Youth Development Funding Opportunity

Nonprofit community-based organizations may apply for local mini grant assistance funding for grassroots and community-based organizations to fund direct service programming to support youth, families and communities throughout New York State. Applicants can apply for this in one of two categories, including:

Category 1: Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) and Youth Scholarship Program (1 award), Anticipated Award Amount: $250,000. This funding will be used to create a Youth Action Committee (YAC), up to $200,000, that would be a youth-led decision-making body designed to make recommendations to the Juvenile Justice Advisory Group (JJAG) supporting the development of youth-led programming and funding recommendations to be considered for future JJAG supported programming and initiatives. Additionally, up to $50,000 of this award is allocated to support youth and young adult scholarships to advance access to educational and vocational opportunities for justice-involved youth and for those returning to the community from facilities.

Category 2: Local Assistance Mini Grants, Anticipated Award Amount: Up to $75,000 (15 awards). Approximately $1,000,000 will be made available to award local assistance grants for up to $75,000 per grantee to community-based organizations, which will fund direct service programming to support youth, families, and communities throughout NYS.

Questions for the request for applications must be submitted to funding@dcjs.ny.gov by Wednesday, March 11, 2026. Responses to those questions will be posted on or about Wednesday, March 25, 2026.

The deadline for applications is noon on Wednesday, April 22, 2026.

Additional information about the Youth Development Funding Opportunity >>

New York State Commercial Security Tax Credit

The Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) administers the state’s Commercial Security Tax Credit Program. The program provides a tax credit to small retail businesses (50 or fewer employees) that operate a physical location or locations in the state and incur costs associated with retail theft prevention measures. Businesses may be eligible for a $3,000 credit per retail location, depending on the business size and expenses.

More information about the tax credit >>

New York State’s Clean Slate Act

New York State’s Clean Slate Act takes effect Nov. 16, 2024, and provides the state Office of Court Administration (OCA) up to three years to develop the required processes to automatically seal eligible conviction records. Once that work is complete, convictions that meet certain criteria will be sealed for certain civil background check purposes.

It is important to note that until OCA implements these sealing processes, any criminal history record provided through the DCJS Records Review process will continue to include convictions that eventually will be sealed because of Clean Slate. DCJS cannot seal records until receiving an order from the court to do so.

NOTE: Records of individuals convicted of sex crimes and non-drug Class A felonies, including murder, will not be sealed. Police departments, sheriffs’ offices, prosecutors, the courts, and any employer permitted by law to perform fingerprint-based background checks on job applicants will continue to have access to all criminal records under the law.

Additional information about the Clean Slate Act >>

New York State’s Firearm Laws: Resources and Information

New York State’s Gun Safety website provides the public, gun owners and gun dealers with comprehensive information about the requirements detailed in state laws. Questions about the new law may be directed to 1-855-LAW-GUNS.

Gun Safety in New York State >>

Frequently Asked Questions >>

Department of Environmental Conservation FAQs >>

Minimum Standards for Firearm Safety Training >>