Drinking Water Standards MN Max Contaminant

The Minnesota Department of Health is requesting proposals for consulting services to assess the viability of establishing enforceable Minnesota-specific drinking water standards (Minnesota Maximum Contaminant Levels—MN MCLs), with proposals due September 4, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. CDT and a contract start date of October 1, 2026.

The solicitation encourages participation from small businesses certified under Minnesota's Small Business Procurement Program, including businesses that are majority-owned and operated by racial minorities, women, individuals with substantial physical disabilities, veterans or service-disabled veterans, or businesses located in or owned by individuals residing in economically disadvantaged counties. Eligible firms should verify certification status through the Office of Equity in Procurement at Procurement.Equity@state.mn.us or 651-201-2402. Targeted group businesses, economically disadvantaged businesses, and veteran-owned businesses certified by the state receive up to 120 preference points in scoring.

The scope encompasses documenting Minnesota's current drinking water regulatory process, analyzing approaches used by other states with enforceable state-level standards, identifying regulatory gaps, defining a process and timeline for pursuing MN MCLs, estimating program costs, developing strategic options, and compiling findings. The selected contractor must use its own employees with no subcontracting permitted and must demonstrate prior experience working with Safe Drinking Water Act regulatory requirements and providing similar services to other SDWA primacy states within the past five years. All work must be performed within United States borders.

The anticipated contract term runs from October 1, 2026, to December 30, 2027, with an option to extend up to one additional year in increments determined by the state. Evaluation allocates 300 points to work plan, 300 points to cost detail, and 100 points each to qualifications and experience, references, work samples, and diversity/equity/inclusion initiatives, totaling 1,000 points. Cost proposals must be submitted using Attachment C, broken down by activity. The contact is Frieda von Qualen at waterpolicy.mdh@state.mn.us. The state reserves the right to negotiate with the highest-scoring responder, request interviews or presentations, or reject all proposals if deemed in its best interest.