:010 16.607 Bulletproof Vest Partnership Program

:030 FEDERAL AGENCY: BUREAU OF JUSTICE ASSISTANCE, OFFICE OF JUSTICE
PROGRAMS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.

:040 AUTHORIZATION: Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Act of 1998,
Public Law 105-181, June 16, 1998. REAUTHORIZATION: Bulletproof Vest
Partnership Grant Act of 2000, Public Law 106-517, November 13, 2000.

:050 OBJECTIVES: To protect the lives of law enforcement officers by
helping state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies provide
officers with armor vests.

:060 TYPES OF ASSISTANCE: Direct Payments for Specific Use.

:070 USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS: On the basis of a yearly appropriation
and sufficient funds, the program pays 50% of the total cost of each
qualifying vest purchase for jurisdictions with less than 100,000
population. Any remaining funds are available to jurisdictions at or
over 100,000 in population to pay up to 50% of the total cost of each
vest purchase. Total cost includes the cost of the vest, vest carrier,
attachments, inserts, and covers considered integral or essential for
its proper care, use, and wearability, shipping, handling, fitting
charges, and applicable taxes. The total invoiced price, after all
vendor and prompt payment discounts are deducted, is generally what the
Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) uses to determine the amount of each
federal payment. This program only supports the purchase of body armor
that has been tested and found to comply with the National Institute of
Justice's (NIJ) Ballistic or Stab Standards.

:080 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

:081 Applicant Eligibility: Only chief executives of jurisdictions (or
their authorized representatives) may apply for funds. Jurisdictions are
defined as general purpose units of local government (e.g. cities,
towns, townships, boroughs, counties, etc.), Federally-recognized Indian
tribes, the 50 state governments, the District of Columbia, the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa,
Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. The chief executive of the
jurisdiction registers online, submits the jurisdiction's application,
and requests payments for completed vest purchases.

:082 Beneficiary Eligibility: Only law enforcement officers may receive
vests purchased through this program. According to the Act, "law
enforcement officer" means any officer, agent, or employee of a State,
unit of local government, or an Indian tribe authorized by law or by a
government agency to engage in or supervise the prevention, detection,
or investigation of any violation of criminal law, or authorized by law
to supervise sentenced criminal offenders. Eligible officers may be
full-time, part-time, paid or volunteer.

:083 Credentials/Documentation: Eligible jurisdictions must be general
purpose units of local government, Federally-recognized Indian tribes,
the 50 state governments, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the
Northern Mariana Islands. The validity of the online registration
process is verified through independent reviews which may include
certification by the banking institutions serving the jurisdiction, the
U.S. Census Bureau, and agencies within the U.S. Department of Justice.

:090 APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:

:091 Pre-application Coordination: This is an Internet-based application
process. The jurisdiction is required to complete and submit an online
registration form, providing information about the jurisdiction's chief
executive officer, program contacts, and electronic banking account. The
registration process is handled through the program's web site For
jurisdictions without reliable Internet capability, other means of
registration are available. Only those jurisdictions with approved
registrations are permitted to apply.

:092 Application Procedure: The jurisdiction submits the application to
BJA via the Internet web site Online instructions guide the jurisdiction
through the application process. Law enforcement agencies or agencies
with law enforcement functions that meet the Act's definition will
assist in completing the jurisdiction's online application by indicating
the types, numbers, and costs of vests for which they seek funding. For
jurisdictions and/or agencies without Internet capability, other means
of application are available. Only those jurisdictions that complete and
submit applications are eligible for funding consideration. Applications
will be denied when submitted during the same federal fiscal year in
which a jurisdiction was awarded and used Local Law Enforcement Block
Grant (LLEBG) funds to purchase armor vests.

:093 Award Procedure: Applications received by BJA are reviewed for
completeness, accuracy, and compliance with all program and statutory
requirements. Each application is then checked against the availability
of funds to cover a portion of the application's total cost, in keeping
with established funds allocation criteria and statutory set-asides.
Once funding decisions are made, Congress is notified, followed by an
electronic (email) message to individual applicants. At this point in
the award process, additional work is necessary by DOJ to create or
update each jurisdiction's financial account in the Office of the
Comptroller. Actual drawdown of funds starts no earlier than 45 working
days after the application period closes. Jurisdictions will be notified
when electronic drawdown is accessible.

Additional controls may be instituted to ensure appropriated funds are
distributed fairly and equitably, in keeping with BJA Director's
authority to determine that the quantity of vests to be purchased with
such grants are reasonable. These controls may include limits on the
total dollar value of an application, where necessary, to account for a
jurisdiction's routine vest replacement cycle, special vest needs,
unexpended funds from prior BVP awards, and reported number of
qualifying law enforcement officers.

:094 Deadlines: Jurisdictions may apply once each year, during the
announced open application period. This period normally runs for 60 to
90 calendar days, beginning each January. Jurisdictions may apply for
additional vest funds during subsequent federal fiscal years, even when
prior fiscal year vest purchases or payments are still pending.

:095 Range of Approval/Disapproval Times: A minimum of fifteen working
days may be required for complete registration validation, although
jurisdictions and law enforcement agencies will have immediate access to
certain online program components during this validation process. A
minimum of forty-five working days may be required after the program
closes for approval of the jurisdiction's application for funding. A
minimum of twenty-five working days may be required for the electronic
transfer of funds from the U.S. Treasury to the jurisdiction's bank
account, once the request for funds has been received, reviewed, and
approved by the Office of Justice Programs.

:096 Appeals: Not applicable.

:097 Renewals: Not applicable.

:100 ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:

:101 Formula and Matching Requirements: The program requires that each
applicant jurisdiction be responsible for providing at least 50 percent
of the cost of each qualifying vest purchased. Tribal governments may
use other federally-appropriated funds to provide their portion of the
total cost; all other jurisdictions must use non‑federal funds.
Non-federal fund sources include state and/or local jurisdiction
revenues, private or personal funds, and contributions from insurance or
workman's compensation consortiums. Asset forfeiture funds may also be
used to meet the jurisdiction's financial requirement.

A manufacturer or distributor discount on a vest purchase price may be
used as a third party contribution to meet this match requirement under
a certain circumstance. This circumstance is when the seller is offering
a special discount to the law enforcement agency that is not available

to the general public and would include discounts to adjust for
potentially defective vests already purchased by a jurisdiction.

If the submission of the application for funding is in conjunction with
transactions for the purchase of vests, jurisdictions must certify that
they understand and agree to abide by the following: "Funding
availability, levels, and percentages are uncertain. There is no
guaranteed funding level associated with any application submitted to
the BVP program. Jurisdictions agree to meet their financial and
contractual obligations associated with any purchase transactions,
regardless of the level of funding received through this application."

:102 Length and Time Phasing of Assistance: Jurisdictions with approved
applications must request all federal payments no later than September
30^th^ of the [fourth]{.underline} federal fiscal year following the end
of the federal fiscal year in which their application was approved. In
other words, the jurisdiction has four years beyond the year of their
approved application to request payments from funds awarded for that
application. Payments of federal funds will be made whenever the
jurisdiction indicates that one or more qualifying vests have been
purchased.

:110 POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:

:111 Reports: Non required.

:112 Audits: Payments and transactions are subject to audits by the
General Accounting Office, Department of Justice's Office of the
Inspector General, state or local government auditors, and auditors from
independent public accounting firms. Jurisdictions must follow their
local procurement policies and procedures, including maintenance of
reliable and accurate accounting systems, record keeping, and systems of
internal control.

:113 Records: Recipients of federal funds are expected to retain
documentation supporting all program transactions for at least three
years after the closure of audit reports related to such funding. If any
litigation, claim, negotiation, audit, or other action involving records
has been started before the expiration of the three year period, the
records must be retained until completion of the action and resolution
of all related issues, or until the end of the regular three year
period, whichever is later.

:120 FINANCIAL INFORMATION:

:121 Account Identification: 15-0404-0-1-754

:122 Obligations: FY 98 \$0; FY 99 \$25,000,000; FY 00 \$25,000,000; FY
01 \$25,444,000; FY 02 \$25,444,000.

:123 Range and Average of Financial Assistance: Not applicable.

:130 PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS: To date, the program has received over
23,000 online applications valued in excess of \$540 million. Over 9,500
municipalities, states, and tribal governments have successfully
applied. On average, funded applications have received 27% out of the
maximum 50% requested. System design, technology and hardware adequately
supported the program. Each year, the technical support help desk
successfully fields thousands of calls and e-mail inquiries from
participants. Less than 1% of the participating jurisdictions needed
support because they lacked basic Internet access.

:140 REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE: Interim Final Rule,
Federal Register, September 23, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 184), Internet
web site http://vests.ojp.gov.

:150 INFORMATION CONTACTS:

:151 Regional or Local Office: None.

:152 Headquarters Office: Justice Response Center, 1-800-421-6770. Vest
Technical Support Help Desk at 1-877-758-3787. Robert T. Watkins,
Program Manager, Office of Payments and Benefits, Bureau of Justice
Assistance, 4^th^ floor, 810 7^th^ Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.,
20531. Telephone: (202) 514-3447, fax (202) 616-0314, E-mail
"watkinsr@ojp.usdoj.gov".

:160 RELATED PROGRAMS: None.

:170 EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS: Not applicable.

:180 CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS: Not applicable.

:320 APPLICANTS: 1450

:330 BENEFICIARIES: 14

:340 FUNCTIONS: PK

:350 CIRCULARS:

:500 PUBLIC LAWS: 105\*181

:510 STATUTES:

:520 U.S. CODES:

:530 MATCHING REQTS:

:540 GRANTS: 0;25000;0

:550 LOANS: NA;NA;NA

:560 OTHER: NA;NA;NA

:570 DEADLINE DATE:

:600 SUBJECT TERMS: Law enforcement education, training, protective
equipment