Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes, Fiscal Year 2021 | O NIJ 2021 95001

Opportunity Information: Apply for O NIJ 2021 95001

The Department of Justice, through the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), offered this Fiscal Year 2021 grant opportunity to support research and development in forensic science that directly serves criminal justice needs. Framed under CFDA 16.560 (the NIJ Research, Evaluation, and Development Projects Grants program), the solicitation focuses on generating new knowledge and practical tools that can strengthen forensic science policy and day-to-day practice. The broader DOJ mission context is also explicit: advancing civil rights, improving access to justice, supporting victims, protecting the public from evolving threats, and building trust between law enforcement and communities.

At its core, the program funds rigorous basic or applied R and D projects that are clearly scoped and well-defined, rather than open-ended efforts. NIJ describes two main types of expected outcomes. One is research that expands the evidence base that guides forensic science policy and operational practice. The other is development work that results in useful outputs such as materials, devices, systems, or methods that could realistically be used in forensic settings. Across both tracks, the emphasis is on improving the discrimination power, accuracy, reliability, speed, and cost-effectiveness of methods used to identify, analyze, and interpret forensic evidence for criminal justice purposes. Even when a proposal is not positioned to deliver an immediate operational solution, it is still expected to contribute foundational work that credibly leads toward eventual solutions.

NIJ encourages applicants to align projects with real, field-identified challenges and priorities within the forensic science community. The solicitation points specifically to operational needs discussed at NIJ's FY 2020 Forensic Science Technology Working Group (TWG) meeting (hosted on NIJ.OJP.gov) and notes that additional community-defined research needs are compiled through the Organization of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) website. In other words, proposals are expected to show awareness of practitioner needs and existing standards-oriented discussions, not just laboratory curiosity or purely academic interest.

A significant feature of this opportunity is the expectation for strong, documented partnerships when research involves criminal justice or other agencies. Applicants proposing these partnerships must include a strong letter of support from an appropriate decision-making authority at each partnering agency. That letter must do more than express general enthusiasm; it must acknowledge that de-identified data provided through the project will be archived at the end of the award. If an application is selected, NIJ expects a formal agreement with partnering agencies to be in place by January 1, 2022, and that agreement must contain provisions that ensure the project can meet NIJ's data archiving requirements. NIJ also addresses the exceptional case where laws restrict data archiving, stating that it may allow the creation and archiving of a synthetic dataset instead, but only rarely and only with extensive justification and documentation, evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

The award is structured as a cooperative agreement, which typically implies a more involved federal role than a standard grant, often including ongoing collaboration, technical input, or oversight from the funding agency during the project period. The opportunity is listed as discretionary funding within the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category. It was created on April 26, 2021, with an original closing date of June 3, 2021.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of entities capable of doing high-quality forensic science R and D. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city governments; special districts; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities; nonprofits both with and without 501(c)(3) status; individuals; for-profit organizations (including small businesses); and other applicants as clarified in the solicitation's additional eligibility language. Where multiple agencies or organizations will be involved and multiple partners may use federal funds, NIJ requires that only one entity submit as the primary applicant, while other participating entities must be included as subrecipients, reinforcing clear accountability and streamlined award administration.

In terms of funding scale, the solicitation lists an award ceiling of $9,400,000 and anticipates up to 45 awards. The overall intent is to push forensic science forward in ways that are scientifically rigorous, practically relevant, and aligned with community-identified needs, while also strengthening transparency and long-term value through data archiving and careful partnership documentation.

• The Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Research and Development in Forensic Science for Criminal Justice Purposes, Fiscal Year 2021" 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 Apr 26, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 03, 2021. (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 $9,400,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 45 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the 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, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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