Federal Contract Lobbyist Services

The City of Gainesville is requesting proposals for federal legislative lobbying and advocacy services under RFP #CMGR-260055-WB, with proposals due August 6, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

The scope encompasses professional legislative consulting and lobbying services to support the City's General Government, including identification of federal grant opportunities, monitoring of federal policies and legislation, coordination of the City's federal legislative program, attendance at Congressional sessions and committee hearings, and strategic advocacy support during scheduled, extended, and special federal legislative sessions and at other times deemed necessary by the city.

Respondents must meet minimum qualifications: at least ten years of professional legislative consulting and lobbying services experience, with a minimum of five years serving local government entities; current registration as a legislative and executive lobbyist with the State of Florida; no pending litigation with the City; full payment of any debts owed to the City; and possession of all required licenses.

Compensation is a lump-sum annual rate paid in twelve equal monthly installments based on contractor invoices. Reimbursable expenses include in-town Washington, D.C. transportation for legislative and lobbying meetings at a maximum of $500 per day, capped at $2,000 annually; coach air travel; GSA per diem rates for other travel; and long-distance phone calls, printing, and administrative costs at actual cost with no markup.

The City reserves the right to award on the basis of individual line items, any combination thereof, or all items combined, and may add or delete services in its best interest. Evaluation will consider technical qualifications, written proposal quality, presentation and interview performance, firm experience, workload capacity, past performance, and location. Questions are due July 30, 2026. Potential oral presentations are anticipated the week of August 17, 2026. The contract term is not specified; extensions are available upon mutual agreement. The award date and contract start date are to be determined.