Solid Ground Washington

The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) Economic Services Administration is procuring a community assembly planning grant contract with Solid Ground Washington (doing business as Statewide Poverty Network) to plan and implement up to two Community Assemblies in rural Washington counties. The contract, numbered 2532-61760, focuses on conducting community listening sessions, developing community assembly guides, and preparing a comprehensive final report detailing research, community organization interactions, draft assembly guidelines, and lessons learned. Key deliverables include sharing community listening session timelines by June 30, 2025, submitting three community assembly guides by the same date, and delivering a final report by July 14, 2025. The project is part of an Economic Justice Alliance effort to implement a 10-Year Plan to Dismantle Poverty, with specific objectives of leveraging public-private partnerships, informing policy and program decisions, and facilitating collaborative governance models. Vendors must demonstrate capabilities in leading nonprofits using the Just Futures Community Assembly model, compensating lived experts, and facilitating collaborative problem-solving. The contract posting was made on May 23, 2025, with a proposal due date of June 9, 2025, and a contract period from June 16, 2025, to August 31, 2025.

This sole source contract is specifically targeted at Solid Ground Washington due to their unique qualifications in facilitating community assembly processes and compensating low-income lived experts. The contract does not appear to have specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises, but it emphasizes working with marginalized communities and centering voices furthest from state decision-making tables. The project will focus on rural Washington jurisdictions, including but not limited to Franklin, Grant, Grays Harbor, Chelan, and Yakima Counties. The contract value is $56,861, funded entirely by state resources, with no federal funding involved. The Office of Equity will oversee the Community Compensation Distribution aspect, which will compensate low-income lived experts who have actively participated in the Economic Justice Alliance. Only three organizations have implemented this community assembly model, with Statewide Poverty Action Network being the only one currently capable of leading the project. The contract aims to build civic engagement and create nonpartisan solutions around poverty and environmental justice by bringing together policy experts, legislators, nonprofits, and low-income individuals to co-create solutions.