May 21, 2025
On behalf of Youth Outreach Services, Inc. (“YOS”) and Youth Outreach Properties, Inc., Illinois 501(c)(3) Not-For-Profits, this document represents a request for proposal for single audit and tax services for the year ending June 30, 2025
Youth Outreach Services (YOS) is a Chicago-based non-profit organization that partners with at-risk youth and their families to help them discover what they are capable of achieving. We inspire positive development through a variety of child welfare, counseling, juvenile justice, and prevention services to help overcome challenges such as abuse, substance use, and homelessness. Since 1959, YOS has worked with more than 300,000 youth and families, providing community-based support to empower all youth to face life’s challenges with confidence, competence, and dignity. Youth Outreach Properties is the holding entity for the properties and has fewer than fifty transactions per year.
Together, YOS and YOP have an annual budget of $15.6M in revenue for FY25, and YOS employs approximately 100 full-time staff. The organization’s revenue consists of several funding streams, including but not limited to the following government funders:·
- City of Chicago
- Cook County
- Department of Human Services
- Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice
- U.S. Department of Justice
Familiarity with and compliance with these funding bodies are essential to the success of the single audit and annual reporting requirements. In addition to the aforementioned government grants, the organization also has the following revenue streams, including but not limited to:
- U.S. Department of Justice· Medicaid managed care payments (MCO)
- Private Grants
- Foundation Grants
- Public/Private Contributions
- Fee for Service (DCFS)
The organization currently outsources some of its Finance, Human Resources, and Payroll departments to third-party professional firms experienced in nonprofit organizations. The organization has adopted and implemented all recent accounting pronouncements, including but not limited to ASU No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842).
YOS leverages the following financial and information systems to manage its operations:
- Accounting Database: Great Plains
- Payroll, Benefits Management, and HRIS: Paylocity, Benefits Advisor
- Accounts Payable: Qport
- Electronic Health Records and Billing: Qualifacts & Credible
Within the accounting database, the organization records expenses by function and activity and tracks them to all applicable government contracts. The organization allocates expenses by time and effort reporting entered daily by staff according to program and grant codes.
YOS is providing audited financial statements and tax returns for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, for your consideration and to assist with the preparation of your proposal. These reports are confidential and may not be distributed to anyone outside of your organization.
Should you need any additional information, please provide your request(s) electronically no later than June 6th, 2025. We also welcome and invite you to schedule one meeting with the organization’s Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer to discuss the RFP, as necessary, by June 20th, 2025.
Your proposal, should you wish to submit it, must include all fees necessary to provide an annual audit and all federal and state annual tax filings. In addition, please separately list all anticipated estimated expenses, including, but not limited to, travel, supplies, and incidentals. We also welcome a proposed engagement that spans more than one year if economies can be realized in exchange for such a service commitment.
In addition to a schedule of fees, please also include the following information in your proposal:
- Evidence of the firm’s qualifications to provide the above services, including evidence of experience with federal and state funding
- The size and organizational structure of the audit firm or the nonprofit audit and tax division
- Names and qualifications of the staff members to be assigned
- A work plan, including timelines and tasks to be carried out by the auditors and YOS
- Three (3) references from comparable audit clients
- A copy of the firm’s most recent peer review report, including any comments that were issued
- An assertion of the auditor’s independence from YOS
- Estimated start and completion of the audit (the organization is typically prepared by early August with its year-end close process and has various government reporting deadlines typically due by December 15th)
- Proof and assertation that the organization is not debarred or suspended from doing business with the United States government (SAM.gov search results)
Proposals will be assessed based on the following guidelines:
- Experience of the firm and the assigned audit members
- Knowledge of applicable federal and state reporting requirements
- Capacity and ability to meet requirements
- Compliance with applicable state and federal laws and guidance
- Cost
Should you wish to submit your proposal, please electronically send it to Jamie Noto, Executive Director, at jamien@yos.org and Yotl Ramirez, Chief Financial Officer, at yotlr@yos.org no later than June 10th, 2025.
Thank you in advance for your time and consideration; I look forward to receiving your proposal.
Sincerely,
- Jamie Noto, Chief Executive Officer, Youth Outreach Services
- Yotl Ramirez, Chief Financial Officer, Youth Outreach Services
- Shanan Egger, Client Director, Quatrro Business Support Services
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