Become a SEED vendor
We’re looking for vendors who meet both of the following requirements:
- Certification: The California Department of General Services (DGS) Office of Small Business and DVBE Certification must certify the vendor as a "Small Business or Microbusiness." This is the only certification that we accept and it must be in place by the bid opening date (for an IFB/BR, or RFQ/E-Bid) or proposal due date (for RFPs) to qualify for the SEED Program.
- Ratepayer qualification: The vendor must qualify as a SMUD ratepayer for the preceding 6 months prior to the bid or proposal due date. The physical address of the business (as recorded by the Department of General Services in its Small Business Certification) must be located in SMUD service territory. If the address shown on the Small Business Certificate is a post office box, a mailbox at a private mailbox business, or a leased facility, the vendor must be able to demonstrate that the vendor is also a SMUD ratepayer.
Qualified SEED contractors who bid on open solicitations may receive up to a 5% price advantage (maximum $250,000*). Non-SEED prime contractors also can qualify for a price advantage by utilizing SEED subcontractors.
*Based on the lowest responsible bid received.
Qualified SEED prime contractors who bid on open requests for proposal (RFP) solicitations may receive up to 10 evaluation points. Non-SEED prime contractors can also qualify for this a point advantage by utilizing SEED subcontractors.
SMUD may offer bidding and contracting opportunities (up to $82,000) or multi-year service agreements (not to exceed $246,000) exclusively to SEED participants.