Candy & Food for the CANTEEN at Rusk State Hospital

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission is requesting bids for candy and food products for the canteen at Rusk State Hospital under Invitation for Bid HHS0017562, with proposals due July 13, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. Central Time. HUB (Historically Underutilized Business) subcontracting plan requirements apply; bidders must demonstrate good faith efforts to include HUB-certified vendors in their supply chain and meet specified participation goals.

Bidders must submit pricing on a designated Exhibit C spreadsheet for all canteen food and candy items on a unit-price basis. Pricing must be firm and fixed for the contract life and include all labor, equipment, materials, supplies, and related expenses. The historical monetary value for September 1, 2025, through August 31, 2026, was $50,000, provided as a guideline only and not a volume guarantee. Price adjustments are permitted only at the sole discretion of the Texas HHS Commission and may be indexed to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers or All Urban Consumers or correlated with federal minimum wage increases. Contractors must immediately implement any available price decreases.

The initial contract term runs September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2027, with one optional one-year extension at the sole discretion of HHS, subject to funding availability. Both HHS and the Department of State Health Services are authorized to use any awarded contract. Evaluation will be based on bidders meeting or exceeding specifications, ability to meet delivery performance requirements, and price, with award going to the bidder offering best value rather than necessarily lowest price.

Questions were due June 25, 2026; responses posted as an addendum on July 8. No vendor conference or HUB subcontracting plan courtesy review was scheduled. Bidders may claim Texas-based business, service-disabled veteran-owned, agricultural products, recycled materials, or energy-efficient product preferences under Texas Administrative Code where applicable. All contracts are subject to appropriations and termination for convenience.