PAR RFQ Final Draft_2026_0813~1.pdf

`THE COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF ENERGY AND

ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY RESOURCES

ELIZABETH MAHONY, COMMISSIONER

100 Cambridge Street, 9th Floor Boston, MA 02114

Request for Quote (RFQ)

Document Title: Passive House Assistance Resource (PAR) in Specialized and Stretch Code Communities

COMMBUYS Bid Number: BD-27-1041-ENE01-ENE01-132401

Agency Document Number: RFQ-ENE-2027-001

Issued Aug 17, 2026

Please Note: This is a single document associated with a complete Bid (also referred to as Solicitation) that can be found on www.COMMBUYS.com. All Bidders are responsible for reviewing and adhering to all information, forms and requirements for the entire Bid, which are all incorporated into the Bid. Bidders may also contact the COMMBUYS Helpdesk at COMMBUYS@state.ma.us or the COMMBUYS Helpline at 1-888-MA-STATE. The Helpline is staffed from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Friday Eastern Standard or Daylight time, as applicable, except on federal, state and Suffolk County holidays.

http://www.commbuys.com/ mailto:COMMBUYS@state.ma.us

Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources – RFQ-ENE-2027-001

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I. Introduction The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) develops and implements policies and programs aimed at ensuring the adequacy, security, diversity, and cost-effectiveness of the Commonwealth’s energy supply to create a clean, affordable and resilient energy future for all residents, businesses, communities, and institutions.

The DOER is seeking qualified contractors to provide technical consulting and assistance to support developers and their design teams with achieving Passive House certification for new multi-family buildings subject to the Specialized energy code. DOER intends to fund this through a program opportunity notice (PON) for $1.25million that provides Passive House Assistance Resource (PAR) in Specialized and Stretch Code Communities.

DOER intends to hire multiple Contractors and form a Technical Assistance Provider (TAP) pool.

Please see Section IV for the scope of work for more information.

II. Background and Objectives

Energy code and Passive House Certification As part of the Green Communities Act of 2008, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Massachusetts) is required to update its base building energy code every three years to be consistent with the most recent published version of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), as well as offer a more stringent Stretch Energy code (Stretch code) for the Green Communities Program. In addition, under the Climate Act of 2021, the DOER is required to develop and make available a Municipal Opt-in Specialized Stretch Energy Code (Specialized code). This top tier of energy code builds on the regular Stretch code with net zero building performance standards. These three tiers of energy code have now been in effect since 2023 and were updated most recently in February 2025.

Passive House certification utilizing either the Passive House Institute (PHI) or the Phius certification options, is an energy code compliance pathway available in all three of the Base, Stretch and Specialized codes. The Specialized code specifically requires that all residential use buildings over twelve thousand (12,000) square feet demonstrate code compliance via Passive House certification.

Passive House certification for new multifamily buildings

In the sixty (60) communities that have adopted the Specialized code to date, new residential buildings that are over twelve thousand (12,000) square feet are required to pursue Passive House certification. Both market rate and affordable multi-family housing projects may operate with small margins and ensuring their success in Specialized code communities requires thoughtful planning and design, as well as technical support, in-field training, coordination and testing at key junctures throughout construction.

Massachusetts Clean Energy Center’s (MassCEC) 2017-2022 Passive House Design Challenge provided financial support to affordable housing projects seeking Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) with the goal of demonstrating that multi-family affordable housing that meets Passive House standards can be built at a low premium in Massachusetts. They found that, across seven projects that achieved Passive House certification, incremental construction costs averaged

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2.2%1, with the potential to largely offset these construction costs through Mass Save incentives, as well as a stream of savings due to decreased heating and cooling costs. Analysis coming out of the Passive House Design Challenge found that projects had lower incremental costs and an easier time achieving Passive House certification when design and construction team members had training and/or prior experience with Passive House certification, and that the need to contract with Passive House consultants to complete the modeling and design and certification reviews drove modest increases in soft costs.

Grants to new Passive House multi-family projects The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) plans to release a Program Opportunity Notice (PON) to provide Developers with access to technical assistance support valued at up to fifty thousand dollars to approximately 25 to 30 projects. In selecting projects, DOER will prioritize projects where the design and construction team is relatively new to Passive House certification, specifically where one or more members of the design and construction team are working on their first three Passive house certification projects. For these projects it is presumed that the team is earlier on the learning curve for successful and timely achievement of Passive House certification and use of this code compliance pathway, and such may be expected to incur more ‘soft cost’ items such as hiring a Passive House certified consultant or site-based training, mock-ups and testing.

The PON grants will take the form of technical assistance consulting from one or more firms experienced in Passive House certification, with a focus on building envelope details and experience with coordination and testing at key milestones during the construction. This RFQ seeks responses from firms able to complete this scope of work, as outlined in Section IV. DOER plans to select multiple Contractors to form a Technical Assistance Providers (TAP) Pool to provide technical assistance services. Contractors shall propose staff who have experience in Phius (formerly Passive House Institute U.S.) and/or Passive House Institute (PHI) project certification for multi-family housing. DOER anticipates that the majority of projects selected for grant awards will be ‘ground-up’ new construction, however, DOER is also particularly interested in demonstrated experience with supporting certification of existing building adaptive reuse and change-of-use to residential projects.

III. Procurement and Contact Information

A. Type of Procurement

Fee for Service subject to 801 CMR 21.

B. Commonwealth Of Massachusetts’ Small Business Purchasing Program

1 More information available for passive house design challenge at https://www.masscec.com/program/passive-house-design-challenge https://www.masscec.com/program/passive-house-design-challenge https://www.masscec.com/program/passive-house-design-challenge

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Program Background

The Massachusetts Small Business Purchasing Program (SBPP) was established pursuant to Executive Order 523 to increase state contracting opportunities with small businesses having their principal place of business within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Pursuant to the SBPP, it is the intention of the issuing department to award this Small Procurement to one or more SBPP participating business(es) as described below.

SBPP Award Preference

While all businesses, no matter the size or principal place of business, may submit responses to this solicitation, should an SBPP participant respond and meet the best value criteria as described in this solicitation, the SBPP participant shall be awarded the contract. The Strategic Sourcing Services Team (SSST) will not evaluate submissions from non-SBPP participants unless no SBPP Bidder meets the SSST’s best value evaluation criteria.

SBPP Participation Eligibility

To be eligible to participate in this procurement as an SBPP participant, an entity must meet the following criteria, and be marked as an SBPP registered business in COMMBUYS:

1. Have its principal place of business in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts;

2. Been in business for at least one year;

3. Employ a combined total of 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees in all locations, or employees work less than a combined total of 26,000 hours per quarter; and

4. Have gross revenues, as reported on appropriate tax forms, of $15 million or less, based on a three-year average.

Non-profit firms also must be registered as a non-profit or charitable organization with the MA Attorney General’s Office and be up to date with all filings required by that office and be tax exempt under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code.

SBPP Compliance Requirements

It is the responsibility of the Bidder to ensure that their SBPP status is current at the time of submitting a response and throughout the life of any resulting contract. Misrepresentation of SBPP status will result in disqualification from consideration, and may result in debarment, contract termination, and other actions. To learn more about the SBPP, including how to apply, visit the SBPP webpage, http://www.mass.gov/sbpp.

Program Resources & Assistance

Bidders and Contractors seeking assistance regarding SBPP may visit the SBPP webpage or contact the SBPP Help Desk at sbpp@mass.gov.

C. RFQ Distribution Method http://www.mass.gov/sbpp mailto:sbpp@mass.gov

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This RFQ has been distributed electronically using the COMMBUYS system. It is the responsibility of every potential respondent to check COMMBUYS for any addenda or modifications to an RFQ to which they intend to respond. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts and its subdivisions accept no liability and will provide no accommodations to respondents who fail to check for amended RFQs or submit inadequate or incorrect responses.

Respondents may not alter RFQ language or any RFQ component files. Those submitting a proposal must respond in accordance with the RFQ directions and complete only those sections that prompt a respondent for a response. Modifications to the body of this RFQ, specifications, terms and conditions, or which change the intent of this RFQ, are prohibited. Any unauthorized alterations will disqualify a response.

D. PRF74 – Energy Consultant Services

Work awarded as a result of this RFQ is pursuant to Statewide Contract PRF74 – Energy, Climate Action, and Facility Advisory Services Designated DOER (PRF74). As such, all terms, conditions, contract rules, and pricing established in PRF74 shall apply. Additional information concerning PRF74 can be found in the User Guide: https://www.mass.gov/service-details/professional-services

E. Massachusetts Public Records Law

All proposals and information submitted in response to this RFQ are subject to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L., Chapter 66, Section 10, and to Chapter 4, Section 7, and Subsection

26. Any statements in submitted proposals that are inconsistent with these statutes shall be disregarded.

F. No Guarantee of Resulting Contract

The Commonwealth makes no assurance that any services will be purchased from any contract resulting from this RFQ.

G. Questions and Answers

All questions must be submitted through COMMBUYS.

https://www.mass.gov/service-details/professional-services https://www.mass.gov/service-details/professional-services

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H. Contact Information

Responses to this RFQ will be received by:

Procurement Contact: Shilpa Surana Department of Energy Resources 100 Cambridge Street, 9th Floor Boston, MA 02114 Telephone: 617-626-7365 E-mail: shilpa.surana@mass.gov RFQ Name: Passive House Utility Bill Reporting RFQ File Number: RFQ-ENE-2027-001

Milestone Date

DOER Issues RFQ Aug 17, 2026

Deadline for Submitting Questions Aug 21, 2026

DOER Answers Questions Aug 27 2026

RFQ Response Due Sept 9, 2026

Selection of Winning Response* Sep 16, 2026

Execution of Contract with DOER Oct 1, 2026

* Dates after RFQ Response Due date are anticipated dates. All dates are subject to change.

IV. Scope of Work One or more Contractors may be chosen pursuant to this RFQ and will contract with DOER to form a Technical Assistance Provider (TAP) Pool to provide technical assistance services to the projects as selected and authorized by DOER. DOER will assign potential project clients to the individual contractors. Contractors will be matched to those project clients that respond to the PON which is likely to be released during the same timeframe when DOER establishes the TAP Pool.

DOER plans to offer technical assistance support through TAP at up to fifty thousand dollars per project to approximately 25 to 30 projects to cover pre-construction review, site-based training, building envelope mockups and testing contributing to timely achievement of the Passive House certification. In addition, a project may allocate up to 20% of their award to offset PHIUS or PHI certification fees at the time of project registration. DOER anticipates contracting directly with contractors to deliver the services described herein. When assigning projects to the contractors, DOER will indicate the maximum funds for the completion of technical assistance services per project. The awarded Contractor will have 7 business days to agree or decline to provide services to the project. Once a Contractor has accepted a project, they will have up to 6 weeks to develop a mutually agreed upon scope of services with the associated project developer and or the design

7 | P a g e and construction team for that project site. Contractors will work directly with awarded project developers and design teams to propose a specific scope that is applicable to the project needs.

Contractors will submit a project workplan and budget for each project site for DOER approval, and invoice DOER for work completed to DOER’s satisfaction. Project scopes can be amended with prior approval from DOER.

The selected Contractor may provide any DOER approved combination of the services described below, or apply to DOER for project specific approval for additional services directly related to timely achievement of Passive House certification.

Eligible services may include:

1. Pre-construction Material Assessment:

The selected Contractor shall have experience in Passive House design review prior to construction to ensure that design is on track to meet Passive House certification through either Phius or PHI. This review may include but may not be limited to the following:

• Pre-construction assembly detail drawings to determine constructability.

• Pre-construction air infiltration specifications to check for acceptable materials, assemblies, and anticipated air leakage rates.

• Pre-construction air barrier instructions to ensure compatibility and constructability.

• Pre-construction ventilation design and air infiltration specifications to determine constructability and likelihood of success in testing and balancing.

2. Field-based Mock-up Training:

The selected Contractor may provide early construction envelope mockup training in the field, potentially including but may not be limited to the following:

• Supporting the project team to develop a prototype of one or more sections of the building envelope and providing information on key tenets of effective passive house construction, including duct tightness, air infiltration, window installation, and moisture minimization.

• Comparing leakage rates with targets and troubleshooting if rates are not in line with targets.

• Answering questions and troubleshooting based on mockup performance.

3. Mid-construction Testing:

The selected Contractor may perform building testing mid-way through construction to ensure project is on track to meet Passive House certification and shall identify and troubleshoot any issues as required. Anticipated testing shall include but may not be limited to the following:

• Mid-point testing design and planning support

• Pre-drywall, partial or full ventilation system duct tightness testing to determine level and quality of duct tightness.

• Set up and implementation of building air infiltration testing to determine level and quality of air sealing.

• Design, layout and preliminary testing of airflows in ventilation system ducting.

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4. Construction oversight

The selected Contractor may provide oversight or other support for its project team as follows:

• Complete site visits to observe project site and ensure that construction is occurring to

Passive House specifications.

• Serve as a resource to project teams, including addressing challenges in the construction process.

• Other support as requested

The DOER will be responsible for administrative responsibilities, including the lead role in managing outreach to relevant project developer stakeholders and selecting projects. The selected Contractor may be asked to participate in informational webinars and outreach meetings to detail their services and may be asked to provide input regarding priority participants. As provided for in the Deliverables below, Contractors will also be required to share project data and feedback from program participants to support DOER in documenting lessons learned as needed.

V. DELIVERABLES

1. Project meeting, Coordination and Kick-off. Coordination with DOER: attend project kick-off to review roles and responsibilities. Participate in twice-monthly 30-minute calls, and quarterly hour-long calls, to review progress and discuss lessons learned as needed.

2. Outreach. Participate in webinars and deliver webinars with DOER. Provide summary of the outreach on the projects every month.

3. Service Guide: document for project team grantees detailing available technical assistance capabilities and points of contact.

4. Grantee engagement: Schedule and conduct calls with individual project teams to understand project, identify needs for support, and create a service delivery plan; provide requested services to project teams.

5. Project-level data collection: document services provided, along with site-based testing results and project outcomes, for first 20 projects receiving grants. Provide a final report summarizing the services provided for all the projects.

6. Input on awardee survey and best practices: support the DOER collection and completion of survey of first 10 awardees, soliciting feedback on the most helpful use of funds and remaining workforce training and capacity building needs; support the DOER creation of interim report synthesizing project-level data collection and survey results for first 10 projects.

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Key deliverables as discussed above and as directed by DOER shall be completed by the selected Contractor on the following timeline.

Task Deliverable Expected Completion Date

1 Project meeting, Coordination and Kick-Off October, 2026 2 Outreach October, 2026 to April 2028 3 Services guide December, 2026 4 Grantee engagement December to March, 2027 5 Project level data collection (preliminary) October, 2027 6 Project level data collection (final) April, 2028 7 Input on awardee survey and best practices October, 2027 – April, 2028

The Contractor understands that all work, deliverables, and associated documents resulting from this Statement of Work are owned in full by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and shall hold all information gathered as confidential.

VI. CONTRACT INFORMATION

A. Funding availability/duration of contract

The maximum amount of funding for any contract(s) resulting from this RFQ is one million two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($1,250,000). The total award will depend on how many project clients contractors agree to take on and the scope of work involved. DOER anticipates making 3 to 5 awards, and that any contract(s) awarded pursuant to this RFQ begin on the date of contract execution and end on June 30, 2028. The contract is subject to available funding.

B. Contract Expansion

If additional funds become available during the contract duration period, DOER reserves the right to increase the maximum obligation to the contract executed as a result of this RFQ, with related additional tasks to be determined by mutual written agreement consistent with the terms of statewide contract PRF74.

C. Contractor’s responsibility and invoicing

The selected Contractor will be responsible for timely completion of the requirements described above and as directed by DOER. The selected Contractor must assume overall responsibility for coordinating and completing all deliverables contained in the resultant contract. All invoices must be submitted to DOER on a schedule and in a format to be agreed upon by DOER and the selected Contractor. Invoices shall include sufficient back-up documentation to support the amount being invoiced.

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D. The Commonwealth’s responsibility

DOER’s Project Manager will be responsible for overseeing and managing all tasks undertaken by the selected Contractor, including but not limited to developing of a Statement of Work and schedule; reviewing, commenting on, and approving deliverables; coordinating with DOER and other program staff; and approving invoices promptly.

VII. SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Respondents to this RFQ-ENE-2027-001 must respond via the COMMBUYS web portal and must also submit an electronic proposal to shilpa.surana@mass.gov by 4:00 P.M. EST on Sep 9, 2026.

Late proposals will not be accepted. Faxed proposals will not be accepted. Proposals should not be submitted in an elaborate format that includes expensive binders or graphics. Unnecessary attachments beyond those sufficient to present a complete, comprehensive, and effective response will not influence the evaluation of the proposal. Each page of the proposal should state the name of the bidder and the page number.

Respondents must provide all the information in the Proposal Content section below. The proposal must not exceed ten (10) pages, not including resumes, schedule of activities/deliverables, or budget proposal.

1. Applicant Qualifications and Experience:

VIII. PROPOSAL CONTENTS

Respondents must provide the following information in their proposal.

1. Transmittal Letter (1-page limit): The transmittal letter should highlight any special features of the response and include the name, phone number, and email of the Applicant, the Applicant’s point of contact and must identify this RFQ by number (RFQ-ENE-2026- 008). The transmittal letter should acknowledge any Amendments to this RFQ posted on COMMBUYS and be signed by a representative of the Applicant who has the authority to bind the Applicant.

2. Executive Summary (1-page limit): The executive summary must contain the key components of the response, including the Contractor’s name, names of key personnel that will be involved in the project and their respective roles, and a brief description of the organization’s experience with similar energy procurements.

3. Narrative Section (8-page limit): The narrative section will be comprised of the sections as outlined below:

a. Project Plan

i. Describe how the contractor will approach the project to ensure positive outcome on projects.

mailto:shilpa.surana@mass.gov

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ii. Describe the scope of Passive house technical assistance for projects and range of technical assistance services that contractor is qualified and has expertise to deliver.

b. Contractor qualification and Experience

i. List applicant organization (name, address, contact person), any partner organization(s) (name, address, contact person), and key individuals that are part of the team and will be working on this project. Resumes for individual team members should be attached to an appendix and do not count toward the page limit.

ii. For each organization and key individual team member, a description of the activities to be performed and relevant experience.

iii. Descriptions of relevant projects on which the applicant and, if appropriate, key individuals, have worked on in the past.

iv. Contact information for person(s) whom DOER can contact regarding the applicant’s and, if appropriate, key individuals’, past performance on relevant projects.

4. Budget: A budget, broken out by task, staff-person, and hourly rate. Respondents must provide project‐based pricing instead of the maximum billing rates established at PRF74.

Consultants must include any and all ancillary services in the project price. DOER under no circumstance will pay additional invoices related to project‐based procurement.

Proposals that include partnerships must designate one party as the lead Contractor and identify the team of subcontractors (collectively referred to as subcontractors).

IX. PROPOSAL EVALUATION

The selected Contractor shall demonstrate the experience, ability, and skills to complete projects of this type on time and within budget.

All proposals received by the due date and meeting the requirements established in this RFQ will be reviewed and evaluated by DOER. The evaluation will include, but will not be limited to, the following criteria:

• Effectiveness of the proposed approach: Respondent’s proposed approach demonstrates understanding of the tasks and a logical approach. Respondent demonstrates understanding and sound approach to proposed Scope of Work.

• Likelihood of proposal to achieve outcomes: Respondent’s proposal, hours allocated to each task, and team composition suggests likelihood of proposal to achieve outcomes and produce deliverables on schedule.

• Respondent’s experience with similar projects and relevant subject matter: Respondent team has demonstrated experience including background, knowledge, and experience with the tasks and subject matter described in the Scope of Work, above.

• Specific experience with completing Passive House certification projects, and testing and verification.

• Extent to which the proposed budget demonstrates the best value to the Commonwealth, including consideration of total cost and hourly rates for team members.