1. (a) All applications must be submitted to CJD. Applications submitted to CJD are reviewed for eligibility, reasonableness, availability of funding, and cost-effectiveness. For applications submitted pursuant to an RFA, the executive director will select a review group, COG, or other designee to prioritize the applications and submit a priority listing to the executive director, who will render the final funding decision. A review group may include staff members, experts in a relevant field, and members of an advisory board or council.

2. (b) For applications submitted to CJD pursuant to §3.5(b) of this chapter, the executive director will decide whether to fund the application based upon the following factors:

   1. (1) the inherent value of the project's impact;
   2. (2) whether the project has the potential to be a model program; or
   3. (3) whether delaying the application would have a significant negative impact on the immediate need for the project.
3. (c) For applications prioritized by a COG, the CJAC must prioritize the applications and prepare the priority listing. The COG's governing body must approve the priority listing. The COG then must submit the priority listing to CJD within the time periods established by CJD. CJD will render final funding decisions on these applications based upon the COG priorities, eligibility, reasonableness, availability of funding, and cost-effectiveness.
4. (d) For applications prioritized by a COG and seeking funding from the State Criminal Justice Planning Fund, the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act Fund, or the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act Fund, CJD will allocate funding through a formula based upon population figures and crime rates. No formula-based funding allocation exists for applications prioritized by a COG that seek grants from other funding sources.
5. (e) During the review of an application, CJD or its designee may request that the applicant submit additional information necessary to complete the grant review. CJD or its designee may request the applicant to provide any outstanding forms and documents to clarify or justify any part of the application or to disclose other funding sources related to the project. Such requests for information, including the issuance of a preliminary review report, do not serve as notice that CJD intends to fund an application. If CJD is not able to adequately resolve problems within an applicant's budget through the review process, CJD may make the necessary corrections to the budget to bring it into compliance with applicable state or federal requirements. Any corrections to an applicant's budget will be reflected in the award documentation.
6. (f) CJD will inform applicants in writing of funding decisions on their grant applications through either a Statement of Grant Award or a notification of denial. For applications prioritized by a COG that do not receive funding recommendations, the COG notification of the decision not to recommend funding serves as the applicant's notification of denial.
7. (g) All funding decisions made by the executive director are final and are not subject to appeal.

Source Note:The provisions of this §3.7 adopted to be effective February 24, 2000, 25 TexReg 1297; amended to be effective September 9, 2001, 26 TexReg 6645; amended to be effective December 16, 2002, 27 TexReg 11729; amended to be effective October 13, 2003, 28 TexReg 8873; amended to be effective June 9, 2004, 29 TexReg 5575.