Ballot measure planning advisory services

Sacramento County, California's Office of Budget and Debt Management is requesting proposals for ballot measure planning advisory services, with responses due August 6, 2026 and a question deadline of July 30, 2026. The engagement supports exploration of voter-approved County revenue mechanisms—tax measures, bond measures, or other legally available ballot revenue measures—scheduled no earlier than 2028, following Board direction in January 2026 to conduct further research after receiving an exploratory report from HdL Companies.

Proposers must demonstrate at least five years of experience performing similar services for California local governments, maintain a California office with at least two non-clerical staff assigned to the contract, and provide evidence that at least one staff member has significant board and community-presentation experience. General Liability ($2 million General Aggregate), Professional Liability ($2 million per claim and aggregate), and Workers' Compensation coverage are required.

The scope encompasses project management; community engagement strategy development; ADA-compliant dedicated webpage creation; informational and educational materials in English and seven threshold languages (Cantonese, Hmong, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese, Farsi, and Arabic); targeted business and community outreach; design and conduct of at least two statistically relevant voter surveys with demographic data; Board presentation-ready reporting; assistance evaluating ballot measure options and preparing legally compliant resolutions and ordinance language; design and conduct of up to ten hybrid public outreach meetings and community workshops; in-person Board presentations at critical stages (minimum two, maximum five); and post-ballot website and social media deactivation.

Pricing must be submitted as a separate "Fee Proposal" PDF using a not-to-exceed structure with detailed hourly-rate breakdowns, exclusions and inclusions, and invoicing frequency specified. Proposals are limited to ten pages excluding resumes and fee proposal, with minimum 11-point font. The County reserves the right to conduct interviews with shortlisted proposers and may modify, cancel, or withdraw the RFP in its sole discretion. All proposal information becomes public record following completion of negotiations with the selected contractor.