7/2023

REQUEST FOR GRANT APPLICATIONS

FOR

Tobacco Use Prevention Programs for Youth

RGA-2027-DBH-02-TOBAC

RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2026

State of New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services

New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Tobacco Use Prevention Program for Youth

Table of Contents

1. PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW

Introduction

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Division for Behavioral Health (Department) is accepting applications to this Request for Grant Applications (RGA or Solicitation) from qualified community-based programs (Applicants) that are designed for youth to develop and implement youth-led and youth-powered tobacco use prevention strategies in order to prevent and reduce youth access to and use of tobacco products.

The Department anticipates awarding up to four (4) Grant Agreements pursuant to this RGA for projects, initiatives and/or activities that meet the objectives in this Solicitation.

Key Information The information in the table below is as anticipated by the Department and is subject to change.

Grant Agreements are contingent upon the availability of funds and approval by the Governor and Executive Council.

Grant Agreement Effective Date

July 1, 2026

Grant Agreement End Date

June 30, 2027

Funding for the resulting agreement(s) is anticipated to be approximately:

Up to $46,676, inclusive of all grant agreements awarded.

Funding Source The Department anticipates using Governor’s Commission on Addiction, Treatment, and Prevention funds ( General funds ) for resulting grant agreement(s).

Assistance Listing Number (ALN) N/A

Award Name N/A

Point of Contact Edward Sisson, Contract Specialist Edward R. Sisson@dhhs.nh.gov 603-271-9312

From the date of release of this solicitation until an award is made and announced regarding the selection of an Applicant, all communication with personnel employed by or under contract with the Department regarding this solicitation is prohibited unless first approved by the Point of Contact listed above. Department employees have been directed not to hold conferences and/or discussions concerning this solicitation with any potential grantee during the selection process, unless otherwise authorized by the Point of Contact. Applicants may be disqualified for violating this restriction on communications.

Procurement Timetable

The Department reserves the right to modify these dates and times at its sole discretion.

Item Action Date

1. RGA released 3/5/2026

2. Deadline to submit Letter of Intent (optional) 3/16/2026

3. Deadline to submit questions regarding RGA 3/16/2026 12:00 Noon EST

4. Publication of Department responses to vendor RGA questions 3/30/2026

5. Deadline for Applicants to respond to RGA 4/10/2026 12:00 Noon EST

Background New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Division for

Behavioral Health The Department is dedicated to providing a comprehensive and coordinated system of health and human services that promotes and protects the health, safety and well-being of the citizens of New Hampshire. Such services are directed at supporting families, strengthening communities, and developing the independence and self-sufficiency of New Hampshire citizens to the extent possible. The behavioral health care of New Hampshire citizens is central to this mission.

The Division for Behavioral Health seeks to cultivate the mental health and wellness of all individuals by promoting thriving, resilient communities and ensuring all people in New Hampshire have access to high-quality, integrated care for optimum mental health.

Specifically, the Bureau of Mental Health Services and the Bureau for Drug and Alcohol Services, and State Opioid Response grant program, oversee the network of community mental and substance use health care that provides comprehensive services to people with serious emotional disturbances, serious mental illnesses, and substance use disorders.

New Hampshire Division for Behavioral Health, Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services

The Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Services contributes to this mission, in part, by providing resources that develop, support, and deliver Substance Use Disorder prevention, early intervention, treatment and recovery support services, including tobacco use prevention.

Objective The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is a national survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention every two years among representative samples of 9th through 12th grade students. The survey monitors six (6) types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults, one of which is tobacco use.

The most recent data from the 2023 YRBS shows that 16.7% of NH high school students reported using Electronic Cigarettes (Vaping) in the past 30 days. The data showed that 32.6% have tried a vapor product in their lifetime.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) Recent data on youth tobacco use in New Hampshire reveals concerning trends that underscore the need for targeted intervention. Approximately 10.1% of youth currently use some form of tobacco product, with e-cigarettes emerging as the most popular choice, used by 7.8% of respondents. In contrast, traditional cigarette smoking remains relatively low at 1.7%, indicating a significant shift in consumption patterns. Notably, vaping is nearly five times more prevalent than cigarette smoking, highlighting the growing dominance of e-cigarettes among young people. Furthermore, many youth report using vaping products as a coping mechanism for anxiety, depression, and stress, suggesting a strong link between mental health challenges and tobacco use behaviors.

Covered Populations The covered population consists youth from 10 to 20 years of age living in New Hampshire.

Grant Agreement Requirements Selected Applicants must work with youth to develop a youth-led and youth-powered tobacco use prevention program (Program) that focuses on activities that prevent youth from using tobacco products in order to improve quality of long-term life and reduce lifetime health care expenses.

Selected Applicants must implement the Program ensuring tobacco use prevention activities:

Are led by youth;

Are mentored by an adult employed by the Applicant;

Target youth from 10 to 20 years of age in order to impact the number of youth under the age of 21 years who begin using tobacco products;

and

Promote program participation for other youth and young adults.

Selected Applicants must ensure Program activities focus on, but are not limited to:

Preventing the initiation of tobacco use among youth.

Enhancing protection for youths particularly at risk for tobacco use.

Increasing youth awareness of the risks and harm caused by the use of tobacco.

Youth education and engagement activities.

Promoting youth leadership skills.

Increasing community involvement.

Creating focus groups to gather social environmental data.

Selected Applicants must ensure the implemented Program is supported and encouraged by adults within the community through Applicant lead focus groups.

Selected Applicants must work with the Program in a manner that leads to important environmental and social norm changes based on feedback from community focus groups comprised of youth or adults in the community identified by the Applicant as being able to contribute to the Program.

Selected Applicants must assist the Program to ensure the program has access to support and tools to speak with retailers regarding:

The harm of advertising tobacco products to youth; and

The importance of requesting proof of age from any individual purchasing tobacco products, as required by RSA 126-K:3, to confirm the individual purchasing tobacco products is at least 21 years of age.

Selected Applicants must assist the Program with outreach and intervention techniques in a manner that assists youth in speaking with other youth about the harms of using tobacco products.

Reporting Requirements Selected Applicants must provide a Final Report to the Department no later than 45 calendar days prior to the Grant Agreement completion date, which must include:

Program, strategies or initiatives status and/or completion dates; and

An impact statement on the success of the project(s), which must include supporting documentation. Grantees must only provide aggregated and de-identified information.

The funds must be expended by June 30, 2027, and may be applied to expenses incurred beginning July 1, 2026.

Background Checks Prior to permitting any individual to provide services under this

Agreement, the selected Vendor must ensure that said individual has undergone:

A criminal background check, at the selected Vendor’s expense, and has no convictions for crimes that represent evidence of behavior that could endanger individuals served under the resulting agreement;

A name search of the Department’s Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services (BEAS) State Registry, pursuant to RSA 161- F:49, with results indicating no evidence of behavior that could endanger individuals served under the resulting agreement; and A name search of the Department’s Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) Central Registry pursuant to RSA 169-C:35, with results indicating no evidence of behavior that could endanger individuals served under the resulting agreement.

Confidential Data Selected Applicants must meet all information security and privacy requirements as set by the Department and in accordance with Appendix A, Standard Exhibits, Exhibit E: DHHS Information Security Requirements.

Selected Applicants must promote and maintain an awareness of the importance of securing the Department's information among their End Users. End User must not be permitted to handle, access, view, store or discuss Confidential Data until an attestation is executed by the individual End User and received by the Selected Applicant certifying that the individual End User associated with fulfilling the obligations of the Grant Agreement is, based on criteria provided herein, eligible to participate in work associated with the Grant Agreement.

Selected Applicants must ensure any staff and/or volunteers involved in delivering services through the resulting Grant Agreements sign an attestation agreeing to access, view, store, and discuss Confidential Data in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations, and Appendix A, Standard Exhibits, Exhibit E: DHHS Information Security Requirements. Selected Applicants must ensure said individuals have a justifiable business need to access confidential data. Selected Applicants must provide attestations upon Department request.

Upon request, Selected Applicant must allow and assist the Department in conducting a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) of its system(s)/application(s)/web portal(s)/website(s) or Department system(s)/application(s)/web portal(s)/ website(s) hosted by Selected Applicant if Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is collected, used, accessed, shared, or stored. To conduct the PIA, Selected Applicant must provide the Department access to applicable systems and documentation sufficient to allow the Department to assess, at minimum, the following:

How PII is gathered and stored;

Who will have access to PII;

How PII will be used in the system;

How individual consent will be achieved and revoked;

and Privacy practices.

The Department may conduct follow-up PIAs in the event of:

Significant process changes; and/or New technologies impacting the collection, processing or storage of PII.

Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services

Applicants are required to consider the need for language services for individuals with Limited English Proficiency as well as other communication needs, served or likely to be encountered in the eligible service population, both in developing their budgets and in conducting their programs and activities.

Applicants are required to complete Appendix B, Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) Requirements, as part of their solicitation response. This is in accordance with Federal civil rights laws and intended to help inform Applicants’ program design, which in turn, will allow Applicants to put forth the best possible solicitation response.

Selected Applicants will be:

Required to submit a detailed description of the language assistance services they will provide to LEP persons to ensure meaningful access to their programs and/or services, within ten (10) days of the date the Grant Agreement is approved by Governor and Council;

and

Monitored on their Federal civil rights compliance using the Federal Civil Rights Compliance Checklist, as made available by the Department.

2. Funding and Award Process Certification and Award Process

Mandatory Questions Applicants must provide a written response to each of the mandatory questions below. Applicant responses to each question must not be longer than five (5) pages in length.

Need & Project Plan – Describe how the project will assist youth in your region.

Your response must include, but is not limited to:

• Identify the need for tobacco use prevention programming in your region and how tobacco use prevention will positively impact youth.

• Provide a detailed description of your programming from development to implementation.

• Provide a detailed description of the composition of planned community focus groups and how they will contribute to the Program.

• Provide a detailed description of your plans for community partnerships that will ensure sustainability of the program even if grant funds are no longer available.

• Provide a detailed description of what data you plan to collect to show the impact of the Program.

Funding Request – Provide a detailed budget for the proposed tobacco use prevention program, with funding narrative, utilizing Appendix D – Budget Sheet.

Include any supporting documentation for the funding being requested under this RGA, which must include, but is not limited to:

• Include all costs associated with development, implementation, and activities specific to tobacco use prevention.

• An itemized breakdown of each cost.

Scoring Methodology

Applicant Responses to the Mandatory Questions in 2.2.3 will be scored using the scoring method below:

Topic Point Value Need & Project Plan (Q1) 600

Funding Request (Q2) 400

Maximum Possible Score 1000 Minimum Allowable Score 650

Each Applicant Response to the Mandatory Questions in Paragraph 2.1.1. will result in a stand-alone score. Each question will be scored based on the following scoring matrix:

Score Q1 Criteria (Need & Project Plan)

0-200

Request is not within timeline, is not directly or clearly related to youth-led and youth-powered tobacco use prevention strategies, and funding request is not well defined and/or cost effective.

201-400 Request is within timeline, is related to youth-led and youth-powered tobacco use prevention strategies, and funding request is mostly defined and/or cost effective.

401-600 Request is within timeline, is related to youth-led and youth-powered tobacco use prevention strategies, and funding request is clearly well defined, cost effective.

Score Q2 Criteria (Funding Request)

0-133 Funding Request is not clearly defined and/or costs do not directly align with the objectives of the RGA.

134-266 Funding Request is defined, cost effective, and aligns with the objectives of the RGA.

267-400 Funding Request is clear and well defined, directly relates to the objectives of the RGA, and demonstrates significant economic need.

Compensation The total available funding awarded through this RGA is anticipated to be approximately $46,676, inclusive of all Grant Agreements awarded.

The Department anticipates awarding up to four (4) awards of approximately

$11,669 for one (1) year. In the event the Department awards fewer than four (4) awards, the Department may redistribute any remaining funds among the selected Applicants at its sole discretion.

Funding must not be utilized to supplement other grant awards or budgeted funds.

Payment shall be made monthly on a cost reimbursement basis for actual expenses incurred upon receipt of invoice(s), in a format acceptable to the Department, that must include each allowable cost and/or service(s) rendered, and supporting documentation verifying all costs and expenses are incurred between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027, including, but not limited to, invoices and receipts from licensed or certified professionals.

Because this is a cost reimbursement-based Grant Agreement, all funding awarded through this RGA must be used for actual expenses incurred and expended between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027.

Any portion of non-federal funding, including General Funds or other non-federal funds, in the resulting agreement(s) may be subject to an indirect rate cap of 15% or, if applicable, the selected Vendor’s federal Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement (NICRA), whichever is lower.

Application Contents Appendix C – Transmittal Letter and Vendor Information Appendix D – Budget Sheet and Program Staff List; and Appendix E – Technical Responses to Questions.

Application Email Applications must be submitted electronically to rfx@dhhs.nh.gov and the Contract

Specialist at the email address specified in Paragraph 1.2.

The subject line must include the following information RGA-2027-DBH-02-

TOBAC.

The maximum size of file attachments per email is 25MB. Attachments that exceed this limit must be submitted via multiple emails with the subject line indicating the number of emails (i.e., x of x).

Applications will be accepted until the date and time indicated in the Procurement Timetable in Subsection 1.3 and in the manner specified or it may be rejected as non-compliant, unless waived by the Department as a non-material deviation.

The Department will conduct an initial screening step upon receipt of the Application Email to verify Vendor compliance with the Solicitation requirements and the Application Contents in accordance with Subsection 2.4. The Department may waive or offer a limited opportunity for a Vendor to cure immaterial deviations from the Solicitation requirements if it is deemed to be in the best interest of the Department.

Late submissions that are not accepted will remain unopened. Disqualified submissions will be discarded. Submission of solicitation responses must be at the Vendor’s expense.

Applicant’s Questions and Answers All questions about this RGA, including but not limited to requests for clarification, additional information or any changes to the RGA must be made in writing citing the RGA page number and part or subpart, and submitted by email to the Contract Specialist identified in Paragraph 1.2.

The Department may consolidate and/or paraphrase questions for efficiency and clarity. Questions that are not understood will not be answered. Statements that are not questions will not receive a response.

Questions must be received by the deadline provided in Subsection 1.3., Procurement Timetable.

Written answers to questions received will be published on the Department’s website on or about the date indicated in Subsection 1.3., Procurement Timetable.

Validity of Application mailto:rfx@dhhs.nh.gov

Applications are valid for one hundred eighty (180) days following the deadline for submission in the Procurement Timetable above, or until the Effective Date of any resulting Grant Agreement, whichever is later.

3. Notices Exceptions

To the extent that an Applicant believes that exceptions to the standard form Grant Agreement, General Provisions and Standard Exhibits which is attached as Appendix A, will be necessary for the Applicant to enter into an Agreement, the Applicant must note those issues during the RGA question period identified in Subsection 1.3., Procurement Timetable. The Department will review requested exceptions and accept, reject or note that it is open to negotiation of the proposed exception at its sole discretion. Any exceptions to the standard form Grant Agreement and standard exhibits that are not raised by an Applicant during the RGA Question Period may not be considered. In no event is an Applicant to submit its own standard grant terms and conditions as a replacement for the Department’s terms in response to this solicitation.

RGA Amendment The Department reserves the right to amend this RGA, as it deems appropriate, prior to the Application submission deadline on its own initiative or in response to issues raised through Applicant questions. In the event of an amendment to the RGA, the Department, at its sole discretion, may extend the Application submission deadline. The amended language will be posted on the Department’s website.

Compliance Applicants must be in compliance with applicable federal and state laws, rules and regulations, and applicable policies and procedures adopted by the Department currently in effect, and as they may be adopted or amended during the grant agreement period. Applicants must comply with all Exhibits D-E.

Public Disclosure The information submitted in response to this solicitation (including all materials submitted in connection with it, such as attachments, exhibits, addenda, and presentations), any resulting Agreement, and information provided during the contractual relationship may be subject to public disclosure under Right-to-Know laws, including RSA 91-A. In addition, in accordance with RSA 9-F:1, any Agreement entered into as a result of this solicitation will be made accessible to the public online via the New Hampshire Secretary of State website (https://sos.nh.gov/).

Confidential, commercial or financial information may be exempt from public disclosure under RSA 91-A:5, IV. If a Vendor believes any information submitted in response to this solicitation should be kept confidential, the Vendor must specifically identify that information where it appears in the submission in a manner that draws attention to the designation and must mark/stamp each page of the materials that the Vendor claims must be exempt from disclosure as “CONFIDENTIAL.” Vendors must also provide a letter to the person listed as the point of contact for this solicitation, identifying the specific page number and section of the information considered to be confidential, commercial or financial and providing the rationale for each designation. Marking or designating an entire https://sos.nh.gov/ submission, attachment or section as confidential shall neither be accepted nor honored by the Department. Vendors must also provide a separate copy of the full and complete document, fully redacting those portions and shall note on the applicable page or pages that the redacted portion or portions are “confidential.”

Submissions which do not conform to these instructions by failing to include a redacted copy (if necessary), by failing to include a letter specifying the rationale for each redaction, by failing to designate the redactions in the manner required by these instructions, or by including redactions which are contrary to these instructions or operative law may be rejected by the Department as not conforming to the requirements of the solicitation.

Pricing, which includes but is not limited to, the administrative costs and other performance guarantees in responses or any subsequently awarded Agreement shall be subject to public disclosure regardless of whether it is marked as confidential.

Notwithstanding a Vendor’s designations, the Department is obligated under the Right-to-Know law to conduct an independent analysis of the confidentiality of the information submitted in response to the solicitation. If a request is made to the Department to view or receive copies of any portion of the response that is marked confidential, the Department shall first assess what information it is obligated to release. The Department will then notify the Vendor that a request has been made, indicate what, if any, information the Department has assessed is confidential and will not be released, and specify the planned release date of the remaining portions of the response. To halt the release of information by the Department, a Vendor must initiate and provide to the Department, prior to the date specified in the notice, a court action in the Superior Court of the State of New Hampshire, at its sole expense, seeking to enjoin the release of the requested information.

By submitting a response to this solicitation, Vendors acknowledge and agree that:

The Department may disclose any and all portions of the response or related materials which are not marked as confidential and/or which have not been specifically explained in the letter to the person identified as the point of contact for this solicitation;

The Department is not obligated to comply with a Vendor’s designations regarding confidentiality and must conduct an independent analysis to assess the confidentiality of the information submitted; and

The Department may, unless otherwise prohibited by court order, release the information on the date specified in the notice described above without any liability to a Vendor.

Non-Commitment Notwithstanding any other provision of this RGA, this RGA does not commit the

Department to award a grant. The Department reserves the right to reject any and all Applications or any portions thereof, at any time and to cancel this RGA and to solicit new Applications under a new Application process.

Request for Additional Information or Materials

The Department may ask any Applicant to provide additional information or materials needed to clarify information presented in the Application. Such a request will be issued in writing and will not provide an Applicant with an opportunity to change, extend, or otherwise amend its Application in intent or substance.

Liability By submitting an Application in response to this RGA, an Applicant agrees that in no event must the State be either responsible for or held liable for any costs incurred by an Applicant in the preparation or submittal of or otherwise in connection with an Application, or for work performed prior to the Effective Date of a resulting grant agreement.

Successful Applicant Notice and Grant Award Negotiations If an Applicant(s) is selected, the Department will notify the successful Applicant(s) in writing of their selection and the State’s desire to enter into grant award negotiations. Until the Department successfully completes negotiations with the selected Applicant(s), all submitted Applications remain eligible for selection by the Department. In the event negotiations are unsuccessful with the selected Applicant(s), the evaluation team may recommend another Applicant(s). The Department will notify Applicant(s) that are not initially selected to enter into negotiations.

Grantee Registration Requirements Prior to submission of any agreement for Governor and Executive Council for approval, the selected Applicant(s) must be:

Registered and in good standing with the NH Department of State, per

RSA 5:18-a (https://quickstart.sos.nh.gov/online).

Registered with the NH Department of Administrative Services and have a Vendor Code (Vendor Resource Center | Procurement and Support Services | NH Dept. of Administrative Services) in order to receive payment.

Registered and in good standing with the NH Department of Justice Charitable Trust Unit if the organization meets the definition of Charitable Organization per RSA 7:21 (https://www.doj.nh.gov/bureaus/charitable-trusts).

Scope of Award and Grant Award Notice The Department reserves the right to award a service, part of a service, group of services, or total services and to reject any and all Applications in whole or in part.

A grant award is contingent on approval by the Governor and Executive Council.

If a grant is awarded, the Applicant must obtain written consent from the Department before any public announcement or news release is issued pertaining to any grant award.

Contingency Aspects of the award may be contingent upon changes to state or federal laws and regulations.

https://quickstart.sos.nh.gov/online https://www.das.nh.gov/purchasing/vendorresources.aspx https://www.das.nh.gov/purchasing/vendorresources.aspx https://www.doj.nh.gov/bureaus/charitable-trusts https://www.doj.nh.gov/bureaus/charitable-trusts

Ethical Requirements From the time this RGA is published until a grant agreement is awarded, no

Applicant must offer or give, directly or indirectly, any gift, expense reimbursement, or honorarium, as defined by RSA 15-B, to any elected official, public official, public employee, constitutional official, or family member of any such official or employee who will or has selected, evaluated, or awarded an RFA, or similar submission.

Any Applicant that violates RSA 21-G:38 must be subject to prosecution for an offense under RSA 640:2. Any Applicant who has been convicted of an offense based on conduct in violation of this section, which has not been annulled, or who is subject to a pending criminal charge for such an offense, must be disqualified from submitting an application to this RGA, or similar request for submission and every such applicant must be disqualified from responding to any RFA or similar request for submission issued by any state agency. An Applicant that was disqualified under this section because of a pending criminal charge which is subsequently dismissed, results in an acquittal, or is annulled, may notify the Department of Administrative Services, which must note that information on the list maintained on the state’s internal intranet system, except in the case of annulment, the information, must be deleted from the list.

Records The selected Applicant(s) must maintain the following records during the resulting

Grant Agreement term where appropriate and as prescribed by the Department:

All records must be maintained in accordance with accounting procedures and practices, which sufficiently and properly reflect all such costs and expenses, and which are acceptable to the Department, and to include, without limitation, all ledgers, books, records, and original evidence of costs such as purchase requisitions and orders, vouchers, requisitions for materials, inventories, valuations of in-kind contributions, labor time cards, payrolls, and other records requested or required by the Department.

During the term of the resulting Grant Agreement(s) and the period for retention hereunder, the Department, the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and any of their designated representatives must have access to all reports and records maintained pursuant to the resulting Grant Agreement(s) for purposes of audit, examination, excerpts and transcripts. If, upon review of the Final Expenditure Report the Department must disallow any expenses claimed by the selected Applicant(s) as costs hereunder the Department must retain the right, at its discretion, to deduct the amount of such expenses as are disallowed or to recover such sums from the selected Applicant(s).

1. Appendices Appendix A - Grant Agreement, Form G-1 and Standard Exhibits (for reference) Appendix B – CLAS Requirements Appendix C – Transmittal Letter and Applicant Information Appendix D – Budget Sheet and Program Staff List Appendix E – Mandatory Responses Technical Responses to Questions