Procurement Process, Contracts and Grants

How does Clackamas County select organizations and service providers?

Thank you for your interest in doing business with Clackamas County. Here, you will be able to review all available grant and contract opportunities with Clackamas County, RFPs and RFQs, and download the needed paperwork and instructions for submitting applications and proposals. 

You will also be able to learn about our policies and procedures, and Oregon ethical standards Clackamas County adheres to in order to ensure fairness and unbiased evaluation during review of grants or proposals.    

We encourage emerging — as well as women, minority, and veteran-owned — businesses to respond to our openings.  We want to support you!  County staff is always available to help or answer your questions.  Our contact information is located on the screen and on our new webpage, along with comprehensive information.  We look forward to working with you!

Tips for Submitting Proposals or Applying for a Grant

So, are you ready to do business with Clackamas County?  Here are some tips for submitting a successful procurement submission or grant application:

Follow the instructions fully
Review the instructions of the solicitation document or grant application carefully to ensure you understand all the requirements for a complete response, and double check you have satisfied those requirements prior to submittal. Also, be sure to submit a response in the format requested (e.g., digital versus paper).

Be specific, but be clear
The response should not be so detailed that it includes elements not relevant to the project, but should give a complete picture of what you can do and your qualifications.

• Always respond in a timely manner
• Proofread your proposal for typos
• Send the proposal to the right point of contact
• Do not exceed applicable page limits. Many solicitations will limit the number of pages that may be submitted. Failure to follow this rule could result in your proposal being rejected
• Emphasize what makes you special and separates you from other individuals or organizations
• Do not assume that “the county knows me”

A procurement solicitation or grant NOFO will give you everything you need to include in your response. Typically, this will include most of the following:

• A summary describing the opportunity
• A scope of work and expected deliverables
• Contact information for questions
• Details about the selection and evaluation process
• Information for how you should respond
• For grants,  the expected period of performance and a figure or range for individual award amounts and whether the award contains federal dollars may be needed.

Ethical Standards and State Law

County employees play an important role in preserving the integrity of government contracting and ensuring fair treatment of bidders, officers, and contractors. Our staff take this role very seriously and appreciate that a failure to treat public contracting in an unbiased and fair manner undermines the public’s confidence in Clackamas County’s processes and the Board’s commitment to transparency and Building Trust through Good Government.

This commitment is underscored by the our core values of Service, Professionalism, Integrity, Respect, Individual Accountability and Trust (SPIRIT), and these values guide all staff in their role in the contracting process.

Moreover, all county employees are subject to the Oregon Ethics Act (Oregon Revised Statute Chapter 244), which further imposes ethical obligations on how staff may do business on behalf of the county.

Lastly, all procurements are subject to the county’s procurement code of ethics and Local Contract Review Board rules.

These rules and obligations, whether under Oregon law or as a result of the county’s own policies and values, establish a framework to ensure the public contracting process is fair, impartial, and conducted in accordance with applicable law.