Disadvantaged Communities Consultant Pool

Description of goods to services to be bid:

Summary of Revisions

The solicitation name was revised to DAC Consultant Pool.

The solicitation has been revised from a proposal due date to an open enrollment application.

The final date for application submission has been changed to December 31, 2030.

The program has transitioned into a “universal” Pool of DAC consultants and eliminated the request to apply under specific Service Areas.

Expanded the eligibility criteria to be more inclusive to State and federally recognized Indigenous Nations.

Expanded the eligibility criteria to include Indigenous Nations and Indigenous-led Organizations.

Removed the requirement of submitting past 3 years of tax forms.

Removed Exhibit E Rate Schedule.

Removed Honorarium compensation language.

Revised Organization Governance evaluation criteria.

Established Meeting Reimbursement and Non-Meeting Reimbursement Rates.

The application will include “Technical Areas, Cross Sector Areas and, Applied Skills” for Applicants to self-select their specific experience.

The Evaluation Process has been simplified and the estimated time to contract award has been shortened.

Substantive language changes to simplify the application process 

Through this Request for Qualifications (RFQL), NYSERDA intends to expand the existing pool of community-based organizations (CBO) and other entities, including Indigenous Nations and Indigenous-led Organizations, that represent New York State’s disadvantaged communities, herein referred to "DAC Consultants." DAC Consultants participating in this pool will execute contracts with NYSERDA to provide support across multiple programmatic areas, supporting teams with distinct, high-impact projects on an as needed basis. This support could include advisement on barriers and needs in communities, reasoned recommendations for potential program or policy changes, feedback on program design or participation in co-design workshops, meeting/workshop facilitation, or assistance with community outreach, among other services.

DAC Consultants are compensated at pre-established rates for their time and experience delivering requested services to NYSERDA. This helps ensure New York State's historically marginalized communities remain centered in the development of NYSERDA initiative planning, resulting in more equitable program design, energy policies, and demonstrable impact informed by disadvantaged community experience and priorities.

Paying for community time and contributions to NYSERDA's policies, programs, and planning is one of several initiatives designed to support NYSERDA's Climate Equity Strategy, which advances best practices for equitable community engagement intended to support deeper, more coordinated consultation and collaboration with historically marginalized communities and Indigenous Peoples. Consulting with and compensating DAC Consultants in this pool helps deliver on the clean energy and climate goals outlined in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act), with the goal of 40% of clean energy benefits directed to disadvantaged communities.

Access to the pool of DAC Consultants selected under this RFQL will improve NYSERDA's understanding of the barriers various DACs across the state face and will enable solutions informed by and developed in consultation with representatives of New York State’s historically marginalized and frontline communities. DAC Consultants would be expected to work on distinct projects with clear timelines, some of which may be requests for services on short notice and some of which may be longer-term incremental engagements.  

If changes are made to this solicitation notification will be posted on NYSERDA’s website at: www.nyserda.ny.gov/funding-opportunities

Eligibility/Qualifications Requirements/Preferences: 

Applicants must meet the eligibility criteria and possess the following qualifications: • Be a New York State community-based organization (CBO), as defined in RFQL 4922. • Be a State or federally recognized Indigenous Nation as defined in RFQL 4922 and in the NYS DAC criteria. • Be an Indigenous-led Organization as defined in RFQL 4922. • Have experience, including lived experiences of community members of disadvantaged communities, in areas such as energy equity and justice issues, climate change, housing, transportation, or energy-related issues that impact those communities. • Represent and demonstrate accountability to residents of historically marginalized and underserved communities. • Knowledgeable staff or team with relevant experience. • Demonstrate ability to deliver services requested on schedule. • Flexibility to respond to services requested.