MWVCAA RFP - Community Needs Assessment.pdf

Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency, Inc. (503) 585-6232 2475 Center St NE, Salem, OR 97301 www.MWVCAA.org

Request for Proposals Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency (MWVCAA)

Needs Assessment of Homelessness and Community Housing in Polk and Marion Counties

Please direct your inquiries and submit proposals to:

Procurement – MWVCAA procurement@mwvcaa.org

MWVCAA’s Mission:

Empowering people to change their lives and exit poverty by providing vital services and community leadership.

MWVCAA’s Vision:

All people are respected for their infinite worth and are supported to envision and reach a positive future.

General Information A. Purpose

Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency (MWVCAA) is seeking proposals from qualified contractors to design, conduct, and deliver a comprehensive assessment report of community needs related to homelessness, housing stability, and housing insecurity in Polk and Marion Counties.

Homelessness remains a critical issue in both urban and rural parts of Polk and Marion Counties. Recent trends indicate increases in housing costs, limited availability of affordable units, and growing numbers of individuals and families experiencing housing instability. A data-driven understanding of the scope and causes of homelessness, as well as gaps in current housing systems and services, is essential to develop targeted and sustainable solutions. This assessment will build on existing data and supplement it with localized, current, and in-depth qualitative and quantitative insights to provide a comprehensive picture of regional needs. The findings will inform strategic planning, policy development, and future funding efforts to better address homelessness and promote housing stability across both counties.

B. Agency History and Background

Founded in 1967, MWVCAA is a nonprofit organization that serves multiple counties across Oregon with our primary service district being Marion and Polk counties. MWVCAA has over 56 years of experience administering programs designed to address the root cause of poverty, while helping families to achieve self -sufficiency. To accomplish this goal, MWVCAA administers a spectrum of programs across our three divisions of Housing and Homeless Services, Early Learning and Child Care, as well as Energy and Weatherization.

Programs which make up MWVCAA are as follows:

Division – Energy and Weatherization:

● Energy Services: Offers eligible households financial assistance to help with their home energy and heating bills.

● Weatherization: Repair and renovation of qualifying homes in order to increase their energy efficiency and preserve their life span as part of the local housing stock.

Division – Early Learning and Childcare:

● Child Care Resource & Referral: Provides professional development, technical assistance, coaching and supportive services to child care providers in order to increase the quality and availability of child care in our communities.

● Nutrition First: Promotes healthy, nutritious meal planning and technical assistance of in-home child care providers. A sponsoring organization for the Child and Adult Care Food

Programs (FDCH CACFP) administered by Oregon Department of Education, providing family child care providers with enrollment and oversight that allows them to participate in the nutrition program providing reimbursement for food costs.

● Head Start: Operates early learning classroom, and home-base programs, focused on children ages birth to five, and expectant mothers. Includes early learning, nutrition, health, mental health, disability, transportation and family services — with the ultimate goal of strengthening child-parent relationships and helping children to be ready to enter kindergarten.

Division - Housing and Homeless Services

● ARCHES Project: Navigating clients from homelessness to stable housing through provider referrals, shelter access, housing placements, and basic need services.

● Home Youth Services: Programs administered for at-risk and unaccompanied youth including a day shelter with basic need and resource navigation services, as well as overnight emergency shelters locations in Salem and Polk County.

● Demuniz Resource Center: Eases the transition from incarceration back into the community. Connects clients with vital needs, including employment, education, housing, therapy, and transportation.

MWVCAA is a private, nonprofit corporation and has been determined to be exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is governed by a tripartite member volunteer Board of Directors. Administrative offices and all records are located at 2475 Center St NE in Salem, Oregon.

● For more information about MWVCAA, access our website at: MWVCAA.org

Scope of Work Mid-Willamette Valley Community Action Agency (MWVCAA) is seeking proposals from qualified contractors to design, conduct, and deliver a comprehensive assessment of community needs related to homelessness, housing stability, and housing insecurity in Polk and Marion Counties. This Scope of Work is designed to give a general understanding of our expectations for this project.

In your proposal, please detail how you can meet the needs of this scope of work.

Assessment / Survey Development

● Work alongside MWVCAA’s staff to identify and develop the necessary goals and outcomes of the survey.

● Develop a robust, statistically valid survey methodology that captures demographic data, housing status, duration of homelessness, etc.

http://mwvcaa.org/

● Report on actionable insights into the current state of homelessness and assess the demand for services such as shelter, housing, and transitional housing. Insights should include demographic shifts, contributing factors, and systemic challenges.

● Assess gaps in the region’s existing sheltering and homelessness service providers and their available services. Assessment should include mapping of physical service locations in the area.

● Use community listening sessions as an opportunity for data (both lived experience and community-based organization insight and information). Include questions addressing:

○ Housing status (e.g., homeless, at risk, stably housed)

○ Duration and cause of homelessness

○ Use and accessibility of support services

○ Barriers to housing

○ Demographic information (age, gender, ethnicity, etc.)

Data Collection / Deliverables:

Proposer must process the collected data using statistically valid methods and provide a clear report on the results. Report deliverables include:

○ Final dataset (cleaned and anonymized), with percentage responses to questions, presented in charts, graphs, and tables to represent results.

○ Final report with analysis and key insights (with information on how it was derived / obtained)

○ Executive summary suitable to communicate results to the public

○ Provide, at minimum, 2 presentations of findings and information, to key stakeholders at MWVCAA.

● Following report submission, the Contractor will be responsible for answering any follow-up questions from MWVCAA, as well as supplying any follow-up materials or documents they require.

● Contractor is expected to work with MWVCAA staff to gather material and information necessary for a strong needs assessment report. Contractor must attend in person or virtual meetings, as necessary, to accomplish the required work.

● IMPORTANT NOTE: This Scope of Work may be expanded to include additional work for the Contractor. This may include additional reports, or expanded service areas needing to be assessed. Any additional deliverables needed by MWVCAA will be discussed with Contractor, and agreed to in writing.

Proposal Expectations A. Proposal Inclusions:

At a minimum, submissions should include:

1. Approach & Methodology: Generally, describe your process for developing an assessment, including roles and responsibilities. Identify the methodology for obtaining the data sources and resources that will be used to complete the assessment.

Additionally, outline the process you would follow to prepare the assessment-include timelines, key deliverables, and communication protocols.

2. Experience: Description of the background, experience and qualifications of the contractor(s) and all primary persons that may be used to perform work, as well as similar information from any proposed subcontractors or strategic partners.

Please include:

● Length of time in business

● Experience working with other Community Action Agencies or other nonprofits

● Experience working with Tribes in Oregon

● Experience working with the public to obtain data, particularly any experience with community listening sessions.

3. Examples: Proposers must provide an example of a similar assessment or survey conducted for a nonprofit organization, ideally with particular emphasis on housing and homelessness. The sample should clearly demonstrate how data was collected, analyzed, and presented. It should include a description of the methodology used, sources of data, and how findings were translated into actionable recommendations.

4. Timeline: Proposal must include a detailed timeline and a description of capacity to complete the work in accordance with the Project Timeline specified in Proposal Expectations, Section B. Include any notes on capacity to do potential expanded work.

5. Fee Structure: Describe in detail your fee structure. MWVCAA will use the fee information as a part of the selection process and reserves the right to negotiate the final fee structure. The budget for this project is to be negotiated. The contractor will be required to provide a not-to-exceed estimate, to be subsequently approved by MWVCAA prior to work commencing.

6. List of References with contact information. (Please use Proposal Cover Sheet to provide this – see Attachment A)

B. Proposal Instructions

Proposals must be submitted no later than 5:00pm Wednesday, December 24th, 2025, PST (Pacific Standard Time)

Proposal Submission: Proposals are to be submitted electronically via PDF to the following email address: procurement@MWVCAA.org by the closing submission date noted above. Alternatively, proposals can be delivered, mailed, or dropped off at MWVCAA, 2475 Center St NE, Salem, OR, 97301. It is the responsibility of the proposer to ensure that the proposal is received by MWVCAA by the date and time specified above. Late proposals will not be considered.

Who May Apply: Qualified applicants, individuals or firms, with proven experience providing research and assessment/survey presentations with non-profit entities or local government agencies.

Inquiries: Inquiries concerning this RFP should be directed to procurement@MWVCAA.org.

Conditions of proposal: All costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal responding to this RFP will be the responsibility of the proposer.

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

● Completed Attachment A: Proposal Cover Sheet

● Detailed Proposal & Resume

● Sample of Successful Assessment / Survey

● IRS Form W-9

Right to reject: MWVCAA reserves the right to reject any and all proposals received in response to this RFP. A contract for the accepted proposal will be based on the factors described in this RFP.

C. Proposal Timeline

● RFP Release Date: 5:00pm PST on Wednesday, December 3rd, 2025

● Proposal submissions deadline: 5:00pm PST on Wednesday, December 24th, 2025

● Evaluations of proposals will begin on: Monday, December 29th, 2025

● Notice of Intent to Award sent on or before Friday, January 2nd, 2026

● Project Timeline:

○ Sheltering preliminary report draft due by Feb.16th, 2026

○ Completion of final report on or before June 1st, 2026

Proposal Evaluation A. Non-Responsive Proposals

Proposals may be judged nonresponsive and removed from further consideration if any of the following occur:

● The proposal is not received in a timely manner in accordance with the terms of this RFP.

● The proposal submission is missing required documents or proposal elements.

● The proposal is not adequate to form a judgment by the reviewers that the proposed undertaking would comply with requested work.

B. Proposal Evaluation

Proposals will be evaluated using a point-based scoring system. Please refer to Attachment B – Scoresheet for a breakdown of points assigned to each category. Each proposal will be reviewed and scored based on the following criteria:

● Approach and Methodology

● Applicable Experience with Assessments / Surveys

● Pricing / Fee Structure

● Satisfaction of Clients (Reference Checks)

● Full and responsive completion of this RFP, including all attachments and requested documents.

C. Review Process

Each responsive proposal will be evaluated by a review committee established for this purpose. MWVCAA intends to select the proposal that is most advantageous to itself.

The MWVCAA may, at its discretion, request presentations by or meetings with any, all or none of the proposers to clarify or negotiate modifications to the proposers’ proposals.

MWVCAA reserves the right to make an award without further discussion of the proposals submitted. Therefore, proposals should be submitted initially on the most favorable terms, from both technical and price standpoints.

MWVCAA contemplates awarding the contract to the proposal with the best over-all value to the agency.

Terms & Conditions

MWVCAA is authorized to obtain, by contract, services necessary to conduct its operation.

Terms and conditions listed below are an example of what will be included in the final contract.

Assignment.

Neither party shall assign, sublet or transfer any interest in or duty under this agreement without the written consent of the other, and no assignment shall be of any force or affect whatsoever unless and until the other party has so consented.

Laws and Regulations.

MWVCAA and Contractor agree to comply with all Federal and State law, rules and regulations relating to Contractor's performance of services under this Agreement.

Conflict of Interest.

Contractor covenants that it presently has no interest and shall not acquire any interest, direct or indirect, which would conflict in any manner or degree with the performance of its services.

Contractor further covenants that in the performance of this contract no person having any such interest shall be employed.

Payments/Consideration.

MWVCAA shall pay Contractor pursuant to the following terms and conditions:

● Invoices will be paid within 30 days of being received.

● Unless another method is mutually agreed upon, payment for services will be made by check and sent by mail.

Withholding payments; liquidated damages.

Notwithstanding any other payment provision of this Agreement, if the contractor fails to perform or document the performance of contracted services, MWVCAA may immediately withhold payments under this Agreement.

Independent Contractor.

Contractor is engaged as an Independent Contractor. Contractor will be solely responsible for payment of any Federal or State taxes required as a result of this Agreement.

● This Agreement is not intended to entitle Contractor to any benefits generally granted to MWVCAA employees. By way of illustration, but without limitation, the benefits which are not intended to be extended by this Agreement to the Contractor are vacation, holiday and sick leave, other leaves with pay, tenure, medical and dental coverage, life and disability insurance, overtime, Social Security, Workers’ Compensation, unemployment compensation or retirement benefits.

● Contractor is an Independent Contractor for purposes of the Workers Compensation Law (ORS Chapter 656) and is solely liable for any Workers’ Compensation coverage under this Agreement. If Contractor has the assistance of other persons in the performance of this Agreement, Contractor shall qualify and remain qualified for the term of this Agreement as an insured employer under ORS 656.407. If Contractor performs this Agreement without the assistance of any other person, Contractor shall execute a Joint Declaration with MWVCAA Compensation carrier absolving MWVCAA of any and all liability as provided in ORS 656.029.

Delegation and Reports.

Contractor shall not delegate the responsibility for providing services under this Agreement to any other individual or agency, and shall provide MWVCAA with periodic reports, if applicable, at the frequency and with the information required by MWVCAA.

Hold Harmless.

Contractor warrants that all of its work will be performed in accordance with generally accepted professional practices and standards as well as the requirements of applicable federal, state, and local laws, it being understood that acceptance of Contractor’s work by MWVCAA shall not operate as a waiver or release. Contractor is responsible for injury to persons or property caused directly or indirectly by reason of activities by Contractor, its subcontractor or the employees of either, in the performance of this Agreement. Contractor further agrees to indemnify, save harmless and defend MWVCAA, its officers, agents and employees from and against all claims, suits, actions, damages, costs, attorney's fees, losses and expenses in any manner resulting from, arising out of, or connected with any such damage and/or injury that may be asserted by any person or entity in connection with the performance of work described in this contract, except liability arising out of the sole negligence of the MWVCAA and its employees.

Such indemnification shall also cover claims brought against MWVCAA under state or federal workers compensation laws. If any aspect of this indemnity provision shall be found to be illegal or invalid for any reason whatsoever, such illegality or invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remainder of this provision.

Settlement of Disputes.

Differences between a Contractor and MWVCAA, or between contractors, will be resolved, when possible, at appropriate management levels. MWVCAA has ultimate responsibility and authority for resolution of disagreements among subcontract agencies.

Non-discrimination.

Contractor agrees that no person, on grounds of race, color, creed, national origin, sex, marital status or age, will suffer discrimination in the performance of this Agreement when employed by Contractor.

Attorney Fees.

If an action, suit or proceeding, including appeal therefrom, is brought for failure to observe any terms of this Agreement, each party is responsible for its own attorney's fees, expenses, costs and disbursements for the action, suit, proceeding or appeal.

Captions.

The headings or captions in this Agreement are solely for convenience of the reader, and do not have legal effect.

Choice of Law.

This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Oregon.

Venue.

Venue relating to this agreement shall be in the district or circuit courts of the State of Oregon for Marion County, located in Salem, Oregon.

Severability.

If any provision of this Agreement is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions hereof.

Termination.

Either party to this contract may terminate this contract by giving a 30-day written notice to the other party.

Termination for Default.

Either party to this contract may terminate this contract for violation to the provisions of the contract by either party.

Confidentiality.

Confidential information (the "Confidential Information") refers to any data or information relating to the Client, whether business or personal, which would reasonably be considered to be private or proprietary to the Client and that is not generally known and where the release of that Confidential Information could reasonably be expected to cause harm to the Client.

● The Contractor agrees that it will not disclose, divulge, reveal, report or use, for any purpose, any Confidential Information which the Contractor has obtained, except as authorized by the Client. This obligation will survive the expiration or termination of this Agreement.

● All written and oral information and materials disclosed or provided by the Client to the Contractor under this Agreement is Confidential Information, regardless of whether it was provided before or after the date of this Agreement or how it was provided to the Contractor.

Attachment A

PROPOSAL COVER SHEET

Organization Name:

Primary Contact Person: Title:

Address: City/State/Zip:

Phone # Fax # Email:

Federal Tax ID # MWESB Certification: Yes No #

Name and title of the person(s) authorized to represent the Proposer in any negotiations and sign any Personal Services Contract that may result:

Name Title:

Provide at least three references with telephone numbers (please verify numbers). References must be able to verify the quality of your previous work in the proposed area of work.

REFERENCE #1

Organization Name:

Contact Person/Title:

Contact Phone Number:

REFERENCE #2

Organization Name:

Contact Person/Title:

Contact Phone Number:

REFERENCE #3

Organization Name:

Contact Person/Title:

Contact Phone Number:

By signing this page and submitting a Proposal, Proposer certifies that the following statements are true:

1. Proposer, acting through its authorized representative, has read and understands all RFP instructions, specifications, and terms and conditions contained within this RFP and addenda, if any.

2. Proposer certifies that its Proposal has been arrived at independently and has been submitted without any collusion designed to limit independent proposals or competition.

3. Proposer does not discriminate in its employment practices with regard to race, creed, age, religious affiliation, sex, disability, sexual orientation or national origin; Proposer has not and will not discriminate against a subcontractor in the awarding of a subcontract because the subcontractor is a minority, women or emerging small business enterprise certified under ORS 200.055.

4. If awarded the agreement, Proposer will be authorized to do business in the State of Oregon at the time of award and will be and remain in compliance with all applicable State of Oregon professional registrations and licensure requirements.

5. The statements contained in this Proposal are true and complete to the best of the Proposer’s knowledge; Proposer accepts as a condition of the agreement the obligation to comply with the applicable state and federal requirements, policies, standards, and regulations. The undersigned recognizes that this is a public document and open to public inspection.

6. The Proposer acknowledges receipt of all addenda issued under this RFP if applicable.

Signature: Date:

(Official Authorized to Bind Proposer)

Attachment B: MWVCAA Proposal Scoresheet Point Range

Points

Earned

APPROACH & METHODOLOGY

Proposer's detailed approach to a successsful community needs assessment

Details on the proposer's data collection methods and presentation strategies

Understanding of MWVCAA's project goals and need for robust data

Clear professionalism and proven ability to meet deadlines

APPLICABLE EXPERIENCE

Description of history, background, experience, and qualifications

Prior experience providing assessment services to nonprofits

Prior experience working with the public to obtain data

Excellent writing and data delivery skills, as seen in submitted example

PRICING / FEE STRUCTURE

Proposal includes a "not to exceed" estimate $ amount

Fees are reasonable and aligned with proposed activities and deliverables

Satisfaction of Previous Clients (Reference Checks ‐ 5 pts each) 0‐15

Complete Proposal

Proposal has all information and documents requested

Business Registration

Registration through the State of Oregon, or COBID as small business, minority‐owned, woman‐owned, veteran‐owned, or disabled owner business

Total Points 0‐100

0‐30

0‐20

0 or 10

0 or 5

0‐20