All questions about the RFP must be submitted through Question & Answer section of OpenGov no later than 11:59pm on February 5, 2026. The deadline for submission for this RFP is 5:30 pm on February 12, 2026.If you need to get in touch with OLS about any technical difficulties using this system, please email OLS_RFP@seattle.gov. The Procurement Contact will respond to you. Unless authorized by the Procurement Contact, no other City official or employee may speak for the City regarding this solicitation until award is complete. Any Proposer contacting other City officials or employees does so at Proposer’s own risk. The City is not bound by such information.

The City of Seattle Office of Labor Standards (OLS) is a national leader in establishing workplace equity through its labor standards. OLS aims to establish a fair and healthy economy for workers, businesses, and residents thoughtful community and business engagement, strategic enforcement, and innovative policy development with a commitment to race and social justice. Currently, there are 16 such labor standards which establish minimum working conditions for Seattle’s workers.The Community Outreach and Education Fund (COEF) provides funding to community organizations to increase workers’ awareness and understanding of rights provided by Seattle’s labor standards. OLS seeks to partner with community to facilitate outreach and education, provide individualized services to workers in Seattle, and develop collaborative approaches to enforcement. Through a competitive selection process, the Office of Labor Standards will contract out $2.44 million to between 5 and 10 organizations for 24-month contracts. The contract period will run from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2028. The total amount available for these contracts us subject to approval from Seattle City Council. Organizations can put forward proposals to focus on specific outreach service strategies to ensure effective outreach and education to particular industries of focus.OLS commits to ensuring racial and social equity through the administration of the Fund.Here is how OLS works to accomplish those goals: OLS selects partnerships with organizations that have existing, trusted connections with communities most impacted by labor violations. OLS provides training and technical assistance to our organizational partners to help build their capacity to deliver outreach and education in the communities they serve. OLS provides a robust library of translated vital documents and works with organizations to ensure they are prepared to provide language-specific and culturally appropriate outreach and education. OLS communicates consistently with organizations to address barriers, progress, best practices, and lessons learned throughout the history of the COEF.

If you have not previously done so, register at: https://procurement.opengov.com/signup The City expects all firms to register. Women- and minority-owned firms are asked to self-identify. For assistance, email FAS_PC@seattle.gov.

The Community Outreach and Education Fund provides funding to community organizations to increase workers’ awareness and understanding of rights provided by Seattle’s labor standards. OLS seeks to partner with community to facilitate outreach and education with workers, provide individualized services to those who work in Seattle, and develop collaborative approaches to enforcement with the Office. While all workers are at risk for workplace violations, data shows that low-wage workers experience the highest rates of workplace violations. Demographic populations most likely to occupy low-wage jobs and experience workplace violations include: Black workers Indigenous workers and workers from tribal communities Latino workers Workers of color Immigrant and refugee workers LGBTQ+ workers Women workers Workers with disabilities Veterans Young workers

Activities under this contract will be performed between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2028.

Interested parties that wish to protest any aspect of this RFP selection process shall provide written notice to the Procurement Contact.

The City will review responses for responsiveness and responsibility. Those found responsive and responsible based on an initial review shall proceed to Step 2. Equal Benefits, Minimum Qualifications, an Inclusion Plan, satisfactory financial responsibility and other elements are screened in this Step. A significant failure to perform on past City projects may also be considered in determining the responsibility of a firm.

The City has attached its boilerplate contract terms to allow Proposers to be familiar with boilerplate, and the non-negotiable terms before submitting a proposal. The City may negotiate with the highest ranked apparent successful Proposer. The City cannot modify contract provisions mandated by Federal, State or City law: Equal Benefits, Audit (Review of Vendor Records), WMBE and EEO, Confidentiality, and Debarment or mutual indemnification. Exceptions to those provisions will be summarily disregarded.

No minimum qualifications are required for a consultant to submit a proposal response.

The City consultant contract is attached (See Attachments Section).Consultants submit proposals understanding all Contract terms and conditions are mandatory. Response submittal is agreement to the Contract without exception. The City reserves the right to negotiate changes to submitted proposals and to change the City's otherwise mandatory Contract form during negotiations. If the Consultant is awarded a contract and refuses to sign the attached Contract form, the City may reject the Consultant from this and future solicitations for the same work. Under no circumstances shall Consultant submit its own boilerplate of terms and conditions.

The City consultant contract is attached (See Attachments Section).The City has attached its boilerplate contract terms so Proposers can be familiar with the boilerplate and the non-negotiable terms before submitting a proposal. Any questions about the City’s boilerplate should be made in advance of submittal. If a Consultant seeks to modify the Contract, the Consultant must request that within their Proposal response as taking an “Exception”. The Consultant must provide a revised version that shows their proposed alternative contract language. The City is not obligated to accept such proposed changes. If you request Exceptions that materially change the character of the contract, the City may reject the Consultant’s Proposal as non-responsive. The City cannot modify provisions mandated by Federal, State or City law: Equal Benefits, Audit (Review of Vendor Records), WMBE and EEO, Confidentiality, and Debarment, or mutual indemnification. Such Exceptions would be summarily disregarded.Although the City may open discussions with the highest ranked apparent successful Proposer to align the proposal or contract to best meet City needs, this does not ensure negotiation of modifications proposed by the consultant through the exception process above.

The City of Seattle OLS expects to achieve the following outcomes through this consultant solicitation:OLS partners with community organizations and collaboratives that prioritize race and social justice. OLS seeks proposals to increase worker understanding of Seattle labor standards, provide language-specific outreach and technical assistance, and build trust with low-income worker communities to access labor standards enforcement and complaint resolution throughout Seattle. Through these funded partnerships, OLS envisions an interconnected network of organizations that will expand awareness and understanding of Seattle’s labor standards for low-wage workers and worker communities most likely to experience violations of worker rights. OLS expects this network of organizations to collectively have connections to focus populations in all geographic areas of the city and, when possible, areas outside of the city where Seattle-based workers reside. OLS intends to work with a subset of awarded consultants to co-develop enforcement plans to support workers in industries with high violations but low volumes of complaints to our office. Ideally, organizations will have experience or demonstrated ability in two or more of the following areas: Conducts outreach to low wage workers; Conducts outreach to BIPOC communities; Conducts outreach to immigrant and/or refugee communities; Creates culturally relevant and language specific resources and outreach materials; Develops culturally relevant and language specific trainings and teaches complex subject matter, such as labor laws, to worker communities; Provides intake counseling, referrals, or complaint resolution services to worker communities. Provides support services to workers in need, such as case management with respect to job placement, rental or other housing assistance, and community advocacy.

Minimum qualifications are required for a Consultant to be eligible to submit a proposal response. Your submittal response must show compliance to these minimum qualifications. Those that are not responsive to these qualifications shall be rejected by the City without further consideration:Consultant must submit a completed application, including all required components in Section 12 "Response Materials and Submittal" and must commit to the requirements listed in Section 8 "Procedures and Requirements."Consultant must have employees in King, Snohomish, or Pierce County, Washington, who can do direct outreach with workers covered by Seattle labor ordinances.

OLS will convene a selection committee of 3-5 people to evaluate responsive proposals. The selection committee will be made up of City staff from a variety of Departments/Offices.

The City issues results and award decisions to all bidders. The City provides debriefing on a limited basis for the purpose of allowing bidders to understand how they may improve in future bidding opportunities.

The Fund seeks to establish and grow collaborative relationships with community-based organizations to achieve the following. Increase workers’ knowledge and understanding of the rights provided by Seattle’s labor standards through methods that are:community centered, culturally relevant, accessible and,language specific. Expand workers’ access to resources to enforce labor standards and ensure their rights are protected. Build capacity among community organizations to provide labor standards services (including intakes and referrals) and education to a diverse range of workers. Targeted outreach, education, and enforcement in industries where there are high violations but low complaints.

The City offers an optional pre-submittal conference at the time, date and location on the Timeline. Proposers are highly encouraged to attend but not required to attend to be eligible to propose. The meeting answers questions about the solicitation and clarifies issues. This also allows Proposers to raise concerns. Failure to raise concerns over any issues at this opportunity will be a consideration in any protest filed regarding such items known as of this pre-proposal conference.Spanish interpretation will be provided. Interpretation requests for other languages or other accessibility requests can be made by emailing OLS_RFP@seattle.gov no later than January 9, 2026. A recording of the info session will be made available after the session is complete.

Applicants can protest decisions in a solicitation, selection, and award. Protests should be sent to the Procurement Contact within three business days after OLS announces its award decisions. Protests received outside of this time frame will not be considered. Only protests alleging an issue concerning the following shall be considered:A matter of bias, discrimination, or conflict of interest;Errors in computing score; and/or Non-compliance with procedures described in the solicitation or City policy. The Director of OLS will review the protest and issue a final decision in writing. Each written determination of the protest shall either:Find the protest lacking in merit and uphold the City action; orFind only immaterial or harmless errors in the City solicitation, selection and award process and therefore reject the protest; orFind merit in the protest and proceed with appropriate action, which may include but is not limited to rejecting all bids or re-tabulating applications.

The Seattle Office of Labor Standards seeks proposals for innovative and engaging outreach and education strategies to help low-wage workers fully understand their rights and provide supportive resources to assist workers in formal and informal channels to resolve their claims under the law. The growing number of Seattle Labor Standards has drastically expanded the number of workers covered by these protections. To ensure all covered workers are receiving assistance, OLS has created different service strategy options. These service strategies are intended to create more specialization of services for different communities of workers within Seattle. OLS seeks to fund multiple service strategies to ensure coverage of specific industries. OLS seeks to contract with a varied group of consultant organizations to serve diverse communities and geographic areas of Seattle. Applicants may apply for more than one service strategy. There will be a separate RFP process for outreach and education regarding app-based workers and the ordinances associated with that industry. However, those organizations that want to engage in the Broad-Based Labor Standards service strategy can still conduct outreach and education regarding the app-based worker ordinances. All service strategies shall be responsible for conducting outreach and education related to: Minimum WageWage Theft Paid Sick and Safe Time Fair Chance Employment Commuter Benefits Independent Contractor Protections Unlawful Retaliation

Proposals shall be evaluated using the evaluation criteria in the Proposal Evaluation Section.

Broad-Based Labor Standards: Provides broad-based outreach and education that covers all 16 current Seattle Labor Standards. Consultant agrees to negotiate with OLS over the impact of additional labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle to the existing scope of work. Retail & Restaurant Workers: Provides focused outreach and education to workers within the retail and food service sectors. In addition to the 6 labor standards above, this service strategy will provide detailed training and assistance regarding the Seattle Secure Scheduling Ordinance for covered workers as well as the Cannabis Employee Job Retention Ordinance for covered workers. Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new retail or restaurant specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work. Hotel Workers: Provides focused outreach and education to workers within the hotel and ancillary hospitality services sectors. In addition to the 6 labor standards above, this service strategy will provide detailed training and assistance regarding the Seattle Hotel Employees and Ancillary Employees suite of labor ordinances.Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new hotel specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work. Domestic Workers: Provides focused outreach and education to domestic workers. In addition to the 6 labor standards above, this service strategy will provide detailed training and assistance regarding the Seattle Domestic Workers Ordinance for covered workers. Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new domestic worker specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work. Construction and Trades Workers: Provides focused outreach and education to construction trades workers. Provides detailed training and assistance to relevant worker populations regarding labor standards protections for construction industry, including the six labor standards listed above. Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new construction or trades specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work. Arts and Entertainment Workers: Provides focused outreach to workers within the arts and entertainment industry sectors. Provides detailed training and assistance to relevant worker populations regarding labor standards protections for the arts and entertainment industry sectors, including the six labor standards listed above.Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new arts or entertainment sector specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work. Temporary Workers (typically hired through a staffing agency):Provides focused outreach and education to temporary workers. Provides detailed training and assistance to relevant worker populations regarding labor standards protections for temporary workers, including the six labor standards listed above. Consultants will also be responsible for outreach and education related to labor standards enacted during the course of this funding cycle if the new ordinance(s) directly affects the service strategy focus population. E.g., a new temporary worker specific ordinance. Consultant shall negotiate with OLS over the impact to the existing scope of work.

The Apparently Successful Consultant(s) will receive an Intent to Award Letter from the Procurement Contact after award decisions are made by the City. The Letter will include instructions for final submittals due prior to execution of the contract.Once the City has finalized and issued the contract for signature, the Consultant must execute the contract and provide all requested documents within ten (10) business days. This includes attaining a Seattle Business License, payment of associated taxes due, and providing proof of insurance. If the Consultant fails to execute the contract with all documents within the ten (10) day time frame, the City may cancel the award and proceed to the next ranked Consultant, or cancel or reissue this solicitation. Cancellation of an award for failure to execute the Contract as attached may disqualify the firm from future solicitations for this same work.

Proposers may submit their questions through the Question and Answer section of OpenGov. Proposers may also email questions to the Procurement Contact until the deadline stated in the Timeline. Failure to request clarification of any inadequacy, omission, or conflict will not relieve the Consultant of responsibilities under any subsequent contract. It is the responsibility of the interested Consultant to assure they receive responses to questions if any are issued.

The selection committee recognizes that some organizations may feel more comfortable expressing themselves verbally rather than in written format. Therefore, organizations may elect to attend a 30-minute online presentation to the selection committee to be scheduled between February 16 and March 6. This presentation is optional and is intended to allow organizations to communicate their proposal verbally. There will not be additional formal questions for the presentation portion, but selection committee members may ask clarifying questions. This is an optional presentation. No additional points will be added to the organization’s score for the presentation. Organizations who choose to present are to bring the assigned key person(s) named by the Organization in the Proposal and may bring other key personnel named in the Proposal. The Organization shall not bring individuals who do not work for the Consultant or are not on the project team without advance authorization by the Procurement Contact. Presentations will be scheduled after your proposal is received. Organizations with 3 or more collaborative members may request additional presentation time. Organizations may request an interpreter. Additional time will be added to accommodate interpretation. Please include interpretation requests or any accommodations requests when prompted in the submission form.

The City may contact one or more references. The City may use references named or not named by the Proposer. The City may also consider the results of performance evaluations issued by the City on past projects.

Successful consultants are expected and required to provide intake services. Intakes occur when workers seek guidance from your organization about workplace rights. This can occur in person, over the phone, on email or social media. Organizations seeking to contract with OLS must be able to provide at least some intake services and report data received during intakes to OLS (e.g. what violations the worker complained of and the industry in which the complainant works). OLS defines community intakes in four categories: Information Only Intakes: Listening to worker’s complaint and offering guidance on ways to address it, but worker chooses not to act. OLS Referral Intake: Supporting a worker to file a complaint with OLS and working with them through the process. Organization Resolution Intake: Supporting a worker to resolve a complaint without help from OLS. Non-OLS Referral Intake: Supporting a worker to file a complaint with another organization or agency that is a better fit for their needs.

The City may make changes to this RFP if, in the sole judgment of the City, the change will not compromise the City’s objectives in this solicitation. Any change to this RFP will be made by formal addendum issued by the City, through the Procurement Portal at https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/seattle and shall become part of this RFP.

The Consultant(s) should anticipate the Letter will require at least the following. Consultants are encouraged to prepare these documents when possible, to eliminate risks of late compliance.Seattle Business License is current and all taxes due have been paid.State of Washington Business License.Evidence of Insurance Special Licenses (if any)Form W-9 if a new Consultant for the City

It is the obligation and responsibility of the Consultant to learn of addenda, responses, or notices issued by the City, through the Procurement Portal. Some third-party services independently post City of Seattle solicitations on their websites. The City does not guarantee that such services have accurately provided all the information published by the City.All submittals sent to the City may be considered compliant with or without specific confirmation from the Consultant that any and all addenda was received and incorporated into your response. However, the Project Manager reserves the right to reject any submittal that does not fully incorporate Addenda that is critical to the project.

Those consultants with capacity will be asked to participate in co-enforcement projects with OLS including but not limited to: engaging in roundtable meetings with OLS staff and other stakeholders regarding a particular industry or workplace; meeting with groups of workers experiencing violations at their shared workplace; information gathering; supporting workers during investigations; and engaging in media or other campaigns to call attention to unfair labor practices or bad behavior on the part of hiring entities/employers.

The City shall select the highest ranked Proposer(s) for award. The City reserves the right to make a final selection based on the combined results and/or the overall consensus of the Consultant Evaluation Committee.

Proof of insurance is required to execute contract.

Proposals must be received by the City no later than the date and time in the Timeline, except as revised by Addenda. The submitter has full responsibility to ensure the response is submitted to the City's Procurement Portal within the deadline. The Procurement Portal will not allow vendors to upload submissions past the deadline.

The City may negotiate elements of the proposal as required to best meet the needs of the City, with the apparent successful Proposer. The City may negotiate any aspect of the proposal or the solicitation. The City does not intend to negotiate the base contract, which has been attached (See Attachments).

Successful consultants may not receive the full amount of funding requested. Scope of work will be adjusted depending on the amount of funding available. A portion of each consultant's budget (80%) will be used for Base Payments for typical monthly activities including regular meetings with and most reports to OLS, one on one conversations with workers, and intakes. The remainder of the consultant's budget (20%) will be used for specific activities referred to as "objective commitments" (for example workshops, radio programs, quarterly reports etc. outlined in consultant's individualized scope of work). Consultant will be paid for these activities after the activity is reported to OLS and verified.The amounts set aside for objective commitments are not intended to reflect the actual cost of doing the activity. The inclusion of objective commitments is for more accurate contract management.

It is the Proposer’s responsibility to respond in a manner that does not require interpretation or clarification by the City. The Proposer is to provide all requested materials, forms and information. The Proposer is to ensure the materials submitted properly and accurately reflect the Proposer’s offering. During scoring and evaluation (prior to interviews if any), the City will rely upon the submitted materials and shall not accept materials from the Proposer after the RFP deadline; this does not limit the City’s right to consider additional information (such as references that are not provided by the Proposer but are known to the City, or past City experience with the consultant), or to seek clarifications as needed.

If a contract is executed resulting from this solicitation and is terminated within 90-days, the City may return to the solicitation process to award to the next highest ranked responsive Consultant by mutual agreement with such Consultant. New awards thereafter are also extended this right.

Proposers shall not interfere in any way to discourage other potential and/or prospective proposers from proposing or considering a proposal process. Prohibited contacts includes but is not limited to any contact, whether direct or indirect (i.e. in writing, by phone, email or other, and by the Proposer or another person acting on behalf of the Proposer) to a likely firm or individual that may discourage or limit competition. If such activity is evidenced to the satisfaction and in sole discretion of the City department, the Proposer that initiates such contacts may be rejected from the process.

The Consultant must meet all applicable licensing requirements immediately after contract award or the City may reject the Consultant. Companies must license, report and pay revenue taxes for the Washington State business License (UBI#) and Seattle Business License, if required by law. Carefully consider those costs before submitting an offer, as the City will not separately pay or reimburse such costs.Seattle Business Licensing and associated taxesIf you have a “physical nexus” in the city, you must obtain a Seattle Business license and pay all taxes due before the Contract can be signed. A “physical nexus” means you have physical presence, such as: a building/facility/employee(s) in Seattle, you make sales trips into Seattle, your own company drives into Seattle for product deliveries, and/or you conduct service work in Seattle (repair, installation, service, maintenance work, on-site consulting, etc). We provide a Consultant Questionnaire Form in our submittal package items later in this RFP, and it will ask you to specify if you have “physical nexus”.All costs for any licenses, permits and Seattle Business License taxes owed shall be borne by the Consultant and not charged separately to the City. The apparent successful Consultant(s) must immediately obtain the license and ensure all City taxes are current, unless exempted by City Code due to reasons such as no physical nexus. Failure to do so will cause rejection of the submittal. The City of Seattle Application for a Business License and additional licensing information can be found on this page here: https://www.seattle.gov/city-finance/business-taxes-and-licenses/business-licenses For Questions and Assistance, call the Revenue and Consumer Protection (RCP) office which issues business licenses and enforces licensing requirements. The general e-mail is tax@seattle.gov. The main phone is 206-684-8484. Self-Filing You can pay your license and taxes on-line https://www.filelocal-wa.gov/Default_FileLocal.aspx If a business has extraordinary balances due on their account that would cause undue hardship to the business, the business can contact the License and Tax Administration office at tax@seattle.gov or 206-684-8484 to request additional assistance. Those holding a City of Seattle Business license may be required to report and pay revenue taxes to the City. Such costs should be carefully considered by the Consultant prior to submitting your offer. When allowed by City ordinance, the City will have the right to retain amounts due at the conclusion of a contract by withholding from final invoice payments.

If no Consultant is selected at the conclusion of all the steps, the City may return to any step in the process to repeat the evaluation with those proposals active at that step. The City shall then sequentially step through all remaining steps as if conducting a new evaluation process. The City reserves the right to terminate the process if no proposals meet its requirements.

Before the contract is signed, you must have a State of Washington business license (a “Unified Business Identifier” known as a UBI#). If the State of Washington has exempted your business from State licensing (some foreign companies are exempt and sometimes, the State waives licensing because the company has no physical presence in the State), then submit proof of that exemption to the City. All costs for any licenses, permits and associated tax payments due to the State because of licensing shall be borne by the Consultant and not charged separately to the City. Instructions to apply for a business license can be found at https://dor.wa.gov/open-business/apply-business-license and the State of Washington Department of Revenue contact help page at https://dor.wa.gov/contact.

The City is exempt from Federal Excise Tax.

The City does not guarantee utilization of any contract(s) awarded through this RFP/RFQ process. The solicitation may provide estimates of utilization; such information is for Consultant convenience and not a usage guarantee. The City reserves the right to issue multiple or partial awards, and/or to order work based on City needs. The City may turn to other appropriate contract sources or supplemental contracts to obtain these same or similar services. The City may re-solicit for new additions to the Consultant pool. Use of such supplemental contracts does not limit the right of the City to terminate existing contracts for convenience or cause.

The contract limits expansion of scope and new work not expressly provided for within the RFP.Expansion for New Work (work not specified within the original Scope of Work Section of this Agreement, and/or not specified in the original RFP as intended work for the Agreement) must comply with the following:(a) New Work is not reasonable to solicit separately; (b) is for reasonable purpose; (c) was not reasonably known by the City or Consultant at time of solicitation or was mentioned as a possibility in the solicitation (i.e. future phases of work, or a change in law); (d) is not significant enough to be regarded as an independent body of work; (e) would not attract a different field of competition; and (f) does not change the identity or purpose of the Agreement. The City may make exceptions for immaterial changes, emergency or sole source conditions, or other situations required in City opinion. Certain changes are not subject to these limitations, such as additional phases of Work anticipated during solicitation, time extensions, and Work Orders issued on an On-Call contract. Expansion must be mutually agreed and issued by the City through written Addenda. New Work performed before an authorizing Amendment may not be eligible for payment.The City reserves the right to independently solicit and award any New Work to another firm when deemed appropriate or required by City policy.

Solicitation responses are valid until the City completes award. Should any Proposer object to this condition, the Proposer must object prior to the Q&A deadline in the Timeline.

The City is not liable for costs incurred by the Proposer to prepare, submit and present proposals, interviews and/or demonstrations.

The City’s ability to evaluate proposals is influenced by the organization, detail, comprehensive material and readable format of the response.

Prior to the proposal submittal closing date and time established for this RFP, a Consultant may change or correct its proposal by following the Instructions here: https://opengov.my.site.com/support/s/article/4f4218bf-7da6-4fc6-b0c3-7eade0776ebe. No change to a proposal shall be made after the proposal closing date and time.

Proposers are responsible for errors and omissions in their proposals. No error or omission shall diminish the Proposer’s obligations to the City.

A submittal may be withdrawn at any time through the Procurement portal prior to the closing date or by written request of the submitter.

The City may reject any or all proposals with no penalty. The City may waive immaterial defects and minor irregularities in any submitted proposal.

This RFP and Proposer’s response, including promises, warranties, commitments, and representations made in the successful proposal once accepted by the City, are binding and incorporated by reference in the City’s contract with the Proposer.

The Consultant works as an independent contractor. The City will provide appropriate contract management, but that does not constitute a supervisory relationship to the Consultant. Consultant workers are prohibited from supervising City employees or from direct supervision by a City employee. Prohibited supervision tasks include conducting a City of Seattle Employee Performance Evaluation, preparing and/or approving a City of Seattle timesheet, administering employee discipline, and similar supervisory actions.Contract workers shall not be given City office space unless expressly provided for below, and in no case shall such space be provided for over 36 months without specific authorization from the City.The City will not provide space in City offices for performance of this work. Consultants will perform most work from their own office space or the field.

Seattle Municipal Code Chapter 20.45 (SMC 20.45) requires consideration of whether Proposers provide health and benefits that are the same or equivalent to the domestic partners of employees as to spouses of employees, and of their dependents and family members. The Consultant Questionnaire requested in the Submittal instructions includes materials to designate your equal benefits status.

The Mayor’s Executive Order and City ordinance require the maximum practicable opportunity for successful participation of minority and women-owned subcontracts. All proposers must agree to SMC Chapter 20.42, and seek meaningful subconsultant opportunities with WMBE firms. At a certain threshold, the City requires a plan for including minority- and women-owned firms, which becomes a material part of the contract. The Plan must be responsive in the opinion of the City, which means a meaningful and successful search and commitments to include WMBE firms for subcontracting work. The City reserves the right to improve the Plan with the winning Consultant before contract execution. Consultants should use selection methods and strategies sufficiently effective for successful WMBE participation. At City request, Consultants must furnish evidence such as copies of agreements with WMBE subconsultants either before contract execution or during contract performance. The winning Consultant must request written approval for changes to the Inclusion Plan once it is agreed upon. This includes changes to goals, subconsultant awards and efforts.WMBE firms need not be state certified to meet the City's WMBE definition. The City defines WMBE firms as at least 51% (percent) owned by women and/or minority. To be recognized as a WMBE, register on the City’s Online Business Directory. Federally funded transportation projects require a Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) program; for that program, firms must be certified by the Washington State Office of Minority and Women Business Enterprises (OMWBE).

Any special insurance requirements are provided as an Attachment. If attached, provide proof of insurance and additional insured endorsement policy language to the City before Contract execution. The apparent successful Proposer must promptly provide proof of insurance to the City upon receipt of the notice of intent to award.Consultants are encouraged to immediately contact their Broker to begin preparation of the required insurance documents, if the Consultant is selected as a finalist. Proposers may elect to provide the requested insurance documents within their Proposal.

The State of Washington’s Public Records Act (Release/Disclosure of Public Records): Under Washington State Law (reference RCW Chapter 42.56, the Public Records Act) all materials received or created by the City of Seattle are considered public records. These records include but are not limited to bid or proposal submittals, agreement documents, contract work product, or other bid material. The State of Washington’s Public Records Act requires that public records must be promptly disclosed by the City upon request unless that RCW or another Washington State statute specifically exempts records from disclosure. Exemptions are narrow and explicit and are listed in Washington State Law (Reference RCW 42.56 and RCW 19.108).Bidders/proposers must be familiar with the Washington State Public Records Act and the limits of record disclosure exemptions. For more information, visit the Washington State Legislature’s website at http://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=42.56.If you have any questions about disclosure of the records you submit with your bid, contact the Procurement Contact named in this document.Marking Your Records Exempt from Disclosure (Protected, Confidential, or Proprietary)As mentioned above, all City of Seattle offices (“the City”) are required to promptly make public records available upon request. However, under Washington State Law some records or portions of records are considered legally exempt from disclosure and can be withheld. A list and description of records identified as exempt by the Public Records Act can be found in RCW 42.56 and RCW 19.108.If you believe any of the records you are submitting to the City as part of your bid/proposal or contract work products, are exempt from disclosure you can request that they not be released before you receive notification. To do so you must complete the City Non-Disclosure Request Form (“the Form”) provided by the City (see page 4 on the Consultant Questionnaire) and very clearly and specifically identify each record and the exemption(s) that may apply. (If you are awarded a City contract, the same exemption designation will carry forward to the contract records.)The City will not withhold materials from disclosure simply because you mark them with a document header or footer, page stamp, or a generic statement that a document is non-disclosable, exempt, confidential, proprietary, or protected. Do not identify an entire page as exempt unless each sentence is within the exemption scope; instead, identify paragraphs or sentences that meet the specific exemption criteria you cite on the Form. Only the specific records or portions of records properly listed on the Form will be protected and withheld for notice. All other records will be considered fully disclosable upon request.If the City receives a public disclosure request for any records you have properly and specifically listed on the Form, the City will notify you in writing of the request and will postpone disclosure. While it is not a legal obligation, the City, as a courtesy, will allow you up to ten business days to file a court injunction to prevent the City from releasing the records (reference RCW 42.56.540). If you fail to obtain a Court order within the ten days, the City may release the documents.The City will not assert an exemption from disclosure on your behalf. If you believe a record(s) is exempt from disclosure you are obligated to clearly identify it as such on the Form and submit it with your solicitation. Should a public record request be submitted to Purchasing for that record(s), you can then seek an injunction under RCW 42.56 to prevent release. By submitting a bid document, the bidder acknowledges this obligation; the proposer also acknowledges that the City will have no obligation or liability to the proposer if the records are disclosed.Requesting Disclosure of Public RecordsThe City asks bidders and their companies to refrain from requesting public disclosure of bids until an intention to award is announced. This measure is intended to protect the integrity of the solicitation process particularly during the evaluation and selection process or in the event of a cancellation or re-solicitation. With this preference stated, the City will continue to be responsive to all requests for disclosure of public records as required by State Law. If you do wish to make a request for records, visit https://www.seattle.gov/public-records/public-records-request-center.

Familiarize yourself with the City Ethics code: http://www.seattle.gov/ethics/etpub/et_home.htm. For an in-depth explanation of the City’s Ethics Code for Contractors, Vendors, Customers and Clients, visit: http://www.seattle.gov/ethics/etpub/faqcontractorexplan.htm. Any questions should be addressed to Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission at 206-684-8500.No Gifts and Gratuities.Consultants shall not directly or indirectly offer anything (such as retainers, loans, entertainment, favors, gifts, tickets, trips, bonuses, donations, special discounts, work, or meals) to any City employee, volunteer or official, if it is intended or may appear to a reasonable person to be intended to obtain or give special consideration to the Consultant. An example of this is giving sporting event tickets to a City employee who is also on the evaluation team of a solicitation to which you submitted or intend to submit. The definition of what a “benefit” would be is broad and could include not only awarding a contract but also the administration of the contract or evaluating contract performance. The rule works both ways, as it also prohibits City employees from soliciting items from Consultants.Involvement of Current and Former City Employees.The Consultant Questionnaire within your submittal documents prompts you to disclose any current or former City employees, official or volunteer that is working or assisting on solicitation of City business or on completion of an awarded contract. Update that information during the contract.Contract Workers with over 1,000 Hours.The Ethics Code applies to Consultant workers that perform over 1,000 cumulative hours on any City contract during any 12-month period. Any such employee must abide by the City Ethics Code. The Consultant is to be aware and familiar with the Ethics Code accordingly.No Conflict of Interest. Consultant (including officer, director, trustee, partner or employee) must not have a business interest or a close family or domestic relationship with any City official, officer or employee who was, is, or will be involved in selection, negotiation, drafting, signing, administration or evaluating Consultant performance. The City shall make sole determination as to compliance.Campaign Contributions (Initiative Measure No. 122)Elected officials and candidates are prohibited from accepting or soliciting campaign contributions from anyone having at least $250,000 in contracts with the City in the last two years or who has paid at least $5,000 in the last 12 months to lobby the City. See Initiative 122, or call the Ethics Director with questions.

Background checks will not be required for workers that will be performing the work under this contract. The City has strict policies regarding the use of Background checks, criminal checks, immigrant status, and/or religious affiliation for contract workers. The policies are incorporated into the contract and available for viewing on-line at http://www.seattle.gov/purchasing-and-contracting/social-equity/background-checks.

Hyperlinks and URLs to web sites or references to attachments may not be used in documents submitted in response to this solicitation, unless specifically requested in the submittal requirements. The City is not obligated to evaluate, review, or score any information submitted in the form of a hyperlink or URL. Information and documentation requested for the evaluation process must be submitted in the format indicated in the solicitation instructions.

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