Justice Department Releases Update to Equity Action Plan

The Justice Department announced today the release of its 2023 Equity Action Plan (Plan), which is part of the Department’s broader efforts to implement President Biden’s Executive Order on Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. The update to the Justice Department’s Equity Action Plan was finalized in December 2023 and will help guide the Department’s equity strategies in Fiscal Year 2024. The Plan memorializes the Department’s commitment to aiding all people – including historically marginalized and underserved communities – in accessing the Department’s programs and resources, navigating complex legal and regulatory hurdles to vindicate their rights, understanding the breadth of the Department’s work, and meaningfully engaging with Justice Department decision-makers.

“The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that our programs and services reach every community that needs them,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The five strategies in this Plan seek to advance the Department’s broader mission to uphold the rule of law, keep people safe, and protect civil rights by working to remove the barriers that prevent vulnerable communities from accessing critical resources.”

For Fiscal Year 2024, the Justice Department has committed to advance the following five equity strategies:

1. Removing barriers to access to grant funding and resources for organizations led by and that primarily serve historically marginalized and underserved communities that have faced societal and systemic barriers in accessing and receiving Federal resources, as well as to communities disproportionately impacted by crime, violence, and victimization.
2. Supporting corrections and reentry programs that seek to reduce recidivism and improve outcomes for justice-involved individuals (including those from historically marginalized and underserved communities and those disproportionately impacted by crime, violence, and victimization) including by improving healthcare coverage and continuity of care supports, reducing barriers to obtaining government-issued identification, addressing burdens associated with inability to pay fines and fees, and improving community supervision models to decrease incidence of revocation for technical violations.
3. Promoting an inclusive, diverse, and expert law enforcement workforce to strengthen public trust and improve public safety outcomes by removing barriers to representation within Federal, State, Tribal, local, and territorial law enforcement agencies for underrepresented communities.
4. Improving the response of law enforcement and criminal justice personnel to crimes that disproportionately affect women, girls, transgender individuals, and gender non-conforming people (including gender-based violence and sex trafficking) by providing and/or supporting: targeted training on how to investigate and prosecute these crimes; training and resources on trauma-informed and culturally responsive approaches, care, and services available to victims; and resources and support for building relationships with and increasing access to services and assistance for historically marginalized and underserved communities.
5. Ensuring that underserved communities (including people with limited English proficiency and people with disabilities, among others) are aware of and able to access legal services to address environmental crime, pollution, climate change, and other environmental hazards and have help navigating the legal and regulatory landscape necessary to secure access to clean water, air, and other natural resources.

These equity strategies seek to adhere to the mandates set forth in Executive Order 14091 and build upon the five equity priorities outlined in the Justice Department’s 2022 Equity Action Plan.

As this critical work evolves updates will be posted on www.justice.gov/equity. You can learn more about the Biden-Harris Administration’s equity agenda and related initiatives at www.whitehouse.gov/equity and review all other Federal Equity Action Plans at www.performance.gov/equity.

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