RFRENTERTAIN2026.pdf

Updated: August XX, 2021

ISSUE DATE: April 13,2026

Purchasing Department The Massachusetts Veterans Home at Holyoke

Address 110 Cherry Street City, State Zip Code Holyoke, Ma 01040 Procurement Contact Person Angelo Proietti Telephone Number 413-552-4787 Fax Number 413-532-0606 E-Mail Address angelo.proietti@mass.gov RFR Name/Title RFR Entertainers 2026 RFR Number RFRENTERTAIN2026 COMMBUYS Bid Number BD-26-1053-1053C-CSR-126558

1. Description or Purpose of Procurement:

Established in 1952, the Veterans Home at Holyoke (VHH), is a long-term health care facility available to eligible veterans of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The current 128 bed facility is in the process of being replaced with a 234-bed facility. The new facility will also offer adult day health services for 50 additional veterans. The new facility could be ready for occupancy as early as fall/winter 2026.

VHH’s mission is to provide the highest quality personal health care services to the Commonwealth’s veterans with dignity, honor, and respect. In line with this mission, VHH seeks experienced persons and groups to provide onsite entertainment to the veterans residing at VHH. See “8. Contract Performance and Business Specifications” below for details.

2. Applicable Procurement Law

Check Appropriate

Box (“X”):

Type of Purchase Applicable Laws

Executive Branch Goods and Services

Goods and Services MGL c. 7, § 22; c. 30, § 51, § 52; 801 CMR

21.00

Human and Social Services MGL c. 7, § 22, § 22N; c. 30, § 51, § 52; 801

CMR 21.00; 808 CMR 1.00

Legal Services MGL c. 30, § 51, § 52 and § 65; c. 7, § 22;

and 801 CMR 21.01(2) (b)

Grants MGL c. 7A, § 7; St. 1986 c. 206, § 17; 815

CMR 2.00

REQUEST FOR RESPONSE

RFR Entertainers 2026

RFR # RFRENTERTAIN2026 / COMMBUYS Bid# BD-26-1053-1053C-CSR-126558

3. Acquisition Method:

Check All Applicable (“X”): Category Fee-For-Service

Outright Purchase

Rental (not to exceed 6 months)

Term Lease

License

Other:

4. Whether Single or Multiple Contractors are Required for Contract:

Check One (“X”):

Single Contractor

Multiple Contractors

5. Calendar Rule Type

Check One (“X”): Type

Standard Procurement will not be reopened after the Bid Opening Date

(Response deadline date)

Open May be reopened at a time and for a duration as deemed necessary by the Department.

Rolling Bidders may submit unsolicited proposals during the entire contract period.

6. Entities Eligible to Use the Resulting Contract

Check One (“X”): Eligible Entities

Limited User Contract – Restricted to Use by Defined Entities Only. Any Contract(s) resulting from this Bid will be open for use by the issuing Purchasing Department and the following other entities:

Limited User Contract – Restricted to Use by Issuing Entity Only.

7. Expected Duration of Contract (Initial Duration and any Options to Renew):

Contract Duration Number of Options Number of Years/Months

Initial Duration

5 years

Renewal Options

1 option to renew 5 Years

Total Maximum Contract Duration

10 Years

Final End Date of this Contract 8/31/2036

(equals the initial duration plus all renewal options)

8. Contract Performance and Business Specifications:

The Massachusetts Veterans Home at Holyoke is soliciting persons/group to provide onsite entertainment to the residents of the Veterans Home. Entertainment like Magic, various types and styles of music, slide shows and dancing are examples of the requested entertainment programs. On an as needed basis.

Scope of Services:

• The awarded bidder(s) will submit a “rate per session” fee in response to this RFR.

• The awarded bidder(s) will submit an invoice upon completion of performance.

• The awarded bidder(s) performances will be between 60-120 minutes per session.

• The awarded bidder(s) will bring their own equipment.

• The awarded bidder(s) will always maintain professionalism.

• The awarded bidder(s) will follow all Veterans Home at Holyoke’s policies and Infection prevention/vaccination protocols.

Fiscal Terms:

All invoices shall be submitted electronically to VHH’s Business office at SHH.business@mass.gov or submitted upon completion of performances. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is tax exempt.

Commonwealth payments are issued through Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) 45 days from invoice receipt. To receive accelerated payments Vendor will need to identify a Prompt Pay Discount (PPD) percentage on the PPD form submitted with their response to this bid solicitation.

Performance Measures:

• Use appropriate language/lyrics for our Veteran population.

• Cancellations of performance must be made 1 week in advance, barring any acute sickness.

• Veterans to be surveyed for satisfaction of performance.

9. Small Business Purchasing Program

[MANDATORY FOR PROCUREMENTS WITH ANNUAL VALUES EQUAL TO OR LESS THAN $250,000;

DELETE IF NOT APPLICABLE]

Program Background

The Massachusetts Small Business Purchasing Program (SBPP) was established pursuant to Executive Order 599to 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;

mailto:SHH.business@mass.gov https://www.mass.gov/sbpp https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-599-reaffirming-programs-to-ensure-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-for-diverse-and-small-massachusetts-businesses-in-state-procurement-and-contracting https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-599-reaffirming-programs-to-ensure-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-for-diverse-and-small-massachusetts-businesses-in-state-procurement-and-contracting https://www.commbuys.com/bso/

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.

Program Resources and Assistance

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

10. Environmentally Preferable Products

Products and services purchased by state agencies must be in compliance with Executive Order 515, issued October 27, 2009. Under this Executive Order, Executive Departments are required to reduce their impact on the environment and enhance public health by procuring environmentally preferable products and services (EPPs) whenever such products and services perform to satisfactory standards and represent best value, consistent with 801 CMR 21.00. In line with this directive, all Contracts, whether departmental or statewide, must comply with the specifications and guidelines established by OSD and the EPP Program. EPPs are products and services that help to conserve natural resources, reduce waste, protect public health and the environment, and promote the use of clean technologies, recycled materials, and less toxic products. Bid responses must identify how a contractor meets these goals.

11. Evaluation Criteria:

• Experience

• Schedule Flexibility

12. Instructions for Submission of Responses:

Only electronic quotes submitted via COMMBUYS will be accepted in response to this RFR. Responses must be sent via the “Create Quote” functionality in COMMBUYS. For instructions concerning how to submit a Quote, please see Appendix B.

http://www.mass.gov/sbpp http://www.mass.gov/sbpp mailto:sbpp@mass.gov https://www.mass.gov/executive-orders/no-515-establishing-an-environmental-purchasing-policy?_ga=2.237660352.1741219494.1633353146-758386467.1632336759

Any submission that fails to meet the submission requirements of the RFR will be found non-responsive without further evaluation unless the evaluation team, at its discretion, determines that the non-compliance is insubstantial and may be corrected. In these cases, the evaluation team may allow the vendor to make minor corrections to the submission.

13. Estimated Procurement Calendar

Procurement Activity Date Time

Bid Release Date April 13, 2026 5 P.M.

Deadline for Quotes/Bid Responses (“Bid Opening Date/Time” in COMMBUYS)

August 31,2036 5 P.M.

Notification of Apparent Successful Bidder(s) (Estimated)

09/01/2026

Estimated Contract Start Date 09/01/2026

Bidders are required to monitor COMMBUYS for changes to the procurement calendar for this Bid.

a. Online Questions (Bid Q&A)

Written Questions must be entered using the “Bid Q&A” tab for the Bid in COMMBUYS no later than the “Online Questions Due” date and time indicated in the Estimated Procurement Calendar (above). The issuing department reserves the right to not respond to questions submitted after this date. It is the Bidder’s responsibility to verify receipt of questions.

It is the responsibility of the prospective Bidder and awarded Contractor to maintain an active registration in COMMBUYS and to keep current the email address of the Bidder’s contact person and prospective contract manager, if awarded a contract, and to monitor that email inbox for communications from the Purchasing Department, including requests for clarification. The Purchasing Department and the Commonwealth assume no responsibility if a prospective Bidder’s/awarded Contractor’s designated email address is not current, or if technical problems, including those with the prospective Bidder’s/awarded Contractor’s computer, network, or internet service provider (ISP) cause email communications sent to/from the prospective Bidder/Awarded contractor and the Purchasing Department to be lost or rejected by any means including email or spam filtering.

Written Responses to Questions will be released on or about the “Responses to Questions Posted Online” date indicated in the Estimated Procurement Calendar (above).

(Written questions and responses will be posted on the Bid Q&A Tab for this Bid in COMMBUYS.)

c. Quotes (Bid Responses) Deadline (Bid Opening Date/Time)

See the Quotes (Bid Responses) Deadline (Bid Opening) Date and Time indicated in the Estimated Procurement Calendar (above).

d. Estimated Contract Start Date

This is the approximate start date. The actual start date will be the Contract Effective Date which is the date the Contract is executed by the parties.

14. Required Forms

Responses to this RFR must contain the following documents

Check if applicable (“X”)

Form/Document Notes/Instructions (If any)

Contractor Authorized Signatory Listing form Electronic Submission

Performer Form Electronic Submission

Prompt Payment Discount Form Electronic Submission

Business Reference Form Electronic Submission

W9 (Required, unless submitted with emergency contract)

Electronic Submission

EFT (Required, unless submitted with emergency contract)

Electronic Submission

The above attachments are available as part of the Bid record on COMMBUYS

(WWW.COMMBUYS.COM).

http://www.commbuys.com/

15. RFR Attachments

Appendix A: Required Specifications https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-of-commodities-and-services

Appendix B: Electronic Quote Submission Instructions https://www.mass.gov/doc/instructions-for-vendors-responding-to-bids

Appendix C: Required Specifications for Information Technology [USE ONLY FOR IT] https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-for-information-technology/download

Appendix D: RFR – Other Specifications [OPTIONAL, IF NOT IT CHANGE TO C IF USED]

16. Acceptable Forms of Signature Effective June 15, 2021, for all 1) CTR forms, including the Standard Contract Form, W-9s, Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) forms, ISAs, and other CTR-issued documents and forms, or 2) documents related to state finance and within the statutory area of authority or control of CTR (i.e. contracts, payrolls, and related supporting documentation), CTR will accept signatures executed by an authorized signatory in any of the following ways: 1. Traditional “wet signature” (ink on paper); 2.

Electronic signature that is either: a. Hand drawn using a mouse or finger if working from a touch screen device; or Page 2 b. An uploaded picture of the signatory’s hand drawn signature 3.

Electronic signatures affixed using a digital tool such as Adobe Sign or DocuSign. If using an electronic signature, the signature must be visible, include the signatory’s name and title, and must be accompanied by a signature date. Please be advised that typed text of a name not generated by a digital tool such as Adobe Sign or DocuSign, even in computer-generated cursive script, or an electronic symbol, are not acceptable forms of electronic signature.

https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-of-commodities-and-services https://www.mass.gov/doc/instructions-for-vendors-responding-to-bids https://www.mass.gov/doc/instructions-for-vendors-responding-to-bids https://www.mass.gov/doc/rfr-required-specifications-for-information-technology/download