Catalyst 2.0 RFP Questions from Public.pdf

Catalyst 2.0 RFP Public Comment & Questions

Questions asked during RFP Presentation (Q)

(A)

How many businesses are we looking to serve? We aim to award approximately 250 small businesses across Philadelphia, ensuring geographic diversity, representation across industries, and inclusion of businesses at various stages of the business life cycle. Applicants who are not selected for an award will be connected to technical assistance resources and encouraged to reapply in future rounds.

Who will be responsible for marketing and outreach for the program? Is there a partnership, or is the organization responsible for outreach?

The City of Philadelphia Department of

Commerce’s communications team will be primarily responsible for promoting the program.

Can you clarify whether this program includes both grants and loans?

This is a grant-only opportunity. No loans will be provided.

Does the organization need to have a physical presence in Philadelphia?

While a physical presence is not required, we strongly prefer a partner with established roots in Philadelphia and strong connections to the local business community. This will help activate the partner’s network and reach businesses throughout the city.

Questions asked post RFP Presentation [Sidra M]

Eligibility & Teaming Structure: Section 2.1 specifies the Department seeks proposals from

"nonprofit financial disbursement organizations."

Can a nonprofit fiscal agent propose a teaming arrangement with a for-profit management consulting subcontractor (e.g., for proposal/program design support, technical assistance coordination, or performance reporting), or must all team members—prime and sub be nonprofit entities?

All team members must be affiliated, associated, or employed by a nonprofit entity only.

If a for-profit subcontractor is permissible, does that teaming structure affect scoring under

No, the application will be scored as one.

"Superior prior experience of Applicant and staff"

(Section 5), or is subcontractor experience weighted separately from the prime's?

The RFP states consideration will favor applicants with "direct responsibility for the successful administration and deployment of large-scale microloan or small business financing programs."

Is there a minimum dollar volume or minimum number of years of such experience the City considers sufficient, or is this evaluated qualitatively on a case-by-case basis?

The City prefers providers with at least five years of experience working directly with small businesses and deploying microloans and other capital programs to business owners. Ideally, providers should have experience deploying microloans of at least $20,000. In addition to these preferred qualifications, each application will be evaluated on its overall merit, expertise, organizational capacity, and unique experience and skill set.

Cost Proposal: The $14 million compensation ceiling is described as covering "all expenses."

Please clarify whether this $14M is intended to be split between (a) grant/loan capital disbursed directly to small businesses and (b) the selected organization's own administrative/operating fee—or whether the organization's fee is expected to be proposed separately, outside the $14M fund corpus.

The $14 million compensation ceiling encompasses both grant funds disbursed directly to small businesses through the Philadelphia Small Business Catalyst Fund and the selected provider’s administrative and operating costs. The allocation between these components will be negotiated with the selected provider; however, the administrative fee must not exceed 10% of the total contract value.

Is there a general expectation or benchmark for what percentage of the $14M should be reserved for administrative/operating costs versus capital deployed to businesses?

The City has not established a specific benchmark for the allocation of funds between administrative and operating costs and capital deployed to businesses. Each proposal will be evaluated on its individual merits, with the proposed administrative fee assessed based on the applicant’s organizational capacity, expertise, proposed approach, and relevant industry experience.

Questions asked post RFP Presentation [Steve J]

What are the minimum, maximum and expected average award sizes, and how many awards does the City expect?

The is a rolling grant application. As such, grants will be awarded on an ongoing basis until all funds are exhausted. Awardees can expect to receive an award ranging from $5,000 - $50,000.

Are there eligibility limits already set (business size, revenue, years operating, location, industry, Yes, the eligibility limits are set and displayed on the program website on the Commerce website.

LMI corridor requirement, good standing with

City taxes)? Does the city anticipate changing the eligibility criteria throughout the contract period?

These limits will remain unchanged for the foreseeable future.

What is the source of the $14M (City general fund, federal, other)? Do any federal or state requirements (e.g., Uniform Guidance, 2 CFR 200) apply to this contract due to the funding mechanism?

Funded by Philadelphia City General Funds.

Is the administrator's fee included within the

$14M not-to-exceed amount, or funded separately?

The $14 million compensation ceiling encompasses both grant funds disbursed directly to small businesses through the Philadelphia Small Business Catalyst Fund and the selected provider’s administrative and operating costs. The allocation between these components will be negotiated with the selected provider; however, the administrative fee must not exceed 10% of the total contract value.

Does the City have a target or cap for administrative cost as a percent of the Fund?

No, each RFP proposal with be evaluated on its individual merits. The administration fee should reflect the capacity, expertise, specificity, and industry experience comprised within your organizations

What invoicing cadence and payment terms are expected (monthly, milestone, advance)?

The invoice cadence is negotiated between the awarded institution and the Commerce department.

How will the City fund 2–3 years of post-award monitoring if the contract ends Nov 30, 2027 and renewals are not exercised?

The City has an automated internal system that will send automated check-in notification to each grant recipient of the Catalyst Fund.

Will the City advance the full $14M to the fiscal agent, fund in tranches, or reimburse after disbursement?

Negotiated with the awarded provider.

Must funds be held in a segregated account?

Must interest earned be returned, reported, or used for the program (Appendix A §5.5)?

Yes

How should recaptured funds (ineligible use, business closure) be handled?

The selected provider must have the capacity to track all grant funds disbursed and collect documentation verifying that funds are used for eligible expenses. The provider should also have appropriate procedures in place to identify and address cases involving ineligible use of funds or business closure, in accordance with the program’s requirements.

What fidelity bond or crime insurance amount will be required given the funds held (§9.4)?

The selected provider must maintain a fidelity bond or crime insurance policy sufficient to cover the maximum amount of program funds held at any given time.

Are there tax-reporting obligations for awardees

(e.g., 1099s for grants), and who issues them?

Yes, the selected nonprofit provider will be responsible for issuing applicable tax forms, including 1099s, directly to awardees, as required by applicable tax regulations.

Does the City already have an "application management platform" (referenced in the metrics table), or should the provider supply one?

Yes, there is an established application platform created, managed, and maintained.

If the provider's platform is used, will the City accept that the provider retains ownership of its pre-existing technology while the City owns program data (§10.1)?

No, the provider will use an established technology.

Are there City data security, privacy, accessibility (ADA) or language-access standards the application must meet?

Yes, this is already established technology the provider will use.

Will applications be accepted on a rolling basis or in defined rounds/windows? What is the expected launch date?

This program has been operational for 2years.

Applications are reviewed and accepted on a rolling basis.

How much information should the initial application collection vs. later diligence stages?

The application collects all relevant documents for due diligence. The partner will be expected to connect with the applicants and verify the legitimacy of the business and their submitted documents.

Who sits on the review committee, and how many seats does the provider hold? Does the provider vote?

The committee is comprised of Commerce representatives. The provider will submit their initial recommendation (award grant or deny funding) based on the due diligence conducted.

The committee will deliberate with the provider’s input.

What is the committee meeting schedule, and how many days before a meeting is the recommendation packet due?

The committee meets every two (2) weeks. A recommendation packet is due to the committee at least 5 business days prior.

Can the provider decline clearly ineligible applications without committee review?

Yes, the provider can make recommendations to decline with rational.

What is the appeal process for declined applicants, and who handles it?

The city will handle all grant decision communications to the applicant.

Will the City pitch or pre-screen applicants, or does all intake go through the provider?

Applicants will complete an eligibility form prior to accessing the full application.

What service standards (days to decision, days to disbursement) does the City expect?

To be negotiated with awarded provider.

What level of diligence is expected: credit pulls, background checks, tax clearance, site visits, reference checks?

The provider will be expected to review the financial stability and growth of the business, review and confirm tax returns in accordance with P&L, and determine growth viability of business.

Will the City run City tax/regulatory clearance on applicants, or should the provider? If the provider is to run the check, will the provider be provisioned with necessary City systems access to verify tax clearance?

The city will be responsible for tax clearance verification.

Is there a risk tolerance or expected loss/non-performance rate the City is comfortable with?

This is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Should awards be disbursed in a lump sum, in tranches, or on a reimbursement basis against receipts?

Grant funds will be disbursed to each eligible business in a single lump-sum payment.

Awardees will be required to submit documentation to the selected provider verifying that funds were used for eligible purchases and expenses in accordance with program requirements.

How frequently must expenditures be reviewed, and what documentation standard applies?

Application expenditures are reviewed and modified during the due diligence process and either approved or denied during the committee meeting.

What remedies apply if an awardee misuses funds, and who enforces them (provider or City

Law Department)?

The provider will make this known to the City and the appropriate actions will be taking in tandem between the City and provider

Is TA required or optional for awardees? Is TA funded within this contract?

The provider must have the capacity to provide TA as part of the contract. All awardees are highly encouraged to leverage TA as part of their award.

Does the City have preferred or already-funded

TA providers the program should use?

No, the City does not have a preferred TA provider as part of this program.

Must the provider deliver advising directly, or is coordination and referral acceptable?

No, the provider can coordinate with other established TA organizations

Will the City run its own marketing (press, City channels) alongside the provider's? Are there any branding rules?

Yes, the city will market this program alongside the selected provider. All materials must be approved prior to deployment.

Are there target neighborhoods, corridors or populations with numeric goals?

No

What language-access requirements apply to materials and application?

Marketing material must meet accessibility standards.

What outcome metrics and definitions does the

City already use (e.g., jobs created vs. retained, LMI)?

Jobs created, increase profit and revenue margins, increase operational efficiency.

Is there a required reporting template or system for monthly and impact reports?

There is no template.

What applicant-level data can be shared with the

City, and under what privacy terms?

The application data comes directly to the city for review.

Will awardees be contractually required to respond to 2–3 years of surveys?

No, this is voluntary. An automatic survey will be sent to the awardee to complete 2 years after receiving the award.

Is a national nonprofit without a current

Philadelphia office eligible and competitive? How will local impact be weighted in scoring?

Yes, however, the provider must have a network of potential applicants and service organizations they are able to activate across Philadelphia.

How are evaluation criteria weighted? Will finalists be interviewed?

No, the evaluation criteria are not weighted.

Interviews will be requested of the providers if warranted.

Does the City expect the Dec 1, 2026 start to include immediate application launch, or a design period first?

This date reflects immediate and continued processing of Catalyst Fund applications.

Is there a page limit or required format for the narrative?

No