Tag Archives: GAO bid protests

GAO Bid Protests: “Sustains” Lower But “Effectiveness” Steady

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The GAO sustained only 13% of bid protests in Fiscal Year 2014, down from 17% in the previous fiscal year.

But although some commentators might interpret the numbers as a sign that more non-meritorious protests were filed, the “effectiveness rate” (which measures sustain decisions plus voluntary agency corrective actions) remained steady at 43%.  In other words, agencies are taking corrective action more frequently in response to GAO bid protests–but when the agency doesn’t take corrective action, the protester’s odds of success may be long.

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GAO Bid Protests: Gold Coast Presentation Now Available

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GAO bid protests were the focus of my presentation at this year’s Navy Gold Coast conference in San Diego.  If you weren’t able to make it to Gold Coast in August, I have good news: the conference organizers have made all of this year’s presentations available online, free of charge.

My GAO bid protest presentation covers the GAO’s jurisdiction, who can file a protest, the timeliness rules, how the protest process works, protest outcomes, success rates, and more.  To view my Gold Coast presentation on GAO bid protests, just follow this link.  And don’t forget to check out the other great presentations from this year’s Gold Coast conference, too.

GAO Task Order Protests: Protester’s Price Does Not Establish Jurisdiction

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The GAO’s jurisdiction over task order protests turns on whether the award price of the task order exceeds $10 million–not whether the protester’s proposed price exceeds $10 million.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that it lacked jurisdiction over a task order protest because the award price was under $10 million, even though the protester had proposed a price of approximately $11.4 million.

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Contractor Proposes Unavailable Key Employee, GAO Sustains Protest

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A contractor’s proposal to use an unavailable employee to fill a key personnel position caused the GAO to sustain a competitor’s protest.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO concluded that a offeror failed to satisfy a material solicitation requirement concerning key personnel where the employee included in the proposal left the offeror’s employment–and the agency knew that the employee was not available to perform the contract.

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GAO: Pre-Debriefing Bid Protest Was Premature

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A GAO bid protest was dismissed as premature because the protest was filed before a statutorily-required debriefing was held.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO determined that the protest was premature even though the required debriefing had been delayed pending the resolution of a SBA size protest.

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GAO: Agency Reasonably Considered Subcontractor’s Experience

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Absent an express prohibition in the solicitation, the experience of a proposed subcontractor may be considered by an agency in determining whether an offeror meets the solicitation’s experience requirements.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO confirmed that the experience of a proposed subcontractor could be considered in an agency’s evaluation because the solicitation did not prohibit the agency from considering the subcontractor’s experience.

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GAO: Lack of Original Bid Guarantee Rendered Bid Nonresponsive

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When an agency’s invitation for bids requires the submission of a bid guarantee, a bidder’s failure to include the original bid guarantee at bid opening may render the bid nonresponsive.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that a procuring agency properly rejected a bid because the bidder provided only a copy of the required bid guarantee with the bid.

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