IRA HOMES AND HEAR REBATE PROGRAM

The State of South Carolina, specifically the Office of Regulatory Staff and State Fiscal Accountability Authority, is soliciting proposals for a contractor to develop and design the IRA HOMES (Home Energy Rebate Program) and HEAR (Home Electrification and Appliance Rebate Program) rebate initiatives. The procurement seeks a single contractor to provide comprehensive program planning, blueprint development, and implementation strategies for these federally funded rebate programs. Required deliverables include a detailed Community Benefits Plan, Education and Outreach Strategy, Consumer Protection Plan, Utility Data Access Plan, Privacy and Security Risk Assessment, and Market Transformation Plan. Contractors must demonstrate expertise in energy efficiency program design, income verification, rebate processing, and federal reporting requirements. The evaluation criteria will weight technical solutions at 50 points, qualifications and experience at 20 points, price at 20 points, and timeline/milestones at 10 points. Key dates include a mandatory virtual pre-proposal conference on September 19, 2024, at 1:30 PM ET, with questions due by 4:00 PM ET that same day. Proposal submissions are due online by October 8, 2024, with a contract award anticipated on November 8, 2024, and services to commence within 30 days of award.

The solicitation does not specify explicit set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises. The contract has an initial term through December 31, 2025, with potential six-month automatic renewals not to exceed five years total. South Carolina anticipates receiving over $137 million in federal Inflation Reduction Act funding split between the HOMES and HEAR programs, with early administrative funds not to exceed 5% of the overall allocation. The state will require two online submissions - one original and one redacted copy - and expects contractors to develop their own milestones, timelines, and invoicing schedules. While the current contractor is not precluded from competing in future implementation phase solicitations, they must avoid creating proprietary program designs and potential organizational conflicts of interest. Contractors may use proprietary methods to develop applications and blueprints, but the resulting plans must remain non-proprietary. The full-funding applications to the U.S. Department of Energy are due by January 31, 2025, with specific federal award numbers provided for each program (HOMES DE-SE000063 and HEAR DE-SE0000119).