DOJ/OVW: 2023 Legal Assistance for Victims (LAV) Grant Program

Details:

Purpose Areas

Funds under this program must be used for one or more of the following purposes:

• To implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts and projects between domestic violence, dating violence, and sexual assault victim service providers and legal assistance providers to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault.
• To implement, expand, and establish efforts and projects to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual assault by organizations with a demonstrated history of providing direct legal or advocacy services on behalf of these victims.
• To implement, expand, and establish efforts and projects to provide competent, supervised pro bono legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, except not more than 10 percent of grant funds may be used for this purpose. (The 10 percent limit is on the funds awarded under the LAV Grant Program overall and is not specific to an individual project.) OVW Priority Areas In FY 2023, OVW has five programmatic priorities, of which the priority area(s) identified below are applicable to this program. Applicants are strongly encouraged, but not required, to address one or more areas. Applications proposing activities in the following areas will be given special consideration.
• Advance racial equity as an essential component of ending sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. To receive priority consideration, the lead applicant must be a culturally specific organization.
• Strengthen efforts to prevent and end sexual assault, including victim services and civil and criminal justice responses.
• Improve outreach, services, civil and criminal justice responses, prevention, and support for survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking from underserved communities, particularly LGBTQ and immigrant communities. To receive priority consideration, the lead applicant must be a population specific organization. LAV Grant Program Statutory

Priorities

• Improve the Availability of Legal Services for Sexual Assault Survivors
• Not less than 25 percent of funds made available for the LAV Grant Program must be used to support projects focused solely or primarily on providing legal assistance to victims of sexual assault. OVW recognizes the need to place increased focus on sexual assault to address the lack of available direct legal services for survivors of sexual assault and the unique aspects of sexual assault trauma from which survivors must heal.

Funding Information

This program will make awards in the range of $400,000.00 – $900,000.00.

Period of Performance Duration

36 months

Eligibility Criteria

Pursuant to 34 U.S.C. § 20121(c), the following entities are eligible to apply for this program:

• Private nonprofit entities.
• Indian tribal governments, including tribal consortia. A “tribal government” is the governing body of an Indian tribe or a tribe, band, pueblo, nation, or other organized group or community of Indians, including any Alaska Native village or regional or village corporation (as defined in, or established pursuant to, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. §§ 1601 et seq.)), that is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(43).
• Tribal organizations. A “tribal organization” is the governing body of any Indian tribe; any legally established organization of Indians which is controlled, sanctioned, or chartered by such governing body of a tribe or tribes to be served, or which is democratically elected by the adult members of the Indian community to be served by such organization and which includes the maximum participation of Indians in all phases of its activities; or any tribal nonprofit organization. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(45). A “tribal nonprofit organization” is a victim services provider that has as its primary purpose to assist Native victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and that has staff and leadership with a demonstrated history of assisting American Indian or Alaska Native victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 34 U.S.C. § 12291(a)(44).
• Territorial organizations. For the purposes of this solicitation, a “territorial organization” is a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking within a United States Territory, which includes the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
• Publicly funded organizations, not acting in a governmental capacity, such as law schools.

Faith-Based and Community Organizations Faith Based and community organizations, including culturally specific organizations, tribal organizations, and population specific organizations, that meet the eligibility requirements are eligible to receive awards under this solicitation.

For more information, visit Grants.gov.