Just a few days ago, GAO issued its annual bid protest report for fiscal year 2019. Overall, while the volume of bid protests was down from previous years, the effectiveness rate of bid protests remained steady at close to 50%.
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GAO: Protest Failed to Establish Legal Reason to Sustain
When protesting at GAO, it’s important to explain not only what you believe the agency did wrong, but also the legal significance of that departure.
That’s what Trinity Global Consulting learned recently when GAO dismissed its protest.
Continue readingGAO: We’re Not Wrong, But Our Original Recommendation Was Not Right
Whenever GAO issues a bid protest decision, some parties are happier than others. In limited circumstances, however, an unhappy party may petition GAO to reconsider its decision if the outcome was based on errors of either fact or law. It is extremely rare for GAO to reverse itself during a reconsideration request.
That may explain why in a recent reconsideration decision, GAO maintains that its decision was correct based on the facts presented to it, but GAO nevertheless modified its recommendations substantially in the face of new facts.
Continue readingPlan Ahead to Prevent Proposal Submission Issues, Says GAO
When submitting bids, contractors should always double check their proposal submission methods, whether it be a designated portal, email, or any other method, and do so well before the deadline.
GAO recently had the opportunity to examine proposal submission issues related to a US Navy procurement, and did not show sympathy for the contractor who experienced proposal submission issues right at the deadline.
Continue readingGAO Clarifies Timeliness Rules for Email Notice of Agency-Level Protest
You can access the internet from your couch, the skies above, and even from space. This means that you can also access your emails from each of these locations. I am sure that some of you have received emails from GAO, an agency, or a contracting officer on your phone in the last month. You may even be reading this blog while on the go. In our ever-connected world, is it possible to establish “regular business hours” and truly disconnect when it comes to emails?
As it turns out, GAO says you can.
Continue readingOne Protest Spoils the Bunch
GAO recently dismissed several bid protests to an $82 billion procurement because of the actions of a company that had already lost its protest.
In AECOM Management Services, four different companies protested the U.S. Army’s logistics civil augmentation program procurement for various “Setting the Theater” services for the Army’s Northern Command, Southern Command, African Command, European Command, Central Command, Pacific Command, and Afghanistan.
Continue readingGAO Examines Requirements for Sole-Source Contracts
Sole-source awards can make many contractors feel left out of the loop of the procurement process. GAO in the past has upheld that sole-source contracts are allowable so long as the agency has a reasonable justification for the sole-source contract.
Recently GAO re-examined what constitutes a reasonable “justification and award” for a sole-source contract.
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