[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 61 (Wednesday, March 29, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16635-16637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-7688]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Bureau of Justice Statistics

[OJP(BJS)-1265]


Statistical Methodologies for Analysis of Disproportionate 
Minority Confinement

AGENCY: Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), 
Justice.

ACTION: Notice of solicitation.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to announce a solicitation for a

[[Page 16636]]

methodological study that would examine how juvenile records can be 
used to better understand racial disparities in arrests and confinement 
of minority juveniles and the impact of such disparities on subsequent 
processing of the same people if they are arrested as adults.

DATES: Proposals are due by 5 p.m., ET on May 30, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Proposals should be mailed to: Timothy C. Hart, Bureau of 
Justice Statistics, 810 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20531, (202) 307-
6166. [This is not a toll free number].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy C. Hart, Bureau of Justice 
Statistics, 810 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20531, (202) 307-6166. 
[This is not a toll free number].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Program Goals

    The major purpose of this award is to support a methodological 
study of the use of records in investigating racial disparities in 
arrests and confinement of minority juveniles, and the impact of 
disparate treatment within the juvenile justice system on subsequent 
processing of the same individuals if and when they become exposed to 
the adult criminal justice system.

Background

    For over a decade, the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 
(JJDP) Act has required States to determine whether the proportion of 
juvenile minorities in confinement is greater than the proportion of 
juvenile minorities in the overall population. Furthermore, the 
``disproportionate minority confinement'' requirement of the Act forces 
those States that do find disparate representation among juvenile 
minorities to advance efforts to reduce it (see ``Juvenile Offenders 
and Victims: 1999 National Report'' by Howard N. Snyder and Melissa 
Sickmund.). Since time-series data have been collected by States under 
OJJDP's Disproportionate Minority Confinement (DMC) Program, and 
research expertise in using these data has developed in the States, the 
Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) would like to capitalize on the data 
and expertise as a basis from which to better understand the complex 
factors that contribute to minority over-representation in the juvenile 
justice system, and how disparate treatment of minorities within the 
juvenile justice system can affect subsequent outcomes, net of legally-
relevant factors, of the same people if they are arrested as adults. 
Additional information about OJJDP's DMC Program can be found at http://www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org/pubs/correctionsum.html. While studies which 
evaluate racial disparities in various stages of juvenile justice 
processing are widespread, few studies use and document rigorous 
statistical methodologies (see ``Minorities and the Juvenile Justice 
System, Research Summary'' by Carl E. Pope and William Feyerherm). 
Copies of this report can be downloaded from the OJJDP web site at 
http://www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles/minor.pdf. Moreover, little or no 
research examines the extent to which racial disparities in handling by 
the juvenile justice system may be identified and tested as an 
explanatory factor for disparate subsequent treatment of adults 
involved in criminal court processing. Thus, research based on this 
award should seek to design a methodology which could be used to answer 
the question of whether a youth's juvenile record acquired through 
disparate treatment has a carry-over effect on subsequent adult level 
encounters with the criminal justice system.

Scope of Work

    The objective of the proposed project is to develop, test, and 
document statistical methodologies which are appropriate for examining 
the nature and extent of racial disparities in arrests and confinement 
of minority juveniles and for better understanding the impact of 
identifiable biases within the juvenile justice system on adults 
criminal court processing, recognizing the numerous interrelated 
decision points within the juvenile justice process. The methods must 
be tested using an actual data set, but it is not the intent of this 
solicitation to fund extensive data-collection activities. Analyses 
which demonstrate the conceptual capabilities of models or forecasts 
may be based on invented or simulated data but may not comprise the 
entire project.
    Specifically, the recipient of funds will:
    1. Identify the subgroups of the population, defined by race, 
ethnicity or other factor, that will be distinguished in the analysis, 
and specify definitions of the subgroups. Consideration to OMB's 
revised Statistical Policy Directive No. 15, Standards for Maintaining, 
Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity, should 
be given (see http://www.whitehouse.gov/OMB/fedreg/ombdir15.html).
    2. Identify the stages of processing within the juvenile or adult 
justice system that will be incorporated in the analysis, and identify 
those factors which cannot be incorporated or measured.
    3. Specify definitions and criteria that will be used in the study 
to quantify disparities among the studied subgroups and to distinguish 
between racial disparities and other factors explaining the 
disparities.
    4. Specify a replicable statistical model to be used, conceptually 
and in the form of algorithms or software.
    5. Identify and acquire one or more data sets suitable for the 
analysis. Demonstrate a knowledge of the data set(s) by defining and 
constructing relevant variables. If necessary, clean or augment the 
data so they are suitable for the study as designed, test the 
statistical model against the data set, and demonstrate the capability 
of the model to distinguish whether the data provide an indication of 
racial disparities. If the study uses only data about juvenile 
processing, it must discuss the relevance of the data and variable 
definitions to subsequent processing of juveniles who are arrested when 
they become adults.
    6. Prepare the data and documentation in a format suitable for 
archiving without individual identifiers.
    7. Prepare for public dissemination, a written report that 
describes in detail the issues, statistical methods, analysis, and 
conclusions of the study.

Appropriation and Assistance Program

    Assistance will be made in the form of a cooperative agreement or 
interagency agreement which may be in the form of a BJS Fellowship. BJS 
Fellows are expected to spend a substantial portion of their research 
time at BJS's offices in Washington, DC, where they are provided with 
work space and necessary computing facilities. Further information 
about the BJS Fellowship program is available on the BJS web site at 
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/

Application and Award Process

    An original and three (3) copies of a full proposal must be 
submitted on SF-424. Proposals must be accompanied by OJP Form 4000/3, 
4061/6 and SF-LLL. In addition, fund recipients are required to comply 
with regulations designed to protect human subjects and ensure the 
confidentiality of data. In accordance with 28 CFR Part 22, a Privacy 
Certificate must be submitted to BJS. Furthermore, a Screening Sheet 
for Protection of Human Subjects must be completed prior to the award 
being issued. Copies of required forms, including the Screening Sheet 
for Protection of Human Subjects, can be obtained by contacting Timothy 
C. Hart,

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Bureau of Justice Statistics, 810 7th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 
20531, (202) 307-6166.
    Proposals must include both narrative descriptions and a detailed 
budget. The narrative shall describe activities as discussed in the 
previous sections. The budget shall contain detailed costs of 
personnel, travel, equipment, supplies, and other expenses.
    Proposals should describe in appropriate detail the efforts to be 
undertaken in furtherance of each of the activities described in the 
Scope of Work. The application must demonstrate:
     A familiarity with relevant research on racial disparity, 
with particular reference to the technical difficulties of isolating 
the effect of the race variable.
     A conceptual understanding of the limitations of the past 
research and the kind of improvements that would be helpful in analysis 
of racial disparities.
     A familiarity with the stages in juvenile justice 
processing that are the focus of data collection in the DMC initiative.
     The feasibility of acquiring and analyzing a relevant data 
set or data sets, including any issues of confidentiality of the data 
and/or protection of the human subjects of research.
     The approximate numbers or proportions of individuals 
represented in the data set who belong to the subgroups being studied.
     A familiarity with any analyses that have already been 
conducted or are ongoing with the selected data set.
    Applicants are encouraged to define the terms ``racial disparity'' 
or ``racial discrimination'' as they consider appropriate to the 
context. They may examine any subgroups defined by race, ethnicity, 
country of origin, or other factor which is believed to be a source of 
discrimination, and conceptual advances in defining ``discrimination'' 
are welcome.
    Applications will be evaluated on the overall extent to which they 
respond to the goals of improving the methodological research in the 
area of disproportionate minority representation in the juvenile 
justice system; the quality and feasibility of the proposed design; 
their expertise in relation to the proposed activities; and the 
reasonableness of estimated costs for the total project and for 
individual cost categories.
    Proposals should be mailed to: Timothy C. Hart, Bureau of Justice 
Statistics, 810 7th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20531, (202) 307-6166.

Timing

    This award will be made for a period of 12 months. Costs are 
estimated at not to exceed $200,000 for the 12-month period. Each 
element of the Scope of Work must be successfully completed within 12-
months of this award.

Statutory Authority

    The grant and/or Fellowship awarded through this solicitation will 
be funded by the Bureau of Justice Statistics consistent with its 
mandate under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 3732(c) (Sec. 302.).

Eligibility Requirements

    BJS especially invites applications from researchers who have been 
active at the national or state level in OJJDP's Disproportionate 
Minority Confinement (DMC) initiative. However, the solicitation is 
open to any applicant who can demonstrate statistical expertise related 
to improving current research focusing on disproportionate minority 
representation in the juvenile justice system. Individuals currently 
working for a State agency may be eligible for this award through a 
cooperative agreement with their agency or an interagency agreement.

Jan M. Chaiken,
Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics.
[FR Doc. 00-7688 Filed 3-28-00; 8:45 am]
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