OVW Fiscal Year 2026 Training and Services to End Abuse in Later Life Program

The Training and Services to End Abuse in Later Life Program is administered by the Office on Violence Against Women within the U.S. Department of Justice. This federal initiative is authorized under the Violence Against Women Act and is designed to address the unique challenges faced by individuals aged fifty and older who experience abuse. The program reflects a coordinated federal effort to prevent and respond to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, neglect, abandonment, and economic exploitation affecting older adults. It emphasizes collaboration across systems and disciplines to improve victim safety and offender accountability. The primary purpose of this funding opportunity is to support comprehensive, community-based approaches that both prevent and respond to abuse in later life. Applicants are required to implement a combination of training, victim services, and coordinated community responses. These efforts must include educating law enforcement, prosecutors, courts, and service providers to better recognize and respond to abuse affecting older individuals. In addition, funded projects must enhance or provide direct services to victims and foster cross-sector collaboration through multidisciplinary partnerships. Funding under this program totals approximately eight million dollars, with an anticipated twelve awards ranging from four hundred fifty thousand to seven hundred fifty thousand dollars. Awards are expected to support a thirty six month project period beginning in October. Funding must be used for required statutory purposes, including training, victim services, coordinated responses, and cross-training among professionals. Applicants may request waivers for certain required activities if they can demonstrate that the services already exist in their community, though approval of such waivers is at the discretion of the funding agency. Eligibility is broad and includes state governments, tribal governments and organizations, units of local government, and nonprofit organizations with federal tax exempt status. Nonprofits must maintain their 501 c 3 designation throughout the award period. A key requirement of this program is the formation of a multidisciplinary partnership. Each applicant must demonstrate collaboration with at least one law enforcement agency, one prosecutor office, one victim service provider, and one organization experienced in serving older adults. These partnerships must be formalized through a signed memorandum of understanding or equivalent documentation. The application process involves two primary submission steps. Applicants must first submit a standard federal application form through Grants dot gov, followed by a full application submission through the JustGrants system. Required components include a proposal narrative, budget, memorandum of understanding, and various supporting documents such as risk assessments and certifications. The proposal narrative must clearly outline the project purpose, implementation plan, and personnel, and it is evaluated based on predefined scoring criteria that prioritize project design, implementation feasibility, and organizational capacity. Applications are reviewed through a structured process that includes responsiveness checks, peer review scoring, and risk assessment. Funding decisions may consider alignment with agency priorities, such as improving criminal justice responses and expanding victim services in underserved communities. Successful applicants are expected to comply with post award reporting requirements and participate in required training and technical assistance activities. Notification of awards is anticipated by the end of September, with projects beginning shortly thereafter. For questions and technical assistance, applicants may contact the Office on Violence Against Women via phone or email. Additional support is available through Grants dot gov and JustGrants help desks. This funding opportunity is part of an ongoing federal commitment to addressing violence against older adults through coordinated, evidence informed interventions and sustained community partnerships.

Align proposal with required multidisciplinary partnership and clearly demonstrate how services improve outcomes for older victims and fill community gaps