RFP On-Call External Investigative Services

Valley Water requires experienced, and qualified consultants to provide impartial, thorough, and objective investigative services related to ethics, equal opportunity, workplace conduct, and alleged violations of applicable laws, policies, rules, and procedures. Services may include fact-finding, policy-compliance assessments, investigative reports, mediation when appropriate, and support for hearings, depositions, or trial, as authorized by Valley Water.

Details
The following qualifications are the minimum required qualifications that a Proposer must meet for a proposal to be considered responsive:

• The Proposer shall have at least five years of experience conducting neutral workplace and employment-related investigations, specific to labor and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), involving allegations of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, abusive conduct, misconduct, policy violations, and other employment-related concerns.

• The Proposer shall demonstrate experience conducting workplace or organizational investigations for public- or private-sector organizations, including organizations with represented employees.

• The Proposer shall demonstrate experience applying relevant federal and California employment laws, including the Fair Employment and Housing Act, Title VII, and applicable anti-retaliation requirements.

• The Proposer shall be able to conduct prompt, impartial, trauma-informed, and well-documented investigations, including witness interviews, credibility assessments, review of electronic and documentary evidence, and preparation of comprehensive written reports.

• The Proposer shall be able to assess allegations under Valley Water policies and applicable legal standards.

• The Proposer shall be able to provide services on an as-needed basis, including responding to urgent matters and maintaining reasonable investigation timelines.

• The Proposer shall be able to maintain confidentiality to the extent permitted by law and comply with applicable records-retention, public-records, and conflict-of-interest requirements.

Notes
Additional RFP Timeline information: Submittals for RFP Questions due by 3 PM on 10/12/26 Valley Water Response to Questions will be posted on 10/16/26 Oral Interviews Tentatively Scheduled for the week of 11/16/26 through 11/18/26 Procurement Portal Support: Issues regarding the SCVWD Procurement Portal, account registration, and/or electronic submittal, should be directed to PlanetBids, in a timely manner that does not impact your proposal submittal. Contact the PlanetBids Vendor Line Support at: SCVWD Procurement Portal: https://vendors.planetbids.com/portal/48397/portal-home Phone: (818) 992-1771 Business Hours: 5:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. / M – F (PST)

Additional Details
Department: Consultant Contracts Services Unit #820
Q&A Deadline: October 12, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Required Submittals: Cost File, Response File, Client References - 1 of 3 (Must upload in MSWord, 1 File Per Reference)(required), Client References - 2 of 3 (Must upload in MSWord, 1 File Per Reference)(required), Client References - 3 of 3 (Must upload in MSWord, 1 File Per Reference)(required), Key Personnel & Subconsultant (Must upload in MSWord, Do not include any add'l info)(required), Non-Collusion Declaration (required), Exceptions List (required), Conflict of Interest Disclosure (required), W-9 Certification (required), RFP Document Submittal Checklist (required), Cost Proposal (required), Resumes (required), Local Business Enterprise Consideration (required)