ELIGIBILITY TO APPLY CHILDREN S TRUST FUND 2018 REQUEST FOR PROPOPSALS (RFP) FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 1. What types of organizations are eligible to apply? Private non-profit organizations or public institutions of higher education (e.g. colleges and universities) with recognized expertise in fields related to child welfare and may use Children s Trust Fund monies to operate child abuse and neglect prevention and intervention programs. School districts, park and recreation districts, government agencies, and private companies are not eligible to apply. 2. Can previously CTF awarded organizations apply for funding? Also, please note that proposers may submit more than one proposal for different projects under this RFP, but only one project shall be selected per proposing agency. a. If we have two projects in mind, is there a person with whom we can request to review our ideas for initial feedback regarding feasibility or appropriateness? 3. How can we be assured you will have a record of our attendance at the Mandatory Proposers Conference? A list of attendees and contact information will be compiled based on the sign-in sheets attendees were advised to sign at this meeting. a. Will we get a list of attendees for potential collaboration contacts? 4. If the organization has merged in the past year, will you accept an audit for each of the pre-existing organizations instead of one document? Audits for each of the pre-existing organizations will be accepted, as long as the audits are not more than 24 months old. If this is the case, please be sure to note it in the narrative (Proposal Template Exhibit N). 5. Can a group of agencies submit a single application as a collaborative? However, the proposer listed on the Proposal Template Exhibit B must be the lead entity, and this agency will become the contractor if successful. This agency will be required to meet all RFP requirements, such as submitting financial statements and the appropriate insurance. If a contract is awarded, this agency will be responsible for ensuring all collaborators adhere to the terms and conditions of the contract. 6. Must subcontractors submit a proposal, as well? No 7. Can an agency based in another County apply for funds to provide services in Sacramento County? Yes, as long as the youth being served are Sacramento County residents. 8. If an agency is less than 24 months old, and therefore does not have an audited financial statement, can they still apply? To meet the RFP requirements, all proposers must submit an audited or reviewed financial statement completed by a Certified Public Accountant. (RFP Instructions, p. 9)
SERVICE SPECIFICATIONS 9. Is there a number served requirement or a cost per client that you are looking for? 10. Can we address a specific population of youth and their families? Yes, as long as it relates to connecting Transition Age Youth to existing life skills services. FUNDING CRITERIA 11. What is the minimum and maximum award per year, and for a three-year period? There is no minimum award amount; the maximum award per agency per year is $50,000. The maximum award per agency over a three-year period is $150,000. The maximum amount of Children s Trust Funds distributed to contracts each year is $100,000; over a three-year period, the maximum distributed is $300,000. (RFP Instructions, page 5) 12. Is funding restricted to new programs or may funding be used to enhance existing programs? Funding may be used to enhance existing programs. Proposals must address connecting youth to existing life skills services. 13. Please clarify matching funds. Do they have to be in-hand, or can they be pledged or show a plan for obtaining? What is the minimum required fiscal match? A ten percent (10%) match is required and must be shown on the budget worksheets. The match can be in-hand or in-kind. In-kind match funds, goods, or professional services should be valued at fair market value, directly related to the purposes of the proposed program, and be appropriate for the situation and context for which it will be used. 1 State of California funds may not be used to provide the match. a. Can audit costs be included as indirect or match costs? b. Do we match funds each year? c. We would like to use the entire 10% match of the project to pay our project s subcontract, rather than paying 10% of each line item. Is that acceptable? An agency need not pay a 10% match for each line item, as long as the match is included in the total project cost. For example, if the CTF-funded portion of the project is $50,000, the total project match is $5,000; it would be acceptable to use that amount to pay for one line item. The agency may use the 10% match to pay for a subcontract and CTF-funds to pay for the remaining items in the budget. This must be clearly shown on the budget worksheets and narrative, if this is the intent. 14. Are indirect costs allowed in this RFP? If so, what is the maximum allowance? Indirect costs should not exceed 5% of the total annual budget. All other indirect expenses must be itemized under operating expenses. a. Is the indirect cost 5% of the project s budget or agency s budget? Project s budget. 1 Brenner, J. (2013, August). Gifts in kind: what are they worth? How to avoid the pitfalls of GIK valuation. Journal of Accountancy, Vol. 216 Issue 2, p. 44-48. Retrieved from https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/issues/2013/aug/20137726.html
15. Can insurance costs be written in the budget? a. Would that be considered an indirect cost and part of the 5%? Not if you itemize. 16. Would we be able to raise additional funding? Yes, however funds from this grant can not be used for fundraising purposes. PROPOSAL CONTENT REQUIREMENTS 17. Exhibit B (Intent to Meet RFP Requirements): a. The form states: Attach copies of all professional licenses or certificates required by the nature of the contract work to be performed. The project we are proposing is unrelated to the services for which we hold licenses and certificates. Should we still submit all of our licenses and certificates? No, provide only the licenses or certificates that would be appropriate for the proposal being submitted. 18. Exhibit C (Work Plan): a. If the work plan is the same from year to year, can I just submit one work plan? Exhibit C states: Submit three work plans, one for each year of funding. b. If the proposed service level stays the same each year during the projected 3- year life of the grant, do I show [in the objectives] the 3-year total or should the objectives be annualized for just one year? Since a work plan for each year of funding is required, the objectives should be annualized for one year. c. Must we list every activity that will occur, such as youth will have healthy snacks? Please list all activities to be funded by this contract. Activities must address connecting youth to existing life skills services. d. The instructions state that a beginning and ending time must be specified for activities, for example, 7/1/18-9/30/18. The sample work plan gives timeframes that read: 9/30/18-ongoing. Can we use "ongoing" as a definitive timeframe where applicable? Yes, in certain cases "ongoing" is an acceptable timeframe for the work plan. For instance, one activity might be to develop outreach materials; this activity would probably have a definitive timeframe (7/1/18-9/30/18). Another activity might be to provide case management to program participants over the course the project; in this instance, an "ongoing" timeframe would be considered appropriate. 19. Exhibit D (Budget): a. Would we provide the budget for the project/program we are requesting funding for, or for the whole organization? The budget is for the specific project you are proposing, not for the organization, so please be sure to itemize all the expenses associated with the project. b. We are submitting a proposal to expand upon a program our organization already provides. If awarded, the funds will only be used for the expanded part of the program, not for the part already in place. Do we submit a budget for the expansion or for the entire program? Submit a budget only for the expansion of the project, not the entire project budget.
c. How detailed do you want the budget narratives to be? Budget narratives should be explicit and concise, but should sufficiently describe and justify all expenses listed in budget, as well as address a plan for sustainability. 20. Exhibit E (Memorandum of Understanding): a. Can an agency work with another County agency to receive referrals? Yes, and be sure to submit an MOU as proof of this collaboration. 21. Exhibit F (Letters of Support): a. Would a school district or school site be considered a community organization for the purpose of receiving a letter of support? 22. Exhibits G & H (Good Neighbor Policy): a. What information should be included in the proposal to show an applicant will comply with the GNP? Should a description be included in the narrative? In the narrative section of Exhibit G, proposers must address whether or not the GNP applies to the proposed program, and if so, how the contractor will meet the requirements indicated in Provisions A-L of the GNP. b. Who in our organization should sign Exhibit H? As with every executed document in the proposal, the Statement of Compliance with GNP must be signed by a person with both the authority to sign the proposal and to commit the agency, company, corporation, or group. c. Exhibit H, section (b) states, Contractor shall post the name and telephone number of such contact person on the outside of the facility. What if we provide a telephone number on the outside of our building, but omit a name because of serious safety issues surrounding exposing someone s identity? The sign should be posted outside where the public can see it. Additionally, a pseudo name can be used for security purposes on the sign as long as whoever is responsible for responding to complaints does so in a timely manner. If the contactor is slow to respond, the complainant may contact the County, and this would be grounds for terminating the contract. A position title can also be used, instead of a name. If the program operates at multiple sites, each site must post a sign and the same person can act as the contact across the sites. 23. Exhibit I (Certification of Insurance): a. We typically use non-employee individuals to provide services. They are paid as independent contractors (we file 1099s for them). We do not hire them through a business. Do we need to conform to the County s insurance requirements for contractors, or are they adequately covered under our general liability insurance? The county contract specifies that contractor is responsible for the actions of employees and/or subcontractors; and as the contractor to the County, it will need to have its own general liability, automobile liability, and Workers Compensation insurance (if there are employees). The Contractor s sub-contractors should have the same or similar insurance as the Contractor to protect the Contractor s interests (if they don t, the burden of a sub-contractor s losses or adverse actions falls to the Contractor). In most, but not all cases, the Contractor makes the decision on how much and what type of insurance a sub-contractor is required to carry, usually based on how much the County requires.
24. Exhibit K (Articles of Incorporation): a. Are the Articles of Incorporation different from the agency s Board of Directors Resolution? Articles of Incorporation are filed with the California Secretary of State to legally create a corporation. A Board of Directors Resolution provides authorization from the agency s governing board to enter into a contract with the County of Sacramento. 25. Exhibit M (Board of Directors Resolution): a. Do we have to use the Exhibit M form and does the Secretary have to sign the Resolution? Exhibit M is an example of a Board of Directors Resolution required as part of this RFP. The agency should submit a resolution from its board in whatever format they usually use, but it must indicate who is authorized to execute a contract with County of Sacramento, and who is authorized to submit the claims. The agency should follow its own protocol regarding who signs for the secretary if he or she is unavailable. b. What if we are not having a Board meeting prior to the date the proposal is due to obtain a Board Resolution? Schedule an emergency Board meeting. 26. Exhibit N (Financial Statement and Accounting System Narrative): a. Do we provide a description of accounting and record keeping systems for the entire agency or just for the program we are proposing (Exhibit N)? Proposers must describe the accounting and record keeping systems for the entire agency. ADMINISTRATIVE RULES & REQUIREMENTS 27. Who signs the required documents: the Board Chair, the Project Director, or the Executive Director? All required documents must be signed by the person the agency s Board of Directors has authorized to sign execute contracts (indicated by a Board of Directors Resolution). Also, all signatures must be original in BLUE ink. 28. Will we get a CD or Disc of all the required materials? All materials can be accessed and downloaded from http://www.dcfas.saccounty.net /Pages/Contractor-Bidding-Opportunities.aspx and http://www.dcfas.saccounty.net/admin/ childrenscoalition/pages/childrenscoalition_home.aspx. Contact Abigail Nosce, noscea@saccounty.net, if problems with downloading documents are experienced. 29. Will scores/comments be given to an agency who is disqualified? Yes, disqualification rationale will be provided. 30. Who do we negotiate a contract with should the proposal be awarded? Sacramento County, Department of Child, Family, and Adult Services, along with the Children s Trust Fund committee.