FY26 Collaborative Reform Initiative Program

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) is the component of the U.S. Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing and the Administration’s priority of Making America Safe Again by supporting the nation’s state, local, territorial and Tribal law enforcement agencies through information and grant resources. The FY26 Collaborative Reform Initiative (CRI) program funding seeks to provide best practices of law enforcement agencies and the many ways they are protecting Americans, enhance officer safety and wellness, build agencies’ capacity for self-improvement and effectiveness, and promote community policing practices nationwide. This funding opportunity has two program subcategories of which applicants may apply for funding: Category 1: Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC). Since 2017, CRI-TAC has provided a wide array of TA services using a “by the field, for the field” approach. The CRI-TAC process is agency-driven and offers customizable, short-term technical assistance on more than 60 topics. Category 2: Collaborative Reform Initiative Critical Response. The Critical Response program is designed to provide targeted TA to law enforcement agencies experiencing high-profile events, major incidents, or sensitive issues of varying need. Critical Response is highly customizable and provides flexible assistance to law enforcement agencies in a variety of ways, including after-action reviews; peer-to-peer exchanges; targeted in-depth review, analysis, recommendations, and assessments; and facilitated discussions with subject matter experts. Critical Response projects may vary in duration depending upon scope. For more information about these programs, visit https://cops.usdoj.gov/collaborativereform.

CATEGORY 1 APPLICANTS: Eligibility for the FY26 Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRITAC) program is limited to law enforcement stakeholder associations (membership organizations). CATEGORY 2 APPLICANTS: Eligibility for the FY26 Collaborative Reform Initiative (CRI): Critical Response program is limited to for-profit (commercial) organizations, nonprofit organizations, and institutions for higher education. For-profit organizations (as well as other recipients) must forgo any profit or management fee.