U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs 
Bureau of Justice Statistics		

State Court Processing Statistics 
(SCPS) Redesign Solicitation
                    

The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice 
Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is pleased to 
announce that it is seeking to fund a redesign of the State 
Court Processing Statistics (SCPS) project.  As the 
statistical arm of the U.S. Department of Justice, BJS is 
responsible for the collection, analysis, publication, and 
dissemination of statistical information on crime, criminal 
offenders, victims of crime, and the operations of criminal 
justice systems at all levels of government.  This survey, a 
component of the BJS Criminal Justice Statistics Program, 
furthers the mission of the Department and the Office of 
Justice Programs, by working in partnership with the 
justice community to identify the most pressing challenges 
confronting the justice system and to provide state-of-the-
art knowledge and information in support of innovative 
strategies and approaches for dealing with these 
challenges.  


Eligibility

Applications for funds may be submitted by both for-profit 
(commercial) and nonprofit organizations.
(See more information in the Eligibility section on page 3)


Deadline

All applications are due by 5.00 p.m. Eastern time on May 
15, 2008. (See Deadline: Application on page 3)


Contact Information

For assistance with the programmatic requirements of this 
solicitation, contact Thomas H. Cohen, Statistician, Bureau 
of Justice Statistics, at 202-307-0765 or via e-mail at 
askbjs@usdoj.gov. Include "scps08" in the subject line.

This application must be submitted through Grants.gov.  
For technical assistance with submitting the application, 
call the Grants.gov Customer Support Hotline at 1800
5184726.

2008-BJS-1833




CONTENTS


Overview...........3 

Deadline: 
Registration............3

Deadline: 
Application............3

Eligibility............3

Project Specific 
Information............5

Performance Measures...........8

How to Apply............9

What an Application Must Include: ......10

	Standard Form 424
	Program Narrative
	Budget and Budget Narrative
	Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (if applicable)
	Other Attachments

Selection Criteria.12

Review Process...13

Additional Requirements13


State Court Processing Statistics (SCPS)Redesign
CFDA Number 16.734

Overview

The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) is seeking proposals 
to redesign the State Court Processing Statistics Project 
(SCPS) project. The purpose of this award is to provide 
funding to redesign SCPS and enhance the projects data 
collection capabilities. SCPS is a recurring data collection 
project involving the compilation of felony cases processed 
in 40 large urban counties chosen to be representative of 
the 75 most populous counties in the U.S. Approximately 
15,000 felony cases filed on certain days in May of every 
even numbered year are tracked for up to 1 year in these 
40 sampled counties. The data collected includes current 
arrest charges, demographic characteristics, prior arrests 
and convictions, criminal justice status at arrest, type of 
pretrial release or detention, bail amount, court 
appearance record, adjudication outcome, and sentence 
received if convicted. The SCPS data collection platform 
has remained essentially unchanged since it inception in 
1988. This solicitation will provide an opportunity to re-
conceptualize SCPS to take into account the increasing 
levels of automation in state courts and other enhanced 
collection mechanisms that have occurred since the late 
1980s. BJS is authorized to issue this solicitation under  
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Street Act of 1968, 
Section 302, as amended.

Deadline: Registration

Registering with Grants.gov is a one-time process; 
however, if you are a first time registrant it could take up to 
several weeks to have your registration validated and 
confirmed and to receive your user password.  It is highly 
recommended you start the registration process as early 
as possible to prevent delays in submitting your application 
package to our agency by the deadline specified.  There 
are three steps that you must complete before you are able 
to register:  1) Register with Central Contractor Registry 
(CCR); 2) Register yourself as an Authorized Organization 
Representative (AOR); and, 3) Be authorized as an AOR 
by your organization.  For more information, go to 
www.grants.gov.  Note:  Your CCR Registration must be 
renewed once a year.  Failure to renew your CCR 
registration may prohibit submission of a grant 
application through Grants.gov.

Deadline: Application

The due date for applying for funding under this 
announcement is May 15, 2008, 5:00 p.m. Eastern time.

Eligibility

Both for-profit (commercial) and non-profit organizations 
may apply for funds.  However, consistent with OJP fiscal 
requirements, for-profit organizations are not allowed to 
make a profit as a result of this award or to charge a 
management fee for the performance of this award.

Faith-Based and Other Community Organizations:  
Consistent with President George W. Bushs Executive 
Order 13279, dated December 12, 2002, and 28 C.F.R. 
Part 38, it is DOJ policy that faith-based and other 
community organizations that statutorily qualify as eligible 
applicants under DOJ programs are invited and 
encouraged to apply for assistance awards to fund 
eligible grant activities.  Faith-based and other community 
organizations will be considered for awards on the same 
basis as other eligible applicants and, if they receive 
assistance awards, will be treated on an equal basis with 
all other grantees in the administration of such awards.  
No eligible applicant or grantee will be discriminated for or 
against on the basis of its religious character or affiliation, 
religious name, or the religious composition of its board of 
directors or persons working in the organization.
Faith-based organizations receiving DOJ assistance 
awards retain their independence and do not lose or have 
to modify their religious identity (e.g., removing religious 
symbols) to receive assistance awards.  DOJ grant funds, 
however, may not be used to fund any inherently religious 
activity, such as prayer or worship.  Inherently religious 
activity is permissible, although it cannot occur during an 
activity funded with DOJ grant funds; rather, such 
religious activity must be separate in time or place from 
the DOJ-funded program.  Further, participation in such 
activity by individuals receiving services must be 
voluntary.  Programs funded by DOJ are not permitted to 
discriminate in the provision of services on the basis of 
a beneficiarys religion.

If your organization is a faith-based organization that 
makes hiring decisions on the basis of religious belief, it 
may be entitled, under the Religious Freedom Restoration 
Act, 42 U.S.C.  2000bb, to receive federal funds and yet 
maintain that hiring practice, even if the law creating the 
funding program contains a general ban on religious 
discrimination in employment.  For the circumstances 
under which this may occur, and the certifications that may 
be required, please see the reference to the Civil Rights 
Compliance section under Additional Requirements 
included herein.

American Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Tribes 
and/or Tribal Organizations:  Applicants are limited to 
for-profit (commercial) organizations, non-profit 
organizations, faith-based and community organizations, 
institutions of higher learning, and consortiums with 
demonstrated organization and community-based 
experience working with American Indian and Alaska 
Native communities, including tribal commercial and non-
profit organizations, tribal colleges and universities, and 
tribal consortiums.

All tribal applications must be accompanied by a current 
authorizing resolution of the governing body of the tribal 
entity or other enactment of the tribal counsel or 
comparable government body. If the grant will benefit more 
than one tribal entity, a current authorizing resolution or 
other enactment of the tribal counsel or comparable 
government body from each tribal entity must be included.  
If the grant application is being submitted on behalf of a 
tribal entity, a letter or similar document authorizing the 
inclusion of the tribal entity named in the application must 
be included.

Applicants are encouraged to review the Civil Rights 
Compliance section under Additional Requirements in 
this announcement.


Project-Specific Information

Since 1988, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has 
sponsored a biennial data collection on the processing of 
felony defendants in the State courts of the Nation's 75 
most populous counties. The 75 largest counties account 
for about 37% of the U.S. population and according to the 
FBI's Uniform Crime Reports, about half of all reported 
serious violent crimes in the United States. 

Previously known as the National Pretrial Reporting 
Program, this data collection series was renamed the State 
Court Processing Statistics (SCPS) program in 1994 to 
better reflect the wide range of data elements collected. 
Approximately 15,000 felony cases filed during the month 
of May in 40 of the Nations 75 largest counties are tracked 
for up to 1 year with data collected on a variety of felony 
case processing characteristics. These include the types of 
arrest charges filed against felony defendants; conditions 
of pretrial release including bail amounts and type of 
release bonds; and pretrial misconduct including court 
appearance record, violations of release conditions; and 
re-arrests committed while on pretrial release. The 
adjudication outcomes encompassing the dismissal, 
diversion, guilty plea, and trial conviction rates for felony 
defendants are also recorded. For those defendants 
convicted, sentencing data are collected. The SCPS 
project also obtains data on the defendants demographic 
characteristics; criminal justice status at the time of arrest; 
and prior arrests, convictions, and incarcerations.
SCPS collects information from court records, jail 
information systems, pretrial agencies, prosecutor offices, 
and State administered criminal history repositories.

The SCPS sample was designed and selected by U.S. 
Census Bureau staff.  It is a 2-stage stratified sample, with 
40 of the 75 most populous counties selected at stage one.  
The 40 counties are divided into four first-stage strata 
based on overall population figures, number of reported 
UCR index crimes, and number of felony cases filed in 
each county. Ten counties are included in the sample with 
certainty because of their large number of felony court 
filings.  The remaining counties are allocated to the three 
non-certainty strata based on the variance of felony court 
filings. 

The second-stage sampling (filings) is designed to 
represent all defendants who had felony cases filed with 
the court during the month of May.  The participating 
jurisdictions provide data for every felony case filed on 
selected days during the month of May.  Depending on the 
first-stage stratum in which it had been placed, each 
jurisdiction provides filing data for 5, 10, or 20 randomly 
selected business in May.  Data from jurisdictions that are 
not required to provide a full month of filings are weighted 
to represent the full month.

The SCPS data have been used to generate several BJS 
reports on felony case processing and pretrial release and 
misconduct in the Nations 75 most populous counties. The 
reports titled Felony Defendants in Large Urban Counties 
can be accessed at the following Internet link 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#fdluc>.

The SCPS project is an authoritative or comprehensive 
source about felony defendants or felony case processing 
in large urban counties. SCPS is the only data source for 
information on how many defendants charged with a felony 
are released on pretrial, how they are released, and the 
overall rate of pretrial misconduct among these felony 
defendants. In addition, SCPS provides information on the 
rates in which defendants charged with a felony are 
actually convicted and the relationship between criminal 
history and pretrial release, conviction, and sentencing. 

There are several important limitations to the SCPS 
project. First, the SCPS project covers case processing in 
the Nations 75 most populous counties. It does not have 
the capacity to make national or county level inferences 
about felony case processing or pretrial release. Secondly, 
the current SCPS sampling strategy of selecting only 40 of 
the Nations 75 most populous counties and requesting 
participating SCPS jurisdictions to provide less than a 
whole month of felony filing data (e.g., 5 or 10 business 
days) introduces certain levels of sampling error into the 
data collection process. Lastly, SCPS does not collect 
several key data elements that potentially play a crucial 
role in pretrial decision-making. The decision to restrict the 
SCPS sample to 40 of the Nations 75 most populous 
counties, confine felony filing data to less than a whole 
month, and limit the types of data collected were primarily 
driven by time and cost restraints and the difficulties 
inherent in obtaining court case processing data.

Scope of Work

The objectives of this project are to (1) redesign the SCPS 
data collection instrument to take into account more 
pertinent information on pretrial release and misconduct; 
(2) develop sampling methodologies for producing reliable 
estimates of felony case processing in a core set of the 
Nations most populous jurisdictions; (3) develop and test 
alternative sampling strategies that allow for periodic 
modular enhancements of SCPS; (4) develop statistical 
models for assessing the reliability of the proposed 
sampling frameworks; (5) develop procedures that 
minimize data collection costs by taking advantage of 
automated systems of case management, state criminal 
history depository programs, and administrative jail 
systems; (6) conduct field tests of revised SCPS data 
collection instrument; (7) develop methods to encourage 
participation from pretrial agencies, court personnel, sheriff 
and jail officials, prosecutors, and state criminal history 
depository programs in redesigned SCPS; (8) develop 
methods for ensuring individual confidentiality; and (9) 
provide an implementation plan for the redesigned SCPS 
data collection to begin in 2009. 

Specifically, the Recipient of the funds will:

1. Develop a detailed timetable for each task in the 
project. All deliverables are due within 10 months. After 
the BJS Project Manager has agreed to the timetable, 
all work must be completed as scheduled.

2. Redesign the SCPS data collection instrument to take 
into account more pertinent information on pretrial 
release and misconduct. Although SCPS collects 
pretrial release and misconduct information, it currently 
does not obtain data on key pretrial elements including 
the defendants education, marital status, current 
employment, community ties, and drug dependency. In 
addition, SCPS does not examine the kinds of 
monitoring offered by pretrial programs and the release 
protocols of jurisdictions participating in SCPS. The 
redesign will examine the feasibility of collecting these 
kinds of more detailed information about the pretrial 
process. In addition, the redesign will determine 
whether any information currently being collected by 
SCPS is extraneous to the projects primary data 
collection focus and effort.

3. Develop sampling methodologies for producing reliable 
estimates of felony case processing in a core set of the 
Nations most populous jurisdictions. The current 
SCPS sampling strategy of selecting only 40 of the 
Nations 75 most populous counties and requesting 
participating SCPS jurisdictions to provide less than a 
whole month of felony filing data (e.g., 5 or 10 business 
days) introduces certain levels of sampling error into 
the data collection process. The redesign will examine 
various strategies for augmenting the sampling design 
of the Nations most populous jurisdictions. Included 
will be ideas examining the efficacy of sampling case 
processing beyond the 75 most populous counties, 
obtaining more reliable estimates of case processing in 
the most populous jurisdictions, and collecting 
information on a whole month as opposed to a random 
set of 5 or 10 business days of felony case processing 
data. The redesign will also discuss whether its 
feasible to continue collecting pretrial information from 
all counties in the SCPS sample or whether pretrial 
information should be collected from a narrower 
sample of counties containing detailed pretrial 
information.

4. Develop and test alternative sampling strategies that 
allow for periodic modular enhancements of SCPS. 
The SCPS sampling strategy has remained essentially 
unchanged since its inception and does not allow for 
enhancements to augment the current research 
design. The SCPS redesign should include ideas on 
how the project could be periodically enhanced to 
examine various components of felony case 
processing. Modular enhancements that could be 
briefly highlighted in the proposal include a discussion 
of how felony case processing could be examined in 
less populous jurisdictions, analyzed across similar 
localities, or investigated in a national sample of urban, 
suburban or rural counties for certain case types such 
as violent, drug, or identity theft offenders. 

5. Develop statistical models for assessing the reliability 
of the proposed sampling frameworks. The redesign 
will include statistical models capable of assessing the 
reliability of the proposed sampling frameworks. These 
statistical models and sampling estimates will be made 
available to the project monitor and be used for project 
documentation and approval by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB).

6. Develop procedures that minimize data collection costs 
by taking advantage of automated systems of case 
management, State criminal history repository 
programs, and administrative jail systems. When the 
SCPS program began in the late 1980s, much of the 
data collected from the courts, pretrial agencies, and 
state criminal history programs were not automated. 
This has changed over time as jurisdictions have 
become increasingly able to integrate their diverse 
case management systems, make their case 
management systems available for online access, and 
automate their criminal history record systems. The 
redesign should account for increasing levels of 
automation and internet accessibility and provide 
suggestions for using these automated mechanisms to 
collect data in a more timely, cost effective, and 
expeditious manner.

7. Conduct field tests of revised SCPS data collection 
instrument. Nine jurisdictions should be selected to 
field test the redesigned SCPS data collection 
instrument. Field tests will assess the feasibility of 
collecting detailed case processing data from a range 
of urban, suburban, and rural counties and determine 
the capacity for collecting more detailed data involving 
the pretrial process. 

8. Develop methods to encourage participation from 
pretrial agencies, court personnel, sheriff and jail 
officials, prosecutors, and State criminal history 
repository programs in the redesigned SCPS. The 
redesign will develop an action plan to enhance the 
level of interest and participation in SCPS among 
pretrial agencies, state court officials, sheriff and jail 
associations, and criminal history repository programs. 
The action plan should include strategies on how to 
enhance the level of exposure that SCPS receives 
among key professional agencies with an interest in 
felony case processing including the National 
Association of Pretrial Agencies, Conference of State 
Court Administrators, the National Association of Court 
Managers, the National District Attorneys Association, 
the American Bar Association, the National Legal Aide 
and Defender Association, and State Criminal History 
Repository Agencies.

9. Develop methods for ensuring individual confidentiality. 
The redesign will suggest mechanisms for ensuring the 
confidentiality of individuals tracked in the SCPS 
program.  

10. Provide an implementation plan for the redesigned 
SCPS data collection to begin in 2009. In collaboration 
with the BJS project manager, an implementation plan 
for executing the redesigned SCPS in 2009 will be 
developed. SCPS will be redesigned so that it takes 
place once every three, rather than two years. 

Additional guidance

1. Direct experience in collecting felony case processing 
data from key state agencies including courts, pretrial 
agencies, sheriffs offices, jails, and state criminal 
history repository programs. Recipient should 
understand the intricacies involved collecting 
automated court, pretrial, and criminal history data. 

2. In preparing proposals for this solicitation, applicants 
are strongly encouraged to discuss the extant BJS 
statistical reports on felony case processing, available 
on the BJS website at <www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs>.

3. A clear project management structure and plan, project 
timeline, and reasonable budget approach for 
development of the SCPS redesign. The project 
management plan should include the responsibilities 
and activities of each principal staff member. The 
budget detail should provide direct linkage to the 
activities to be performed.

Funding under this competitive grant announcement is 
contingent on the availability and amount of FY 2008 
funding available.  BJS anticipates making one award for 
a 10-month period under this solicitation.


Performance Measures

To assist in fulfilling the Departments responsibilities 
under the Government Performance and Results Act 
(GPRA), P.L. 103-62, applicants who receive funding 
under this solicitation must provide data that measure the 
results of their work.  Performance measures for this 
solicitation are as follows:



Objective

Improve State Court 
Processing Statistics data 
collection instrument.


Performance Measures

Successfully complete a 
redesign of the SCPS data 
collection which addresses 
its current limitations and 
yields alternative strategies 
and options which will serve 
to broaden the scope of 
SCPS and augment the 
sampling design of the 
nations most populous 
jurisdictions. 

Successfully conduct a 
pretest of SCPS to
assess the feasibility of 
collecting detailed case 
processing data from a range 
of urban, suburban, and rural 
counties and determine the 
capacity for collecting more 
detailed data involving the 
pretrial process. 


Data Grantee Provides

Demonstrate that the 
redesign includes: (1) a 
robust instrument capable 
of obtaining essential data 
elements; (2) sampling 
methodologies for 
producing reliable 
estimates; (3) alternative 
sampling strategies that 
allow for periodic modular 
enhancements of SCPS; 
(4) statistical models for 
assessing the reliability of 
the proposed sampling 
frameworks; (4) 
procedures that minimize 
data collection costs by 
taking advantage of 
automated state record 
systems; and (5) methods 
for ensuring individual 
confidentiality. 

Demonstrate the viability of 
the redesigned instrument 
and collection protocol to 
obtain quality data as 
indicated by factors such 
as: minimal number of 
missing or inconsistent 
data in data file; minimal 
post validation follow-up; 
and 100% response from 
selected jurisdictions. 



How to Apply

DOJ is participating in the e-Government initiative, one of 
25 initiatives included in the Presidents Management 
Agenda.  Part of this initiative -- Grants.gov -- is a one-
stop storefront that provides a unified process for all 
customers of Federal grants to find funding opportunities 
and apply for funding.

Grants.Gov Instructions:  Complete instructions can be 
found at www.grants.gov.  If you experience difficulties at 
any point during this process, please call the Grants.gov 
Customer Support Hotline at 1-800-518-4726.

CFDA Number:  The Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance (CFDA) number for this solicitation is 16.734, 
titled State Court Processing Statistics Redesign, and the 
funding opportunity number is 2008-BJS-1833.

A DUNS number is required:  The Office of Management 
and Budget requires that all businesses and nonprofit 
applicants for Federal funds include a DUNS (Data 
Universal Numeric System) number in their application for 
a new award or renewal of an award.  Applications without 
a DUNS number are incomplete.  A DUNS number is a 
unique nine-digit sequence recognized as the universal 
standard for identifying and keeping track of entities 
receiving Federal funds.  The identifier is used for tracking 
purposes and to validate address and point of contact 
information.  The DUNS number will be used throughout 
the grant life cycle.  Obtaining a DUNS number is a free, 
simple, one-time activity.  Obtain one by calling 1-866-705-
5711 or by applying online at 
http://www.dunandbradstreet.com.  Individuals are exempt 
from this requirement.

Note: Grants.gov does not support the Microsoft Vista 
Operating System. The PureEdge software used by 
Grants.gov for forms is not compatible with Vista. Also, 
Grants.gov cannot yet process Microsoft Word 2007 
documents saved in the new default format with the 
extension ".DOCX." Please ensure the document is saved 
using "Word 97-2003 Document (*.doc)" format. 
 
Please also note: OJPs Grants Management System 
(GMS) does not accept executable file types as 
application attachments.  OJPs Grants Management 
System (GMS) downloads applications from Grants.gov 
and is the system in which OJP reviews applications and 
manages awarded grants. These disallowed file types 
include, but are not limited to, the following extensions:  
".com", ".bat", ".exe", ".vbs", ".cfg", ".dat", ".db", ".dbf", 
".dll", ".ini", ".log", ".ora", ".sys", and ".zip".

What an Application Must Include

When applying for Federal funding, applicants must 
provide the following:

Standard Form 424
Program Narrative
Budget and Budget Narrative
Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (if applicable)
Other Attachments

* Applicant must complete the online 
Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424), 
a standard form that most Federal agencies 
use.

Project and Budget Related Attachments

* The project narrative should describe 
activities as discussed in the Scope of Work 
and address the evaluation criteria.  The 
project narrative should contain a detailed 
timeline for project activities, a description of 
the survey methodology to be used, 
including defined geographic boundaries, 
data collection method, data entry, and data 
documentation procedures.

* The Budget Detail Worksheet may be found 
through the Internet at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/forms/bu
dget_detail.pdf>, OJP Standard Forms & 
Instructions.  The OJP Financial Guide, 
which governs the administration of funds 
and contains information on allowable costs, 
methods of payment, audit requirements, 
accounting systems, and financial records, 
is available on the OJP website at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/financialguide/ind
ex.htm>.  If you have any questions, please 
contact the OJP Office of the Chief 
Financial Officers Customer Service Center 
at 1-800-4580786.

* Applicants that do not have a Federally-
negotiated indirect cost rate and wish to 
establish one, may submit a proposal to 
their cognizant Federal agency.  In 
general, the cognizant Federal agency is 
the agency that provides the preponderance 
of direct Federal funding.  This can be 
determined by reviewing an organizations 
schedule of Federal financial assistance.  If 
DOJ is your cognizant Federal agency, 
information needed to submit an indirect 
cost rate proposal can be obtained at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/pdfs/indir
ect_costs.pdf>.

Other Attachments

* Key staff information.
Information on key staff includes a staff 
loading chart, by task and contract year, 
showing the role and number of hours (per 
year) committed for proposed staff; 
identification of proposed key personnel and 
their qualifications for the significant 
functions in this project, along with concise 
descriptions of the duties each will perform 
under the grant; and an identification by 
name of all key personnel with decision-
making authority.

* Privacy Certification.
The Privacy Certificate is a funding 
recipients certification of compliance with 
Federal regulations requiring confidentiality 
of information identifiable to a private 
person, which is collected, analyzed, or 
otherwise used in connection with an OJP-
funded research or statistical activity.  The 
funding recipients Privacy Certificate 
includes a description of its policies and 
procedures to be followed to protect 
identifiable data. A model certificate is 
located at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/bjsmp
c.pdf>.

* Human Subjects Protection Certification 
of Compliance.
BJS requires the funding recipient to submit 
proper documentation to be used to 
determine that the research project meets 
the Federal requirements for human 
subjects protections set forth in 28 CFR Part 
46.  A model certificate, describing the 
necessary information to be provided by the 
funding recipient, can be accessed at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/hscr.htm>.



*	Assurances and Certifications.  
Applicants are required to submit as an 
attachment signed copies of these 
assurances and certifications electronically 
through Grants.Gov.  It is critical that the 
name, address, telephone number, fax 
number, and e-mail address of the 
authorizing official on these online forms are 
correct.  These forms can be obtained on 
OJPs funding page at 
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/forms.ht
m>.

(1)	Assurances. The applicant must 
comply with the assurances in order to 
receive Federal funds under this program. It 
is the responsibility of the recipient of 
Federal funds to fully understand and 
comply with these requirements.  Failure to 
comply may result in withholding of funds, 
termination of the award, or other sanctions. 

(2)	Certifications Regarding 
Lobbying; Debarment, Suspension, and 
Other Responsibility Matters; and Drug-
Free Workplace.  This form commits the 
applicant to comply with the certification 
requirements under 28 CFR Part 69, "New 
Restrictions on Lobbying," and 28 CFR Part 
67, "A Government-wide Debarment and 
Suspension (Nonprocurement) and 
Government-wide Requirements for a Drug-
Free Workplace (Grants)."

Selection Criteria

Proposals should describe the plan and implementation 
strategies outlined in the Scope of Work.  Information on 
staffing levels and qualifications should be included for 
each task and descriptions of experience relevant to the 
project.  Resumes of the proposed project director and key 
staff should be submitted with the proposal.

The applicant will be evaluated on the basis of:

1.   Program Narrative
Content of the proposal and how it addresses the tasks 
in the scope of work and scheduled timeline.

2.  Project Design and Implementation
Demonstrated knowledge of applied survey 
research, including survey construction, sample 
issues, questionnaire issues, content issues, bias 
issues, as well as the ability to pre-test research 
findings.  

3.  Capabilities/Competencies 
Demonstrated ability of staff in understanding 
survey research, including survey design and 
sample design.

4.  Budget
Demonstrated fiscal, management, staff, and 
organizational capacity to provide sound 
management for this project.  Applicant should 
include detailed staff resources and other costs by 
project tasks.

5.  Impact/Outcomes and Evaluation
Demonstrated ability to develop research designs 
for complex surveys.

Review Process

Applications will be reviewed competitively with the final 
award decision made by the Director of BJS.  The 
applicant will be evaluated based on the requirements 
provided under the Selection Criteria. 

Additional Requirements

*	Civil Rights Compliance

*	Confidentiality and Human Subjects Protections 
Regulations

*	Anti-Lobbying Act

*	Financial and Government Audit Requirements

*	National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
Compliance

*	DOJ Information Technology Standards

*	Single Point of Contact Review

*	Non-Supplanting of State or Local Funds

*	Criminal Penalty for False Statements

*	Compliance with Office of the Comptroller Financial 
Guide

*	Suspension or Termination of Funding

We strongly encourage you to review the information 
pertaining to these additional requirements prior to 
submitting your application.  Additional information for 
each can be found at 
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/funding/other_requirements.htm.

4/11/08  rck