Doc 2336553044 Addenda 1.pdf

Office of Management & Finance City of Portland, Oregon

@PortlandGov portlandgov

PortlandORGov

August 19, 2026

ADDENDUM NO. #1

RFP # 2336553044

FOR

EVICTION LEGAL DEFENSE & RIGHT TO COUNSEL PILOT PROGRAM

Proposals Due: SEPTEMBER 9, 2026 By: 12 PM (PACIFIC STANDARD TIME)

This Addendum provides changes to the specifications for the above-entitled project to be considered by each respondent. This Addendum shall be included within the proposal. Any changes made by this Addendum to said specifications offset only the portion of the words or paragraphs specifically mentioned herein, and the balance of the specifications remain in full force. It is the responsibility of all respondents to conform to this addendum.

The responses below reflect Portland Housing Bureau's (PHB) current planning for this program.

Program parameters, service definitions, coordination structures, referral protocols, and performance metrics may be refined or modified through contract negotiation and over the contract term, consistent with Section 3 of the RFP Information Packet. Where a response identifies information as not yet finalized, that information will be established prior to or during contract execution.

This Addendum shall address questions answered in the pre-proposal meeting, extends page limit and attaches Word document version of Response Packet (in ARIBA).

This Addendum shall extend the page limit from 15 to 25 pages.

1. How much of the $2.5 million is anticipated to be reserved for rent assistance as opposed to legal services? How much money, regardless of funding source, will be available in rent assistance for coordination with legal services?

2. Does the budget cover attorney fees?

The $2,500,000 annual maximum is the total estimated budget for all services requested under this RFP, including attorney fees, and is subject to budget increase or decrease. It does not include financial assistance funds, which will be administered through a designated financial assistance provider rather than by legal services providers. If multiple proposers are awarded, this number reflects the anticipated combined amount across all awarded contracts, not an amount available to each proposer. Proposers should not include anticipated financial assistance dollars in their cost proposals.

Sylvester Donelson, Jr. Sara Morrissey Michael Jordan Chief Procurement Officer Deputy City Administrator Chief Administrator https://twitter.com/PortlandGov https://www.instagram.com/PortlandGov/ https://www.facebook.com/PortlandORGov

Traditionally, the City prices from staffing levels, but we are open to reviewing other models, such as a flat fee distinguishing complex from simple cases. Use the Pricing Proposal Attachment, including caseload and staffing assumptions in Section 4.

3. What does an annual allocation of financial assistance look like?

See response to Question 1. Annual allocation amounts have not been established and will be determined based on final budget decisions and available funding sources. Disbursements are expected to be subject to a program-wide monthly cap and PHB approval.

4. For the Right to Counsel (RTC) program, are we intended to propose for geographic areas? How many daily first appearances are we looking at?

PHB is seeking to understand provider cost structures before determining RTC service volume targets and the designated geography. Proposers should describe their RTC delivery model and pricing on a per-unit or per-case basis rather than assuming a fixed service volume or specific geography and should describe how their model could scale once the designated area is identified. If you cannot reasonably project a figure, enter "unable to project" in the Pricing Proposal Attachment and explain why in Section 4 of that form.

5. What is the designated geographic region for "Right to Counsel"?

The designated RTC geographies have not been finalized. Geographies are expected to be established prior to contract execution, but the geographic scope of the pilot will remain subject to change.

6. What is the income-eligibility of tenants to be served by Eviction Legal Defense (ELD) and Right to Counsel (RTC)?

Income eligibility criteria will be established by PHB and confirmed prior to contract execution.

7. How will collaboration look like with other proposers?

Proposals must be submitted by individual organizations but may reflect subcontracting arrangements, potential partner arrangements, or both. A subcontractor delivers a service component under your contract with the City, and its costs should be included in your pricing proposal. A potential partner would hold its own contract with the City, so its cost may not be known to you. In both cases, identify the organization, the service components it would deliver, and its role in your service delivery model.

Separately, if multiple contracts are awarded, providers will be expected to operate as a coordinated City program in alignment with City direction, with defined referral and routing protocols, consistent intake across organizations, coordination between ELD intake and the RTC pilot, and consistent client data tracking. PHB will support this through appropriate means, including, for example, periodic coordination meetings. Describe your general approach to coordinating within a multi-provider system rather than any specific arrangement, unless a subcontracting or partner arrangement is part of your proposal.

8. Regarding submitting an org chart, can we submit our own style or does it have to fit into the format?

Please include your organization chart in the format provided in the RFP. A fillable version of the Proposal Response Packet will be made available with this addendum.

9. Regarding case management, are there already parameters around the type of services the case management is expected to provide, may provide or should not provide?

Case management is an additional service component and is not required. Proposers who choose to include case management in their proposal will find no strict parameters on the scope of services offered. Case management is expected to support housing stability alongside legal services, and may include referrals and coordination with employment services, disability services, mental and behavioral health care, physical health care, childcare, and other housing resources such as rent assistance, housing navigation, and stabilization or transition programs.

It may also include assistance addressing barriers to service, such as language, technology access, and transportation. The scope of case management services may be further defined through contract negotiation.

10. What does coordination with rent assistance mean? Are legal services providers required to apply for rent assistance on behalf of their clients?

Financial assistance coordination is expected to include identifying clients whose cases could be resolved through financial assistance, exchanging referrals with the designated provider, communicating with the provider on case status and timing, and participating in program coordination meetings with that provider and PHB. In nonpayment cases, which all proposers are required to handle, it also includes active negotiation with landlords using financial assistance to facilitate case resolution.

Specific referral protocols, coordination and communication expectations, and target case volumes have not been finalized and will be developed with awarded providers and the financial assistance provider during contract negotiation.

11. "Brief advice" and "full representation" are mutually exclusive services. If both are required for all providers, does the provider decide when to give brief advice and when to provide representation?

Brief advice is a limited-scope legal consultation in which a provider advises a tenant on their rights, options, or next steps without entering an appearance or undertaking ongoing representation. Full representation is ongoing representation of the tenant, which may include negotiation, stipulated agreement review, entering an appearance, and trial representation.

These definitions are subject to refinement during contract negotiation.

Both brief advice and full representation are components of required Legal Services, and all providers must be able to deliver both. Providers exercise professional judgment in determining the appropriate level of service in each case, subject to any applicable contract terms or PHB direction, including that PHB may require that income-eligible tenants in designated RTC geographies be offered full representation, within the service volume established under the awarded contract.

Proposers are encouraged to describe their triage criteria for determining the appropriate level of service, as brief advice and full representation are tracked as separate performance metrics and priced separately in the Pricing Proposal Attachment.

Please direct all questions to Xylia Guzman Torres, Senior Procurement Specialist at Xylia.GuzmanTorres@portlandoregon.gov.

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END OF MEMORANDIUM

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