Best Practices for the Use of Text and Chat-Based Technology in Child Maltreatment Reporting, Detection, and Prevention | HHS 2018 ACF ACYF CA 1383

Opportunity Information: Apply for HHS 2018 ACF ACYF CA 1383

The grant opportunity titled "Best Practices for the Use of Text and Chat-Based Technology in Child Maltreatment Reporting, Detection, and Prevention" is a discretionary funding announcement from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), specifically the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within ACYF/Children's Bureau. Its central aim is to fund a single project that strengthens how text messaging and chat platforms can be used to help prevent child maltreatment, detect potential abuse or neglect, share support resources with young people, and support reporting pathways when maltreatment is suspected or disclosed. The work is geared toward real-world hotline and help-seeking environments where youth may be more comfortable reaching out via text or chat than through a phone call, and where the safety, privacy, and credibility of communications are especially sensitive.

The selected grantee is expected to produce practical, widely usable guidance for national hotline-style services. The project must determine best practices and operating protocols for using text and chat in the specific context of child abuse and neglect reporting. That includes setting standards for how digital conversations should be handled from first contact through resolution or referral, how to document and triage information appropriately, and how to manage risk when a disclosure suggests immediate danger. A major emphasis is on establishing protocols that are not merely theoretical, but workable in high-volume, high-stakes support settings where staff and volunteers need clear procedures that can be implemented consistently.

A second required focus is identifying evidence-based and/or evidence-informed strategies for communicating appropriately with youth who may be experiencing maltreatment. This includes developing approaches for age-appropriate, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive digital communication. It also specifically calls for strategies related to identity verification and privacy protection. In practice, this means addressing the challenge of engaging someone who may be afraid to speak openly, may be communicating under the watch of an abuser, or may be reluctant to share identifying information. The project is expected to outline safe ways to confirm and clarify key details without increasing risk, and to recommend privacy protections relevant to text and chat (for example, guidance around data retention, secure platforms, informed consent language, and safety planning tips such as clearing message histories or using safer devices when needed).

A third core deliverable is the development of strategies for successfully sharing resources with youth who may be experiencing maltreatment. This goes beyond providing a list of referrals and instead centers on how to connect young people to help in a way that is realistic and usable. That can include best practices for warm handoffs to local services, methods to tailor resources based on the youth's situation and location, and techniques for offering options when the youth cannot safely accept a phone call, receive mail, or access certain websites. The intent is to improve not only reporting and detection, but also prevention and support by making resource sharing more effective through digital channels.

The FOA makes clear that the resulting protocols and strategies should be broadly disseminated and designed to apply to national hotline environments, not just a single program. It also requires that applicants have the capacity to coordinate with ACF-administered hotlines, specifically referencing the National Domestic Violence Hotline and the National Human Trafficking Hotline. This signals that the work should align with or complement existing national infrastructure and cross-system response efforts, recognizing that child maltreatment concerns often intersect with domestic violence and trafficking risks. Coordination expectations likely include collaboration on standards, interoperability of approaches, and practical alignment with how these hotlines operate.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is a grant (not a contract) with one expected award and an award ceiling of $1,000,000 for a single 24-month project period. The CFDA number listed is 93.670, and the funding activity category is Income Security and Social Services. Eligibility is broad and includes various levels of government, tribal governments and tribal organizations, public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (including small businesses), and other applicants as described in the funding notice. The opportunity was created on July 13, 2018, with an original closing date of August 13, 2018, and electronically submitted applications were due by 11:59 p.m. ET on the due date.

Overall, this FOA is designed to move the field toward consistent, evidence-informed standards for using text and chat to support youth safety in the child maltreatment context. The funded project is expected to produce actionable protocols that address communication quality, verification challenges, privacy and safety risks, and effective resource connection, with an emphasis on national applicability and coordination with existing ACF hotline systems.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families - ACYF/CB in the income security and social services sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Best Practices for the Use of Text and Chat-Based Technology in Child Maltreatment Reporting, Detection, and Prevention" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.670.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 13, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 13, 2018 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 p.m., ET, on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for HHS 2018 ACF ACYF CA 1383

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