ESBD_520047_1779500832047_STDC_RFP_AQR72026_PM2_5_v2.docx

South Texas Development Council | RFP No. AQR72026

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Rider 7 PM2.5 Program Services and Air Quality Planning Activities RFP No. AQR72026 South Texas Development Council Regional Services & Development Department 1002 Dickey Ln.

Laredo, TX 78043 Office: (956) 722-3995 Fax: (956) 722-2670

Notice: Prospective proposers who receive this document from a source other than STDC or the Texas Electronic State Business Daily (ESBD) website should immediately reference the official solicitation posting on those sites, or contact STDC, to access any addenda or other communications published after initial release. Any prospective proposer who fails to comply with this responsibility assumes complete responsibility for complete submission requirements.

Introduction The South Texas Development Council (STDC) is a regional planning commission and political subdivision of the State of Texas organized and operated under the Texas Regional Planning Act of 1965, as amended, Chapter 391 of the Texas Local Government Code. STDC is funded through federal, state, and local grants and assists local communities in the area of Jim Hogg, Starr, Webb, and Zapata Counties to plan for common needs, cooperate for mutual benefit, and coordinate sound regional development. STDC is governed by a twenty (20) member Board of Directors.

Mission Statement South Texas Development Council is focused on providing a cost-effective means to plan, coordinate, and implement regional strategies that will improve the health, safety, and general welfare of our communities.

Regional Services and Development Department The Regional Services and Development Department (RSDD) is responsible for a wide range of programs and projects, including the Economic Development District (EDD), Community Economic Development Assistance under the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Regional Transit Coordination Planning, Public Safety Planning for Homeland Security and Criminal Justice initiatives, Housing, and Environmental Initiatives.

Purpose STDC is seeking qualified firms to provide services for the Rider 7 PM2.5 Program. The successful Proposer will conduct air quality planning activities for PM2.5 as mandated in Rider 7 of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's (TCEQ) Legislative Appropriation from the 88th and 89th Legislatures.

The PM2.5 performance activities for this RFP procurement include inventorying emissions, monitoring of pollution levels, air pollution and data analysis, modeling pollution levels, and regional air quality planning. The intended focus area encompasses Webb County. The performance period is October 1, 2026, through December 31, 2027.

STDC reserves the right to negotiate with any or all respondents for all or part of the following scope of work.

General Instructions STDC shall not pay any costs or other amount incurred by any entity in responding to this RFP. STDC reserves the right to refuse and reject any and all submitted proposals that are deemed incomplete and/or missing any required information in response to this RFP. All proposals will become part of STDC's official procurement files and will be available for public inspection unless marked otherwise as proprietary information.

Proposers should carefully read the information contained herein and submit a complete response to all requirements and questions as directed.

Proposals qualified with conditional clauses, alterations, or items not called for in the RFP documents, or irregularities of any kind, are subject to disqualification by STDC at its option.

Each proposal should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of your firm's ability to meet the requirements of this RFP. Emphasis should be on completeness, clarity of content, responsiveness to the requirements, and an understanding of STDC's needs.

STDC makes no guarantee that an award will be made as a result of this RFP and reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals, waive any formalities or minor technical inconsistencies, or delete any item/requirement from this RFP or resulting Agreement when deemed to be in STDC's best interest. Representations made within the proposal will be binding on responding submitters. STDC will not be bound to act by any previous communication or proposal submitted by the bidder other than this RFP.

Failure to comply with the requirements contained in this RFP may result in the rejection of your statement of qualifications.

Submitters must be signed by the Proposer's company official(s) authorized to commit such statement of qualifications and proposal. Failure to sign and return these forms will subject your statement of qualifications to disqualification.

Scope of Work The contract will include air quality consulting services to STDC for projects most useful for the State Implementation Plan (SIP), limited to any of the following activities:

1. Inventorying emissions;

1. Monitoring of pollution levels;

1. Air pollution and data analysis;

1. Modeling pollution levels; and

1. Regional air quality planning.

For each technical area, outline the approach to perform the work required and give previous project experience examples.

Inventorying PM2.5 Emissions The Performing Party may expend Rider 7 funding on activities related to inventorying emissions. Emission inventory projects must be approved in advance by the TCEQ and will be limited to those most useful for the State Implementation Plan (SIP). To maintain consistency with the SIP, the Performing Party and its subcontractors shall use point, area, and mobile source emissions factors and existing program assumptions used by TCEQ when working with emissions inventories (for any purpose) or existing control strategy programs. These assumptions include compliance and/or control effectiveness parameters.

1. What emission data may be available for the STDC area?

1. What emission sources are most important to the STDC area?

1. What experience do you have with the models and methods used by TCEQ in developing emission inventory data for the STDC area?

1. What methods would you use to identify sources of PM2.5?

Monitoring of PM2.5 Pollution Levels The Performing Party may expend Rider 7 funding on activities related to monitoring of pollution levels. Pollution monitoring projects under this grant should be limited to those most useful for the SIP and must be associated with PM2.5. Grant recipients may use Rider 7 funds to support existing or historically operated ambient air monitoring stations or to establish new ambient air monitoring stations. Other stationary or mobile-based monitoring projects are potentially allowed on a case-by-case basis.

1. What type of monitoring would be recommended for PM2.5 and would be beneficial for the STDC area?

1. What experience do you have with this type of monitoring?

1. Would equipment need to be purchased with these grant funds, and if so, what is the estimated cost and where would the equipment need to be located?

Ambient Air Quality Monitor Lease STDC is interested in leasing an ambient air quality monitor to supplement existing monitoring coverage and support data collection for monitoring, analysis, and planning activities. The leased monitor must meet EPA Federal Equivalent Method (FEM) designation for PM2.5 at minimum, consistent with 40 CFR Part 53, and must produce data compatible with existing municipal monitoring infrastructure to facilitate data sharing and comparison.

The monitor must be sited within Webb County. Proposers should recommend siting based on identified data gaps in the existing monitoring network.

Lease costs, monitor operation, data collection, and data management should be included as line items in the proposer's cost estimate. If the selected consultant is unable to procure the monitor lease, STDC will conduct a separate procurement for that item. In that case, the cost of the lease would be deducted from the funds available under this contract.

1. What EPA-designated FEM monitor would you recommend for lease, and why?

1. Where would you recommend siting the monitor within Webb County, based on existing data gaps?

1. What is your estimated cost for the lease, operation, and data management over the contract period?

Meteorological Sensor Procurement STDC may require the procurement of meteorological sensors to support ambient air quality monitoring activities in coordination with local municipal monitoring partners. The need for meteorological sensors will depend on whether existing municipal infrastructure already provides adequate meteorological data coverage at or near monitoring sites.

Proposers should include meteorological sensor procurement as a contingency line item in their cost estimate and describe the specifications and installation approach they would recommend. If STDC determines that meteorological sensors are not needed, or if the selected consultant is unable to procure them, STDC will conduct a separate procurement for that item and the cost would be deducted from the funds available under this contract.

1. What meteorological parameters are most relevant to PM2.5 monitoring and analysis in the STDC area?

1. What sensors would you recommend, and what is the estimated procurement and installation cost?

Integration of Municipal Monitoring Partner Data STDC is coordinating with local municipal monitoring partners who are deploying EPA-designated FEM PM2.5 monitors. Data from these monitors will be made available to STDC and its consultant via public data dashboards or data-sharing arrangements. The consultant is expected to incorporate this data into emissions inventory, air pollution analysis, modeling, and air quality planning activities as appropriate.

1. How would you incorporate data from partner monitoring networks into your technical work?

1. What QA/QC procedures would you apply to third-party monitoring data prior to use in analysis or modeling?

Analysis of PM2.5 Air Pollution Levels and Data Emissions The Performing Party may expend Rider 7 funding on activities related to air pollution and data analysis. Air pollution and data analysis projects under this grant should be limited to those most useful for the SIP and must be associated with PM2.5.

1. What type of analysis and data emissions for PM2.5 would be beneficial for the STDC area?

1. Would equipment need to be purchased with these grant funds, and if so, where would the equipment need to be located?

1. What experience do you have with this type of analysis and data emissions?

Photochemical Monitoring and Analysis As part of continued monitoring and analysis efforts, STDC is interested in exploring photochemical monitoring and analysis to better understand the sources and precursors contributing to PM2.5 concentrations in the Webb County area. This is an exploratory activity; the specific scope would be developed in coordination with STDC and TCEQ based on existing data gaps and program priorities.

1. What photochemical monitoring or speciation approaches would you recommend to help identify PM2.5 contributing factors in the STDC area?

1. What experience do you have with photochemical analysis in support of SIP-related work?

1. What is your recommended approach and estimated cost for incorporating photochemical analysis into the monitoring and analysis scope?

Modeling Pollution Levels Associated with PM2.5 The Performing Party may expend Rider 7 funding on activities related to modeling of pollution levels. Pollution modeling projects under this grant should be limited to those most useful for the SIP and must be associated with PM2.5.

1. What experience do you have with models and methods in modeling pollution levels?

1. What modeling approaches would you anticipate using for the PM2.5 work?

Regional Air Quality Planning The Performing Party may expend Rider 7 FY2026-2027 funding on activities related to regional air quality planning. Regional air quality planning projects should be limited to those most useful for the SIP and must be associated with PM2.5. Regional air quality planning activities can only be reimbursed with FY26-27 funding.

1. What regional air quality planning activities are most applicable to the STDC area?

1. What experience do you have with developing or contributing to SIP-related air quality planning documents?

1. How would you coordinate regional air quality planning activities with TCEQ and other stakeholders?

1. What tools, models, or methodologies would you use to support air quality planning in Webb County?

Cost of Services: Proposers must submit pricing for expenditures to be incurred by STDC for the performance of the services described in their proposals. Pricing must be in keeping with fair market value and an expected budget of $253,125.00. Administrative costs are capped at 10% of the total contract amount.

Statement of Qualifications The successful Proposer must include a Statement of Qualifications demonstrating air quality consulting service experience in the PM2.5 areas identified in the Scope of Work, with a special focus on small-urban and rural areas in Texas.

The Statement of Qualifications must also include previous work experience and performance records, which will be used as part of the evaluation as described in the Evaluation Criteria section.

Proposal Requirements STDC aspires to achieve a uniform review process to ensure the maximum degree of comparable balance among proposals received. Before submitting a proposal, confirm all items indicated below are included with the submission. Proposers are expected to provide:

1. A list of past client regions, names, and contact information

1. Resumes of the implementation team

1. Identified Project Manager for each technical area

1. Firm's current certificate of insurance for professional liability

The following attachments must be completed and submitted with each proposal:

1. Attachment 1. Solicitation Acknowledgement Form

1. Attachment 2. DBE/HUB Certification Form

1. Attachment 3. Conflict of Interest Questionnaire (Form CIQ)*

1. Attachment 4. Suspension and Debarment Certification

1. Attachment 5. Client References

1. Attachment 6. DBE/HUB Subcontracting Form

1. Attachment 7. Form PTN-130

* NOTE: When completing the Conflict of Interest Questionnaire, answer each and every question. Indicate 'Not Applicable' where appropriate. Sign and date the form.

Proposal Format Instructions Proposals must be organized in the following order:

Title or Cover Page Must include:

1. RFP name and number

1. Name of firm, individual, or company

1. Local address

1. Telephone number

1. Fax number

1. Contact name and email address

1. Date Table of Contents Clearly identify the material by section and page number.

Letter of Transmittal Limit to one or two pages. Briefly summarize the proposer's understanding of the required Rider 7 PM2.5 program services and make a positive commitment to perform the work in a timely manner. Provide the names of persons authorized to make representations for the proposer, their titles, addresses, fax numbers, email addresses, and telephone numbers.

Proposal Narrative Proposer's response to the Scope of Work, Statement of Qualifications, and Proposal Requirements sections of this RFP.

Detailed Cost Estimate Must be sufficiently detailed to allow STDC and TCEQ to easily determine the hours, prices, and personnel by classification related to each task and deliverable. Administrative costs are capped at 10% of the total contract amount.

Required Attachments All pages requiring initials, checkmarks, and/or signatures must be fully completed. Failure to provide the required items with a submitted proposal will diminish award consideration, and STDC has the right to mark the proposal as non-compliant and treat it as a no-bid at its sole discretion.

Evaluation Criteria Proposals received will be evaluated and ranked according to the following criteria:

NOTE: A composite score of a minimum of 70 points is required to be eligible for award consideration. Ratings will be based on the qualifications provided in the proposal by the closing date and time of the RFP.

Proposal Review Proposal submissions will be reviewed by STDC staff to determine whether each proposal meets program needs and whether the requested information and required documentation identified throughout this RFP have been returned with the submitted proposal.

An evaluation team comprised of staff, outside evaluators, committee members, and/or other subject matter experts as deemed necessary will evaluate and score submitted proposals.

STDC reserves the right to contact any source regarding, but not limited to, vendor reputation, product/service quality, work history, and/or past performance to evaluate award submissions that best meet STDC program needs.

The evaluation team's preferred proposal shall be presented to the STDC Governing Board as a recommendation for award so the governing body may make a final award decision.

The proposal must bear an original signature from the person having authority to bind the organization to a contract, or it may be rejected for non-compliance.

For a proposer to be eligible for contract award, the proposal and statement of qualifications must be responsive to the solicitation, and STDC must be able to determine that the proposer is responsible with the resources and capacity to perform the resulting contract satisfactorily. Proposals that do not comply with all terms and conditions of this solicitation will be rejected as non-responsive.

Submission Instructions Hardcopy bid submissions must be clearly identified on the outermost return envelope or packaging and must be received by the bid submission date and time of 5:00 PM, regardless of whether submitted by mail, courier/delivery service, or hand delivery. All proposals must be received no later than the published deadline.

Courier/Hand Delivery:

South Texas Development Council Attn: Juan E. Rodriguez, Executive Director 1002 Dickey Ln.

Laredo, TX 78043 USPS Mail:

South Texas Development Council Attn: Juan E. Rodriguez, Executive Director P.O. Box 2187 Laredo, TX 78044

Write the Company Name, RFP Number (AQR72026), and submission deadline date in the bottom left-hand corner of the outermost envelope or package.

NOTE: Telephone, facsimile, or late bid submissions are not allowed in response to this RFP.

Proposers must submit:

1. One (1) hardcopy marked 'Original'

1. Four (4) additional copies marked 'Copy'

1. One (1) electronic copy in PDF format on USB drive, or emailed to stdc@stdc.cog.tx.us

Please do not use 3-ring binders. Pages should be numbered and contain an organized, paginated table of contents corresponding to sections and pages of the proposal. At least an 11-point font of Calibri, Arial, or Times New Roman is acceptable and must be legible.

It is the Proposer's sole responsibility to prepare, submit, and deliver or arrange delivery of the RFP proposal with all required exhibits and materials to the designated location on or before the published submittal deadline. STDC will not bear liability for any costs incurred in the preparation and submission of proposals in response to this RFP. RFP submission deadline time will be determined by the STDC lobby clock.

Proposers should allow sufficient time for delivery of hardcopy proposals prior to the published deadline. Failure to submit a proposal by the designated deadline, for any reason, may not be grounds for disputing the procurement solicitation process or any resulting contract award.

It is the Proposer's sole responsibility to ensure that any addenda or additional materials pertinent to their proposal are included in or with the RFP submission. STDC will not be held liable for missing addenda or materials at the time of the RFP Opening, and said addenda or materials will not be accepted after the RFP submission deadline.

Communications There is to be no communication allowed, in any form, between STDC staff and representatives and prospective proposers — other than conducting daily business unrelated to this RFP procurement — during the entirety of the RFP process. Intentional failure to follow this directive will result in rejection of Proposer participation and/or the submitted RFP proposal.

Required Attachments Checklist The following forms must be completed and submitted with the proposal:

All proposals must be submitted with all required attachments fully completed. STDC reserves the right to deem any proposal non-compliant for missing or incomplete attachments.

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