Exceeding Solicitation’s Page Limit Renders Offer Technically Unacceptable, Even if It’s the Cover Page

In a recent decision, the GAO laid down a stark reminder of its unwavering demand that offers be meticulously compliant with the instructions of a solicitation.  In the decision, GAO denied a protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of a proposal as technically unacceptable where certain required proposal information was in pages that exceeded the solicitation’s page limits. The agency’s decision to ignore that information was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation’s terms.

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It’s Not Up to Agency to Clarify Layout and Printing Errors in Proposals, Says GAO

It is well understood that offerors must submit proposals that meet the procuring agency’s requirements, including any page limitations set by the solicitation. But what if an offeror’s proposal contains an obvious layout and printing error that inadvertently puts required information outside the established page limits? Does the agency have a duty to seek clarifications or allow corrections?

GAO says no.

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Offeror Attempts To “Evade” RFQ Page Limit; GAO Sustains Protest

An offeror’s apparent attempt to engage in a little proposal gamesmanship has resulted in a sustained GAO bid protest.

In a recent case, an offeror attempted to evade a solicitation requirement that proposals be no more than 10 single-spaced pages, by cramming its proposal into less than single-spacing.  The GAO wasn’t having it, sustaining a competitor’s protest and holding that the “spacing gamesmanship” had given the offeror an unfair advantage.

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