The Family-Based Alternative Justice Grant will support the implementation of new, and enhance existing, family-based alternative sentencing programs for parents/primary caregivers who are involved in or at risk for becoming involved in the criminal justice system.

Through pre-arrest and pre-sentencing alternatives, these programs focus on rehabilitation, family unification, and family preservation. They help parents avoid incarceration, when in the best interest of their children and wellbeing, while strengthening their skills and capacity to care for their children long-term, preventing children from entering the foster care system, and reducing the likelihood for children and parents/primary caregivers of future involvement in the juvenile or criminal justice systems.

For further details, please see the full Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Eligibility

Eligible entities include:

• Government Entities
  • State governments
  • County governments
  • City or township governments
  • Special district governments
  • Native American Tribal governments (federally recognized)
• Nonprofit Organizations
• Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), other than institutions of higher education
• Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• For-Profit Organizations
  • Organizations other than small businesses
  • Small businesses
• Other
  • Units of local government, which includes towns, boroughs, parishes, villages, or other general purpose political subdivisions of a state.

Match Requirement

This Funding Opportunity does not require cost sharing/match.

How to Apply

Please note that this is a two-step application process.

Step 1: The applicant must submit the required Application for Federal Assistance SF-424 via Grants.gov by the Grants.gov deadline of 11:59pm on May 4, 2026.

Step 2: The applicant must submit the full application, including attachments, through JustGrants by the JustGrants deadline of 8:59pm on May 11, 2026.

Contact

For assistance with the requirements of this funding opportunity:
OJP Response Center
Phone: 800–851–3420 or 202–353–5556 (TTY for hearing-impaired callers only)
Email: OJP.ResponseCenter@usdoj.gov
Hours of operation: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) Monday–Friday

For assistance with SAM.gov (registration/renewal):
SAM.gov Help Desk
Web: SAM.gov Help Desk (Federal Service Desk)
Hours of operation: 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET Monday–Friday

For assistance with Grants.gov (registration, submission of the Application for Federal Assistance SF-424):
Grants.gov Customer Support Hotline
Phone: 800–518–4726, 606–545–5035
Email: support@grants.gov
Web: Grants.gov Customer Support
Hours of operation: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except on federal holidays

For assistance with JustGrants (registration, submission of full application):
JustGrants Service Desk
Phone: 833–872–5175
Email: JustGrants.Support@usdoj.gov
Hours of operation: 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET Monday–Friday and 9:00 a.m. to5:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, Sunday, and federal holidays

For procedures related to unforeseen technical issues beyond the control of the applicant that impact submission by the deadlines, see Experiencing Technical Issues Preventing Submission of an Application (Technical Waivers).

Deadline

Please note that this is a two-step application process, with two separate and required deadlines.

Step 1: The applicant must submit the required Application for Federal Assistance SF-424 via Grants.gov by the Grants.gov deadline of 11:59pm on May 4, 2026.

Step 2: The applicant must submit the full application, including attachments, through JustGrants by the JustGrants deadline of 8:59pm on May 11, 2026.