RFA Caregiver Support Services Catch. 11.docx

REQUEST FOR APPLICATION

RFA 25-DCYF-CW 098 Caregiver Supports Area 11

PROJECT TITLE: Caregiver Supports Project Phase II

APPLICATION DUE DATE:

February 20, 2026 by (2 p.m.) to deidre.newton@dcyf.wa.gov

EXPECTED TIME PERIOD FOR CONTRACT*:

April 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027 *Contract start date is subject to change

APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY:

This Request for Application is open to those applicants that satisfy the minimum qualifications stated herein.

Solicitation and Amendments Will Be Posted on WEBS:

WEBS Website: https://pr-webs-vendor.des.wa.gov/

Applicable WEBS Commodity Codes:

952-43 Family and Social Services 952-15 Case management 952-67 Parenting intervention

Additional Resource:

Washington APEX Accelerator (formerly Washington PTAC) website: www.washingtonapex.org

1. Introduction

Definitions

Amendment – A unilateral change to the Solicitation that is issued by DCYF at its sole discretion and posted on WEBS.

Apparent Successful Bidder or ASB – The Bidder selected as the entity to perform the anticipated services, subject to completion of Contract negotiations and execution of a written Contract.

Applicant - An organization submitting an Application in order to attain a contract with DCYF.

Application - A formal offer submitted in response to this solicitation.

Authorized Representative – An individual designated by the Bidder to act on its behalf who has the authority to legally bind the Bidder concerning the terms and conditions set forth in this Solicitation and related documents.

Bid - An offer, proposal or quote for goods or services and all related materials prepared and submitted by a Bidder in response to this Solicitation. The terms Bid, quotation, response and proposal are all intended to mean the same thing.

Bidder– An individual or entity who submits a Bid, quotation, or proposal in response to a Solicitation issued for such goods or services by DCYF per RCW 39.26.010(3).

Certified Business – Means business or the status of a business that has been examined by the Washington State Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises (OMWBE) and deemed to be a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), a Minority Women’s Business Enterprise (MWBE), a Combination Business Enterprise (CBE), or a Socially and Economically Disadvantage Business Enterprise (SEDBE) per chapter 39.19 RCW.

Client Services – Are services provided directly to DCYF clients per RCW 39.26.010 (4).

Consensuses Scoring –The selected evaluation teams review and evaluates bid responses as a team and agrees on the score to be given to each bidder.

Contract – A written agreement entered into between an Apparent Successful Bidder and DCYF as a result of this Solicitation.

Contractor – An individual or entity whose Bid has been accepted by the DCYF and is awarded a fully executed, written Contract.

Coordinator or Solicitation Coordinator – An individual or designee who is employed by DCYF within the DCYF Contracts Unit Office and who is responsible for conducting this Solicitation.

Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF): The agency of the state of Washington that is issuing this Request for Applications (RFA).

Evaluator – Is a person designated by DCYF to evaluate proposals received in response to a Competitive Solicitation Document.

Project - The undertaking or work for which contracted Services are being requested pursuant to this Solicitation.

RCW – The Revised Code of Washington. All references to RCW chapters or sections shall include any successor, amended, or replacement statute.

Request for Application (RFA): A formal document in which DCYF pre-identifies a service and a specific method for Applicants.

Services – Are labor, work, analysis, or similar activities provided by a Contractor to accomplish a specific Statement of Work per RCW 39.26.010 (21).

Small Business - An in-state business, including a sole proprietorship, corporation, partnership, or other legal entity, that: (a) certifies, under penalty of perjury, that it is owned and operated independently from all other businesses and has either: (i) fifty (50) or fewer employees; or (ii) a gross revenue of less than seven (7) million dollars annually as reported on its federal income tax return or its return filed with the department of revenue over the previous three (3) consecutive years; or (b) Is certified with the Office of Women and Minority Business Enterprises under Chapter 39.19 RCW.

Statement of Work – The detailed description of services to be performed by the Contractor and set forth in the Contract.

Subcontractor – An individual or other entity contracted by Bidder to perform part of the services or to provide goods under the Contract resulting from this Solicitation. *(Optional) Subcontractors, if allowed, are subject to the advance approval of DCYF.

Washington APEX Accelerator - formerly Washington Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) – Works to give businesses the opportunity to thrive in the government-contracting marketplace. Their website can be found at www.washingtonapex.org.

Washington Electronic Business Solution or WEBS – Washington’s Electronic Business Solution, the Bidder notification system found at https://fortress.wa.gov/ga/webs/ and maintained by the Washington State Department of Enterprise Services.

Purpose and Background

The purpose of this request for application is issued in order to assist the Washington State Department of Children, Youth & Families (DCYF) in seeking qualified Contractor(s) to provide assistance to caregivers in supporting a child or youth in their care in accessing needed medical, social, education, and other necessary services.

Inadequate caregiver support has existed within the Department of Children, Youth, and Family (DCYF) operations and have historically and disproportionately affected unlicensed and relative caregivers. These inadequacies can lead to greater placement disruption among the Child Welfare population.

Phase II of the Caregiver Supports Project will implement new Caregiver Supports Contracts that will increase access to placement supports for all caregivers, whether licensed or unlicensed, to better align those supports to the diverse needs of youth and children in out-of-home placement. The new caregiver supports model also aims to increase placement stability, increase the number of children placed with relatives, decreases exceptional cost payments, tailor supports to the needs of the child, and decrease disparities in the allocation of resources.

Objectives and Scope of Work

Through this RFA process, DCYF will award one contract per catchment area and as part of their proposal, the Contractor should identify:

Goal 1. Ensure all licensed and unlicensed caregivers have access to the appropriate level of support services needed to provide quality care to the children and youth placed in their home.

· Objective: Access to resources at time of placement.

· Objective: Reduce the impact of systemic racial inequity.

· Objective: Parity in resource support for licensed and unlicensed caregivers.

· Objective: Ensure a continuous array of placement supports.

· Objective: Increase caregiver satisfaction and retention rates.

· Objective: Reduce barriers to placement with kinship caregivers who now have support.

· Objective: Decrease in exceptional cost payments.

Goal 2. Improve DCYF’s ability to support caregivers with opportunities to expand their knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience that best aligns with the needs of the children and youth.

· Objective: Give caregivers the ability to develop skills to care for the child over time as the child’s needs change.

· Objective: Develop caregiver skills to be able to care for children with higher needs.

· Objective: Increase placement stability and reduce the number of placement episodes.

Scope of work for Phase II of the Caregiver Supports Contract will be to provide placement supports to all licensed and unlicensed caregivers based on the new 1-7 caregiver support levels model and execute procurement for the Caregiver Supports Contract and roll out placement supports for all caregivers for the remaining six catchment areas. Even though caregiver supports participation is not mandatory for caregivers, Contractors still need to demonstrate due diligence in routine outreach and engagement efforts.

Roll Out Timeline by Catchment Area

Partnering with Tribes within Caregiver Support Services

In recognition that Tribes maintain their tribal sovereignty by determining what is in the best interest of their children under their tribal jurisdiction and the caregivers who care for them, DCYF is actively collaborating with Tribes on a government-to-government agreement for caregiver support services. DCYF acknowledges that Tribes have provided caregiver supports in various forms since time immemorial and in alignment with DCYF codes and ethics, Tribes will be provided with options for reimbursement in continuation of delivering caregiver supports services to their children and families.

Under the Caregiver Supports project, additional caregiver supports are available to Tribes and Tribes can choose how they will participate in this project, which will determine the final size of the catchment area served by the contracted providers.

Tribes can select from the following options:

· Enter into a Caregiver Supports Agreement with DCYF to provide services to caregivers of children under Tribal jurisdiction.

· Tribal jurisdiction children are served by the Caregiver Supports Contractor for the catchment area where the caregiver resides.

Or,

· The Tribe chooses not to participate in Caregiver Support services and will continue to provide their own support services.

Currently, DCYF will have hosted four roundtable conversations with Tribal partners within the last year. Some Tribes have entered into an Agreement to provide caregiver supports to their Tribal children and caregivers and we anticipate that additional Tribes will make a selection among the options provided as the catchment areas continue to roll out mid-year.

If a Tribe does not make their caregiver supports selection known, the Tribe will continue to function as it has without reimbursement for caregiver supports services rendered to their tribal families nor will their tribal families be served by a catchment area provider.

Catchment Area Children Count and Count of Children under Tribal Jurisdiction

Catchment

Total Children

Total Tribal Jurisdiction Children

*Potential Totals

*Potential total children served reflects a Tribe’s option to have their children and caregivers served by a catchment area provider.

Catchment Area Map

Bidder shall identify the key personnel it shall utilize in performing this Contract, and their experience and qualifications, as part of its proposal. If awarded a Contract, Bidder shall not make changes to such key personnel during the term of the Contract except as requested or approved by DCYF.

Minimum Qualifications and Requirements

In order for their Application to be reviewed and scored, Applicants must:

Bidders failing to demonstrate in their Bids that they meet these minimum qualifications will be considered non-responsive and will therefore be disqualified from further consideration.

Period of Performance

DCYF intends to award up to one (1) contracts for the remaining catchment area to provide the services described in this RFA.

The initial term of the Caregiver Supports contracts:

• Catchments 11 – April 1, 2026-September 30, 2027 The term of the Contract may be extended by Amendment up to three (3) times for up to one (1) year per Amendment and will not exceed the date of September 30, 2029.

Additional services that are appropriate to the scope of this RFA, as determined by DCYF, may be added to the resulting Contract(s) by a written Amendment mutually agreed to and executed by both parties.

Funding

Pre-Service Funding Funding for the Contractor to develop and prepare the Caregiver team will be made available at increasing amounts starting three (3) months before the expected service start date. This funding will be available based on allowed expenses that are incurred by the Contractor as indicated in the fee table under Pre-Service.

The level of funding for FTEs will be unique to each Catchment area. The funding is defined by the total projected number of children and youth placements anticipated and the modeled workload ratios.

Refer to the ‘Population by Catchment’ tab within the fee table to determine Pre-Service funding based on catchment population size and the Contractor’s selected service goal percentage identified in question fourteen (14) of bidder responses included within this procurement.

Ramp-Up Funding Ramp Up activities and funding are designed to support the Contractor for ninety (90) days to continue a heightened efforts of Caregiver engagement and expand the workforce as needed. Within the ninety (90) day period during Ramp Up the Contractor is expected to expand the workforce needed to provide services to clients as identified under the Statement of Work within the Sample Contract and continue to submit lists of caregiver engagement activities completed.

Refer to the ‘Population by Catchment’ tab within the fee table to determine Ramp-Up funding based on catchment population size and the Contractor’s selected service goal percentage identified in question fourteen (14) of bidder responses included within this procurement.

Manager Supplemental Funding

The contractor may be eligible to receive a supplemental payment to ensure the funding of one (1) FTE management position. DCYF will pay the contractor a monthly rate or a prorated amount based on total cases served that that month up to the maximum allowed according to the DCYF published Caregiver Support Fee table.

Initial Engagement Funding The contractor will receive a single ongoing monthly supplemental payment for initial engagement support efforts in engaging Caregivers in Caregiver Support Service for each newly placed youth in the Caregiver’s home by DCYF.

Service Capacity Payments DCYF will utilize a two-part payment method for Caregiver services. Payments will be monthly and organized around capacity and fee for service elements.

1. FTE Capacity payments – provide reimbursement for the number of authorized Placement Support and Case Aides staff employed.

The FTE Capacity payment represent 48% of total cost (e.g. placement support managers, management, admin, overhead) to support each position.

For example, if the total cost to employ and support a full time Case Aide is $120,000 yearly, the FTE monthly cost is $10,000 (Yearly FTE divided by 12).

The FTE Capacity monthly payment for a Case Aide FTE would be $4,800 (48% times $10,000).

The Capacity payment will be calculated as follows:

· Based on total FTEs and not based per person. For example, two (2) people working part time (.5 FTE each) represent 1 FTE.

· Staff cannot perform other duties. Their work would have to be attested to be only for the Caregiver Placement Support and Case Aide work.

The maximum allowed FTE for each position will be identified for each catchment area and bases on the total number of placements projected for their catchment area. There is no minimum required.

2. Fee-for-Service payments – there will be several elements of the service paid on a fee for service framework.

· Case rate for Placement Support Managers. The case rate will follow the Caregiver Support level identified by DCYF.

· Standard caseload is as follows:

· Hourly rate for Case Aide support services. Each active Caregiver will be eligible for Case Aide services. Caregivers will be pre-authorized an amount of Case Aide services based on the Placement Support level identified by DCYF, identified below:

· Funding for both Pre-Service and Ramp-Up are cost reimbursement based on incurred costs.

3. DCYF shall pay the service provider Contractor on a case rate for service activities in accordance with the DCYF published Contracted Services Fee Table in effect at the time services were provided. The Services Fee Table is as follows:

a. Any Contract(s) awarded as a result of this Solicitation is contingent upon the availability of funding.

b. In the event that the Contract resulting from this Bid includes federal funds the Contractor upon entering into a Contract may be required to have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number Information on how to obtain a DUNS number can be found at the following location: https://grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/organization-registration/step-1-obtain-duns-number.html

c. In the contract proposed as a result of this RFA, it is DCYF’S intent to use the following funding sources:

Application Information

RFA Coordinator

The RFA Coordinator is the sole point of contact in DCYF for this RFA. All communication between the Applicant and DCYF upon receipt of this RFA shall be in writing with the RFA Coordinator listed below. DCYF may disqualify any Applicant who communicates to anyone besides the RFA Coordinator.

DCYF considers all oral communications unofficial and non-binding on DCYF. Applicants should rely only on written statements issued by the RFA Coordinator.

RFA Coordinators: Deidre Newton Email Address: deidre.newton@dcyf.wa.gov

Estimated Schedule of RFA Activities

Review Period

02/23/2026 – 02/26/2026

Announce Successful Applicants

03/02/2026

Questions about the RFA Process

DCYF will take questions continuously through to 2 p.m. on February 2nd, 2026.

DCYF will email the written responses to each question to the party who submitted a question and will post all questions and answers on February 9th, 2026.

Submission of Applications (Mandatory)

a. Submit all parts of the Application to deidre.newton@dcyf.wa.gov by 2 p.m., February 20, 2026.

b. Allow sufficient time to ensure timely receipt of the Application by DCYF. Late or incomplete Applications will not be considered unless DCYF’s email system is found to be at fault.

c. Submit Application sections as attachments to a single email. Exception: If the Applicant’s email system will not submit all attachments in a single email, Applicants may send the Application in two emails.

d. For your email subject line, enter (Caregiver Supports Area 11) – DCYF.

e. Submit Application sections in Microsoft Word or Excel as directed. Do not use PDF except where allowed.

f. For Microsoft Word Application sections, use the provided fields in Exhibit A: Application form with preset fonts. For all other text, use Calibri 12 point font with 1 inch margins, single spaced.

g. Do not submit materials other than those requested in this RFA including Application documents. Additional materials will not be evaluated.

h. Answer each question fully, since it may be rated on its own merits by evaluators who do not read the entire application. New applicants should be especially careful while responding to questions, to ensure raters fully understand their expertise and experience.

Application Requirements (Mandatory) A complete Application consists of the following attachments to the email described in Section 2.4:

a. Attachment B Certification and Assurances

a. Fully complete

b. Signed by individual with authority to bind the organization

c. Scanned, in PDF format

b. Attachment C1 Bidder Response – Administrative

c. Attachment C2 Bidder Response- Application Form

· Fully complete

· In Microsoft Word format

· Titled “Application Form – – YOUR ORGANIZATION NAME”

d. Letters of Support and Collaboration

· If required, Applicants may submit in either Microsoft Word or PDF format

· Titled “Letters of Support and Collaboration – – YOUR ORGANIZATION NAME”

e. Coordination with Neighboring Organizations

· In PDF format with signatures

· Titled “Coordination with Neighboring Organizations – – YOUR ORGANIZATION NAME”

f. Key Personnel Resumes and Org Chart

Proprietary Information/Public Disclosure Materials submitted in response to this competitive procurement shall become the property of DCYF. All Applications received shall remain confidential until the contract(s), if any, resulting from this RFA is signed by DCYF and the apparent successful Contractor; thereafter, the Applications shall be deemed public records as defined in RCW 42.17.250 to .340, “Public Records.”

Any information in the Application that the Applicant desires to claim as proprietary and exempt from disclosure under the provisions of RCW 42.17.250 to .340 must be clearly designated. The page and the particular exception from disclosure upon which the Applicant is making the claim must be identified. Each page claimed to be exempt from disclosure must be clearly identified by the word “Confidential” printed on the lower right hand corner of the page.

DCYF will consider an Applicant’s request for exemption from disclosure; however, DCYF will make a decision predicated upon Chapter 42.17 RCW and Chapter 143-06 WAC. Marking the entire proposal exempt from disclosure will not be honored. The Applicant must be reasonable in designating information as confidential. If any information is marked as proprietary in the proposal, such information will not be disclosed until the affected proposer has been given an opportunity to seek a court injunction against the requested disclosure.

A charge will be made for copying and shipping of documents requested through public disclosure, as outlined in RCW 42.56.070. No fee shall be charged for inspection of contract files, but 24 hours’ notice to the RFA Coordinator is required. All requests for information should be directed to the RFA Coordinator.

Revisions to the RFA DCYF reserves the right to modify this RFA at any time. In the event it becomes necessary to revise any part of this RFA, an amendment will be provided to all who receive the RFA. For this purpose, the published Applicant questions and DCYF answers and any other pertinent information shall be considered an addendum to the RFA. DCYF reserves the right to cancel or to reissue the RFA in whole or in part, prior to execution of a contract.

Diversity Participation DCYF strongly encourages the participation of minority and women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and Washington small businesses as prime contractors or subcontractors.

Subcontractor Participation-DCYF will not allow subcontracting of the core services elements of this contract. This includes all management positions, supervisors, and placement support management. This would allow for a proposal to subcontract case aid. If a Contractor is interested in subcontracting components of the contracted services, a subcontracting proposal must be attached to the RFA application and include the Contractor’s plan in the event the subcontracting agreement must be terminated, and the primary Contractor must continue to meet contract service obligations at the time of submission of this RFA.

Evaluation and Contract Award

Mandatory and Scored Explained Items marked “Mandatory” must be included in order for the Application to be considered responsive; however, these items are not awarded points. Items marked “Scored” are awarded points by the evaluation team.

Responsiveness All Applications will be reviewed to determine compliance with administrative requirements and instructions specified in this RFA. The Applicant is specifically notified that failure to comply with any part of the RFA may results in rejection of the Application as non-responsive. DCYF reserves the right at its sole discretion to waive minor administrative irregularities.

Evaluation of Applications Responsive Applications will be evaluated strictly in accordance with the processes described herein. DCYF will designate evaluation teams to score responsive applications.

Evaluation teams will review Applications that meet the minimum qualifications established in this RFA, and then determine which Applicant is the Apparent Successful Bidder based on scoring listed below.

DCYF reserves the right to award the contract to the Applicants whose Applications are deemed to be in the best interest of DCYF and the state of Washington.

The following weighting and points will be assigned:

Caregiver Supports Contract

Technical/Management 100 Points-Minimum Score to be considered further for this RFA

170 Points

Oral Presentations/ Demonstrations/ Interviews (Optional-if needed for a tie breaker).

Total

a. If a score is 20 points per question then 20 points = excellent, 15 points = good, 10 points = fair, 5 points or less = partial answer to the question. 0 points = did not answer the question.

b. If a score is 15 points per question then 15 points = excellent, 12 points = good, 9 = fair, and 6 points or less = partial answer to the question. 0 points = did not answer.

c. If a score is 10 points per question then 10 points = excellent, 8 points = good, 6 points = fair, 4 point or less = partial answer to the question, 0 points = did not answer.

d. If a score is 5 points per question then 5 points = excellent, 4 points = good, 3 points = fair, 2 points or less = partial answer to the question, 0 points = did not answer.

Prebid Conference

A Prebid conference is scheduled to be held on 12/30/2025 at 2 pm, Pacific Time. The location of the Prebid conference is virtual. All prospective Bidders should attend; however, attendance is not mandatory. Prebid conference will be recorded.

Meeting ID: 299 654 039 315 80 Passcode: UG6wy2T9 Teams Meeting link: Join the meeting now Dial in by phone +1 564-999-2000,,89528719# United States, Olympia

(833) 322-1218,,89528719# United States (Toll-free) Find a local number Phone conference ID: 895 287 19# DCYF will be bound only to DCYF’S written answers to questions. Questions arising at the Prebid conference or in subsequent communication with the Coordinator will be documented and answered in written form. A copy of the questions and answers will be posted in WEBS.

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