To: Board of Supervisors
From: Diana Becton, District Attorney
Report Title: Office for Victims of Crime FY26 Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking Grant Application
Recommendation: Recommendation of the County Administrator
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPROVE and AUTHORIZE the District Attorney, or designee, to apply for and accept the Office for Victims of Crime FY26 Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking grant from the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, in an amount not to exceed $750,000 for the period January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2029.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The County may receive up to $750,000 federal grant funding over the 3-year award period. If awarded, the grant will require a $250,000 County match ($83,333 annually). The required match of $83,333 for year one has been included in the District Attorney’s FY26-27 Budget. The remainder of the required match for years two and three will continue to be absorbed within existing allocations to the DA’s Office in FY27-28 and FY28-29. There will be no new general fund allocations or ongoing additional personnel cost requested during the award period. If awarded, the $750,000 federal grant revenue will be included in the departmental budget through a mid-year budget amendment.
BACKGROUND:
The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office previously received both the FY18 and FY22 Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking grant programs from the Federal Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) for the award periods of FY18-22 and FY22-26.
In March 2026, the District Attorney’s Office applied for the FY25 ECM Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking grant for the activity period of July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029. However, the results of the FY25 ECM Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking awards remain pending. The OVC has not yet officially announced final funding recipients for the FY25 cohort.
While the results for the FY25 cohort are pending, on August 19, 2026, the OVC released the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to solicit applications for its FY26 ECM Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking grant program.
Due to the uncertainty of the outcome of the FY25 ECM grant, the District Attorney’s Office intends to apply for the OVC FY26 ECM grant in October 2026 while continuing to wait for the results of the FY25 cohort to be announced by the OVC. If the District Attorney’s Office were to be awarded the FY25 ECM grant, that will automatically make the Office ineligible to be awarded the FY26 ECM grant for an overlapping activity period. On the other hand, if the District Attorney’s Office was not identified as a final funding recipient for the FY25 cohort, there is still the possibility that the Office may be awarded the FY26 grant.
The ECM program strengthens multidisciplinary task forces that integrate law enforcement and victim service providers to prevent, detect, investigate, and prosecute sex and labor trafficking offenses while ensuring survivors receive coordinated, trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and victim-centered services.
As the law enforcement lead agency for the Task Force, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office will continue to use grant funds to support personnel costs for Task Force staff; expand proactive, intelligence-driven sex and labor trafficking investigations and enforcement operations; implement a comprehensive countywide human trafficking prevention and public awareness campaign; develop multilingual and culturally appropriate outreach and educational materials; enhance training and capacity-building efforts for law enforcement, service providers, and other key stakeholders; conduct strategic planning to strengthen long-term sustainability and interagency coordination; and expand the Task Force’s survivor leadership program to inform policy development, improve service delivery, and strengthen community-based responses throughout Contra Costa County.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
If not approved, the District Attorney’s Office will be unable to apply for and accept these federal funds to support and expand the County’s coordinated response to human trafficking.