Questions received for the Developing Markets for Continuous Living Cover Crops Grant RFP are posted below. Questions were accepted until 4:30 pm Central Time Monday July 1, 2024.
Current access to roller crimpers is limited and greater access may improve or expand the use of rye cover crops, but this is a competitive grant and priority will be given to those applicants that address a direct market limitation. The use of a roller crimper to terminate rye is a soil health practice. The purchase of a roller crimper is eligible for the MDA’s Soil Health Financial Assistance Program Grants or the Ag BMP Loan Program.
No, the crops are not required to be for consumption nor support food production. They must however meet the goal of continuous living cover and the project should address a direct market limitation. Funds are to be used to develop enterprises, supply chains, and markets for continuous-living cover crops and cropping systems in the early stages of commercial development. This can include equipment infrastructure and business and market development.
No, the grant applicant does not need to choose the funding source. All applications are going to be scored and ranked for funding in one pool. After ranking the projects, our team will determine which funding source to use for each project.
On page 12 of the RFP it outlines the questions regarding end date. Applicants are asked to include their expected end date, this would be your preferred end date. There is a follow up question, “If need be, can your project be completed by June 30, 2025?”.
All applicants must be an organization in Minnesota, so an organization based in Wisconsin (Wisconsin LLC) would not qualify. Organizations in Minnesota must have a Minnesota address and do business in Minnesota.
An organization includes a company, government, tribe, urban American Indian Community, partnership, and any type of civil or political association of people. If you meet this definition and are a Minnesota organization you could apply.
As per the RFP on page 8, a business must follow the requirements for all nongovernmental organizations.
For all nongovernmental organizations (including businesses)
Any grant-funded services and/or materials that are expected to cost:
- $100,000 or more must undergo a formal notice and bidding process.
- Between $25,000 and $99,999 must be competitively awarded based on a minimum of three (3) verbal quotes or bids.
- Between $10,000 and $24,999 must be competitively awarded based on a minimum of two (2) verbal quotes or bids or awarded to a targeted vendor.
For grant-funded projects that include construction work of $25,000 or more, prevailing wage rules apply per; Minn. Stat. §§177.41 through 177.44.
These rules require that the wages of laborers and workers should be comparable to wages paid for similar work in the community as a whole.
The grantee must take all necessary affirmative steps to assure that targeted vendors from businesses with active certifications through these entities are used when possible:
- State Department of Administration's Certified Targeted Group, Economically Disadvantaged and Veteran-Owned Vendor List
- Metropolitan Council’s Targeted Vendor list: Minnesota Unified Certification Program
- Small Business Certification Program through Hennepin County, Ramsey County, and City of St. Paul: Central Certification Program
The grantee must maintain:
- Written standards of conduct covering conflicts of interest and governing the actions of its employees engaged in the selection, award and administration of contracts.
- Support documentation of the purchasing and/or bidding process utilized to contract services in their financial records, including support documentation justifying a single/sole source bid, if applicable.
The grantee must not contract with vendors who are suspended or debarred in MN: Suspended/Debarred Vendor Information
If specific contractors are named in your application, it is expected that you have followed these requirements prior to completing your application.
All grant-funded services and/or materials must follow the required bidding process as outlined on pages 8-9 in the RFP. If you specify a contractor in your proposal, it is expected that you have followed the bidding requirements prior to submitting your application.
