Category Archives: GAO Bid Protests

GAO bid protest decisions, commentary on GAO bid protest regulations, and related topics.

GAO Checks the Math: An Agency’s Failure to Document OCI and Best-Value Decision Results in Sustained Protest

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In the procurement process, agencies are afforded a significant amount of discretion when selecting an awardee. When an agency’s decision is protested, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) focuses primarily on the reasonableness of the agency’s conclusions. But when an agency fails to show its rationale behind a decision, GAO is unable to conclude that the agency’s decision was reasonable.

In a recent GAO decision, Castro & Company, B-423689 (Comp. Gen. Nov. 13, 2025), GAO sustained a protest on three grounds, all of which involved an agency’s lack of documentation.  

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Wrong Place: GAO Weighs in on 8(a) Program GSA Schedule Eligibility under MAS 8(a) Pool and Finds that SBA Eligibility Finding had to be Challenged at SBA

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The GSA instituted a program that would allow 8(a) Program participants to enter into an 8(a) pool for GSA schedules (AKA, GSA Multiple Award Schedule) called the MAS 8(a) Pool. This program would allow 8(a) GSA schedule holders to maintain their 8(a) eligibility for a limited time even after they had graduated from the 8(a) Program. GSA described it this way in 2023:

“MAS 8(a) pool contractors will be eligible for sole source awards for as long as they remain active in the 8(a) Program, and continue to qualify as small for the size standard corresponding to the NAICS code assigned to the sole source order, at the time of award. 8(a) pool contractors will continue to remain eligible for competitive set aside awards for up to five (5) years from the date of award, or until rerepresentation in accordance with FAR 19.301-2(b) (whichever is first), even after the contractor has exited the 8(a) Program.”

In this case, the agency requested a check on 8(a) eligibility, despite the existence of the MAS 8(a) Pool, and GAO was asked to decide if an agency had the discretion to check 8(a) eligibility, even if regulations did not require it.

As another point, The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) both provide oversight for federal procurements but over different areas. Generally, GAO reviews protests of agency compliance with federal procurement regulations and statutes and solicitation criteria, and SBA hears protests regarding the size and status of federal contractors for set-aside procurements. This can create, however, some confusion where their activities overlap. This is something that we have, over the years, addressed in other blog posts. Today, we look at a GAO protest where GAO and SBA crossed paths again and this MAS 8(a) Pool issue arose.

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2025 GAO Bid Protest Report: Numbers Down, Effectiveness Still Even Odds–COFC Shows Increase in Bid Protests

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In just a few days the ball will drop on 2025 and we will officially usher in the new year. It’s always a good time for reflecting on the past year and what lies ahead for the new year. And that same sort of review is important when thinking about federal contract bid protests. With that in mind, we are going to take a look at the GAO’s Bid Protest Annual Report. This report is GAO’s summary of bid protests for the previous fiscal year. It contains some important insights for how GAO bid protest numbers have changed from prior years. But as our readers know, many bid protests are filed at the Court of Federal Claims, so this is only one part of the overall bid protest picture.

Here are some key points from this year:

  • The key effectiveness metric, showing numbers of sustains and corrective actions at GAO, was similar to prior years, and exactly the same as 2024, at 52% for the 2025 fiscal year.
  • Total bid protest numbers were down for the second year in a row, coming in at 1688 new cases filed (a 6% decrease from the prior fiscal year).

Below, we dive into the GAO numbers while comparing to the data we have on COFC protests.

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GAO to Federal Agency: You Must Show Your Work When it Comes to Evaluation Documentation

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The gears of protest resolution at the General Accountability Office have ground to a halt due to the government shutdown but not so long ago, those protest gears were turning. And during that time, GAO sustained the protest of Island Peer Review Organization, Inc., d/b/a IPRO, B-417298.2, 2025 CPD ¶ 218 (Sept. 2025) due to an agency’s insufficient documentation of an evaluation process. What makes this one especially interesting is that getting a sustain on a protest based on inadequate documentation is somewhat rare. When it comes to inadequate documentation, it is more likely an agency takes corrective action, which shields the agency from having to share (under a protective order) source selection information. Or in many cases, if the protest makes it all the way to the comments portion of the protest, GAO finds that an agency did provide sufficient documentation. Read on to learn what it took for this protester to succeed on the inadequate documentation claim.

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GAO: SDVOSB Eligibility Required at Time of the Award (Not just Offer) for VA Procurements

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Many Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB) operate under the assumption that SDVOSB certification is only required at the time of initial offer for SDVOSB set aside contracts. But as one company recently learned the hard way, SDVOSB eligibility for VA procurements must be maintained at both the time of offer and award.

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A Refresher on How the Small Business Rule of Two Generally Works

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We have talked a good deal about the Small Business Rule of Two (not to be confused with the separate VA rule of two for veteran-owned businesses) over the years. The (very) general gist of the rule is this: If the procurement is above the simplified acquisition threshold, the agency must set it aside for small businesses if two or more small businesses can perform the work at fair prices. If the agency has a reasonable expectation that two or more SDVOSB/VOSBs, EDWOSBs/WOSBs, 8(a) participants, or HUBZone participants can perform work under a procurement, the agency must consider setting aside the procurement for that particular category (i.e., if it believes two or more 8(a) participants can perform the work, it can set aside the procurement for 8(a) participants). However, it appears there remains a good deal of confusion about what the Rule of Two requires, as opposed to what it simply permits. In a recent GAO protest, a contractor learned this the hard way, and today, we’ll explore that decision.

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Govology Webinar: Avoiding Common Bid Protest Mistakes, September 11, 2025

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Bid protests are an unavoidable part of federal contracting—and they seem to be happening more often as competition grows. What many contractors don’t realize is that the outcome of a protest is often determined before it’s even filed. Understanding the rules, timelines, and procedures is critical to protecting your company’s chances.

In this focused course, federal government contracting attorneys John Holtz and Gregory Weber will break down the most common mistakes contractors make during the protest process—and how to avoid them.

Key topics include:

  • The difference between bid protests and size/status protests
  • What pre-bid protests are and why they matter
  • Critical deadlines and how debriefs affect them
  • How to get the most from a debrief
  • Frequent pitfalls that can hurt the protest success

Please join us for this informative Govology webinar by registering here.