CDBG - Fair Housing

Dane County is seeking proposals through a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Request for Proposal (#2023-RFP-011PR) for fair housing education and outreach services within the Dane County Urban County Consortium, which encompasses 56 participating jurisdictions. The primary objective is to provide comprehensive fair housing services, including educating persons about housing opportunities, conducting fair housing enforcement, and reporting on the number, bases, and resolution of fair housing complaints. Eligible applicants include state and local government agencies and non-profit organizations, with a specific preference for HUD-approved agencies in the Fair Housing Initiative Program (FHIP) and Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP). The proposal will be evaluated using a points-based system across five criteria: beneficiaries (100 points), project approach (300 points), experience and qualifications (200 points), program budget (200 points), and past performance (100 points). The RFP was released on December 13, 2022, with questions due by January 17, 2023, and final proposals required to be submitted electronically through the county's eProcurement Portal by January 25, 2023, at 2:00 pm.

The procurement appears focused on expanding fair housing opportunities, with particular emphasis on serving non-English speaking populations and increasing awareness of the Dane County Fair Housing Ordinance. While no specific set-aside designations were explicitly mentioned, the RFP indicates a strong preference for organizations with demonstrated experience in fair housing services. Eligible costs for the project can include personnel expenses, operating costs, space-related expenses, and other activity-specific expenditures. The application requires detailed documentation, including personnel schedules, organizational governance information, staff and board demographic descriptors, and comprehensive budget projections for 2023 and 2024. Though a specific award value was not explicitly stated, funding will be sourced through CDBG funds, and applicants must specify their total project budgets, CDBG-funded activity costs, and additional funding sources. The project aims to support housing opportunities for all persons while maintaining a non-discriminatory environment across the Dane County Urban County Consortium.