County Violent Crime Witness Protection Program

The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority is requesting proposals for the County Violent Crime Witness Protection Program under NOFO # 3118-0126. The program is supported with State Fiscal Year 2027 funds and operates under the Violent Crime Witness Protection Act, 725 ILCS 173. The Violent Crime Witness Protection Program was designed to protect victims and witnesses who fear retaliation from individuals accused of violent crimes. Witnesses are critical to the prosecution of alleged wrongdoers and may otherwise be discouraged from participating because of intimidation or retaliation. The notice also recognizes that mental health impacts and lost wages associated with taking time off to attend court may discourage witness participation. The County Violent Crime Witness Protection Program supports reimbursement of implementing agency expenses for the relocation of witnesses, victims, and other related individuals supporting the prosecution of people charged with violent crimes throughout the criminal court process. The program is intended to help protect these individuals while facilitating their participation in criminal prosecutions. Additional program requirements are governed by the Violent Crime Witness Protection Program administrative rules at 20 Ill. Admin. Code 1590.10 et al. For the County NOFO, $10,000,000 is identified as available funding. Applicants may request a minimum award of $75,000 and a maximum award of $1,000,000. Funding is contingent upon appropriation of SFY27 funds. No matching or cost-share requirement is stated in the supplied source. Eligibility for County Violent Crime Witness Protection Program NOFO # 3118-0126 is limited to state's attorneys' offices and county sheriff offices in Illinois. Illinois counties may apply as implementing agencies on behalf of a law enforcement agency that will serve as the program agency. An implementing agency is the legal entity that accepts and accounts for grant funds and accepts responsibility for all Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority reporting and compliance requirements. The program agency is the subdivision of the implementing agency that carries out program operations. Applicants must be registered through the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act Grantee Portal and must be in good standing with all GATA pre-qualification requirements before the application due date. Approval of the SFY26 Internal Control Questionnaire is required before execution of the grant agreement. Completed application materials for County Violent Crime Witness Protection Program NOFO # 3118-0126 were required to be submitted through AmpliFund by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, March 30, 2026. Proposals were not accepted by email, mail, fax, or in person. The notice states that incomplete applications would not be reviewed and that late submissions could not be submitted or reviewed. A technical assistance session providing additional information regarding the funding opportunity was scheduled for March 3, 2026, and a required technical assistance webinar recording was identified. Information provided through the webinar recording was described as unofficial and not binding on the state. The supplied source does not enumerate the complete application forms, narrative questions, required uploads, or formal proposal evaluation criteria. The NOFO was posted Tuesday, February 24, 2026. The technical assistance session was scheduled for March 3, 2026, the NOFO question submission deadline was March 23, 2026, and applications were due March 30, 2026. Budget Committee review and approval of recommended designations was scheduled for June 18, 2026. Awards resulting from the opportunity have a target performance period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, contingent upon appropriation of SFY27 funds. The supplied source does not state that this County funding opportunity recurs annually, biennially, quarterly, or according to another regular schedule, so no future recurrence is established. Recipients must submit periodic financial reports, periodic performance reports, final financial and performance reports, and a calendar year-end financial report in accordance with CFR Part 200 Uniform Requirements. Future awards and fund drawdowns may be withheld if reports are delinquent. Questions regarding the solicitation could be submitted to CJA.VCWPP@ILLINOIS.GOV, with a question submission deadline of 5:00 p.m. CST on March 23, 2026. Because of the competitive nature of the solicitation, applicants were instructed not to discuss the opportunity directly with ICJIA employees except through the designated email address. The named contact is Alan Blackmon of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

Submit through AmpliFund only; ensure the application is complete because incomplete applications will not be reviewed; submit by the deadline because late applications cannot be submitted or reviewed; maintain GATA pre-qualification good standing; direct solicitation questions only to the designated program email.