CAL VIP (California Violence Intervention and Prevention)

CAL VIP (California Violence Intervention and Prevention)

The California Violence Intervention and Prevention Program (CalVIP) Grant is an initiative aimed at enhancing public health and safety through support for community-based gun violence reduction efforts in communities that are disproportionately impacted by gun violence. The purpose of the grant is to disrupt cycles of violence and retaliatory actions in order to lower the rates of homicides, shootings, and aggravated assaults in affected communities. CalVIP grants fund a variety of evidence-based programs designed to reduce community gun violence, such as:

  • Hospital-based violence intervention programs
  • Street outreach initiatives, and
  • Focused deterrence strategies.

Key updates to the program came with the signing of Assembly Bill 762 in September 2023. Eligible applicants now include:

  • Cities disproportionately impacted by violence
  • Community-based organizations (CBOs) serving these cities
  • Counties with cities facing significant gun violence issues
  • Tribal governments experiencing violence

Capacity Building in the Field of Community Violence Intervention (CVI)

AB 762 also permits the BSCC to allocate up to 5 percent of CalVIP funds annually to bolster the capacity of community gun violence intervention programs. These resources will be used for the following types of initiatives:

  • Training and certification for frontline gun violence prevention and intervention professionals.
  • Technical assistance to foster the growth of CBOs dedicated to gun violence intervention.
  • Mental health and other supportive services to frontline CVI professionals and their families.
  • Professional development efforts to recruit, retain, and support CVI frontline professionals.

Funding for CalVIP

  • Historically, CalVIP has received $9 million yearly from the General Fund, supplemented occasionally with one-time augmentations.
  • Starting July 1, 2024, the program will benefit from an excise tax on retail sales of firearms and ammunition, established by AB 28 (Gun Violence Prevention and School Safety Act).
  • The first $75 million collected annually (or as much as is available) from this tax will be continuously appropriated to the BSCC for CalVIP, ensuring a dedicated and potentially substantial funding source for violence intervention initiatives.
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