GUIDELINES AND BID INSTRUCTIONS

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

Advancing Forest Markets

Bid (Application) Due Date: 2:00 pm ET on Wednesday, August 5, 2026

NYS SFS Grants Management Bid Event IDs:

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program: (BID Event # TND 26)

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO): (BID Event # GRO 26)

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR): (BID Event # TMBR 26)

Apply through the SFS Vendor Portal https://esupplier.sfs.ny.gov/psc/fscm/SUPPLIER/ERP/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL?&

Timetable of Key Events:

Open Bid (Application) Period Begins Friday, April 24, 2026 Webinar 1:00 pm Tuesday, May 5, 2026 Biweekly Office Hours Wednesdays through July 29, 2026 Question & Answer Period Ends 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, July 29, 2026 Bids (Applications) Due 2:00 p.m. Wednesday, August 5, 2026 Awards Announced By (anticipated) October 2026

To register for the webinar:

Webinar topic: Advancing Forest Markets Grant Program Date and time: Tuesday, May 5, 2026

1:00 PM | (UTC-04:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)

Register link:

https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r96e8913a86ff60a60a8197c0de88984c

Join by phone +1-929-251-9612 United States Toll (New York City) +1-415-527-5035 United States Toll

Access code: 2831 153 4965

Webinar password: Welcome1 (93526631 when dialing from a phone or video system)

Bi-weekly Office hours:

To submit questions and register for bi-weekly office hours, click the corresponding link:

10:00 am Wednesday, May 20, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r864bfca99819140873a59cb6cfa6aaca

11:00 am Wednesday, June 3, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r5d8ff0cd8e05f59e587dbbf71e3317b3

12:00 pm Wednesday, June 17, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rbaa89317debaf789e89e95004773d752

10:00 am Wednesday, July 1, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rfd69096d44fec03387227a48a73db31a

11:00 am Wednesday, July 15, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r020ffab495a0fea05120851a61a66a92

12:00 pm Wednesday July 29, 2026 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rdfd8f4dff62b26114659040791726411 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r96e8913a86ff60a60a8197c0de88984c https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r864bfca99819140873a59cb6cfa6aaca https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r864bfca99819140873a59cb6cfa6aaca https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r5d8ff0cd8e05f59e587dbbf71e3317b3 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r5d8ff0cd8e05f59e587dbbf71e3317b3 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rbaa89317debaf789e89e95004773d752 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rbaa89317debaf789e89e95004773d752 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rfd69096d44fec03387227a48a73db31a https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/rfd69096d44fec03387227a48a73db31a https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r020ffab495a0fea05120851a61a66a92 https://meetny-gov.webex.com/weblink/register/r020ffab495a0fea05120851a61a66a92

Table of Contents

1. Grant Information

2. Bid Types

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO)

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR)

3. Inquiries & Designated Contact Information

4. Bid Submission

5. Bid Evaluation, Scoring and Selection

6. Method of Award

7. Bid Evaluation and Scoring Standards

Step 1: Bid and Project Eligibility Determination

Step 2: Project Evaluation, Scoring and Selection

A. Project-Specific Criteria

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program (Maximum 60 points)

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (Maximum 60 points)

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (Maximum 60 points)

B. Workplan and Cost Effective Criteria

All Opportunities – Workplan and Cost Effectiveness (Maximum 40 points)

8. Grant Program Payment

9. Grant Opportunity General Information and Conditions

a. Work Plan

b. Debriefing Request

c. Protest Procedure

d. Department of Environmental Conservation Oversight

e. Sexual Harassment Prevention Certification

f. Executive Order 16

g. Attachment G: Gender-Based Violence and the Workplace Certification

h. Alignment with Regional Economic Development Council Priorities

i. Federal Requirements

j. Data Protection and Disclosure

10. Grant Program Reporting

11. What to Expect If You Receive an Award

a. Notification of Award

b. State of New York Contract for Grants

I. Insurance Requirements

II. Permit Requirements (if applicable)

III. State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) Documentation

c. Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire

d. Iran Divestment Act

e. Minority and Women Business Enterprise (MWBE) and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Requirements

f. Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB) Participation Requirements

g. Procurement of Contractors/Subcontractors

h. Americans With Disabilities Act

i. Signage

j. Diesel Emissions Reduction Act 2006

Appendix 1 – Application Checklists

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program (TND)

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO)

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR)

Appendix 2 – Tree Discount Program List of Desired Tree Species

Appendix 3 – Growing Reforestation Opportunities example activities, metrics, and performance documentation

Appendix 4 – Tree and Market Boost & Revitalization Program example activities, metrics, and performance documentation

Appendix 5 – Example of filled in 25 Million Tree Discount Program Bid Worksheet

Appendix 6 – Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO) Sample Work Plan, Timeline, and Objectives Worksheet

Appendix 7 – Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO) Example Project Strategy Worksheet

Appendix 8 – Tree Market Boost & Revitalization (TMBR) Program Sample Work Plan, Timeline, & Objectives Worksheet

Appendix 9 – Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR) Program Example Project Strategy Worksheet Example

Appendix 10 – Bidder advisory of Federal Terms and Conditions

1. Grant Information The Department of Environmental Conservation (”the Department”) Division of Lands and Forests is pleased to announce the first round of the Advancing Forest Markets Grant Program, which provides market incentives and enhances capacity across the forest supply chain in New York.

Up to $46.2 million in market incentives are available through opportunities in this grant program for a wide variety of producers who can or already have registered with the Farm Service Agency.

Applicants (bidders) are encouraged to apply to one of three Bid Types below:

1. 25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program (TND) Incentivizes nurseries to offer significantly discounted quality trees sold at retail. In addition to payment for participation in the program, the Department will reimburse part of the cost of each tree sold.

2. Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO) Incentivizes nursery growers, seed collection networks, and other entities to invest in expanded or new production capacity. This includes funding for new entities who are not currently set up for this production that want to get established (i.e. new tree nurseries).

In addition to payment for participation in the program, growers will receive incentive payments to quantifiably scale up their production targets.

3. Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR) Incentivizes forest landowners and other landowners working to establish forests and expand tree and forest-based markets and market capacity in New York State, including but not limited to forestry implementation businesses focused on reforestation and forest management, timber and low grade markets, and forest product production. This includes funding for new entities who are not currently set up for this production that want to get established. In addition to payment for participation in the program, growers will receive incentive payments to quantifiably scale up their production targets.

These opportunities are available to a wide range of bidders including, but not limited to: public agencies, municipalities, quasi-government agencies (e.g., Soil and Water Conservation District, Industrial Development Agency, Water Authority), Indian Nation or Tribe recognized by the state or the United States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of New York State, or any combination thereof, for-profit and not-for-profit private organizations and businesses, and private individuals. All bidders must be able to register or have a registered Farm ID number with the United States Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA) within New York State.

Applicants will use the Statewide Financial System (SFS) to fill out an application for any of the funding opportunities. The grant applicant is considered the "Bidder" in SFS and will submit the application ("Bid") for grant funding. They will assume the responsibility for performing work consistent with this RFA and the State of New York Contract for Grants, and to execute the https://www.farmers.gov/working-with-us/USDA-service-centers#find-service contract. All payments from the Department will be issued directly to the Bidder. The Bidder will be responsible for direct implementation, or acquiring assistance with; SFS contract administration activity, project management and implementation, progress reporting, and completion of grant contract deliverables.

A) Funding Up to $46.2 million is available for the Advancing Forest Markets (AFM) Grant Program.

Funding for this grant opportunity is supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under agreement number NR233A750004G035. Should additional funding become available, the Department may make additional awards to fund bids received in this grant round.

The Department anticipates this funding to be allocated equally between the three opportunity categories; however, the Department reserves the right to re-distribute these funds as they meet program priorities prior to award. At least $4 million will be awarded within each category.

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program (TND): Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 (minimum) to $12 million (maximum). Within this program category, up to $400,000 is available for small projects ($100,000-$199,000) and up to $2 million is available for medium projects ($200,000-$1,999,999).

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO): Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 (minimum) to $12 million (maximum). Within this program category, up to $400,000 is available for small projects ($100,000-$199,000) and up to $2 million is available for medium projects ($200,000-$1,999,999).

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR): Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 (minimum) to $12 million (maximum). Within this program category, up to $400,000 is available for small projects ($100,000-$199,000) and up to $2 million is available for medium projects ($200,000-$1,999,999).

B) Proposed Project Timeframes All costs and deliverables accounted in performance measures must be completed prior to January 15th, 2028. Costs outside of the contract period/term are ineligible. The NYS Contract for Grants must be fully approved by the Department, and if applicable approved by the Attorney General and the State Comptroller. Time extensions beyond the contract term end date, may be allowed and will be determined by the Department prior to the contract end date, upon written justification from the Grantee and provided that the Federal award is extended. Bidders should not submit an application if they do not anticipate their proposals can be completed prior to January 15th, 2028. However, performance measures should be structured on a unit basis in order to measure partial completion and enable potential contract extension.

C) Farm Service Agency Farm Records All bidders must establish farm records with the federal Farm Service Agency for lands within New York State to be eligible to receive incentive payments. These records may be established prior to application, or after award but before contract execution. Bidders should confirm their ability to establish farm records with the Farm Service agency before they submit an application for this opportunity. As part of this process, producers must have or establish Farm Records with the Farm Service Agency (establish farm, tract, and fields numbers). As part of this process, producers will likely be asked to:

1. Complete an AD-2047 (Customer Data Worksheet to facilitate the collection of customer data for Business Partner Record);

2. Complete a CCC-901 (Farm Operating Plan for Payment Eligibility 2009 and Subsequent Program Years; entities only);

3. Certify HELC and WC compliance via Form AD-1026, Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) Certification; and

4. Certify that they are not a foreign person or entity.

Additional forms, signatures, and information may be required by the bidder or awardees from FSA or the Department prior to contract execution and payments. Find your service center here: https://www.farmers.gov/working-with-us/USDA-service-centers#find-service

D) Bid (Application) Limit Bidders may submit no more than one application per bid type, but can submit an application to each and any bid type they are interested in.

E) Match Requirement There is no match requirement for this opportunity.

F) Geographic Requirements Bidders must be registered with the Farm Service Agency and have a registered Farm ID located within New York State. All costs and deliverables must solely include and target markets, producers, and activities within New York State. No activities or markets funded by this grant can take place, originate, or target producers outside of New York State.

All activities connected to the incentive payment must occur fully within New York State.

This applies to networks and conglomerate organizations as well: all work must be exclusive to New York State. However, projects funded by these incentive payments is not exclusive to the FSA registered lands owned by the producer.

G) Payment Incentive Grant Structure For this opportunity, grantees will receive an initial enrollment incentive, and additional quarterly performance-based payments contingent on successful achievement of proposed performance measures. Incentive payments will be issued as follows:

Enrollment Incentive Payment #1 will be issued following execution of the State of New York Contract for Grants and the approval of the preliminary review package, including submittal of Farm and Tract IDs following enrollment with the USDA Farm Service Agency and submittal of a final workplan and increased performance measures for the project that incorporate Department feedback. Bidders selected to receive an award must submit the Preliminary Review Package within one (1) month of Department approval of the funding agreement to move to the next payment phase.

All grantees who reach an executed contract with the Department will receive an enrollment incentive, associated with registering for a Farm ID number at their local FSA office and submitting all required documents necessary for executing a contract with the Department. This enrollment incentive will be based on the total proposed project cost (incentive payments # 2-5) as follows:

Total proposed project cost

Enrollment Incentive

$50,000-$99,999

$2,000

$100,000-$249,999

$5,000

>$249,999

$10,000

Incentive Payments # 2-5 will be issued after the Department has reviewed and approved the quarterly progress reports and documentation of progress. Performance payments will be based on the following:

• 25 Million Tree Discount Program: The Department will pay the difference on the discount provided to retail customers, per tree, up to 75%. An additional 7.5% incentive of the reimbursed costs is also provided. Payment estimates will be submitted on the Bid Sheet Template, as found in Appendix 5.

For example, a 70% discount is provided to customers off the retail price ($6) for bareroot hardwood species. The bidder will be reimbursed for the difference ($4.20) between the retail price and the discounted price ($1.80) of each tree sold to customers, plus an additional incentive worth 7.5% of the amount that the Department reimburses for trees. In this scenario, 56,000 seedlings, normally sold at retail for $6 per unit but sold at $1.80 to customers as part of the program, would result in a $235,200 reimbursement by the Department. An ancillary 7.5% of that reimbursement amount ($17,640) would also be paid to the nursery by the Department, resulting in a total of $252,840 paid by the Department to the nursery by the end of the contract.

Before payments are issued, grantees will need to provide sales numbers and accounting receipts to the Department for review.

• Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO) and the Tree Market Boost &

Revitalization Program (TMBR): Performance payments for the Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO) and Tree Market Boost & Revitalization (TMBR) programs will be based on proposed performance measures and cost estimates bidders submit as part of their bid. These performance measures must lead to an increase in production and market-related metrics compared to their baseline operations as a result of the grant (e.g. an increase in bushels of seeds collected, number of seedlings sold, pounds of maple syrup collected, number of people engaged, capacity for wood processing or harvesting, number of trees able to be planted, ability to produce a new product or reach a new market; see Appendices 3 and 4 for more examples).

In accordance with the State of New York Contract for Grants, Attachment D – Payment and Reporting, Milestone/Performance Reimbursement is based upon the grantee satisfactorily meeting specified and meaningful events or milestones in performance of duties under the grant contract. Requests for such payments must be severable or cumulative. A severable event/milestone is independent of accomplishment of any other event. If the event is cumulative, the successful completion of an event or milestone is dependent on the previous completion of another event. Using incremental units of completion wherever possible makes smaller increments of performance severable to be paid individually rather than as a cumulative amount.

To meet the proposed performance measures, bidders may need to use funding to hire staff or contractors, purchase supplies, or invest other capital in their operations.

Bidders will need to submit estimates of these expenditures through the Project Strategy Worksheet (examples provided in Appendices 7 and 9) and a narrative workplan (examples provided in Appendices 6 and 8) that describes the bidder’s plan to reach the increased performance measures to apply for this opportunity. Activities, outputs and performance measures listed as a part of the Project Strategy Worksheet and included in the Work Plan may not include details related to equipment, infrastructure, or direct implementation practices that alter vegetation or soils (ex: tree planting, vegetation management, fence installation, or forest stand improvement).

However, bidders may increase their capacity for implementation (ex: invest in staffing or increase speed or efficiency of operations) and bidders may need to make capital investments in their operations to reach their proposed increased performance measures – and “capital investments” may be listed as a task in their Project Strategy Worksheet and Work Plans (Appendices 6-9). Additional examples of activities, metrics, and documentation that may be proposed through these programs can be found in Appendices 3 and 4. These lists are meant to serve as examples only and do not serve as a comprehensive list of allowable activities, metrics, or documentation.

The payments offered within this RFA are not typical reimbursements: in order to receive payment, instead of submitting receipts for salaries, supplies, equipment, and other costs to be reimbursed, grantees will submit documentation that demonstrates that the proposed performance measure(s) included in their Work Plan and Project Strategy Worksheet have been achieved. Examples of this documentation depend on each proposal and may include submittals like:

• payroll/timesheet information, if the performance measure was to increase staff

• sales numbers/accounting receipts, if the performance measure was to increase sales

• meeting attendance numbers, if the performance measure was to increase networking/outreach

• catalogue and other availability or monitoring/tracking information, if the performance measure was to increase production

• see Appendices 3 and 4 for more examples.

For all programs, award of interim Incentive Payments 2-5 are contingent on demonstrated progress toward achieving the increased performance measures identified in the application and workplan. Within this application, cost estimates included in the Bid Sheet Templates or Project Strategy Worksheet should be tied to project objectives, however only the total bid amount should be entered into SFS. The Department will work with awardees to update the submitted Bid Sheet Templates or Project Strategy Worksheet and SFS with anticipated quarterly payment amounts prior to contract award. For those increased performance measures that have an associated per-unit metric (ex: percent increase or increase in the number of trees, workshops, participants, acres capacity), as applicable, partial payments will be made for each unit that was met. In the event that Awardees do not meet the agreed upon increased performance measure metric at the end of each quarter and at the end of the grant period, the grantee will not be provided with the full payment.

For example, if the incentive payments for a performance measure totaled $100,000 for a 100% increase in seedling sales, and the grantee only increased seedling sales by 50% by the end of the quarter or grant period, only $50,000 worth of payments would be awarded.

Grantees also cannot out-earn whatever they request: so if, in the same scenario, the grantee increases seedling sales by 150%, they still will only receive the total incentive payment they requested for that performance measure ($100,000).

H) Department Site Visit As needed, bidders must allow Department staff to visit the project location to review the project and/or confirm increased performance measure deliverables have been completed.

2. Bid Types

This bid type establishes a tree discount program, facilitating commerce for New York State nursery growers and increasing the availability and accessibility of high-quality, New York-grown tree stock to customers across the state. The goal of this grant program is to increase market demand for and sales of native trees to support New York’s 25 Million Trees Initiative.

Participating growers will be able to offer significantly discounted prices to their retail customers on high-quality trees and receive an additional capital incentive to invest in scaling up their operations.

This program reimburses nurseries for discounts of up to 75% off of the retail price of each native tree sold of any size, including but not limited to tubeling, bareroot, containerized, grow bag, and balled and burlap sold (at discounted price) to customers through the 25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program. In addition, nurseries will receive an incentive payment for each tree sold at a discount through this program that equals 7.5% of their total retail value, coupled with the initial enrollment incentive payment. Payments are contingent on achievement of agreed-upon increased performance measures and are issued quarterly.

Reimbursement will only be provided for trees sold at the discounted prices proposed within a submitted application. Award of this grant does not guarantee that the numbers of trees included within an application will be sold.

25 Million Trees Nursery Discount Program

A) Discount Program Eligible Bidders For the purposes of this grant program, any individual, municipality, Indian Nation or Tribe recognized by the state or the United States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of New York State, or any combination thereof, quasi-governmental entity, authority and public benefit corporation, for-profit, or not-for-profit entity that grows and sells native trees who can register or has a registered Farm ID number with the United States Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA) is eligible to bid on these opportunities*. FSA Farm ID numbers will be required after the grant is awarded prior to the establishment of a contract with the Department.

B) Discount Program Minimum and Maximum Award Amounts Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 to $12 million. Small projects include those from $100,000 to $199,999, and medium projects include those from $200,000 to $1,999,999.

C) Discount Program Requirements

All trees being sold through the 25 Million Tree Discount Program must meet the following requirements:

• Classified as native tree species per the New York Flora Atlas, or be considered a native tree species in a neighboring northeast or mid-Atlantic stateSourced from an appropriate seed provenance to the locations they are being sold

• Viable, high-quality plant materials and conform to established seed transfer protocols within the State and minimum standards accepted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The Department reserves the right to inspect trees being sold at a discounted price to ensure these standards are being met.

• Cut Christmas trees are not eligible for the payments offered through this program

• All trees sold must be via retail to customers within New York State, not to other nurseries or other non-retail sales.

• Each tree sold must include a Tree Tracker Tag (4 x 7" postcards with a QR code) to inform purchasers of the opportunity to record the trees planted in the 25 Million Trees Tree Tracker. The Department will provide awardees with a printable PDF of Tree Tracker Tags to distribute with trees sold.

• Tree cultivars and nativars will not be reimbursed by this program.

• Shrub species are not eligible for payments through the 25 Million Trees Nursery

Discount Program.

Bidders must articulate how all trees sold will be counted toward the 25 Million Trees Initiative, either by manually reporting trees sold into the Department’s Tree Tracker or meaningfully assisting the customer to self-report trees purchased through the program (i.e. providing them a card with a QR code on it). Bidders must allow Department staff to visit the project location to review the project and confirm increased performance measure deliverables have been completed.

https://newyork.plantatlas.usf.edu/

D) Discount Program Cost Estimation For this bid type, bidders will be reimbursed for the average cost of hardwood and softwood trees of various sizes, stocks, and quantities for viable, high-quality plant materials that conform to the requirements above. The Bidder will provide the anticipated discount price that will be offered to customers as a result of this bid award, as well as the maximum anticipated quantities to be sold (keeping in mind that participation in the program will likely include the Spring 2027 and Fall 2027 growing seasons) as a result of the discount program. The Department’s understanding is that retail and discount prices to be reimbursed through this program cover any costs needed for the production of the tree, such as seed collection, irrigation, and other associated costs. Additional costs beyond the price per tree retail and discount prices listed for this program will not be covered by the Department. The Bid Sheet Template in Appendix 5 guides bidders on demonstrating the information required to apply.

E) Discount Program Required Application Submittals As part of the application through SFS, Bidders must provide:

their most recent catalog of product offerings as proof of current retail prices at least one, and up to three signed letters of recommendation or support on official letterhead including:

o Writer’s name(s), titles, addresses, telephone numbers o A brief statement detailing the work completed for the reference o Other information such as timeliness, responsiveness, ability to meet contract terms, appropriate skills to conduct tasks, and whether the performance was satisfactory will be assessed.

a description of how the enrollment incentive, the additional incentive of 7.5% of total sales, combined with the cost savings associated with being reimbursed by the Department will be leveraged to expand capacity.

A completed Bid Sheet Template, as found in Appendix 5, which guides bidders on demonstrating the information required to apply.

Completed Sexual Harassment Prevention Certificate Completed Executive Order No. 16 Certification Completed Gender-Based Violence in the Workplace Certification

F) Discount Program Scoring

In addition to cost effectiveness and workplan development, the majority of points for scoring will be focused on submittal of a clear and sound project description and marketing plan, and the anticipated impact of the project (# trees sold and strategy). In addition, a greater number and diversity of native trees being sold at a discounted price will receive additional points towards scoring. See Appendix 2 for a starting point of desired tree species to offer as part of the program.

Growing Reforestation Opportunities (GRO)

The Growing Reforestation Opportunity (GRO) provides market incentive payments for nursery growers, seed collection networks, and other entities to invest in expanding their production capacity. The goal of this grant program is to increase market capacity for the production of native tree seeds, seedlings, and saplings to meet anticipated market demand and stability in New York State.

In addition to an enrollment incentive for program participation, participants will receive incremental incentive payments to scale up their production and marketing targets. Bidders will articulate a comprehensive project focused on scaling up their capacity to catalyze market production of native tree seeds, seedlings, and trees to meet current and future anticipated market demand in New York State.

Production refers to whatever the market output of the Bidder is; seeds propagated, trees grown, or seeds stored, as well as producers connected via network/community of practice development, producers attending workshops, or jobs created as a result of network development.

A) GRO Eligible Bidders For the purposes of this grant program, any individual, state agency, municipality, quasi-governmental entity, authority and public benefit corporation, Indian Nation or Tribe recognized by the state or the United States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of New York State, or any combination thereof, for-profit, or not-for-profit entity that specializes in the collection, processing, germination, storage, propagation, and/or growing of trees and those that support this supply chain through associated market, workforce, and network development in New York State who can register or have a registered Farm ID number with the United States Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA) is eligible to bid on these opportunities*. FSA Farm ID numbers will be required after the grant is awarded prior to the establishment of a contract with the Department.

Startups/new entities and/or existing entities that want to expand their operations into the reforestation market or supply chain are also eligible for this program. This includes entities looking to establish a new nursery, network, or other eligible operations. These bidders must demonstrate that they have had a conversation with FSA to confirm they will be eligible to receive an FSA Farm ID and must submit a business plan outlining goals, strategies, operations, and financial forecasts to guide management and growth demonstrating long-term viability. Bidders applying as individuals must have an active business license or meet the criteria for new operations or businesses outlined above.

*Projects supporting Christmas tree farm and orchard supply chains, markets, and other related activities are not eligible for this opportunity.

B) GRO Minimum and Maximum Award Amounts Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 to $12 million. Small projects include those from $100,000 to $199,999, and medium projects include those from $200,000 to $1,999,999.

C) GRO Program Requirements

• Bids must lead to an increase in total production output of native tree seeds, seedlings, saplings, and/or otherwise boost these reforestation production markets in New York State.

• All species being targeted, produced and/or are involved in or related capacity building must meet the following requirements:

o Be classified as native tree species per the New York Flora Atlas, or be considered a native tree species in a neighboring northeast or mid-Atlantic state o Trees sold or targeted for capacity building must be sourced from an appropriate seed provenance to the locations they are being sold o Tree cultivars and nativars will not be reimbursed by this program.

o Performance measures that target shrub species are not eligible for payment o All trees sold or targeted for capacity building must be viable, high-quality plant materials and conform to established seed transfer protocols within the State and minimum standards accepted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The Department reserves the right to inspect trees being sold at a discounted price to ensure these standards are being met.

• If applicable to the project, the Department will provide awardees with a printable PDF of Tree Tracker Tags to distribute with trees sold. Tags (4 x 7" postcards with a QR code on them) upon contract execution. The Department encourages that Bidders hand out a Tree Tracker Tag with each purchase of trees for purchasers to record the trees planted in the 25 Million Trees Tree Tracker. Seed collectors and similar organizations are encouraged to provide their buyers with information on the 25 Million Trees Initiative, to encourage recording of the planted trees that their seeds grow into down the line.

D) GRO Types of Projects

Types of projects anticipated to be incentivized by this program may include, but are not limited to:

• Projects that invest in operations to increase direct production, capacity for production, processing or implementation speed, and/or development of new products or markets, such as efforts to directly increase the collection and storage of seed and production of trees for sale or distribution

• Facilitation, development and maintenance of seed collection and/or tree production networks,

• Market development,

• Product marketing and outreach,

• Creation and dissemination of educational programming, trainings and workforce development programs, and associated materials,

• Certifications,

• Development, procurement, or expansion of standardized collection and/or banking protocols,

• Technology capacity, software, data, licenses, or other resources necessary to catalyze market production and supply chain development and coordination, https://newyork.plantatlas.usf.edu/ including, but not limited to programs and databases that connect reforestation suppliers to practitioners or assist in tracking plant material sourcing

E) GRO Required Application Submittals their most senior employee’s resume, to help demonstrate organizational capacity their most recent fiscal year’s operating budget for bidders who are individuals: proof of an active related business license, that they an industrial landowner, or a business plan startups/new entities and/or existing entities that want to expand their operations: business plan at least one, and up to three signed letters of recommendation or support on official letterhead including:

o Writer’s name(s), titles, addresses, telephone numbers o A brief statement detailing the work completed for the reference o Other information such as timeliness, responsiveness, ability to meet contract terms, appropriate skills to conduct tasks, and whether the performance was satisfactory will be assessed.

a narrative on the plan for increasing capacity, including a description of what capacity will be targeted for expansion, targeted species for production, collection, or other efforts, current baseline status and metrics, and anticipated metric increase beyond the baseline. For example, a project with the goal of increased seed production may include descriptions of current baseline collections like the number of seeds currently collected, staff currently involved and current seed collection zones by species, and anticipated increase in collection, seed zones, and staffing. The narrative must also describe how the incentive payments will be spent to help increase capacity and better meet market needs and stability.

a completed Project Strategy Worksheet, as found in Appendix 7, which guides bidders in providing estimates costs and calculating requested incentive payment amounts.

a plan of operation, maintenance needs, and costs estimated to continue the project for the following five years after the award of all incentive payments.

Completed Sexual Harassment Prevention Certificate

F) GRO Scoring

The majority of points for scoring will be focused around the submittal of a clear and sound project description, the extent of the expansion being proposed beyond the current baseline, and the industry need for the proposed project.

Provides market incentive payments for forest and other landowners working to expand tree and forest-based markets and market capacity in New York State, including but not limited to reforestation capacity, timber and low grade markets, and forest product production. This program provides incentive payments to scale up production targets and for participating in the program.

Tree Market Boost & Revitalization Program (TMBR)

A) TMBR Eligible Bidders For the purposes of this grant program, any individual, state agency, municipality, Indian Nation or Tribe recognized by the state or the United States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of New York State, or any combination thereof, quasi-governmental entity, authority and public benefit corporation, for-profit, or not-for-profit entity that owns forest land (at least 1 acre and 120 ft wide, with 10% tree cover (or potential), including regenerating areas, roads, and clearings within forests, where trees reach maturity (e.g., 3+ inches DBH, 16.4 ft tall) that allow harvesting or land that has the potential to become forest in New York State, who can register or have a registered Farm ID number with the United States Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA). FSA Farm ID numbers will be required after the grant is awarded, and prior to the establishment of a contract with the Department.

Startups/new entities that are working to expand their operations into tree and forest-based markets and market capacity are eligible for this program. These bidders must demonstrate that they have had a conversation with FSA to confirm their eligibility to receive an FSA Farm ID and must submit a business plan outlining goals, strategies, operations, and financial forecasts to guide management and growth demonstrating long-term viability. Bidders applying as individuals who are proposing to use payments to increase their operation’s capacity outside of property planning or certification must have an active business license or meet the criteria for new operations or businesses outlined above.

*Christmas tree farms and orchards are not eligible for this opportunity.

B) TMBR Minimum and Maximum Award Amounts Bidders may apply for projects between $100,000 to $12 million. Small projects include those from $100,000 to $199,999, and medium projects include those from $200,000 to $1,999,999.

C) TMBR Program Requirements

• Bids must lead to an increase in total production output and/or capacity for tree- and forest-based markets in New York State, including but not limited to those related to reforestation capacity, timber and low grade markets, and forest product production.

• If applicable to the project, the Department will provide awardees h with a printable PDF of Tree Tracker Tags to distribute with trees sold (4 x 7" postcards with a QR code on them) upon contract execution. The Department encourages that Bidders hand out a Tree Tracker Tag with each purchase of trees for purchasers to record the trees planted in the 25 Million Trees Tree Tracker. Seed collectors and similar organizations are encouraged to provide their buyers with information on the 25 Million Trees Initiative, to encourage recording of the planted trees that their seeds grow into down the line.

• Bidders must allow the Department staff to visit the project location to review the project and confirm increased performance measure deliverables have been completed.

D) TMBR Types of Projects Types of projects anticipated to be incentivized by this program may include, but are not limited to:

• Planning efforts including, but not limited to: establishing property boundaries;

timber inventory, appraisal, marking, and sale contract development; forest management and silvicultural practice plans; estate and forest legacy planning; timber harvest prescription plans,

• Facilitation, development and maintenance of tree and forest-based production networks,

• Market development,

• Product marketing and outreach,

• Attendance, creation and dissemination of educational programming, trainings, workshops, and workforce development programs, and associated materials,

• Certifications to expand capacity or boost market access,

• Projects that invest in operations to increase direct production, capacity for production, processing or implementation speed, and/or development of new products or markets, such as efforts to directly increase capacity for reforestation efforts, sustainable timber harvesting, and production of other forest products,

• Development, procurement, or expansion of standardized best management practices and protocols,

• Technology capacity, software, data, licenses, or other resources necessary to catalyze market production and supply chain development and coordination, including, but not limited to programs and databases that connect suppliers to practitioners

E) TMBR Required Application Submittals their most recent fiscal year’s operating budget for bidders who are individuals: proof of an active related business license, that they an industrial landowner, or a business plan startups/new entities and/or existing entities that want to expand their operations: business plan at least one, and up to three signed letters of recommendation or support on official letterhead including:

o Writer’s name(s), titles, addresses, telephone numbers o A brief statement detailing the work completed for the reference o Other information such as timeliness, responsiveness, ability to meet contract terms, appropriate skills to conduct tasks, and whether the performance was satisfactory will be assessed.

a narrative on the plan for increasing capacity, including a description of what capacity will be targeted for expansion, current baseline status and metrics, and anticipated metric increase beyond the baseline. For example, a project with the goal of increased timber production may include descriptions of current baseline collections like the number of board feet currently harvested per year, current use of best management practices during harvests, staff currently involved and current areas of the state harvests take place, and anticipated increase in board feet, best management practice implementation, areas of the state reached, and staffing. The narrative must also describe how the incentive payments will be spent to help increase capacity and better meet market needs and stability.

a completed Project Strategy Worksheet, as found in Appendix 9, which guides bidders in providing estimates costs and calculating requested incentive payment amounts.

a plan of operation, maintenance needs, and costs estimated to continue the project for the following five years after the award of all incentive payments.

Completed Sexual Harassment Prevention Certificate

F) TMBR Scoring

The majority of points for scoring will be focused on the submittal of a clear and sound project description and the anticipated impact of the proposed project and focus on priority areas including 1) reforestation capacity, 2) low-grade markets, and 3) low-impact logging and other silvicultural operations.

3. Inquiries & Designated Contact Information For general information on completing this bid and for clarification of bid requirements, contractual terms and procedures, contact:

Contact Information: dlfgrants@dec.ny.gov

For technical information regarding the Grants Management Bid Event, direct questions to:

NYS SFS Grants Management

Contact Information: helpdesk@sfs.ny.gov | 877-737-4185 toll-free | 518-457-7737

Include “AFM GRANT” in the subject line of the email. Questions regarding this grant opportunity will be accepted by the Department until C.O.B. 2:00pm Wednesday, July 29. All questions, and answers, will be uploaded in the Grants Management System bid event for all bidders to view.

mailto:dlfgrants@dec.ny.gov mailto:helpdesk@sfs.ny.gov

4. Bid Submission Bids must be submitted through the NYS SFS Grants Management System Using Google Chrome to access the SFS Grants Management System (GM) is recommended. Using other browsers may cause errors.

If you do not have access to the SFS Vendor Portal and if your organization is already established within the SFS Vendor portal, an SFS Delegated Administrator has been authorized within your organization to provision user login credentials, unlock accounts, or reset passwords. Please reach out to your SFS Delegated Administrator directly. If you don’t know who your Delegated Administrator is, please call SFS Help Desk at 518-457-7717, 855-233- 8363.

If you do not have a login and you are new to the SFS Vendor portal, and would like to establish an account for the purposes of doing business with the State of New York, contact the SFS Help Desk at 518-457-7717, 855-233-8363 or HelpDesk@sfs.ny.gov for more information.

Paper bids will NOT be accepted. Bidders are strongly encouraged to submit their bids prior to the bid deadline. Late bids will not be accepted. Please note staff with a Bid Response Initiator role can begin a bid, but only staff with the Bid Response Submitter role can submit the bid response.

All Bidders must be Registered with SFS Grants Management to apply. Please visit the NYS SFS Grants Management System to register.

In addition to registration, not-for-profits must also be Prequalified at the time and date that the application is due. If you are not Prequalified at that time and date, your application will not be considered.

PLEASE DO NOT DELAY IN BEGINNING AND COMPLETING THE PREQUALIFICATION

PROCESS. PLEASE VISIT THE GRANTS MANAGEMENT Prequalification Page TO GET

STARTED.

THE STATE RESERVES 5 DAYS TO REVIEW SUBMITTED PREQUALIFICATION

APPLICATIONS. PREQUALIFICATION APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE STATE FOR

REVIEW LESS THAN 5 DAYS PRIOR TO GRO APPLICATION DUE DATE MAY NOT BE

CONSIDERED.

BIDDERS SHOULD NOT ASSUME THAT THEIR PREQUALIFICATION INFORMATION WILL

BE REVIEWED IF THEY DO NOT ADHERE TO THIS TIMEFRAME.

a) Bidder Prequalification Pursuant to the New York State Division of Budget Bulletin H-1032 Revised, effective July 16, 2014, New York State has instituted key reform initiatives to the grant contract.

Information on these initiatives can be found on the Grants Management Website.

All Bidders must be Prequalified in the SFS Grants Management System at the time and date that the bid is due. Bids from non-prequalified entities will be rejected. The system will not allow you to submit your bid.

https://esupplier.sfs.ny.gov/psc/fscm/SUPPLIER/ERP/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL?&lp=ERP.SUPPLIER.NY_SUP_PUB_HOMEPG_FL mailto:HelpDesk@sfs.ny.gov https://esupplier.sfs.ny.gov/psc/fscm/SUPPLIER/ERP/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL?&lp=ERP.SUPPLIER.NY_SUP_PUB_HOMEPG_FL https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/get-prequalified

The SFS Handbook: SFS Training for Vendors guide is available on SFS Coach and includes guidance for prequalification. Additional training is available on SFS Coach SFS Grants Management System.

5. Bid Evaluation, Scoring and Selection All bids will be reviewed and scored by a review team in accordance with the evaluation and scoring criteria contained in this RFA. Bidders are strongly encouraged to read and address the Bid Review and Scoring Standards in the process of developing a bid. Knowledge of the scoring criteria is valuable for designing and proposing a relevant and quality project. Scoring consists of:

Step 1: Bid and Project Eligibility Determination

Pass/Fail criteria –. Please refer to the Project Pass/Fail Criteria section of this RFA. A failed response to any of these criteria will disqualify the bid from further technical review.

Step 2: Project Evaluation, Scoring and Selection

If your bid meets all eligibility pass/fail criteria, it will be further evaluated and scored by a review team in accordance with the Evaluation and Scoring Standards contained in this RFA. These include:

• Project Type-Specific Criteria (Technical Review) - 60 Points

• Workplan Criteria (Technical Review) – 15 Points

• Cost Effectiveness Criteria - 25 Points

All eligible bids will be individually evaluated and scored by at least three technical review team members. All Technical reviewers’ scores for Project-Specific Criteria and Workplan Criteria will be averaged for each bid. The Cost-Effectiveness Criteria reviewers will evaluate and score elements of the workplan and general cost-effectiveness of the project. For each bid, the Cost- Effectiveness Criteria score will be added to the Project-Specific Criteria and Workplan Criteria average score to determine a bid’s final score (a maximum of 100 total points).

6. Method of…