Current through Reg. 50, No. 249, December 24, 2024
(1) Purpose. It is
the intent of the Department and Council to administer financial assistance
grant programs to eligible recipients pursuant to authority under sections
943.031 and
943.042, F.S.
(2) Funding Process.
(a) The amount of funds available shall be
that amount allocated each state fiscal year to the Department as appropriated
by the Legislature and allocated to each grant program by the
Council.
(b) All funds will be used
to support priorities and objectives, adhere to grant program criteria, and
comply with solicitations as approved by the Council, incorporated by reference
herein.
(c) The Department shall
issue an annual grant solicitation and begin receiving applications by July 9,
2019 of each calendar year.
(d) The
Department and Council shall attempt to obligate all funds available in the
current fiscal year, but may obligate part or all of the funds in a later
fiscal year, when permitted by law.
(e) Applications for funding shall be
submitted to the Department on application forms as specified by the Council
and Department signed by the chief official or head of the requesting agency
that complies with Council program requirements.
(f) Applications received from local
governmental entities that have not returned to the Department any unexpended
or unaccounted for funds from prior year grants shall be rejected by the
Department and Review Committee. Applications from local governmental entities
that have not met their obligations under the terms of any previous grant
agreements for funds under this Rule or authorizing legislation shall also be
rejected by the Department and Review Committee.
(g) Awarded grant funds shall be administered
pursuant to a written finanical assistance agreement between the Department and
recipient, upon approval of the application by the Review Committee.
(h) All expenditures of Council grant funds
must comply with the terms and conditions of the grant award and be expended in
a manner approved by the Council or Review Committee.
(i) Rapid funds disbursement. The Review
Committee and Department shall employ rapid funds disbursement procedures for
violent crime investigative assistance and emergency funding as authorized in
section 943.031(6),
F.S.
(3) Allowable costs
and limitations on use of funds.
(a) Allowable
costs for violent crime and drug control investigative assistance and emergency
grant programs are case related investigative expenses, salary and overtime for
offices and employees directly linked to a funded investigation and other
expenses related to investigations approved by the Council.
(b) Allowable costs for violent crime
emergency trial-related funding are limited to extraordinary violent crime
trial-related expenses and salary overtime payments. Such funding shall not
include the payment of salaries for permanent employees, or the purchase of
furnishings and equipment. Examples of extraordinary trial-related expenses
include expert witness fees, travel expenses of witnesses, extraordinary
security measures, and salary payments to temporary security personnel under
contractual agreements.
(c) Funding
provided by the Council shall not be used to supplant, take the place of, or
substitute for existing appropriations of state and local law enforcement
agencies and units of government.
(d) Matching funds of ten percent cash or
in-kind shall be required for all Council grant programs.
(e) The maximum funding provided by the
Council on a single investigation shall be $100, 000. However, an approved
investigative effort may consist of multiple investigations, each of which may
receive funding up to $100, 000.
(f) No law enforcement agency as defined
herein may receive more than $200, 000 in Council funds during the agency's
fiscal year.
(g) Payment of
overtime with Council funds shall not exceed $10, 000 per officer or employee
dedicated to the funded investigative effort.
(h) As used herein, "beyond the resources"
means that the expenses claimed by the agency seeking emergency funding
assistance under this section are so extraordinary that they currently
jeopardize the requester's ability to provide the services or duties required
by law or have caused the requestor to terminate providing a service it would
otherwise not be providing, and that the requester has demonstrated to the
Council that all reasonable alternatives for funding the claimed expenses
within the requesting agency's current fiscal year have been
exhausted.
(4) Recipients
of Council violent crime or drug control investigative assistance or emergency
funding shall:
(a) Designate a lead
investigative agency that will serve as the liaison between the Council and the
participating agencies for the purposes of coordinating the collection of
information and in disbursing funds approved by the Council.
(b) Each participating agency shall agree to
promptly provide requested information to the Council, to provide regular
performance reports and information related to funded investigations as
required by the Council, retain documentation and proof of expenditures or
personnel efforts as may be required by the Council, and submit to any audit or
review of the use of received funds as may be required by the
Council.
(c) If an additional
agency is brought into the investigation after funding has already been
appropriated and no additional monies are being sought and there is no change
of focus of the investigation, a lead investigative agency is authorized to
request that the additional agency be permitted to share in council funds for
the investigation.
(d) The lead
agency shall verify and endorse both that agency match funding is available
from the new agency and that all requirements will be fulfilled by the new
agency.
(e) The new agency shall
guarantee its agreements are completed and obtain agency match funding before
presenting its package, with the lead agency's endorsement, to the Chairperson
of the Council.
(5)
Application information, Form FDLE/IFS-005, Victim/Witness Protection Program
Reimbursement Application, revised 08/01/07, incorporated by reference,
http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-10778,
funding criteria, and dates of scheduled Violent Crime & Drug Control
Council (Council) meetings can be found at
http://www.fdle.state.fl.us/VCDCC.Forms.
Rulemaking Authority
943.03(4),
943.042 FS. Law Implemented
943.031,
943.042
FS.
New 3-10-94, Amended 10-10-95, 10-25-01, 11-5-02, 3-21-07,
6-9-08, 7-9-19.