RFP for Family Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Program

Agency:	Washington County
State:	Minnesota
Type of Government:	State & Local
NAICS Category:	541611 - Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services 624190 - Other Individual and Family Services
Posted Date:	Jan 12, 2024
Due Date:	Jan 30, 2024
Bid Source:	Please Login to View Page
Contact information:	Please Login to View Page
Bid Documents:	Please Login to View Page

Attachment Preview

Request for Proposals (RFP) for

Family Homelessness Prevention &

Assistance Program (FHPAP)

RFP release date: January 12, 2024

Submission due date: 4:00pm CST Tuesday, January 30,

2024

A great place to live, work and play…today and tomorrow

Government Center | 14949 62nd Street North | P. O. Box 6 | Stillwater, MN 55082-0006

P: 651-430-6001 | F: 651-430-6017 | TTY: 651-430-6246

www.co.washington.mn.us

Washington County is an equal opportunity organization and employer

Family Homelessness Prevention & Assistance Program (FHPAP) RFP

Contents

1.Introduction............................................................................................................................................................ 3

1.1. Timeline .......................................................................................................................................................... 3

1.2. Background..................................................................................................................................................... 3

1.3. Primary Population(s) Served ......................................................................................................................... 4

1.4. Eligible Sub-grantees....................................................................................................................................... 4

2. Scope of Services ................................................................................................................................................... 5

3. Proposal Submission .............................................................................................................................................. 6

4. Proposal Content ................................................................................................................................................... 6

5. Proposal Evaluation ............................................................................................................................................... 7

6. Conditions of the RFP/Reserved Rights ................................................................................................................. 7

Appendix A – Budget Table........................................................................................................................................ 9

Appendix B – County’s Standard Terms and Conditions ......................................................................................... 10

Family Homelessness Prevention & Assistance Program (FHPAP) RFP

1. Introduction

On February 22, 2024, Washington County will be submitting an application to MN Housing for Family Homeless

Prevention and Assistance Program (FHPAP) funds. Washington County wishes to sub-grant to multiple

experienced agencies that can serve the Washington County area based on the needs and priorities established

by the Heading Home Washington (HHW) collaborative. The grant will continue the work of the Washington

County FHPAP program that’s been established over the past 15+ years while advancing the immediate needs of

the community. It has been determined that the primary needs of our community at this time are to supplement

funding in the area of Prevention.

The grant term is estimated to be June 1, 2024 through September 30, 2025; however, under the discretion of

MN Housing, the grant term may be extended or amended. Washington County will request an estimated

$850,000-$1,200,000 from MN Housing. It is not known how much funding will be approved and awarded to

Washington County by MN Housing.

The RFP instructions are intended to assist organizations interested in responding to the RFP. The entire

application should be reviewed to ensure that all the requirements are understood.

This RFP does not commit Washington County to award a contract or to reimburse any costs incurred by

successful or unsuccessful sub-grantees in the preparation of their proposal. Washington County reserves the

right to reject any or all proposals, to accept or reject any or all items in the proposal, or to award multiple

contracts. Washington County reserves the right to negotiate with any sub-grantee after proposals are

reviewed, if such action is deemed to be in the best interest of Washington County.

Prospective sub-grantees may contact Community Services Policy Analyst, Jenny Mason with questions by

emailing Jenny.Mason@co.washington.mn.us. Washington County will receive questions about the RFP until

4:00PM CST on January 22, 2024 and will publish any questions and responses after that time.

1.1. Timeline

RFP Released

Final Day for Q&A

Proposals Due

Selection decision communicated

Washington County Grant Application Submitted to MN Housing

Begin Providing Services

Friday, January 12, 2024

Monday, January 22, 2024

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

Friday, February 2, 2024

Thursday, February 22, 2024

June 1, 2024

1.2. Background

Washington County is a county in the eastern portion of the State of Minnesota; with a population of

267,568 which makes Washington County the fifth-most populous in the state of Minnesota. It spans 423

square miles and is bordered by the St. Croix River, Dakota, Ramsey, Anoka, and Chisago Counties. While

considered a member of the 7-county metro region, Washington County has a unique combination of

suburban and rural settings.

The Community Services Department (CSD) is the entity responsible for delivering human services to

Washington County residents. The CSD Mission is to “provide equitable access to services and supports to

ensure that individual and family needs are met, empower people to make meaningful decisions and live the

life they want, protect those who may not be able to protect themselves.”

The Heading Home Washington Collaborative serves as the FHPAP Advisory Board, which holds as its vision,

“A thriving Washington County community with stable and affordable housing for all.” The collaborative

serves to reduce barriers, raise awareness, build partnerships and create solutions to prevent and end

homelessness. The Family Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Program fits squarely into that vision.

Page 3 of 13

Family Homelessness Prevention & Assistance Program (FHPAP) RFP

1.3 Primary Population(s) Served

Eligible households of FHPAP assistance must meet the following criteria:

• Eligible household income must be at or below 200 % of federal poverty guidelines;

• Eligible households must be Minnesota residents, or a household otherwise approved in writing by

Minnesota Housing, approval of which is at Minnesota Housing’s sole discretion;

• Eligible households must be homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness and in need of services

and/or financial assistance due to a housing crisis.

1.4 Eligible Sub-grantees

Eligible sub-grantees include not-for-profit organizations or agencies engaged in a public service.

Sub-grantees must also:

• Have experience working with those experiencing housing instability

• Be willing to enter into a contract with Washington County and carry adequate liability insurance

(exact requirements will be provided upon request)

• Submit regular reports (outcome and expenditure reports) to Washington County

• Be willing to work collaboratively with other Washington County sub-grantees, Heading Home

Washington, SMAC Coordinated Entry, and Washington County Community Services

• Participate in evaluation and monitoring of the program as required by MN Housing and/or

Washington County and assist with the development of lessons learned and program improvement.

Sub-grantee agencies that are presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, declared ineligible,

or voluntarily excluded from participation in this transaction by any Federal or State department or agency

are not eligible to respond to this RFP.

Eligible sub-grantees must have the ability to meet the Minnesota Housing and Finance Agency grant

requirements, including those related to the utilization of the Minnesota Homeless Management

Information System (HMIS):

(a) The Grantee agrees that it will cooperate in good faith with Institute for Community Alliances (ICA)

(the “Administrator”), and any successors and/or assigns of the Administrator’s rights and

responsibilities regarding the Minnesota Homeless Management Information System computerized

database (“HMIS”) to (i) participate in and receive any training which the Administrator may require

from time to time in order for the Grantee to be a licensed user of HMIS, and (ii) satisfy other

reasonable requirements which may be imposed by the Administrator and MHFA in connection with

HMIS.

(b) The Grantee agrees that it will (i) request certain information from the individuals it serves through

the Program, pursuant to Grantee’s agreement with the Administrator, (ii) input such information into

HMIS in a timely manner, and (iii) run reports and test data for accuracy, as directed by the

Administrator and MHFA.

connection with the Program to permit MHFA to access information and receive periodic reports from

the Administrator (additional information is available at http://www.hmismn.org), and the Grantee

hereby expressly permits MHFA to access any and all such information.

The County embraces and supports person-centered practices and expects sub-grantees to demonstrate

they do the same. Person-centered practices are structured in a way to support a service recipient’s comfort

and ability to express choice, control, and direction in all aspects of service delivery and support. While the

nature of some services and service deliveries is such that it must account for factors beyond the service

recipient’s choice, control and direction, including, but not limited to court orders, the safety of the person

Page 4 of 13

Family Homelessness Prevention & Assistance Program (FHPAP) RFP

and others, and governing law, the County values consideration of the service recipient’s perspective,

knowing that services are more efficient and effective when aligned with personal choice.

The County further recognizes that pervasive racism, discrimination, and other institutional and community

biases, as well as harm from historical trauma, are experienced by cultural communities and that this may

contribute to overrepresentation of cultural communities in some County services. Appropriate service

delivery often requires open discussion considering the real-life experiences of the people served, paying

attention to the impact of pervasive racism and bias. At the referral level, it means inquiring with service

recipients about how to integrate their family or individual culture into service delivery. At the service level,

it includes attention to outcomes for people receiving services to assess whether effectiveness differs in

cultural communities and responding to any differences.

It is expected that while performing services for the County, sub-grantees shall abstain from unacceptable

behaviors including, but not limited to:

• Racial, ethnic, or discriminatory jokes or slurs;

• Hostile, condemning, or demeaning communications, both verbal and written;

• Behavior demonstrating disrespect, dishonesty, intimidation, or disruption to the work relationship;

and

• Retaliation against any person who reports or addresses unacceptable behavior.

It is the responsibility of the sub-grantee to demonstrate that staff delivering services for the County are

able to meet these expectations and are trained, as needed, to ensure respectful, cooperative, and

professional conduct in interactions with County staff and service recipients.

Sub-grantee agencies must have a strong commitment to providing culturally responsive, high-quality

services to eligible individuals within Washington County’s communities. Agencies that provide staff

reflective of the racial and cultural communities in Washington County are preferred.

Sub-grantees selected through this solicitation must adhere to all applicable federal and state rules, laws,

statutes, bulletins, and manuals including the standards outlined in the following links:

• 462A.204 FAMILY HOMELESS PREVENTION AND ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

2. Scope of Services

Heading Home Washington, the FHPAP Advisory Board, has elected to dedicate 100% of this grant proposal to

Prevention. Prevention is intended to reduce the number of people who become homeless and includes a set

of strategies to assist people in maintaining permanent housing or divert them from entering the homeless

system. Service strategies are focused on addressing the immediate housing crisis and can be integrated with

other mainstream resources to address more long-term needs.

FHPAP is designed to prevent homelessness by assisting people at imminent risk of homelessness (or doubled

up), and assistance is targeted toward those who will most likely experience homelessness within 30 days if they

do not receive assistance. Permanent housing includes a number of living situations such as home ownership,

household renting with their own lease, renting in a roommate situation, living in a host home or other

permanent tenure. Grantees should choose activities that target FHPAP resources to best meet community

needs and assist those households most likely to experience homelessness if assistance were not provided.

Prevention is temporary financial assistance and/or supportive services to assist people in maintaining existing

permanent housing, relocation to more appropriate permanent housing, and/or diverting them from entering

the homeless system. Households must meet FHPAP eligibility criteria.

Page 5 of 13

RFP for Family Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Program

Attachment Preview

Sign-up for a Free Trial, Government Bid Alerts

See Also

Bid Title:	RFP for Family Homelessness Prevention and Assistance Program
Category:	Washington County Community Services
Status:	Open