In a best value tradeoff evaluation, a procuring agency must consider the benefits of a lower-cost proposal, even if that proposal’s cost is not as close to the agency’s internal cost estimate as a higher-priced proposal.
As demonstrated by a recent GAO bid protest decision, it is improper in a tradeoff analysis for an agency to refuse to consider the relative benefits of paying a lower cost for a lower-rated proposal.
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal filed by Kingdomware Technologies, Inc.
News outlets are reporting that the Supreme Court will take on the question of whether the VA’s “Veterans First” rules permit the VA to circumvent SDVOSBs by using the Federal Supply Schedule. The case is an appeal from a 2014 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, in which a three-judge panel ruled 2-1 in favor of the VA.
The Supreme Court grants only a small fraction of the petitions for certiorari filed with it, so just getting in the courthouse door is a victory of sorts for Kingdomware.
Much more on the pending Supreme Court case as I get the details.
With the summer solstice this weekend we are looking forward to the longest day of the year and enjoying the outdoors. Meanwhile, new developments continue in the world of federal government contracting.
Some articles you may find of interest below include comments on a long awaited reverse auction memo, two stories about deception, and the SBA receiving a nice boost from government funding.
To determine whether ostensible subcontractor affiliation exists between a prime contractor and its subcontractor, the SBA must use the prime contractor’s final proposal revision.
In a recent size appeal decision, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals overturned an SBA Area Office affiliation determination that did not contemplate an offeror’s final proposal.
A company’s failure to certify itself as a small business on its SAM profile resulted in the elimination of the company from a set-aside competition.
In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that a procuring agency properly excluded the low bidder from award of a small business set-aside contract because the low bidder’s SAM profile stated that it was not a small business under the solicitation’s NAICS code.
As we head into a summer weekend, it is time for our weekly roundup of government contracting news and commentary. This week brings news on size standards, procurement spending, proposed rules and missing guidelines.
One of the first questions a contractor must ask itself before filing a bid protest with the GAO is whether its protest would be timely filed. But as a recent GAO decision highlighted, the answer to that question might not be so clear.
Contrary to a common misconception, a protest is not always timely if filed within 10 days of a debriefing. As one prospective protester learned, if the debriefing is not “required” under applicable law, a GAO protest filed within 10 days of a debriefing might be untimely.