Law Enforcement Apprenticeship Program (LEAP)

The Law Enforcement Apprenticeship Program (LEAP) is administered by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for the 2026-2027 fiscal year. FDLE received authority to administer $5,000,000 in state funding to support local Sheriff's Offices with costs associated with deputy sheriff trainees enrolled in the Florida Deputy Sheriffs Association's Law Enforcement Apprenticeship Program. The funding source is identified as the FY26-27 General Appropriations Act, Section 4, Line 1328A. The program is intended specifically to reimburse eligible costs incurred for qualifying deputy sheriff trainees. Allowable costs under the program are limited to salaries, fringe benefits, and tuition costs. Agencies located in fiscally constrained counties have an additional allowance and may request funding for duty equipment and supplies. Indirect costs are not allowed. No matching requirement applies to the program. The source does not establish a minimum or maximum award amount for an individual Sheriff's Office or trainee. Instead, the amount requested on the first page of an application is treated as an estimate rather than a guaranteed award amount. The actual award amount will be determined by the FDLE Grant Manager after review and approval of funding requests for each trainee. Following this review, the FDLE Grant Manager will provide the applicant with a copy of the approved budget for review before execution of the award. The program has a total funding pool of $5,000,000, and FDLE will continue issuing awards until that funding is exhausted. The stated award period runs from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. Eligibility is limited to local Sheriff's Offices in Florida, although the opportunity identifies County Governments as the eligible applicant category. In addition to the organizational eligibility requirement, every trainee for whom reimbursement is requested must be registered with the Florida Deputy Sheriffs Association's Law Enforcement Apprenticeship Program. Geographic access to the opportunity is phased. Applications are limited to agencies located in fiscally constrained counties through Tuesday, September 15, 2026. Beginning Wednesday, September 16, 2026, applications will be accepted from eligible Sheriff's Offices in all Florida counties. Applications submitted by agencies in non-fiscally constrained counties before September 16, 2026 will be rejected. The opportunity was posted and opened for submissions on July 24, 2026. Its submission timeline is designated as one time. Applications will be considered in the order received on a first-come, first-served basis, and awards will continue until the total available funding balance has been exhausted. Because no fixed final application closing date is provided, the practical availability of funding depends on the remaining program balance. The source does not identify a letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, or other pre-application gating requirement, nor does it provide evaluation criteria beyond FDLE's review and approval of individual trainee funding requests. Questions regarding the opportunity may be directed to Criminal Justice Grants at OCJGSFA@fdle.state.fl.us or (850) 617-1250. The same email address is provided for submission of questions. No individual grant manager is named in the source. The source also does not identify a specific award notification date, number of anticipated awards, previous recipients, or an explicit PDF solicitation or guidelines link. The opportunity is a one-time funding opportunity for the stated fiscal year rather than an explicitly recurring program cycle.

Submit as early as the agency is eligible because applications are considered first-come, first-served and awards continue only until funding is exhausted. Non-fiscally constrained counties should not submit before September 16, 2026 because earlier applications will be rejected. Confirm that every trainee included in the request is registered with the Florida Deputy Sheriffs Association's LEAP.