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City of Cambridge Department of Human Service Programs
Request for Proposals - FY2016 Emergency Solutions Grant
The City of Cambridge’s Department of Human Service Programs (DHSP) is seeking proposals from nonprofit
organizations for the Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program. For this Request for Proposals (RFP) DHSP
anticipates awarding up to $ 140,867.00 in the following categories: (1) street outreach and (2) emergency
shelter.
All proposals must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, 2015. Please return the completed
application packet to Michelle McCarthy on the 2nd floor of 51 Inman Street, Cambridge, MA and an electronic
version of the application to [email protected]. Applications received after the deadline will not be
considered.
ESG Program Overview
The ESG program, authorized by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act as amended by the Homeless
Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act, provides funding for street outreach,
emergency shelter, homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing activities. To review additional requirements,
details and program guidelines, please see the ESG Program Interim Rule.1 ESG regulations include, but are not
limited to, the following items.
Match Requirements
Organizations selected for funding must match 100% of ESG funds using non-ESG sources. Applicants may use any
of the following sources as match:

Cash contributions, and

Noncash contributions: The value of any real property, equipment, goods or services contributed
to the program, provided that if the subrecipient had to pay for them with grant funds, the costs
would be allowable.
See section 576.201 of the ESG rule for additional details.
Faith Based Activities
ESG funds may be awarded to a subrecipient that is a primarily religious organization if the organization agrees to
provide all eligible activities under this program in a manner that is free from religious influences and in
accordance with ESG regulations. See 24 CFR Part 576.406.
(a) Organizations that are religious or faith-based are eligible, on the same basis as any other organization, to
receive ESG funds. Neither the Federal Government nor a State or local government receiving funds under ESG
shall discriminate against an organization on the basis of the organization’s religious character or affiliation.
(b) Organizations that are directly funded under the ESG program may not engage in inherently religious activities,
such as worship, religious instruction, or proselytization as part of the programs or services funded under ESG. If an
organization conducts these activities, these activities must be offered separately, in time or location, from the
programs or services funded under ESG, and participation must be voluntary for program participants.
1
https://www.onecpd.info/resource/1927/hearth-esg-program-and-consolidated-plan-conforming-amendments/
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Project Requirements
Cambridge Living Wage
ESG subrecipients receiving funding of more than $10,000 will be subject to the Cambridge Living Wage
Ordinance. The Cambridge living wage is currently $14.95/hour.2
HMIS
Reporting requirements
ESG subrecipients are required to collect HUD required data in a City-approved Homeless Management
Information System (HMIS). HMIS requirements for ESG subrecipients are detailed in 24 CFR 576.400(f) and
HUD’s 2014 HMIS Data Standards.3 ESG subrecipients will also be required to work with HMIS staff at the end of
the contract year (July 2016) to complete the HUD required Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation
Report (CAPER).
Data quality compliance for Domestic Violence (DV) service providers
ESG subrecipients who are domestic violence service providers and are providing ESG assistance to victims of
domestic violence should not use HMIS, but should use a separate database (ex. ALICE) to record client data. DV
providers are expected to comply with the same HMIS standards required by non-DV providers, and must work
with HMIS staff to complete HUD reports.
Coordinated Intake
The Cambridge Continuum of Care (CoC) is working to develop and implement a coordinated intake/assessment
system as required by the CoC Program Interim Rule. The ESG regulation requires all grantees to participate in the
system to initially assess the eligibility and needs of each household seeking homeless assistance. ESG
subrecipients will be expected to participate in the development of this system, and to participate in the system
after it has been developed. See 24 CFR 576.400(e) for additional details about the Coordinated Intake
requirement.
Performance Goals
With passage of the HEARTH Act, HUD continues to place increased emphasis on performance and outcomes
measurement. DHSP encourages applicants to read Opening Doors, the Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End
Homelessness4 and to include a description in the proposal narrative of how the project aligns with Federal goals
and priorities, specifically ending chronic homelessness, homelessness among veterans, and homelessness among
families and youth.
Within the population of chronically homeless in the Cambridge CoC, the following subpopulations have been
identified as having high priority by the Homeless Services Planning Committee (HSPC) and the City’s Senior Policy
Group on Homelessness:
1. Chronically homeless individuals who are “high utilizers” of emergency services, including ambulance
services, hospital services, police services and emergency shelter; and
2. Chronically homeless individuals who are long-term stayers in emergency shelters.
2
http://www.cambridgema.gov/~/media/Files/personneldepartment/Fact_Sheet_rev_03_01_15.ashx
https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/HMIS-Data-Standards-Manual.pdf
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http://usich.gov/opening_doors/
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Performance Measurement
In addition to the HUD required CAPER report referenced in the HMIS section, DHSP will begin collecting data
during the City FY2016 ESG cycle to establish baseline measures against which future ESG performance will be
measured. Additional details about this process will be provided during the contracting phase.
Timeline
March 17
RFP published and distributed
April 8
Deadline for application submissions
Week of April 13
ESG Review Panel meets
May 2015
Award letters distributed
July 1, 2015
Contract year begins
Application Instructions and Checklist
To be considered for funding, interested agencies must complete and submit the following items:
Proposal
 Signed cover page
 Narrative response
 Budget table
Attachments
 Job descriptions for positions to be partially or completely funded with ESG funds
 Resumes for staff in positions to be funded with ESG funds
 Current list of Board of Directors or Advisory Board
 Agency organizational chart
 Total annual agency budget
 Most recent agency audit (please submit an electronic version only)
 Policies and procedures for projects to be partly or completely funded with ESG funds which-at a
minimum-detail the following:
 Intake and determination of eligibility
 Privacy and confidentiality of participant information
 Termination of assistance and participant appeal procedures
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Scoring Criteria
ESG funds are awarded annually through a competitive proposal evaluation process (as agreed to at the March
2013 CoC meeting). For FY2016, DHSP staff and the ESG Review Panel will begin reviewing proposals using the
following scoring criteria:
Partly
satisfies
Substantially
satisfies
Fully
satisfies
15
20
25
Project activities – proposal clearly describes what
activities project staff will conduct to help clients
identify and meet their service and housing goals.
6
8
10
Persons served – proposal provides a clear and detailed
description of persons to be served.
6
8
10
Outreach plan – proposal clearly describes how
participants will be brought into the program including
specific intake procedures.
6
8
10
Coordination – proposal clearly explains how the
project will coordinate with other CoC resources.
6
8
10
Qualifications – 10 points possible
Proposal and policy materials clearly demonstrate the
experience and capacity of the project applicant as it
relates to carrying out the activities of the project,
including HMIS compliance.*
6
8
10
Budget detail – 15 points possible
Budget request is reasonable and appropriate, items align to
project activities; and costs are within funding guidelines.
9
12
15
Application – 10 points possible
Narrative clearly and completely addresses each of the
items outlined in the Instructions, and all required
attachments are included and complete.
6
8
10
Component
Project concept – 25 points possible
Project is feasible and addresses Federal Strategic Plan
goals, and local priority to serve chronically homeless, longterm stayers and/or high-utilizers.
Does not
satisfy
Project design and activities – 40 points possible
Total Score (100 points possible)
Comments
*HMIS compliance and financial management will be reviewed for current ESG recipients.
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