Frequently Asked Questions

If you are a DOJ grantee and you are getting an error message when trying to download your SF-425, please contact JustGrants support at [email protected] or 833–872–5175.

We suggest you follow-up in one or more of the following ways:  

• Check for any error messages you may have received in ASAP and document the error message. Having the error message(s) can assist the help desk in resolving your issues. Contact the ASAP help desk at 855–868–0151 or [email protected].
• Have all award special conditions, including high-risk special conditions, if applicable, been met? Many special conditions lead to the withholding of funds until the conditions have been met and cleared through a GAM.  
• Check if all Federal Financial Reports and progress reports including the Performance Measurement Tool  report have been submitted. The system has automatic verification features in place, which prevent drawdowns if all the required reports have not been submitted. 

Payment requests may be unsuccessful for various reasons, including:

• Award was not accepted or special conditions of the grant were not met.
• Certain reporting requirements throughout the life of the grant were not fulfilled.
• Legislation and federal grant management procedures during the life of a grant were not followed.
• Amount requested exceeded what was available.
• Grant reports (e.g., SF-425, progress, or audit) were not submitted by the due date.
• Grant end date passed and an administrative closeout was initiated. 

Compliance may affect the timing or the amount of the funds made available at any time.

A GAM is created to update the award details but is used only to modify a key fact or detail about the award. A GAM is not used for more routine updates to grant information that will not modify a fact about the award details.

A GAM can be created in the JustGrants system by selecting the “Create New GAM” tab from the “Funded Award” screen. Once a GAM is submitted, DOJ reviews it and sends a notification—approved, denied, or change requested—via email to the grant award administrator. The email notification will become a permanent part of the grant file and the record will be updated, as appropriate.

For additional information about GAMs, please visit pages 7–14 of the Grant Award Modification: Job Aid Reference Guide.

There are three types of GAMs—project period extension, programmatic, and financial. GAMs are all started in the same basic way but each has specific fields and sub-types, depending on the information needed for the specific type of GAM:

• A project period extension GAM is used to extend the length of the funded award. The most direct way to do this is to change the end date and—in rare circumstances—change the start date.
• A programmatic GAM is used to update changes in project scope or to gain prior approval for changes with programmatic costs and activities as determined by the DOJ Financial Guide. Programmatic GAMs have two sub-types—costs and scope.
• Financial GAMs are used to modify budget details or approve a budget that received a conditional clearance when awarded (a process performed by a DOJ financial analyst). There are three types—budget modification, sole source, and budget reduction. (Note: Budget reduction is only available to Office of Community Oriented Policing Services grantees.)

Your entity must successfully set up their JustGrants account and enroll in ASAP to accept and manage their award. If you have enrolled in ASAP and JustGrants, you can proceed with accepting an award in JustGrants.to accept and manage their award. If you have enrolled in ASAP and JustGrants, you can proceed with accepting an award in JustGrants.

To accept an award, sign in to JustGrants and select an award from “My Worklist.” You must then open and accept the information for each tab of the “Award Details” page. Once you have selected all acceptance boxes in each tab, click “Accept” to proceed. After accepting, the system will display a banner indicating that the award has been accepted. If you do not want to accept the award, select the “Decline” button to proceed.

For information on how applicants and entities will be registered and onboard their user into JustGrants, visit the Securely Onboard Your Entity Users to JustGrants section of the “Getting Started” page.

Eligibility requirements for block, formula, and discretionary awards can be found in the grant program solicitations contained in awarding agency program announcements, notices of funding opportunities (i.e., discretionary grant program solicitations), or other awarding agency program documents. For specific agency grants, visit the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Current Funding Opportunities page. 

DOJ discretionary grant solicitations require, at a minimum, several elements including the Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424), a program narrative, a budget detail worksheet, and a budget narrative. There are also a few certifications that may be required and other elements, as specified in the program announcement. Specific requirements may vary. For additional information, visit https://www.ojp.gov/funding/apply/ojp-grant-application-resource-guide#apply.