2019 Iowa Balance of State CoC Application Coordinator 

Request for Information RFI-HC1-2019
Iowa Finance Authority (IFA)    
Information must be received no later than 
 
May 17, 2019 
4:30 p.m. Central Time  

For information about this notice, interested persons shall contact only: 
 
Amber Lewis, Homelessness Programs Manager 
Iowa Finance Authority  
1963 Bell Avenue, Suite 200
Des Moines, IA 50315
Phone: 515-725-2209
E-mail: amber.lewis@iowafinance.com (NOTE NEW EMAIL ADDRESS)

Table of Contents
1 Purpose
2 Background Information
3 Information Sought
4 Request for Information and Procedure
5 Timeline
6 Submission of Response
7 Presentations
8 Questions and Requests for Clarification
9 Review of RFI Responses
10 Evaluation of RFI
11 Public Records and Requests for Confidentiality
12 Copyrights
13 Restrictions on Gifts and Activities
14 Content of the Request for Information (RFI)
15 Costs to Vendors
16 RFI Responses
17 Sources of Information Used in Addition to Responses
18 No Obligation to Issue Request for Proposal (RFP)
19 Vendor Responses Identifying Information
20 Vendor References

1 Purpose 
The objective of this Request for Information (RFI) is to solicit responses from a professionally-qualified consultant to work with the Iowa Balance of State Continuum of Care (CoC) and the Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) to manage the 2019 CoC Application process, in order for applicable agencies to apply for and access funds within the CoC Program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The consultant would be responsible for the application process, including coordinating input from all participating stakeholders and preparing materials for submission.   
 
2 Background Information  
The HUD Continuum of Care (CoC) Program (24 CFR part 578) is designed to:
•	Promote a community-wide commitment to the goal of ending homelessness; 
•	Provide funding for efforts by nonprofit providers, States, and local governments to quickly re-house homeless individuals, families, persons fleeing domestic violence; 
•	Promote access to and effective utilization of mainstream programs; and 
•	Optimize self-sufficiency among those experiencing homelessness. 

Over time, CoC responsibilities have evolved from traditional grants management to a more holistic view of addressing and ending homelessness. Congress embodied this outlook in the HEARTH Act, which was passed in 2009. The purposes of the HEARTH Act are to consolidate homeless assistance programs, codify the Continuum of Care planning process, and establish a goal of ensuring that families who become homeless return to permanent housing within 30 days. Additionally, its intent is to transform homeless services into a coordinated system of service delivery. 

The HEARTH Act emphasizes that communities should develop more formal and inclusive governance processes and create their CoC Boards for executive decision-making. It also focuses on communities moving towards the use of data to make allocations based on proven performance, and to set and work toward strategic allocation of resources. 

In Iowa, the Balance of State CoC covers 96 counties and multiple cities within those counties. The Iowa Council on Homelessness (Council) currently serves as the decision-making board for the CoC. The CoC Committee of the Council coordinates the internal CoC project competition process and makes recommendations to the Council for project selection and ranking to submit to HUD. IFA currently serves as the Collaborative Applicant for the CoC, responsible for assisting with the internal project competition, coordinating the development of the Consolidated Application, Priority Listing, and all component parts, and submitting the entire final CoC Application to HUD. 

3 Information Sought 
IFA is seeking information from vendors who are interested in assisting in the development of the Iowa Balance of State 2019 CoC Application to HUD. This includes, but is not limited to, the following key tasks:

•	Coordinating development of the Consolidated Application, the Priority Listing, and all associated component parts, with input from stakeholders throughout the process, and following the appropriate process for official Council approval as needed throughout. 
•	Communicating with stakeholders throughout the application process, including by email, phone, and in-person meetings as needed, and in accordance with both Iowa Open Meetings laws and HUD requirements for stakeholder participation. 
•	Developing a timeline and monitoring progress toward completion of all required CoC Application tasks, with input from stakeholders, and communicating the timeline and progress as needed. 
•	Recommending strategies for application success to the Council, the CoC Committee, IFA, and other stakeholders, based on research and familiarity with application materials and guidance from HUD and other federal partners such as the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness and the National Alliance to End Homelessness. 
•	Entering application components into HUD’s online CoC application system, E-snaps, including carefully editing materials to ensure formatting consistency, clarity, and accuracy throughout.  
•	Assisting the Council and CoC Committee with the internal project competition process, including application development, preparation of materials, scoring, selection, and ranking. 
•	Assisting IFA and the Council in providing support to meetings of the CoC Committee and associated workgroups necessary to the CoC Application process, including preparation of meeting agendas, materials, and minutes. 
•	Providing technical assistance to individual project applicants in completing all parts of the application process, including assistance using E-snaps. 
•	Reviewing all individual project applications submitted in E-snaps for technical accuracy and completeness; communicating with applicants to resolve any discrepancies. 
•	Other tasks identified by the Council, CoC Committee, and/or IFA during the application process. 

A task of any selected vendor will NOT include actually submitting the final 2019 CoC Application (the Consolidated Application and the Priority Listing) in E-snaps to HUD. However, by nature of completing many tasks in the E-snaps system, a selected vendor will have access to sensitive information. Vendors are asked to include in their responses a description of how this responsibility will be effectively managed. 

Vendors are asked to submit a recommendation that will provide IFA with a cost-effective and results-oriented approach that will best allow us to meet our goal of submitting a 2019 CoC Application to HUD that is successful in retaining and expanding the funding available to service agencies in the Iowa Balance of State CoC. Responses should not exceed ten (10) pages. 

Information proposals should specifically include vendor capabilities, details of a preliminary work plan, implementation strategies, and associated costs. 

This RFI will provide background information for vendor selection. The intended purpose of this RFI is to allow all interested vendors to present a conceptual framework for completion of key tasks. 

4 Request for Information and Procedure  
This request requires any vendor wishing to submit information to respond to this Request for Information (RFI) by 4:30 p.m. on May 17, 2019.

5 Timeline
•	Issue RFI: on or about April 24, 2019
•	Questions due: May 3, 2019, 4:30 p.m. CST 
•	Responses to questions posted: May 8, 2019
•	RFI due: May 17, 2019, 4:30 p.m. CST 
•	In-person presentations, if deemed necessary: Week of May 27, 2019 
•	Announcement of successful vendor: On or about May 31, 2019  

6 Submission of Response  
Vendors are required to email written responses by 4:30 p.m. May 17, 2019.  

7 Presentations  
IFA may hold in-person meetings the week of May 27, 2019, as deemed necessary. 

8 Questions and Requests for Clarification 
Vendors interested in responding to this RFI may submit questions or requests for clarification. All questions or requests must be submitted by email to: amber.lewis@iowafinance.com and be received no later than 4:30 p.m. May 3, 2019.

Vendors may contact only the Issuing Officer with questions related to the interpretation of RFI and the procurement process. If a vendor or someone acting on a vendor’s behalf attempts to discuss this RFI with any IFA employee, other than Amber Lewis, the vendor may be disqualified.

IFA may contact vendors for clarification of RFI content as needed throughout the RFI process. 

For information about this notice, interested persons shall contact:  

Amber Lewis, Homelessness Programs Manager 
Iowa Finance Authority  
1963 Bell Avenue, Suite 200
Des Moines, IA 50315
Phone: 515-725-2209
E-mail: amber.lewis@iowafinance.com

9 Review of RFI Responses   
9.1 IFA reserves the right to reject any and all responses, in whole and in part, received in response to this RFI at any time. Issuance of the RFI in no way constitutes a commitment to award any contract. This RFI is designed to provide vendors with the information necessary for the preparation of informative responses and possible presentations of recommended work plans. 

This RFI process is for IFA’s benefit and is intended to provide information to assist in the development of future requests for goods and services. The RFI is not intended to be comprehensive and each vendor is responsible for determining all factors necessary for submission of a comprehensive response and a complete capability presentation. The RFI response and demonstration will be a review of a suggested work plan, strategies, and estimated costs. 

9.2 An RFI response may be rejected outright and not reviewed for any one (1) of the following reasons, therefore vendors are asked to make every effort to meet the RFI timelines and to include the requested information: 

•	Failure of vendor to deliver the response by the due date and time. 
•	Failure to include information requested in the RFI. 

10 Evaluation of RFI 
In evaluating the responses, IFA must be able to identify:  
•	Proposed work plan, suggested strategies, and timeline;
•	Anticipated total cost and suggested cost allocation for each proposed strategy;
•	Overview of vendor capabilities and assigned team members’ experience, including case studies for comparable projects.

11 Public Records and Requests for Confidentiality 

11.1 The release of information by IFA to the public is subject to Iowa Code Chapter 22 and other applicable provisions of law relating to the release of records in the possession of a State agency. Vendors are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these provisions prior to submitting a bid proposal. All information submitted by a vendor may be treated as public information by IFA unless the vendor properly requests that information be treated as confidential at the time of submitting the proposal. 

11.2 Any requests for confidential treatment of information must be included in a cover letter with the Vendor’s bid proposal and must enumerate the specific grounds in Iowa Code Chapter 22 or other legal reasons which support treatment of the material as confidential and must indicate why disclosure is not in the best interests of the public. The request must also include the name, address and telephone number of the person authorized by the Vendor to respond to any inquiries by IFA concerning the confidential status of the materials. 

11.3 Any documents submitted which contain confidential information must be marked on the outside as containing confidential information, and each page upon which confidential information appears must be marked as containing confidential information. The confidential information must be clearly identifiable to the reader wherever it appears. All copies of the proposal submitted, as well as the original proposal, must be marked in this manner. 

11.4 Confidential Information - In addition to marking the material as confidential material where it appears, the Vendor must submit one copy of the bid proposal from which the confidential information has been excised. The confidential material must be excised in such a way as to allow the public to determine the general nature of the material removed and to retain as much of the document as possible. These pages must be submitted with the cover letter and will be made available for public inspection. 
 
11.5 Vendor’s failure to request in the bid proposal confidential treatment of material pursuant to this Section and the relevant laws and administrative rules will be deemed by IFA as a waiver of any right to confidentiality which the vendor may have had. 
 
12 Copyrights  
By submitting a response, the vendor agrees that IFA may copy the response for purposes of facilitating the evaluation or to respond to requests for public records. The Vendor represents that such copying will not violate any copyrights in the materials submitted. 

13 Restrictions on Gifts and Activities  
Iowa Code chapter 68B contains laws which restrict gifts which may be given or received by state employees and requires certain individuals to disclose information concerning their activities with state government. Vendors are responsible for determining the applicability of this chapter to their activities and for complying with these requirements. In addition, Iowa Code section 722.1 provides that it is a felony offense to bribe a public official.  
14 Content of the Request for Information (RFI) 
This RFI is designed to provide vendors with the information necessary for the preparation of an appropriate response. It is not intended to be comprehensive, and each vendor is responsible for determining all factors necessary for submission of a comprehensive response. 
 
•	IFA reserves the right to modify this RFI at any time. 
•	Responses should be based on the material contained in this RFI or any other relevant information the vendor thinks is appropriate. 
•	By submitting a response, each vendor agrees that it will not bring any claim or have any cause of action against IFA, or any employee of IFA based on any misunderstanding concerning the information provided or concerning failure, negligent or otherwise to provide the vendor with pertinent information as intended by this RFI. 
 
15 Costs to Vendors  
IFA is not responsible for any costs incurred by a vendor, which are related to the preparation or delivery of the response, any on-site inspection that may be required, or any other activities related to this RFI. 
 
16 RFI Responses  
All printed information used to demonstrate a vendor’s product becomes the property of the State of Iowa. The State will have the right to use ideas or adaptations of ideas that are presented in the responses. 
 
17 Sources of Information Used in Addition to Responses 
IFA reserves the right to contact vendors after the submission of responses for the purpose of clarification and to ensure mutual understanding. 

18 No Obligation to Issue Request for Proposal (RFP) 
The issuance of this RFI does not obligate IFA in any way to issue an RFP for the goods and services described in this RFI. 
 
19 Vendor Responses Identifying Information  
•	State the name and principal place of business of the vendor. 
•	Identify the vendor's type of business entity such as a corporation or partnership. 
•	State the vendor's place of incorporation, if applicable. At the respondent’s discretion, provide an organization chart for the vendor. Include any parent, subsidiary and affiliate companies you feel may be relevant to this information request. 
•	State the name, address, email address and telephone number of the vendor representative to contact regarding all matters concerning this RFI. 

20 Vendor References    
Please provide references for organizations in which you have implemented your services. Please include any applicable customer contact information.