The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs' Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) Office is  is seeking applications for funding under the SMART Office FY 2008 Support for Adam Walsh Act Implementation Grant Program. This program assists state and local jurisdictions and federally recognized American Indian tribes, as specified in the eligibility section, with implementation of requirements under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, specifically Subtitle A of Title I, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). Jurisdictions are required to implement SORNA by July 27, 2009.
      Applicants are limited to states (including territories), units of local government, and federally recognized American Indian tribes, acting directly or through other public or private entities, as qualified in the eligibility section on page 4 of the application.
      Deadline: All applications are due by 8 p.m. (ET) on May 7, 2008 (see "Deadline: Applications," page 4). To view and download the application, go to: http://ojp.usdoj.gov/smart/funding/fy08awa_implementation.pdf.

Violence Against Native Women is not traditional in Native communities; it is a by-product of colonization efforts that diminished the status of Native women and children. The use of violence to maintain power while defining women and children as property created a framework for the domestic violence and sexual assault that occurs in our communities today.
     The statistics on violence against Native women are staggering. Indian women are at a higher risk of intimate partner violence than are women of any other group, and when a Native woman is battered, her injuries are more likely to require hospitalization. Too often, these injuries result in death—nationally, Native women are murdered by family members at over twice the rate of Native men. Native women are also over 3.5 times more likely to experience sexual assault than women of other races.
     In working to address the epidemic of violence against Native women, tribal communities are seeking to restore the safety and sovereignty of Native women through traditional beliefs that hold women as sacred.

Mending the Sacred Hoop is a Native program working to eliminate violence against Native women and their children. We provide training and technical assistance to Native communities on a national level, assisting them in developing tribal programs addressing violence against women issues in ways that strengthen the self-determination of American Indian and Alaskan Native people. We recognize that effective strategies to end violence against Native women must be culturally framed and fit tribal communities’ needs & resources.

The Office on Violence Against Women The 2005 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act  (VAWA) creates funding for federally recognized tribes to develop and strengthen tribal responses to violence against Indian women. The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW), U.S. Dept. of Justice administers this funding and since1995 has implemented funding initiatives to strengthen the tribal response to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The Office works with tribal, state, and local jurisdictions to implement the mandates of the Violence Against Women Act and subsequent legislation in ways that combine the expertise of both Native and non-Native entities working in collaboration to end violence against Native women. Click the link to view OVW's summary of recommendations offered by tribal leaders on implementing Title IX of the 2005 VAWA at the first annual Tribal Consultation in September 2006.
    OVW held its second annual Tribal Consultation in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 19, 2007. The purpose of the consultation was to solicit recommendations from tribal government leaders on the following three topics: 1) Administering grant funds appropriated for tribal governments and programs created to benefit tribal governments by the original Violence Against Women Act and subsequent legislation; 2) Enhancing the safety of Indian women from domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and 3) Strengthening the Federal response to crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Follow the link below and click on "Final Report" to view OVW's summary of recommendations offered by tribal leaders at the 2007 Tribal Consultation. 

Federal Grants Are Available to Address Violence Against Native Women Since the passage of the first VAWA in 1994, the Office on Violence Against Women has awarded more than $1 billion in grant funds. These grant programs help state, tribal, and local governments train personnel, establish specialized domestic violence and sexual assault units, assist victims of violence, and hold perpetrators accountable; supporting community partnerships among police, prosecutors, victim advocates, and others to address violence against women.

*More information on VAWA, the Office on Violence Against Women, and all of the Office’s 12 grant programs can be found at http://www.usdoj.gov/ovw.

The Grants to Indian Tribal Governments Program is designed to enhance the ability of tribes to respond to violent crimes against Indian women, enhance victim safety, and develop education and prevention strategies. Eligible applicants are recognized Indian tribal governments or their authorized designees. The solicitation deadline for this grant has passed; it is posted to provide information on the program.

The following grant solicitations are from FY 2007 (not current) and are posted below to give information on other OVW grant programs.

** Notice to tribal applicants: since the creation of the Grants to Indian Tribal Governments Program (above), there is no longer a tribal set-aside for the Rural & Arrest grant programs listed below. Tribal applicants are still eligible to apply; however, these are competitive grants, which no longer have the tribal set-aside funding. **

Rural Domestic Violence and Child Victimization Enforcement Grants can be used to encourage community involvement by developing a coordinated community response to domestic violence, dating violence and child abuse. Tribal governments in rural and non-rural states are eligible.

The Safe Havens: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Grants can be used to create safe places for supervised visitation with and exchange of children between parents in situations of domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, or stalking.

Grants to Encourage Arrest Policies and Enforcement of Protection Orders can be used to encourage state, local, and tribal governments to treat domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking as serious violations under the law, requiring the coordinated involvement of the entire justice system. Tribal governments are eligible.

Legal Assistance for Victims Grants can be used to strengthen legal assistance programs for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.
 

Go to http://www.usdoj.gov/ovw/ovwgrantprograms.htm for information on other current available Office on Violence Against Women grant programs.

The Department of Justice has launched a new website for tribal governments: The Tribal Justice & Safety Website. The site is intended to provide resources to tribal communities about how the Department can meet their informational, training, and funding needs in improving safety, and will serve as a single source of information about courts, corrections, law enforcement, crime statistics, crime prevention, legal and other public safety issues. Information on the site is also intended to help federal agencies and the general public better understand available resources for improving safety in Native communities.

As a result of VAWA 2000, all OVW grant program recipients are statutorily required to report on the effectiveness of their projects. Grantees must collect and maintain data that measures their program effectiveness, and are required to submit a Semi-Annual Progress Report.

Grantees can also view reporting requirements and download the reporting form and instructions, from the site. A database for use in collecting and maintaining the required data is also available for free download. Go to the VAWA Measuring Effectiveness Initiative website.

GMS On-line Training Tool: On July 11, 2007, the Office of Justice Programs released the Grants Management System (GMS) On-line Training Tool to assist grantees in administering their awards through the GMS. The On-line Training Tool provides step "by" step instructions to complete various functions within GMS, as well as the administrative policies associated with Grant Adjustment Notices, Progress Reporting, and Closeouts.

Mending the Sacred Hoop TA Project, in partnership with the Office on Violence Against Women, is providing technical assistance and workshops nationwide to tribes on:

Ø      Developing responses to violence against Native women specific to your community;

Ø      Available funding to match your community’s needs;

Ø      Program development & grant administration.

This project is funded by grant 2005-WT-AXK014 awarded by the U.S. Dept. of Justice/Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). Opinions and views expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Office on Violence Against Women or the U.S. Department of Justice.