Take Care of Texas (TCOT) Marketing Services

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for comprehensive marketing services to promote the Take Care of Texas (TCOT) program, a statutory public awareness initiative established under Texas Health and Safety Code Section 361.0202. The procurement seeks a qualified contractor to develop and implement integrated marketing campaigns designed to increase public awareness among Texans regarding personal conservation steps for water and energy, water and air quality protection, and waste reduction. The contractor must prepare annual marketing plans and execute a minimum of four separate marketing campaigns per work order, including strategy development, creative production, media buying and placement, video production where applicable, and comprehensive reporting. Key target audiences include K-12 educators and students, homeowners and parents, and female Texans aged 35-50. Program priorities include increasing pledges by 10 percent, increasing Facebook and Instagram followers by 15 percent, increasing website traffic by 15 percent, and increasing student contest awareness and participation by 10 percent. The contract will operate under an umbrella structure with individual work orders issued for specific marketing initiatives, with a base term beginning September 1, 2026, and expiring August 31, 2027, with options for four one-year renewals. All pricing must be submitted on a firm, fixed, fully-loaded basis through a Price Form requiring hourly rates for various labor categories including account managers, creative directors, media buyers, project directors, graphic designers, copywriters, and web designers. Vendor questions are due by March 18, 2026, at 2:00 PM Central Time with anticipated TCEQ replies on March 24, 2026, and proposals must be submitted electronically via TCEQ's FTPS server as a single searchable PDF document no later than April 7, 2026, at 2:00 PM Central Time. Evaluation will allocate 100 total points across company qualifications (5 points), personnel qualifications (20 points), past performance and client references (10 points), technical approach and sample work plan (45 points), and price (20 points).

HUB (Historically Underutilized Business) and VetHUB subcontracting requirements apply to this solicitation, with subcontracting opportunities identified and a mandatory HUB Subcontracting Plan required for all responses. The incumbent contractor is Bridge Insights and Media, which has managed annual marketing plan development and implementation including creative, media buying, video production, and reporting. All responses must include required certifications, including non-discrimination, conflict of interest disclosures, and compliance with Texas Government Code provisions. The contract is funded with state agency funds and is subject to state agency restrictions including prohibition of TikTok and other prohibited technologies, as well as content and promotion approval requirements and compliance with state advertising limitations. The current annual budget allocation for TCOT marketing activities is $300,000, representing a fully loaded, fixed-price amount covering all costs including plan development, campaign execution, production, and advertising spend with no separate reimbursables permitted outside the work order budget; TCEQ does not guarantee a minimum expenditure or minimum number of work orders. No pre-proposal conference is scheduled for this procurement.