DOJ readies up to $3.5 billion in law enforcement grants, 1 year after steep cuts

Exclusive Politics DOJ readies up to $3.5 billion in law enforcement grants, 1 year after steep cuts elsewhere By Sarah N. Lynch Sarah N. Lynch Senior Justice Department Reporter Sarah N. Lynch is the senior Justice Department reporter for CBS News, based in Washington, D.C. Read Full Bio Sarah N. Lynch April 22, 2026 / 11:39 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Washington — The Justice Department is preparing to solicit applications for up to $3.5 billion in grants to pay for mostly immigration-related law enforcement programs, equipment and personnel, multiple sources familiar with the plans told CBS News.The grant solicitations, most of which are not yet public, will fund everything from the construction of immigration detention facilities and the purchase of police surveillance equipment to the hiring of law enforcement personnel. Some of the money is also expected to be used to allow the Justice Department to pay local prosecutors to serve as temporary special assistant U.S. attorneys to support the department's new National Fraud Enforcement Division, which is tasked with investigating fraud involving public benefits, the sources said. The $300 million solicitation to fund local prosecutors who will help investigate fraud committed by people living in the country illegally was posted on Tuesday evening, after CBS News sought comment about the new grants.The flurry of anticipated new grants comes as victims services organizations, criminal justice research facilities and juvenile justice programs have been struggling to stay afloat, due to a combination of unprecedented delays and terminations to other DOJ grant programs — many of which are authorized and appropriated by Congress. The Justice Department is also simultaneously taking away millions of dollars from grants that fund everything from victims services and hate crime prevention to substance abuse programs, and transferring the money to fund other non-grant activities, sou...