Human Services Resource Allocation Process (HSRAP)

The City of Palo Alto, Office of Human Services, Community Services Department is seeking proposals from organizations to provide professional services to meet human service needs in the community which meet the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-2027 Priority of Needs.

This funding opportunity is provided through the Human Services Resource Allocation Process (HSRAP). The City provides many services directly to the community. There are services the City may not be able to provide due to expertise or economies of scale and choses to contract with local agencies through a competitive grant process called HSRAP. The selection of awardees and allocation of funding is a collaborative process with support of City staff and the Palo Alto Human Relations Commission (HRC) who review applications that provide support for identified needs in the community. 

This is a competitive funding process. There is no guarantee that every applicant will receive funding. There is also no guarantee that the amount an organization has requested will be the amount granted. No proposals under $5,000 are considered. Organizations applying for funding may propose either a new or existing program. Organizations submitting a joint proposal must select a lead organization that will act as the legal contractor with the City of Palo Alto.  

Proposals are being accepted for the funding term of July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027. Provided all terms and conditions are met through service agreements that are awarded for FY26, contracts may be renewable for an additional 12-month term, unless otherwise determined by the City of Palo Alto.

Submittal Information

All information requested to submit a complete proposal is included in the body of the proposal, no attachments with additional information are requested or will be accepted. 

Completed proposals are to be submitted as an attachment to an email and sent to HSRAP@cityofpaloalto.org. Converting the document to PDF is preferred. You will receive confirmation of receipt. 

Deadline to submit a completed proposal is Thursday, January 23, 3 p.m. 

NO LATE applications will be accepted and those submitted after the deadline will be disqualified. Failure to submit a complete application, or not complying with any of these procedures and requirements, will also disqualify the application for funding consideration.

Pre-Proposal Meeting

The pre-proposal meeting was held virtually via Zoom on Thursday, December 12, 2024, 10 a.m. 

Timeline

RFP Issued Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Pre-Proposal Meeting Thursday, December 12, 2024, 10 a.m.
Deadline for questions, clarifications Tuesday, January 7, 2025, 3 p.m.
Proposals Due Thursday, January 23, 2025, 3 p.m.
Review by HSRAP Subcommittee February 2025
Proposers Interview (if needed)  February/March 2025
Review by Human Relations Commission  March 2025
Review by City Council Finance Committee April 2025
Review by City Council May/June 2025
Contract awarded June 2025
Work commences July 2025

Question and Answer

All comments and questions from applicants about the Human Services Resource Allocation Process (HSRAP) Request for Proposal (RFP) and the responses from the Office of Human Services, will be posted on this page. It is the responsibility of the applicant to check the HSRAP webpage for replies to applicant questions. 

In order to be received and posted, comments and questions must be emailed to HSRAP@cityofpaloalto.org no later than Tuesday, January 7, 2025, 3 p.m.

Question: Answer:
Announcement: Addendum B, Section 7.4 of the sample contract, has been updated to include the audit requirement. Here is the new text in Section 7.4: CONSULTANT shall have performed a financial statement review by an independent Certified Public Accountant and once completed is sent to the city for review at least every two (2) years. In addition, the CITY and its authorized representative reserve the right to conduct a random audit of CONSULTANT at any reasonable time during the term of this Agreement, the cost to be covered by the CITY.
Announcement:  View the evaluation matrix.
Where are the procedures and the requirements? Is there any pre-checkup before submitting the application? The procedures and requirements are listed in the "General Proposal Information" section of the application. The terms and conditions that must be followed are provided in Addendum A and a sample contract is provided in Addendum B. Links to the application and addendums are available above. There is no pre-check before submitting an application. All proposals/applications must be submitted fully completed by 3 pm on January 23.  

The check boxes for Question 21 do not work for us. Can we type a response and/or an X next to the appropriate box?

  Yes, you may type in a response or an X next to the appropriate box.
For Table B in the Program Budget, can you confirm that this budget is for the first year (FY 2025-26) only? The budget in Table B should reflect the first fiscal year of the two-year cycle. The first fiscal year is FY26, July 2025 to June 2026.
For the PDF of the final application, should our scanned application file start at the top of the application form entitled HUMAN SERVICES RESOURCE ALLOCATION PROCESS FY26-27 (beginning with Section 2) through the signature and date at the end of on Section 7? Please submit Sections 2 through 7 of the application. We will also accept applications that include Section 1. 
Is it acceptable to introduce two programs (one continued and one new)? You may propose more than one program in your application. If the programs have separate budgets, please be sure to fill out a separate Table B program budget sheet for each program.

Contact Us

Office of Human Services 
Cubberley Community Center
4000 Middlefield Road, T2
Palo Alto, CA 94303

Phone:
(650) 463-4906

Email:
HSRAP@cityofpaloalto.org

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