OCA-DGCP-070 Guardianship Direct Services NYC, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th Judicial Districts

EVENT DATE Bid Issue Date Friday, June 26, 2026 Question Due Date Friday, July 17, 2026, at 2:00pm Eastern Bid Submission Deadline Date Friday, August 14, 2026, at 2:00pm Eastern Estimated Contract Start Date October 1, 2026 The UCS Office of Court Administration (“OCA”) Division of Grants, Contracts and Procurement (“DGCP”), is soliciting sealed proposals via this Request for Proposals (“RFP”) to award contracts for guardianship services for indigent IPs. Via this RFP, UCS will establish one or more contracts per “Target Service Area” to assist in closing the gap in the availability of guardians to provide for the personal needs and/or property management needs of indigent IPs who have no other suitable person to serve as guardian. Consistent with the requirements of MHL Article 81, as well as other applicable statutes, court rules, and administrative orders, the Awarded Contractor(s) must provide these direct services in the following geographic locations: 1. the five (5) counties that comprise New York City (Bronx, Kings, New York, Queens, and Richmond); 2. the eight (8) counties that comprise the 7th Judicial District (Cayuga, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, and Yates); 3. the eight (8) counties that comprise the 8th Judicial District (Allegany, Erie, Chautauqua, Niagara, Orleans, Wyoming, Genesee, and Cattaraugus); 4. the two (2) counties that comprise the 10th Judicial District (Nassau and Suffolk); and 5. the five (5) counties that comprise the 9th Judicial District (Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Putnam and Orange). Each of these areas shall be referred to in this Request for Proposals as the “Target Service Areas”. Consistent with the guardian powers granted by the court which are necessary and sufficient to manage the property and financial affairs of the IPs and/or to provide for the personal needs of the IP, awardees are expected to fulfil the standards for appointment under MHL Article 81, including the general duties of the guardian delineated in MHL § 81.20, which are as follows: 1. a guardian shall exercise only those powers that the guardian is authorized to exercise by court order; 2. a guardian shall exercise the utmost care and diligence when acting on behalf of the incapacitated person; 3. a guardian shall exhibit the utmost degree of trust, loyalty and fidelity in relation to the IPs; 4. a guardian shall file an initial and annual reports in accordance with sections 81.30 and 81.31 of MHL Article 81; 5. a guardian shall visit the IPs not less than four times a year or more frequently as specified in the court order; 6. a guardian who is given authority with respect to property management for the IPs shall: (i) afford the IPs the greatest amount of independence and self-determination with respect to property management in light of that person's functional level, understanding and appreciation of his or her functional limitations, and personal wishes, preferences and desires with regard to managing the activities of daily living; (ii) preserve, protect, and account for such property and financial resources faithfully; (iii) determine whether the IPs has executed a will, determine the location of any will, and the appropriate persons to be notified in the event of the death of the IPs and, in the event of the death of the IPs, notify those persons; (iv) use the property and financial resources and income available therefrom to maintain and support the IPs, and to maintain and support those persons dependent upon the IPs; (v) at the termination of the appointment, deliver such property to the person legally entitled to it; (vi) file with the recording officer of the county wherein the IP is in possession of real property, an acknowledged statement to be recorded and indexed under the name of the IPs identifying the real property possessed by the IPs, and the tax map numbers of the property, and stating the date of adjudication of incapacity of the person regarding property management, and the name, address, and telephone number of the guardian and the guardian's surety; and (vii) perform all other duties required by law; and 7. a guardian who is given authority relating to the personal needs of the IPs shall afford the IPs the greatest amount of independence and self-determination with respect to personal needs in light of that person's functional level, understanding and appreciation of that person's functional limitations, and personal wishes, preferences and desires with regard to managing the activities of daily living. Awarded Contractors shall also ensure that an indigent IP’s other needs are met, including safety, adequate food, clothing, shelter, and health care, as well as managing the IP’s property and financial affairs. Programmatic oversight of the contracts awarded pursuant to this RFP will be provided by UCS Office for Justice Initiatives’ Office of Guardianship Matters and Elder Justice. The Awarded Contractor(s) will work closely with OJI staff in the initial implementation year of the program. UCS anticipates making one or more contract awards per Target Service Area to applicants deemed best qualified to deliver high-quality guardianship services throughout the Target Service Areas to indigent IPs upon appointment by a court pursuant to MHL Article 81. In addition, applicants should not only demonstrate the use of creative methods to leverage community resources to the maximum extent feasible to enhance services provided to indigent IPs, but also demonstrate how the applicant will work with community partners that reflect the diversity of the clients to be served. UCS is allocating $7,000,000 in the aggregate annually to provide guardianship services to indigent individuals deemed incapacitated pursuant to MHL Article 81 when no other suitable guardian is available to serve. Allocations in each subsequent year of the contract are subject to available state appropriations, and may be adjusted based on caseload and needs in UCS’s discretion. Funding is intended to support guardianship services throughout New York City, and the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th Judicial Districts. UCS anticipates that each Awarded Contractor (as defined in Article III below) will begin to perform the Project Services (as set forth in Article V below) on or about October 1, 2026. Business enterprises awarded an identical or substantially similar procurement contract within the past five years: Project Guardianship