Second Chance Act Pay for Success Initiative (FY 2023)

With this solicitation, BJA seeks to implement programming and services to enhance or implement clinical services and other evidence-based responses to improve reentry, reduce recidivism, and address the treatment and recovery needs of people with mental health, substance use, or co-occurring disorders who are currently involved in the criminal justice system or were formerly involved. There are two categories for funding:

Performance-based and Outcomes-based Contracting for Reentry Services
Performance-based and Outcomes-based Contracting for Permanent Supportive Housing

The Pay for Success Initiative is performance-based and outcomes-based programming that ties payment for services to reaching agreed-upon goals. Under this initiative, services that may be purchased include a wide range of reentry services that are tailored to individuals leaving incarceration, particularly those with substance use disorders, as well as permanent supportive housing.

Category 1 awards focus on:

Enhancing already established performance-based and outcomes-based contracts to provide individualized reentry services for people leaving incarceration who are identified through a validated risk tool as being at moderate to high risk to reoffend in the community.
Managing a performance-based or outcomes-based reentry services contract, including data and report collection, regular performance and outcome reviews between governments and service providers, on- and offsite monitoring, outcomes validation, and incentive payment approvals.
Ensuring government staff and service providers have adequate training on performance-based or outcomes-based procurement, reentry services, data collection, and outcomes validation.

Category 2 awards focus on:

Entering into performance-based or outcomes-based contracts to provide evidence-based, high-quality permanent supportive housing (PSH) to formerly incarcerated individuals who have a substance use disorder.
Managing the performance-based or outcomes-based PSH contract, including data and report collection, regular performance and outcome reviews between governments and service providers, on- and offsite monitoring, performance and outcomes validation, and incentive payment approvals.
Ensuring government staff and service providers have adequate training on performance-based or outcomes-based procurement, PSH, data collection, and outcomes validation.

Goals, Objectives, and Deliverables

Goals

The overall goals of the FY 2023 SCA Pay for Success Initiative are to enhance public safety, lower recidivism, and improve the lives of those individuals leaving the criminal justice system. The goals for each category are to increase access to programming for and reduce recidivism in the target reentry population.

Objectives

Enhance already established performance-based and outcomes-based contracts to provide individualized reentry services or PSH for people leaving incarceration who are identified through a validated risk tool as being at moderate to high risk to reoffend in the community.
Manage the performance-based or outcomes-based reentry service or PSH contract, including data and report collection, regular performance and outcome reviews between the governments and service provider, on- and off-site monitoring, outcomes validation, and incentive payment approvals.
Ensure government staff and service providers have adequate training on performance-based or outcomes-based procurement, reentry services, PSH, data collection, and outcomes validation.

Deliverables

Analysis that demonstrates reentry service or PSH need using data indicating the number and needs of people to be served. To ensure the intended size and target population are identified, the grantee will provide a description of the mechanisms used to identify the population along with a description of the contracted services.
Analysis that demonstrates the performance targets or outcomes selected for payment. Contracts must include recidivism performance targets or outcomes (rearrest, reconviction, reincarceration, revocation) and can also include time to reoffense and reduction in severity of offense.
Analysis that demonstrates the grantee’s decision about the performance-based or outcomes-based contract structure (e.g., phased approach over the period of the contract, inclusion of a hold-harmless period, etc.), repayment strategy (e.g., unit of outcome achieved, weighted incentives, percent change in outcomes, tiered payment scheduled, bonus payments), and timing of payments.
Revised procurement contract(s).
Closeout report, including a listing and description of the performance targets or outcomes achieved and payments made.

For more information, see the most recent BJA grant solicitation and materials.