RFP 1078 Targeted HFNY AMENDED 5-31-2022.pdf

RFP # 1078 Targeted Healthy Families New York

KATHY HOCHUL

Governor

SHEILA J. POOLE

Commissioner

New York State Office of Children and Family Services Child Welfare and Community Services

Bureau of Program and Community Development

Grant Procurement

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

RFP # 1078

Grants Gateway # CFS01-HFNY-2022

Targeted Healthy Families New York (HFNY) Program with Healthy Families America (HFA) Child Welfare Protocols

Issued: 4/25/2022 Amended: 5/31/2022

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION/CALENDAR OF EVENTS

1.1 Procurement Contact

1.2 Calendar of Events (Amended 5/31/2022)

1.3 Informational Meeting/Bidder’s Conference

1.4 Submission of Written Questions

1.5 Deadline for Prequalification in the Grants Gateway

1.6 Submission of Proposals

1.7 OCFS Reserved Rights

2.0 EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW

2.1 Introduction/Description of Program Objectives and Background

2.2 OCFS Statewide Considerations

2.3 Purpose and Funding Availability

2.4 Term of Contract

3.0 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS TO PROPOSE AND PREQUALIFICATION

PROCESS

3.1 Minimum Qualifications (Amended 5/31/2022)

3.2 Prequalification Process

3.3 Vendor Responsibility Requirements

4.0 PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Desired Outcomes and Program Requirements

4.2 Accessibility of Web-Based Information and Applications

5.0 PROPOSAL CONTENT AND SUBMISSION

5.1 Technical Proposal Content/Work Plan

5.2 Proposed Budget

5.3 Key Concepts

5.4 Proposal Content (Amended 5/31/2022)

5.5 Proposal Submittal Process

6.0 MINIMUM CRITERIA/EVALUATION PROCESS

6.1 Minimum Criteria (Pass/Fail Review Criteria)

6.2 Evaluation Process

6.3 Bonus Points

6.4 OCFS Procedure for Handling Debriefing Requests, Formal Protests and Appeals . 57

7.0 MANDATORY CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS

7.1 Contract Readiness

7.2 Standard contract Language

7.3 Workers’ Compensation Insurance and Disability Benefits Coverage

7.4 Confidentiality and Awardee, contractor, Employee and Volunteer Background

Checks

7.5 Charities Registration (not-for-profit corporations only)

7.6 Federal Requirements (if federally funded)

7.7 Required Electronic Payments and Substitute Form W-9

7.8 Iran Divestment Act

7.9 Statewide Financial System

7.10 Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) – Equal Employment

Opportunity (EEO) - Requirements and Procedures

7.11 Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB)

7.12 Omnibus Procurement Act

7.13 Executive Order Number 14 and 16

7.14 Executive Order Number 175 (if Applicable)

7.15 Executive Order Number 177

7.16 State Finance Law §139-l; Statement on Sexual Harassment in Bids

7.17 Other Requirements

8.0 CONTRACT DOCUMENTS

9.0 GLOSSARY OF OUTCOME-BASED CONTRACTING TERMS

10.0 PROGRAM-SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS AND FORMS

Attachment 1 – Budget Template*

Attachment 2 – Workplan Template

Attachment 3 – HFNY Performance Targets

Attachment 4 – HFNY Performance Indicators

Attachment 5 – List of Priority Counties

Attachment 6 – Affirmation of Support Form: LHD and Community Partners

Attachment 7 – Commitment Form: LDSS* (Amended 5/31/2022)

Attachment 8 – Healthy Families Child Welfare Protocols

Attachment 9 – Healthy Families America Best Practice Standards

Attachment 10 – New York State Medicaid Births by County

Attachment 11 – Guidance to Determine the Number of Families to be Served

Attachment 12 – Counties for Targeted HFNY RFP

Attachment A1-B – Program Specific Terms and Conditions

1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION/CALENDAR OF EVENTS

The New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) has released this Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit applications to provide Healthy Families New York (HFNY) home visiting services to include the Healthy Families America (HFA) Child Welfare Protocols to unserved counties in New York State. HFNY is a key strategy supported by OCFS as noted in the state’s Family First Prevention Services Act Prevention Plan to strengthen families, mitigate challenges that can lead to contact with the child welfare system and reduce child welfare involvement for those who are known to the system.

This RFP expands the availability of the effective HFNY services in two important ways:

expanding enrollment of children up to 24 months of age when referred by child welfare and adding programs in unserved counties. The Child Welfare Protocols enables families with a target child up to 24 months of age to enroll when referred by child welfare instead of the age limit of three months in the HFNY traditional model. As a result, families with older children can access the same benefits of home visiting as families with children under three months of age. This expanded eligibility will allow child welfare to refer more families to HFNY and will allow HFNY programs to offer support to older children and families involved in the child welfare system. The unserved counties targeted by this RFP are Cayuga, Chautauqua, Columbia, Essex, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Lewis, Montgomery, Nassau, Onondaga, Putnam, Saratoga, Schoharie, Schuyler, Seneca, Tompkins, Warren, Washington, and Wyoming. No more than one proposal to serve each county will be approved for funding.

Applicants must operate in accordance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations.

Note: Throughout this document, the terms proposals, bids, offers, and applications are used interchangeably, as are applicants, bidders, and offerers.

If the offerer discovers any ambiguity, conflict, discrepancy, omission, or other error in this RFP, the offerer shall immediately notify OCFS (See Section 1.1 Procurement Contact) of such error in writing and request clarification or modification of the document.

If before the deadline for submission of written questions an offerer fails to notify OCFS of a known error in or omission from the RFP, or of any error or omission or prejudice in bid specification or documents with the RFP that the offerer knew or should have known, the offerer agrees that it will assume such risk if awarded funds, and the offerer agrees that it is precluded from seeking further administrative relief or additional compensation under the contract by reason of such error, omission, or prejudice in bid specification or documents.

1.1 Procurement Contact

All inquiries concerning this procurement must be addressed to the director of contracts in the Procurement Unit or his/her designee(s) at OCFS, via email (preferred) RFP@ocfs.ny.gov or via hard copy mailed to:

mailto:RFP@ocfs.ny.gov

Director of Contracts Questions for RFP # 1078 Targeted Healthy Families New York NYS Office of Children and Family Services Bureau of Contract Management 52 Washington Street Room 202S – Procurement Unit Rensselaer, NY 12144

1.2 Calendar of Events (Amended 5/31/2022)

RFP # 1078 Targeted Healthy Families New York (HFNY)

EVENT DATE

Issuance of RFP 4/25/2022

Informational Meeting/Bidder’s Conference (optional) See Section 1.3 for additional information.

5/4/2022 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time

Deadline for submission of written questions 5/9/2022 by 9:00 AM Eastern Time

Responses to written questions posted (on or about) 5/20/2022

Recommended deadline for not-for-profits to prequalify in the NYS Grants Gateway

5/25/2022

Deadline for submission of proposals 6/3/2022 6/10/2022 by 4:00 PM Eastern Time

Anticipated Notification of Award (not earlier than) 7/1/2022 7/8/2022

Anticipated contract start date (not earlier than) 10/1/2022

1.3 Informational Meeting/Bidder’s Conference

Offerors are encouraged to attend the Bidder’s Conference, which will be an interactive webinar. The webinar will provide important information to organizations intending to submit applications in response to this RFP.

One webinar will be held on the date and time specified in RFP Section 1.2 Calendar of Events. Attending the webinar is encouraged as OCFS will review important proposal submission requirements. Attendance is not required.

Prospective applicants may submit a proposal whether or not they attend the webinar. OCFS recommends webinar attendees attempt to log in to the webinar 5-10 minutes early so as to provide sufficient time to troubleshoot computer, software, or internet browser-related issues, should any occur.

• To join for both video and audio conference, access the webinar at THIS LINK and if prompted, use the meeting password: HFNY2022 https://meetny.webex.com/meetny/j.php?MTID=m331ff833a7d684564507e616d3255890

• To join by telephone for the audio conference only, the number to call is 1-518-549-0500; use participant code: 1615 63 3809

Note: It is recommended that participants read the RFP prior to the webinar.

A direct link to the Bidders Conference webinar invitation is available below, which can be copied and pasted into the address bar of most modern internet browsers.

https://meetny.webex.com/meetny/j.php?MTID=m331ff833a7d684564507e616 d3255890

In addition, a comprehensive list of questions and responses resulting from the Bidder’s Conference webinar will be posted in the solicitation announcement in the New York State Grants Gateway System (https://grantsgateway.ny.gov) (Grants Gateway), on the OCFS website (https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/), and the Contract Reporter website at (https://www.nyscr.ny.gov) on or about the date specified in Section 1.2 Calendar of Events.

1.4 Submission of Written Questions

All communications to report errors or omissions in the procurement process, to ask questions, or to request clarification of this RFP should cite the particular RFP section and paragraph number and must be submitted via email (preferred) to RFP@ocfs.ny.gov or via hard copy mailed to the director of contracts no later than the deadline for submission of written questions specified in Section 1.2 Calendar of Events. Questions received after the deadline for posting responses to written questions may not be answered. The comprehensive list of questions and responses will be posted in the solicitation announcement in the New York State Grants Gateway (Gateway) (https://grantsgateway.ny.gov), on the OCFS Website (https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/), and The New York State contract Reporter (Contract Reporter) at (https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/login.cfm) on or about the date specified in Section

1.2 Calendar of Events.

To view the comprehensive list of questions and responses that are posted to the NYS Grants Gateway, click the link under the grant opportunity announcement in the Grant Opportunity Portal.

1.5 Deadline for Prequalification in the Grants Gateway

Not-for-Profit applicants are strongly encouraged to prequalify in the Grants Gateway by the date specified in the table in Section 1.2 Calendar of Events, and MUST prequalify by the date of submission. Please refer to Section 3.0:

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS TO PROPOSE AND PREQUALIFICATION

PROCESS.

https://grantsgateway.ny.gov/ https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/ https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/ mailto:RFP@ocfs.ny.gov https://grantsgateway.ny.gov/ https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/funding/ https://www.nyscr.ny.gov/login.cfm

NOTE: Government entities are not required to prequalify in Grants Gateway but must register in order to submit an application.

1.6 Submission of Proposals

All proposals must be submitted electronically through Grants Gateway. Please refer to SECTION 5: PROPOSAL CONTENT AND SUBMISSION for further information. before submitting a proposal, bidders must prequalify in the Grants Gateway System if not a Government Entity. (See SECTION 3: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS TO PROPOSE AND PREQUALIFICATION PROCESS for further information.)

Forms Required To Be Submitted Into the “Pre-Submission Uploads” Section of the Application (click the hyperlinks below to access the files):

A. OCFS-2633, MacBride Fair Employment Principles Certification Form

B. OCFS-2634, Non-Collusive Bidding Certification (Required by section 139d of State Finance Law.)

C. Attachment A-2, Federal Assurances and Certifications (If applicable.)

D. For complete proposal and contract requirements for the Minority-and- Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) requirements, refer to Section 7.10. The following are forms to be completed and submitted with your Administrative Proposal and can be found here:

• OCFS-4629, Project Staffing Plan Form

• OCFS-3460, Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy Statement

• OCFS-4631, M/WBE Utilization Plan Form

E. OCFS-2647, EO 177 Certification (See section 7.15 for more information.)

F. OCFS-4821, CMS User Authorization (Required for the OCFS contract Management System)

1.7 OCFS Reserved Rights

OCFS reserves the right to

1. place a monetary cap on the funding amount made in each contract award;

2. change any of the schedule dates stated in this RFP before the due date for the submission of proposals;

http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-2633.dotx http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-2634.dotx http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-Attachment-A2-Federal-Assurances.pdf https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/documents/docs.asp?document_type=1&category_number=44 https://ocfs.ny.gov/forms/ocfs/OCFS-4629.docx http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-3460.docx http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-3460.docx http://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-4631%20M-WBE%20Utilization%20Plan%20Form.dot https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-2647.docx https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/Forms/Contracts/OCFS-4821%20Contract%20Management%20System%20(CMS)%20Authorization%20Form.dot

3. reject any or all proposals received in response to the RFP;

4. withdraw the RFP at any time at the agency’s sole discretion;

5. make an award under the RFP in whole or in part;

6. disqualify any bidder whose conduct and/or proposal fails to conform to the requirements of the RFP;

7. reject any proposal if, in the sole discretion of OCFS, it determines the bidder is not a responsible vendor;

8. seek clarification and revisions of proposals. Request bidders to present supplemental information clarifying their proposals either in writing or by formal presentation. Other than the requested clarification and supplemental information, submission of new information is not permitted;

9. require that bidders demonstrate, to the satisfaction of OCFS, any feature(s) present as a part of their proposal, which may include an oral presentation of their proposal. Any such demonstration or presentation may be considered in the evaluation of the proposal;

10. amend any part of this RFP before opening of bids, with notification to all bidders, and direct all bidders to prepare modifications addressing RFP amendments, if necessary. Expenses incurred in the preparation of any proposals or modifications submitted in response to this RFP are the sole responsibility of the bidder or other party and will not be incurred or reimbursed by OCFS;

11. make funding decisions that maximize compliance with and address the outcomes identified in this RFP;

12. fund only one portion, or selected activities, of the selected bidder’s proposal and/or adopt all or part of the selected bidder’s proposal based on federal and state requirements;

13. eliminate any RFP requirements that cannot be met by all prospective bidders upon notice to all parties that submitted proposals;

14. waive procedural technicalities or modify minor irregularities in proposals received after notification to the bidder involved;

15. correct any arithmetic errors in any proposal or make typographical corrections to proposals with the concurrence of the bidder;

16. negotiate with the selected bidder(s) before contract award.

17. conduct contract negotiations or award a contract to the next highest bidder if contract negotiations with the selected bidder(s) cannot be accomplished within an acceptable time frame. No bidder will have any rights against OCFS arising from such actions;

18. award contracts to more than one bidder or to other than the lowest bidder;

19. require that all proposals be held valid for a minimum of 180 days from the closing date for receipt of proposals, unless otherwise expressly provided for in writing;

20. fund any or all of the proposals received in response to this RFP. However, issuance of this RFP does not commit OCFS to fund any proposals. OCFS can reject any proposals submitted and reserves the right to withdraw or postpone this RFP without notice and without liability to any bidder or other party for expenses incurred in the preparation of any proposals submitted in response to this RFP and may exercise these rights at any time;

21. use the proposal submitted in response to this RFP as part of an approved contract. At the time of contract development, awardees may be requested to provide additional budget and program information for the final contract;

22. utilize any and all ideas submitted in the proposals received where an award is ultimately made;

23. require clarification at any time during the procurement process and/or require correction of arithmetic or other apparent errors for the purpose of assuring a full and complete understanding of an offerer’s proposal and/or to determine an offerer’s compliance with the requirements of the solicitation;

24. make additional awards based on the remaining proposals submitted in response to this RFP and/or provide additional funding to awardees if such funds become available;

25. make inquiries of third parties, including but not limited to, bidder’s references, with regard to the applicants’ experience or other matters deemed relevant to the proposal by OCFS. By submitting a proposal in response to this RFP, the applicant gives its consent to any inquiry made by OCFS;

26. require contractors to participate in a formal evaluation of the program to be developed by OCFS. Contractors may be required to collect data for these purposes. The evaluation design will maintain confidentiality of participants and recognize practical constraints of collecting this kind of information;

27. consider statewide distribution and regional distribution within New York City, including borough distribution methodology, in evaluating proposals;

28. rescind awards for failure of awardees to meet time frames that OCFS is required by statute to meet for contract development and approval;

29. cancel this RFP, in whole or in part, at any time and to reject any and all proposals when appropriate in the best interests of the state;

30. make adjustments to the funding amount requested based on program need and based on the total dollar value of the applications submitted; and

31. reject any extraneous terms, alternate activities/work to be performed, added conditions, or exceptions stated by applicants within their proposal(s). This includes, but is not limited to, proposed changes to the standard terms and conditions of the resulting contract(s).

Before the deadline for submission of proposals, any such clarifications or modifications as deemed necessary by OCFS will be posted in Grants Gateway, the NYS contract Reporter, and on the OCFS website. Potential offerers that were sent the original bid notice via email will receive an email from the Procurement Unit regarding the clarifications or modifications. All other individuals will have to check the NYS contract Reporter or the OCFS website for any changes and check the posted Q&As.

2.0 EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW

2.1 Introduction/Description of Program Objectives and Background

HFNY’s voluntary home visitation program provides visitation services to expectant parents and families with infants that promotes optimal prenatal care, better birth outcomes, and positive growth and development in order to improve parent-child bonding, maternal health, child health and social outcomes for families at high risk of abuse or maltreatment and poor health outcomes. The program provides intensive home visitation services bi-weekly during the early prenatal period and weekly during the last trimester until the child is at least six

(6) months old, and periodically thereafter based on the needs of the family until the child begins school or Head Start. This component of HFNY aligns with the state’s Family First Prevention Plan, in serving families “upstream” prior to becoming known to the child welfare system.

Historically, HFNY eligibility criteria focused on prenatal families and families with a child 3 months or under. While this RFP will still address these families, this criteria limited the ability for families of older children involved with child welfare to access the effective HFNY services. Through this RFP, HFNY expands eligibility criteria for referrals made by child welfare to families with a target child up to 24 months of age by utilizing Child Welfare Protocol. This expanded eligibility allows more families involved in the child welfare system to access the evidence-based HFNY services, and enable the child welfare system to expand their efforts to work further upstream and prevent families from becoming more significantly involved in the child welfare system. Families with older children involved in the child welfare system can access the same benefits of home visiting as families with children under three months who have traditionally been eligible. These benefits include improved parent-child relationships, improved child health and safety, and many families averting further child welfare involvement.

HFNY strategies are relationship-based, culturally sensitive, family-centered, strength-based (building on parental competencies) and grounded in the parallel process. HFNY home visitors develop healthy relationships with families and partner with parents to support them in responding in a sensitive and in a nurturing manner to their young children. HFNY focuses on recruitment of staff that mirror that of the community in which the program serves. Hiring staff that speak the languages in the community and offering materials that are representiave of the community helps to foster the relationship with the families served. HFNY requires all program to assess the cultural humility of all aspects of service delivery at their program and identify areas of strengths and areas needing improvement to ensure the program is delivering the most equitable and inclusive services to the families they serve.

The program partners with families and assesses their strengths and needs to guide service provision. Through home visits, the program enhances family and child well-being including increasing protective factors to mitigate the risk of child abuse and neglect. Protective factors are parental resilience, social connections, knowledge of parenting and child development, social and emotional competence, and concrete support in times of need. The program builds and uses strong community linkages to meet family needs by connecting families to community resources including local department of social services, local health departments, hospitals, clinics, and Women, Infants and Children (WIC) offices.

Over the last 26 years, HFNY has grown to 44 programs in 36 counties and the five (5) boroughs of New York City. Evaluation results from a Randomized Control Trial (RCT) conducted by the OCFS Bureau of Research, Evaluation and Performance Analytics, in collaboration with the Center for Human Services Research (CHSR) at SUNY Albany, have identified many positive outcomes for HFNY participants, including but not limited to:

Improved Birth Outcomes & Child Health

• Reduction in low-birth-weight deliveries, by 48%, among women who enrolled before the 31st week of pregnancy.

• Children were more likely to have health insurance by age one.

Reductions in Child Abuse & Neglect

• Sustained reductions in maternal reports of harmful parenting practices at ages one, two and seven.

• Reduction in subsequent confirmed child protective services (CPS) reports after seven years for mothers with a confirmed CPS report prior to program entry.

• Reduction in the rate at which children of young, first-time moms who enrolled in HFNY early in pregnancy were confirmed as victims in CPS reports between the ages of five to seven.

Supports Positive Parenting Practices

• Mothers were more likely to endorse appropriate limit setting strategies when their children were two years old.

• Mothers were more likely to be observed using parenting strategies that stimulated the child’s cognitive skills and were sensitive to the child’s needs and cues when their children were three years old.

• Mothers used non-violent discipline strategies more often when their children were seven years old.

Promotes Success in School for Children

• Children were 50% less likely to repeat first grade.

• Children were more likely to score above grade level in first grade on three specific behaviors that promote learning: working or playing cooperatively with others, following directions or classroom rules, and completing home or class work on time.

• Children were more likely to be participating in a gifted program by age seven.

• Children were less likely to be receiving special education services by age seven.

• Children of young, first-time mothers who enrolled in HFNY early in pregnancy were less likely to have below average receptive vocabulary scores.

Cost Savings

• As a result of reductions in low-birth-weight births, the cost to serve a family during pregnancy was totally recovered by the time of the child’s birth.

• For mothers with histories of indicated child protective service (CPS) reports prior to enrollment, HFNY generates a return of more than $3 for every $1 invested by the child’s seventh birthday.

Based on the evaluation’s rigorous random assignment design and program’s significant and positive effects on a range of outcomes, HFNY was designated as a “proven program” by RAND’s Promising Practice network and an effective program by both Child Trends and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. These findings played a role in the designation of HFA home visiting programs like HFNY, as meeting the federal Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) criteria for an evidence-based early childhood home visiting service delivery model under the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting initiative and as a Well-Supported program in the Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse.

Started in 1995, HFNY is part of the national Healthy Families America (HFA) network sponsored by Prevent Child Abuse America. Currently, there are nearly 600 affiliated HFA program sites in 38 states, Washington, D.C., all five (5) US territories: Guam, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa, and in Israel. HFNY is a Healthy Families America (HFA) accredited program. All HFA accredited sites follow the Best Practice Standards (See Attachment #9) that are essential for a comprehensive quality home visiting program. As of 2020, HFA/HFNY has allowed both in person and remote home visits with approval by HFA and HFNY.

More information on Healthy Families New York is available at https://www.healthyfamiliesnewyork.org/.

Applicants for this RFP are encouraged, but not required, to serve more than one county with the goal of expanding services across New York State to reach more families. This approach gives programs flexibility to adjust to emerging community and family needs across multiple counties.

2.2 OCFS Statewide Considerations

OCFS’s mission is to serve New York's public by promoting the safety, permanency and well-being of our children, families and communities. OCFS effectuates results by setting and enforcing policies and building partnerships at the federal, state, county and community levels that impact practice. OCFS funding investments assist communities to create and/or enhance the provision of quality services in the areas of child welfare, juvenile justice, adult protective services, and services for the legally blind and visually impaired.

OCFS conducts ongoing analysis of demographic data and fiscal expenditures to aid counties and communities in administering safe, effective and cost-efficient services to the residents of our state. Paramount is ongoing self-assessment within “the system” to identify changes in service needs, interventions, and partnerships. OCFS data reveals that many children and families who are involved with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems in New York State are disproportionately Black and Latino, and many are poor. For the blind and visually impaired service area, Black and Latino adults are underrepresented in the receipt of services from the legally blind and visually impaired service network.

In response to this situation, OCFS has been implementing various activities to

• assess relevant data,

• identify which communities across the state are affected,

• identify evidence-based and/or best-practice strategies and/or approaches that can be replicated in New York State to respond to the issue, and

• provide funding to designated high-need communities to facilitate implementation of programs and services that address disproportionality and disparity rates.

This RFP provides OCFS and localities an opportunity to provide services to our most vulnerable children and families and to implement activities that address disproportionality in identified communities. OCFS will invest in services that are culturally and linguistically competent, cost efficient, and contribute toward alleviating issues identified for the respective communities. Organizations that are interested in applying for OCFS funding are therefore encouraged to review their community’s demographic data (i.e., child welfare, home visiting, adoption, and juvenile justice) and as indicated and where deemed appropriate per the https://www.healthyfamiliesnewyork.org/ target population and/or scope of services for the funding source, consider the following element(s) in their proposal design:

• Disconnected/High-Need Youth

OCFS’s priority is to “protect those in greatest need” through ongoing assessment and enhancement of services that promote safety and general well-being for at-risk children, adolescents, families and adults. This priority includes targeting services for “disconnected/high need youth” who are: youth aging out of foster care; youth in or reentering the community from the juvenile justice system; and children of incarcerated parents. Grant applications that propose to serve the “disconnected/high-need youth” population must consider that the clients cited above often require service intervention from multiple service systems. Where required by the OCFS RFP narrative, applications must demonstrate capacity and scope for cross-agency collaborations and partnership with relevant community organizations.

• Racial Equity and Cultural Competence

OCFS continues work in the area of Racial Equity and Cultural Competence (RECC). Effort to address RECC includes examination of the issues related to the overrepresentation of Black, Latino and Native American children and their families in the State’s child welfare and juvenile justice systems. It also entails a consideration of issues related to the underrepresentation of Blacks, Native Americans and Latinos in various service delivery systems to identify how best to enhance outreach and preventive measures that support the safe reduction of out-of-home placements for children and adults, and focus on the well-being of children, youth and families. OCFS has enlisted the participation of our state and local partners in this effort and is working with a number of counties to examine local data and develop strategies to address, reduce and ultimately eliminate racial and ethnic disparities and to seek equity within the systems of care and custody. We continue to partner with national experts Casey Family Programs and have also collaborated with the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and other national experts dedicated to this work. The effort must be data driven and therefore, we have generated and shared county-level data with partners and stakeholders in our effort to encourage transparency and collaboration.

Current OCFS statewide data indicates that Black and Latino children and families continue to comprise 75 percent of the state’s children in foster care and about 85 percent of the juvenile justice placements. OCFS views this RFP as an opportunity to heighten public awareness of the issue of disproportionality and to begin to promote policies and practices that will gradually reduce it.

As noted in 2.1. HFNY services are culturally sensitive, and the model incorporates equity and inclusivity. Specific areas that every applicant and community are requested to consider in the design of their program and scope of services identified in their application for OCFS funding include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Providing service strategies, approaches, and linguistic capacities that promote the delivery of services that are culturally competent and reflective of the population and community to be served

• Collecting and analyzing data relevant to disproportionality and service provision

• Strategically locating services within communities, to promote better access to service delivery in high-need areas

• Promoting cross-agency dialogue and partnership regarding service planning to address disproportionality (including, but not limited to, social services, mental health, health, education, housing, substance abuse, probation agencies, and community-based providers)

• Disproportionate Minority Representation (DMR) in the Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Systems

Disproportionate Minority Representation (DMR) or disproportionality occurs when the percentage for the representation of a particular minority group (racial, ethnic) involved with a service system is significantly higher or lower than that group’s percentage or representation in the general population.

Disproportionality has implications across all services administered by OCFS, including child welfare, juvenile justice, child care, youth development, and those services for the blind and visually impaired. In some service categories, disproportionality manifests itself by over-representation of racial/ethnic groups, and in other service categories, it is manifested by under-representation of racial/ethnic groups.

Further information regarding Disproportionate Minority Representation (DMR) and data in New York State can be found through the following link:

Disproportionate Minority Representation (DMR).

2.3 Purpose and Funding Availability

The purpose of this funding is to provide HFNY services to families in targeted counties through new or existing OCFS HFNY programs. Applicants funded through this RFP will implement the HFA Child Welfare Protocols (see Attachment #8) in the targeted counties.

A total of approximately $9 million annually will be available to fund proposals to serve the targeted counties identified in this RFP. These funds are a result of state adoption assistance savings which OCFS is reinvesting into preventive services for children at risk of entering foster care. If additional funding becomes available, additional awards may be made to proposals initially approved but not awarded funding under this RFP. See also Attachment A1-B Program Specific Terms and Conditions.

https://ocfs.ny.gov/main/contracts/docs/DMR-Section-Seven-of-Grant-RFP-2015.pdf

Annual awards of up to $500,000 per county will be made based on the number of families to be served. The applicant’s proposal should propose to serve the equivalent of up to 15 percent of Medicaid births in their county(ies). Generally, programs have been successful serving the number of families equivalent to 10 to 15 percent of Medicaid births in the county(ies) to be served. See Section 4.1, Attachment #10 NYS Medicaid Births by County and Attachment #11 Guidance to Determine the Number of Families to be Served. No more than one proposal to serve each county will be approved for funding.

This funding requires a 10 percent local or in-kind match from sources not provided by state or federal funds.

Requests for advance payments on state funded contracts will be allowed up to 40 percent of the annual contract value. OCFS will recoup advance payments by crediting 33.3 percent of subsequent quarterly claims and such claims will be reduced until the advance is fully recovered within the contract period.

As noted in Section 1.7 OCFS Reserved Rights above, OCFS reserves the right to place a monetary cap on the funding amount made in each contract award.

2.4 Term of Contract

The contract(s) awarded in response to this RFP will be for up to five (5) years.

The anticipated start date is October 1, 2022. Funding is currently anticipated to be available for the first year of the contract. The award of a multi-year contract does not guarantee that funding will be available for subsequent years.

Contractors may not begin to provide services prior to the contract start date;

OCFS has no obligation to pay for services rendered prior to that time. Payments cannot be made prior to the formal execution of a contract and approval by the New York State Office of the State Comptroller (OSC).

3.0 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS TO PROPOSE AND PREQUALIFICATION

PROCESS

3.1 Minimum Qualifications (Amended 5/31/2022)

To be considered eligible to apply, organizations must:

1. Be one of the following entities:

• Not-for-profit organization,

• Local government agency,

• Tribal organization,

• 501(c)(3) organization, including but not limited to community and faith-based organizations,

• Religious organization established pursuant to the Religious Corporation Law or other incorporated faith-based or religious organizations, or

• Educational institution such as school districts and BOCES programs.

For the purposes of this RFP: for-profit and organizations that operate for the benefit of private interests are not eligible to apply.

2. Propose to serve one or more of the targeted counties (see Attachment #12): Cayuga, Chautauqua, Columbia, Essex, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Lewis, Montgomery, Nassau, Onondaga, Putnam, Saratoga, Schoharie, Schuyler, Seneca, Tompkins, Warren, Washington, and/or Wyoming and commit to implement the HFA Child Welfare Protocols (see Attachment #8).

3. Include a completed Commitment Form (Attachment #7) from the local department of social services of the county or counties proposed to be served stating that the county will provide appropriate referrals to the program for families with children up to the age of two eligible for IV-E funding.

4. Awardees under this contract must agree to enter into a contract with the county(ies) they serve, if necessary and at OCFS direction, to obtain payment for Title IV-E eligible families, if counties seek Title IV-E reimbursement.

5. Agree to implement the Healthy Families model and comply with program requirements as described in Section 4.1.

6. Be prequalified, if not exempt, in the NYS Grants Gateway on the application deadline. (See Section 3.2 for additional information)

3.2 Prequalification Process

New York State has instituted key reform initiatives to the grant contract process that require not-for-profit organizations to register in the New York State Grants Gateway System (Gateway) and complete the Vendor Prequalification process in order for proposals to be evaluated. After becoming prequalified, not-for-profit organizations will have the responsibility to keep their information current by updating on an annual basis.

Proposals received from not-for-profit applicants that are not prequalified in the Grants Gateway on the proposal due date and time listed in Section

1.2 Calendar of Events will be disqualified from further consideration.

NOTE: Government entities are not required to prequalify in the Grants Gateway but must still be registered in order to submit an application. Government entities that are exempt from prequalification should have a document vault status of “Document Vault Available.”

Below is a summary of the steps that must be completed to meet registration and prequalification requirements. The Vendor Prequalification Manual on the Grants Management website details the requirements and an online tutorial is available to walk users through the process.

3.2.1 Register for the Grants Gateway

• On the Grants Management website, download a copy of the Registration Form for Administrators. A signed, notarized original form must be sent to the Division of Budget at the address provided in the instructions. You will be provided with a username and password allowing you to access the Grants Gateway.

• If you have previously registered and do not know your username, email grantsgateway@its.ny.gov. If you do not know your password, click the Forgot Password link from the main log in page and follow the prompts.

3.2.2 Complete Your Prequalification Application

• Log into the Grants Gateway. If this is your first time logging in, you will be prompted to change your password at the bottom of the “Profile” page. Enter a new password and click “SAVE.”

• Click the “Organization(s)” link at the top of the page and complete the required fields including selecting the state agency with which you have the most grant contracts. If you currently do not have any contracts with NYS, select OCFS. This page should be completed in its entirety before you click “SAVE”. A “Document Vault” link will become available near the top of the page. Click this link to access the main “Document Vault” page.

• Answer the questions in the “Required Forms” and upload “Required Documents.” This constitutes your “Prequalification Application.”

“Optional Documents” are not required unless specified in this Request for Proposal.

• Specific questions about the prequalification process should be directed to the agency contact listed in Section 1.1 Procurement Contact, or to the Grants Gateway Team at:

grantsgateway@its.ny.gov.

3.2.3 Submit Your Prequalification Application

• After completing your prequalification application, click the “Submit Document Vault” link located below the “Required Documents” section to submit your prequalification application for state agency review.

https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/get-prequalified https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/ https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/ https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/videos-grant-applicants https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/registrationform mailto:grantsgateway@its.ny.gov https://grantsgateway.ny.gov/IntelliGrants_NYSGG/PersonPassword2.aspx?Mode=Forgot https://grantsgateway.ny.gov/IntelliGrants_NYSGG/login2.aspx mailto:grantsgateway@its.ny.gov

Once submitted, the status of the document vault will change to “In Review.”

• If expedited review of your prequalification application is desired, please send an email request to the agency contact listed in Section

1.1 Procurement Contact and identify your organization by including your Grants Gateway Document Vault (GDV) number, organization name, Federal EIN, and SFS Vendor ID. It is recommended that you submit this request for expedited review before the Recommended Deadline to Prequalify in the Grants Gateway noted in Section 1.2 Calendar of Events.

• Your document vault will be assigned to a prequalification specialist for review. If your prequalification specialist requests modifications, you will receive an email notification from the Gateway and the status of your document vault will change to “Modifications Requested.”

• Requests for modifications should be addressed by the vendor and resubmitted for review without delay. The status of the document vault must change back to “In Review” for modifications to be reviewed and approved by a prequalification specialist.

• Once your prequalification application has been approved, you will receive a Gateway notification that you are now prequalified to do business with New York State. The status of the document vault should be “Document Vault Prequalified.”

Vendors are strongly encouraged to complete this process as soon as possible or by the date specified in RFP Section 1.2 Calendar of Events to participate in this grant opportunity. Prospective applicants are responsible for monitoring their status in the Grants Gateway. OCFS cannot be held responsible in the event an applicant fails to submit their Document Vault for review in a timely manner, or if the documents uploaded by the applicant to their Document Vault are found deficient.

3.3 Vendor Responsibility Requirements

Section 163(9)(f) of the NY State Finance Law requires that a state agency make a determination that a bidder is responsible before awarding that bidder a state contract. Vendor responsibility will be determined based on the information provided by the bidder, online, through the New York State VendRep System Questionnaire or through a paper copy of the Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire. OCFS will review the information provided before making an award.

OCFS reserves the right to reject any proposal if, in its sole discretion, it determines the bidder is not a responsible vendor. All proposals are subject to a vendor responsibility determination before the award is made, and the determination can be revisited at any point up to the final approval of the contract by the New York State Office of the State Comptroller (OSC). Vendors must maintain their vendor responsibility throughout the duration of the contract.

Enrolling and completing the questionnaire online through the New York State VendRep System is the best method because both the questionnaire and answers are stored in the system. Thus, subsequent questionnaires in response to contracts or Request for Proposals from any state agency would only need to be updated in the VendRep System.

To access or enroll in the VendRep System or update your existing online questionnaire, click Online Questionnaire. Questionnaires in the VendRep System that have been completed in the last six months in response to contracts or bid announcements do not need to be updated. If the vendor is using the hard copy notarized questionnaire, then it also has to be current within six months of the due date of the proposal.

Vendors opting to complete a paper questionnaire, can access the questionnaire by clicking the following link: Paper Questionnaire. Please note that there are separate questionnaires depending on the contractor status. Not-for-profit vendors must use the Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire Not-For-Profit Business Entity form. For-profit vendors must use the Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire For-Profit Business Entity form.

Vendors are also encouraged to have subcontractors file the required Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire online through the New York State VendRep System. These subcontractors are required to submit a questionnaire when the value of the subcontract is $100,000 or more.

Before executing a subcontract agreement, the contractor must provide the information required by OCFS to determine whether a proposed subcontractor is a responsible vendor.

Vendors must provide their New York State Vendor Identification Number when enrolling. To request a Vendor Identification Number or for direct VendRep System user assistance, contact the OSC Help Desk at 866-370-4672 or 518- 408-4672 or by email at ciohelpdesk@osc.state.ny.us.

The New York State VendRep System offers the following benefits:

• Ease of completion, filing, access to and submission of the questionnaire;

efficiencies are multiplied for vendors who bid and contract with the state frequently or with multiple state agencies.

• Questionnaire updates are easily filed by updating only those responses that require change from the previously saved questionnaire (as opposed to a paper copy where a new questionnaire is required each time there is a change).

http://www.osc.state.ny.us/vendrep/index.htm http://www.osc.state.ny.us/vendrep/forms_vendor.htm mailto:ciohelpdesk@osc.state.ny.us

• The stored questionnaire information eliminates the need to reenter data for each subsequent questionnaire submission.

• Reduction of costs associated with paper documents including copying, delivery and filing

• Online questionnaire information is secure and accessible to authorized vendor users only. State agencies can only view certified and finalized questionnaires.

• VendRep question prompts ensure that the correct forms are completed.

• The VendRep Online System contains links to all definitions of the terms used in the questionnaire.

Note: The vendor responsibility questionnaire must be dated within six months of the proposal due date. Any subcontractors under that proposed contract must also complete a Vendor Responsibility Questionnaire when the value of the subcontract is projected to be $100,000 or more for the contract term.

Confirmation of completion of the vendor responsibility process must be submitted with your proposal. This confirmation can take the form of registration in the VendRep System, or by submitting your completed hardcopy questionnaire. To submit this confirmation with your application, go to the bottom of your certified questionnaire, and click the button called “Form Overview.” Print this page and upload it to the proposal. Upload the page into your proposal by going to the “Pre-Submission Uploads” section of the RFP in the Gateway. While it is not recommended, you have the option of uploading a completed hardcopy vendor responsibility questionnaire to the “Pre-Submission Uploads” section.

4.0 PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Desired Outcomes and Program Requirements

OCFS is seeking proposals that are responsive to the desired outcomes identified in the RFP and that provide value to the OCFS mission. OCFS expects all project services funded by this initiative to be designed to be culturally and linguistically competent, strength based, supportive to families and communities, and cost efficient. Appropriate planning and development activities must be conducted by applicants to promote responsiveness to the target population of this RFP.

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