THE APPLICATION WINDOW FOR THIS RFP HAS CLOSED.

Q & A
Questions about the RFP process must be submitted to First 5 Kern through the online form below. Please refer to the Timeline above for details on the Q&A period.

First 5 Kern is committed to answer all questions about the RFP process publicly, in order to maintain transparency throughout the process. Please refrain from directing inquiries to First 5 Kern personnel, as such queries will not receive a response. Additionally, repeated requests may lead to the rejection of a submitted RFP.

Instead, all questions about the RFP submitted through the form, and their responses, will be posted here for all potential applicants to see. First 5 Kern will not respond directly to inquiries, but instead, will post all answers on this page.

• Questions and answers will be posted on the Commission website by noon on Wednesdays and Fridays.
• When submitting a question, please refer to the specific document within the RFP for reference.
• Submit each question separately if you have multiple questions.
• Duplicate questions will not be posted. If your question has already been submitted by someone else with similar wording, please refer to previously posted questions for the information you need.
• Questions can be submitted and will be posted from June 26 to July 24, 2024, according to the above timeline.
• The Q&A section will remain available on the website through July 31 for reference during the application process. However, you will not be able to submit any new questions after 5:00 p.m. on July 24.

——————————————————

RFP Main Document 

Q: Can the amounts listed on the Letters of Interest be an approximation?
A: The “Total Amount Requested” on the Letter of Interest can be an estimated amount.

Q: Are indirect certifications required as part of this RFP?
A: No, Indirect Certifications are not required as part of the RFP process. If you are a new contractor, your organization will be reimbursed the maximum rate of 4% in year one. The indirect rate will be certified in conjunction with the fiscal audit at the completion of year one of funding. If the indirect rate is certified at a rate lower than 4%, First 5 Kern will recover any overpaid amount through the quarterly claims process.

Q: Can we have one contract/application with two separate program locations?
A: An organization may submit one application for a program offering services at multiple locations.

Q: Is there an award ceiling amount (maximum) for this grant application?
A: There is not a maximum funding amount.

Q: If we already receive First 5 funding, do we need to reapply to the fund the same program(s), or only the new ones?
A: The funding for current First 5 Kern programs will expire on June 30, 2025. A proposal must be submitted for the new funding cycle, which runs from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2028.

Q: With $5 million available per program year through this funding cycle, does First 5 Kern have an estimate of how many projects they plan to fund?
A: The Commission did not predetermine the number of programs to be funded in this cycle. The total number of programs selected will depend on the number of proposals received and the amounts requested.

Q: Will a financial review be acceptable in place of an audit since the requirement for annual audits are for non-profits who receive $2million or more annually?
A: For the purposes of meeting the RFP audit requirement, If your non-profit organization does not currently produce an annual audit, you may substitute a copy of your agency’s most recent financial review. On the Proposal Checklist, select N/A for the Organization Financial Audit and provide a brief explanation indicating your organization is substituting the financial review in lieu of the audit. If your organization is selected for funding, the annual audit requirement for Prop 10 funds will still apply and your organization must produce the required audit moving forward.

Q: What are the amounts you will be funding each organization or the funding ranges?
A: The Commission did not predetermine the number of programs to be funded in this cycle. The total number of programs selected will depend on the number of proposals received and the amounts requested. Additionally, there is not a maximum/minimum funding amount predetermined by the Commission.

Q: If we only serve children and families with Toddlers, Preschool age and school age children, will we still be eligible to apply? It states prenatal in the RFP…
A: Programs serving one or more of the following populations are eligible to apply: pregnant women, children between the ages of 0-5 years and/or their families.

Q: Is the grant for [family] providers or center-based [providers]?
A: Refer to Section III B of the RFP document for a list of eligible organizations.

Q: If we have a program-specific audit for an existing First 5 program, do we submit that? Or should we submit the audit for the entire organization
A: If your organization is reapplying for a program currently funded by First 5 Kern; you may submit the most recent program specific audit for the existing program to satisfy the RFP audit requirement.

Q: We are a private for/ profit facility. We have never needed an Audit. I reached out to my CPA and he wanted to make sure that a reviewed financial statement is what is needed if we do not have an audit.
Can you specify what is needed in this reviewed financial statement?
A: If your organization does not currently produce an annual audit, you may substitute a copy of your agency’s most recent financial review. On the Proposal Checklist, select N/A for the Organizational Financial Audit and provide a brief explanation indicating your organization is substituting the financial review in lieu of the audit. If your organization is selected for funding, the annual audit requirement for Prop 10 funds will still apply and your organization must produce the required audit moving forward.

Q: Our fiscal audit is delivered spiral bound by auditor, does it need to be unbound with submission of RFP?
A: Yes, the fiscal audit needs to be unbound when submitting the RFP.

(Section III A – RFP Funding Eligibility Requirements)
Q: We are not located in Kern County, working with local partners throughout the state (several First 5s). We typically staff a program leader to work closely with our local partners in the counties where we provide our family resilience/parenting programming on an ongoing basis. Would having a Kern-based local program leader meet the criterion of being locally based?
A: Refer to page 3 of the RFP document – Only programs serving Kern County residents, and with an office located in Kern County, will be considered.

Q: Is this grant for providers also?
A: Refer to page 3 of the RFP document – ▪ Programs must serve children prenatal to age five and their families; ▪ Only programs serving Kern County residents, and with an office located in Kern County, will be considered.; ▪ Open to all community programs (start-up organizations and capital projects are ineligible). The Commission will fund programs targeting one or more of the three Focus Areas described in the Strategic Plan: ▪ Child Health and Development; ▪ Resilient Families; ▪ Quality Early Learning.

Q: Is it for home child care? I am a child care provider, I serve children 0-12 years old.
A: Refer to page 3 of the RFP document – ▪ Programs must serve children prenatal to age five and their families; ▪ Only programs serving Kern County residents, and with an office located in Kern County, will be considered.; ▪ Open to all community programs (start-up organizations and capital projects are ineligible). The Commission will fund programs targeting one or more of the three Focus Areas described in the Strategic Plan: ▪ Child Health and Development; ▪ Resilient Families; ▪ Quality Early Learning.

Q: I have called multiple locations in attempts to start the process of a financial audit. All locations have stated the audits can take 60-90 days. Would I still be able to apply for the grant if I started the financial audit process? Or would this be an automatic disqualification since it’s not complete?
A: Having a financial audit in process would not satisfy the RFP audit requirement. If your organization does not currently produce an annual audit, you may substitute a copy of your agency’s most recent financial review. On the Proposal Checklist, select N/A for the Organizational Financial Audit and provide a brief explanation indicating your organization is substituting the financial review in lieu of the audit. If your organization is selected for funding, the annual audit requirement for Prop 10 funds will still apply and your organization must produce the required audit moving forward.

(Section III C – Policy on Indirect Costs)
Q: Will you honor a federal indirect cost rate agreement that is higher [than 4%]?
A: No. The maximum reimbursement for Indirect Costs on this RFP is 4%.

(Section III D – Policy on Financial Audit Requirements)
Q: Are audits from the previous years required to be submitted with the application or is this only once you are awarded the funding?
A: You are required to submit one copy of your organization’s most recent audit, including the findings page and any reports on internal controls and compliance with the proposal.

(Section IV B – Letter of Interest)
Q: Is there a maximum amount we can request per year or for the 3-year proposal?
A: There is not a maximum funding amount.

(Section V C – Proposal Contents)
Q: I’m aware no staples should be in the paper application, would hole-punches be ok?
A: Binder clips are preferred because all documents will be scanned.

—————————————–

Attachment C (Proposal Application)

Q: I cannot change the font size or type of the text in the application, and it is not standardized in some of the sections. I think the issue must be tied to the formatting in the original document. Is there a way to solve this problem? Thanks.
A: Attachment C is formatted to Font Arial, Size 11, and paragraph single spacing Before: 0 pt, and After: 6 pt. It is recommended that you type directly into the document and do not copy and paste, unless necessary for pictures, organizational charts, etc.

Q: Sustainability Goals, should amounts be included or just funding sources? As I read it I believe it is just the sources, but I want to confirm this because I don’t want to leave information out of the RFP.
A: To meet the requirements for the Sustainability Goals on the RFP, dollar amounts from each funding source are not required. However, if an organization wishes to include additional information such as dollar amounts or percentages to clarify their Sustainability Goals they may do so.

Q: For the program and fiscal oversight section, I see that an org chart is required in addition to roles and responsibilities of all staff and a description of fiscal procedures. We have a large organization with two programs that we are applying for in one application and many staff, in-kind and First 5 funded. Is it possible to submit the org chart as a separate document in the proposal rather than attempting to fit it in this section?
A: The Program and Fiscal Oversight section must be confined to a maximum of three pages, including your organizational chart. You may resize your chart as necessary to fit within the allotted space and text

—————————————–

Attachment D (SOW-EP)

Q: Can programs submit under Focus Area 4 Strong Systems objective 4.1?
A: Refer to page 3 of the RFP document – The Commission will fund programs targeting one or more of the three Focus Areas described in the Strategic Plan: ▪Child Health and Development; ▪ Resilient Families;▪ Quality Early Learning.

Q: The Strategic Plan refers to Focus Area 4 and objectives 4.1 and 4.2. The SOW does not allow the option to select focus area 4 or objectives 4.1 or 4.2. Nor the option to enter it manually. Please advise.
A: Please select from the available Focus Areas listed on the Scope of Work-Evaluation Plan (e.g., Child Health and Development, Resilient Families, or Quality Early Learning) that best aligns with the proposed service. Focus Area 4 is reserved for First 5 Kern’s internal efforts around Strong Systems at this time.

Q: Under assigned staff, should we only include paid staff, or should we also include in-kind by board members or volunteers?
A: Refer to Exhibit E – List title(s) of the responsible (both funded and in-kind) staff members, including the quantity of each position in parenthesis (e.g., Family Advocate (3); Office Clerk (1) etc.). The staff members listed must coincide with the staff members listed on the Budget Form.

Q: Does the evaluation plan only need to cover one year?
A: The Scope of Work-Evaluation Plan reflects the services, activities and numbers served each fiscal year throughout the funding cycle.

Q: What is the difference between 2.2.1 Court mandated parent education and 2.2.2 Group parenting education? We assume for both, only the parents of children 0-5 will count.
A: Refer to Exhibit C – Page 5 – 2.2.1 – Court-mandated parent education programs are designed to meet legal requirements requested by court/judge. These programs aim to equip parents with essential knowledge and skills needed to effectively fulfill their roles, particularly in challenging circumstances such as divorce, custody disputes, domestic violence or concerns related to child welfare. 2.2.2 – Group parenting education refers to educational programs, workshops, classes, or resources that are available to all parents voluntarily, without any legal mandate. Additionally, First 5 Kern funds must be used for children ages 0-5 and their families. This applies to all services listed on the SOW-EP and the Annual Target

Q: For Exhibit D SOW-EP can you have multiple targets per objective? As an example, can you have two objectives for 2.1? the result indicator for this objective would be 35 parents and 35 children. Please advise.
A: Yes, you may list an Objective more than once on the SOW-EP to capture the different Reporting Units. For example, 2.1 – Case Managed Parents/Guardians and 2.1 – Case Managed Children should be listed separately.

Q: I am completing the form and need to submit some information for Focus Area 4 – Strong Systems, but it is not a choice in the drop down menu. Would you like me to make the form editable in adobe acrobat and complete it that way?
A: Please select from the available Focus Areas listed on the Scope of Work-Evaluation Plan (e.g., Child Health and Development, Resilient Families, or Quality Early Learning) that best aligns with the proposed service. Focus Area 4 is reserved for First 5 Kern’s internal efforts around Strong Systems at this time.

—————————————–

Attachment E (Budget Form)

Q: The services and supplies populates twice on the narrative page.
A: If there are any shared costs in your proposed budget for Services and Supplies, meaning that Prop 10 will be funding a portion of the costs and your organization is funding the balance, the line item will appear in both Section II, Services and Supplies and Section IV Organizational Support or In-Kind.

Q: How many hours are considered for a full FTE Employee?
A: For the purposes of this RFP, First 5 Kern will utilize the accounting standard of 2080 hours per fiscal year to represent one full time equivalent (FTE).

Q: Can the formula on Column K on the Budget Form (Master) tab be modified? The formula is defaulted to calculate 100% of the salaries to Prop 10 based on the hourly rate and the total number of hours. Our staff is full time, therefore, their total hours would be 2080. Our staff does not get 100% from Prop 10 due to insufficient funds. The difference is from in-kind funds. Please advise.
A: No, none of the formulas on the Budget Form (Master) tab can be modified or altered. If your organization is asking First 5 Kern to fund a portion of a full-time position and your organization is funding the balance of the position as in-kind, you would only enter the hours that you are asking First 5 Kern to fund in the Prop 10 Program Hours column. For instance, if you are asking First 5 Kern to fund 50% of a full time equivalent (2080 hours) you would enter 1040 hours in the Prop 10 Program Hours column.

Q: I cannot add rows to the budget. It appears the document is locked and will not allow changes. Thanks.
A: The functionality of the Budget Form cannot be modified or altered in any way.  Your organization may choose to group like personnel positions and/or services and supplies together to maximize existing Budget Form rows.

—————————————–

Exhibit D – Instructions

Q: Is there a recommended / required match amount?
A: No, there is not a recommended or required match amount for the 2025-2025 RFP.

—————————————–
—————————————–

Submit your question

The Q&A window has closed. Previously submitted questions and answers will remain posted throughout the application window.

——————————————————