Program to Support Iraqi Judiciary Legislation

The summary for the Program to Support Iraqi Judiciary Legislation grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affair, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Program to Support Iraqi Judiciary Legislation: Federal Agency Name: U.S. Department of State, Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Office of Iraq Programs. Funding Opportunity Title: Program to Support Iraqi Judiciary Legislation. Announcement Type: Follow-Up Announcement Funding Opportunity Number: INL-08-CA-001-Iraq CFDA Number: 00.000 Dates: . Full proposals dated no later than February 7, 2008. . Anticipated Award Date March 3, 2008. Executive Summary: The United States Government, represented by the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Office of Iraq Programs (State/INL/I), is seeking applications from qualified U.S. organizations with the requisite capability and experience to support rule of law in Iraq by providing legislative drafting and technical expertise to the Government of Iraq for the purpose of strengthening law relating to the judiciary and to criminal law and procedure. The Cooperative Agreement award will be up to $2,497,440.00. I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES DESCRIPTION Summary The Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) announces an open competition for an assistance award. Organizations may submit grant proposals for a program to facilitate the drafting of legislation related to the judiciary and to criminal law and procedure, to facilitate the passage of such legislation by the Council of Representatives, and to build the legislative drafting capacity of relevant entities within the Government of Iraq (particularly the Higher Juridical Council). The activities under this grant shall take place primarily in Baghdad, Iraq, Background In October 2005, the people of Iraq ratified the countrys first constitution following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. Two and a half years later, a required review and revision of the Constitution is underway, but not complete, and at least 60 different pieces of implementing legislation called for in the Constitution have yet to be passed by the Iraqi Council of Representatives. One area that needs particular development is the legal framework governing the judiciary. The judiciary was declared independent from the executive branch in 2003. Its independence was later confirmed in the 2005 Constitution, which sets forth basic principles governing the judiciary. However, implementing legislation is needed to clarify the judiciarys authorities and put additional safeguards in place to ensure that Iraq has a strong, fair court system that is free from undue influence by the executive or legislative branches or by outside forces. Building this framework is essential to promoting rule of law in Iraq. Legislative drafting assistance may also be needed to modernize and strengthen Iraqs penal and criminal procedure codes. The Department of State Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (State/INL) has been working on law enforcement and judiciary-related issues in Iraq since 2003. In October 2006, State/INL funded a nine-month grant to begin a project to support the legislative process. The accomplishments under that grant included: . Working with members of Iraq's Higher Juridical Council (HJC) to develop draft legislation to establish a Federal Supreme Court and to define further the role of the HJC; . Assisting Iraq's Constitutional Review Committee on comparative state practice on judicial provisions in Iraq's Constitution as part of its mandated Constitutional review; . Developing Iraqi capacity to assess, develop, and draft judiciary-related legislation through organizing a Legal Committee for the Rule of Law that is composed of approximately 30 Iraqi judges, law professors, religious experts, civil society representatives, and journalists. The committee is independent, multi-sectarian, and represents the broad spectrum of Iraqi legal practice. A major part of the effort was to provide legislative analysis through Legislative Drafting Guides and other legal memoranda. The project produced more than 25 legal memoranda for the Government of Iraq on a variety of topics that have been translated into Arabic. Program Objectives State/INL is currently seeking a recipient to provide support in the form of legislative drafting and technical expertise to the Iraqi judiciary. The recipient will assist in proposing laws to strengthen the judiciarys authorities and responsibilities and establish basic guidelines for the governance and organization of the courts. The recipient will work directly with the Higher Juridical Council (the governing council of the judiciary) to develop these legislative proposals. The recipient will also be responsible for coordinating with the Council of Representatives regarding the substance of proposed legislation and work with other offices of the Government of Iraq to ensure the passage of the proposals into law. The recipient will also be obliged to coordinate its efforts with the larger Embassy legislative assistance effort and conduct the program as a complement to that effort. The Government of Iraq entities need assistance with legislative drafting and technical expertise on a number of legislative efforts, including, but not necessarily limited to, the following activities: . Work towards agreement with representatives of the Higher Juridical Council on a final draft of the Federal Supreme Court Law and Higher Judicial Council Law; . Develop a strategic plan for the judiciary on how to ensure passage of these laws; . Work for enactment of these draft laws, through dialogue with parliamentarians, the Prime Ministers Office, and other actors in the legislative process; . Provide analysis and guidance to facilitate passage by the Constitutional Review Committee of amendments to the Constitution to strengthen the independence of the judiciary that are consistent with the policy choices contained in the draft Federal Supreme Court and Higher Judicial Council Law; . Continue to develop a sustainable, independent Iraqi capability to assess and draft legislation primarily related to the judiciary through continued work of the Legal Committee for the Rule of Law and other means. . Facilitate the drafting of other judiciary-related legislation; . Provide assistance on other legislative matters (including reform of criminal and criminal procedure codes). Program Expected Results Working as an American non-governmental organization in Iraq means dealing with a very difficult set of work challenges. State/INL recognizes it is not possible to guarantee outcomes in Iraq. However, the recipient will be expected to work toward achieving the following results: (1) agreement with the judiciary on a final text for the proposed Federal Supreme Court law; (2) agreement with the judiciary on a final text for the Higher Juridical Council law; (3) development of a strategic plan for the judiciary on how to ensure passage of these two laws; (4) the actual enactment of these draft laws; (5) working with the Constitutional Review Committee, other members of the Council of Representatives and the HJC to pass amendments to Chapter 3 of the Constitution that strengthen the independence of the judiciary and ensure it is governed fairly and effectively; (6) drafting of other judiciary-related legislation that may be needed and is consistent with Mission-wide rule of law efforts, potentially including a judiciary organization law, judiciary appointments law, revision of the penal code, and revision of the criminal procedure code. Program Staffing The recipient will be responsible for hiring staff qualified to produce the results described above. Program Security The recipient will be responsible for all aspects of security for the Baghdad Office. Substantial Government Involvement As a condition of this cooperative agreement, recipient will . seek pre-approval from State/INL for any project-related travel outside of Baghdad and will abide by State/INLs decision to allow or disallow travel; . seek implementation guidance on all projects from State/INL. II. AWARD INFORMATION The anticipated award date is March 3, 2008, after which there will be a training and clearance period or approximately one month, at which point the grant period will begin for one year. The total funding available for the grant will be up to $2,497,440.00. Requested funding should be commensurate with the size and capacity of the organization. Grant recipients must be able to provide oversight of sub-grant funding. Sub-grants may include non-lethal equipment (computers, printers, facsimile machines, cameras, audio-visual, office equipment and furniture, medical kits) and services (transportation, security, salaries of recipient employees). All equipment bought using funds under this cooperative agreement will be U.S. government property. Applicants offering less than 30 days for acceptance by the Government from the date set for receipt may be considered unacceptable and may be rejected. Type of Assistance instrument: Cooperative Agreement Program Authority Section 635(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act, as amended. III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION Eligibility is limited to non-federal agencies and organizations. Universities and not-for-profit organizations subject to Section 501(c)3 of the tax code are included among entities eligible for funding under this announcement. Direct funding for non-U.S. institutions is not available under this announcement. Applicants must have a demonstrated expertise in the subject area of legislative assistance, judicial structure, and/or criminal law and procedure.