justice information across law enforcement and related agencies. Taken together, these authorities establish the legal foundation for BJS to finance technical and methodological work that strengthens national crime measurement using NIBRS as the underlying reporting system.

• The Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics in the information and statistics sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY 2023 National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) Estimation Project (EP)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.734.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 30, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 13, 2023. (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 $3,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for O BJS 2023 171803

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