TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Nearly $290 million in federal grant funding is being awarded nationwide to support criminal justice activities aimed at improving public safety, including nearly $12.5 million for law enforcement agencies operating within the Northern District of Florida.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance, part of the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs, announced the awards Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. The funding is being distributed through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, a major federal source of justice funding for state and local jurisdictions, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.
“This funding strengthens our state, local, and tribal partners’ ability to address violent crime, support officers on the front lines, and keep our Nation’s communities safe,” Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said. “The JAG Program continues to provide essential resources that help jurisdictions meet today’s public safety threats and uphold the rule of law.”
U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin of the Northern District of Florida said nearly $12.5 million in grant money was awarded to law enforcement components operating within the district. “Our state and local law enforcement partners are vital to my office’s mission to eradicate crime within the Northern District of Florida,” Heekin said. “Through these grant awards, the Department of Justice is making critical investments in the brave men and women of Florida’s law enforcement agencies who stand on the front lines in the fight against crime to keep our communities safe.”
The JAG program has provided funding for more than 20 years for needs including personnel, equipment and supplies, technology, training, information systems for criminal justice or civil proceedings, and other operational priorities. The program also supports efforts to strengthen crime prevention and enhance the effectiveness of prosecutors, courts, corrections agencies, and services for crime victims and witnesses.
Within the Northern District of Florida, JAG program awards will support the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, based in Tallahassee, as well as the Alachua, Bay, Escambia, Leon, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa county sheriff’s offices. Funding will also support the Gainesville, Panama City, Panama City Beach, Pensacola and Tallahassee police departments.
The Justice Department said the JAG funding opportunities also included specific areas of emphasis encouraging jurisdictions to work with federal law enforcement on public safety challenges. For fiscal year 2025, those areas included combatting violent crime, immigration enforcement, safe communities, and safe houses of worship.
Nationwide, BJA awarded more than $199 million in state JAG funding across 56 awards and more than $90 million in local JAG funding across 895 awards. The Justice Department said initiatives supported by the grants can include specialized training to prevent, detect and respond to human trafficking; integrating technology, training and equipment with crime-data analysis; supporting investigations related to gang activity and narcotics; and replacing outdated ballistic helmets with modern protective equipment used during high-risk incidents and other dangerous calls for service.