Tag Archives: technically unacceptable

GAO Finds Agency’s Technical Evaluation Inadequate, but Refuses to Invalidate Award

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Leasing office space in a flood plain seems like a bad idea. Most people want an office with a view, but not a view of their office desk floating down a first-floor hallway. In a recent protest decision, GAO said that the agency failed to adequately document its evaluation, despite its own solicitation requirements.

But even when your protest is sustained, GAO may still recommend the award remain in place. How can that be? Follow along, while I lead you through what you need to know.  

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

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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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Contractor’s Creative Staffing Proposal Leads to Elimination from Competition

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In the competitive federal marketplace, businesses are always looking for ways to make their proposals more competitive. With millions of dollars at stake, it is no surprise that some competitors develop clever approaches to give their proposal a competitive edge.

As one competitor recently discovered, however, there is a point where an offer can get too clever, which may result in proposal elimination. Especially when an agency views the clever approach as violating a solicitation staffing requirement.

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Offeror With “Relatively Weak Proposal” Can File Size Protest, Says SBA OHA

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An offeror with a “relatively weak proposal” can nonetheless file a size protest challenging the small business eligibility of the prospective awardee, provided that the protester was not found technically unacceptable or otherwise incapable of being selected for award.

In a recent size appeal decision, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals held that the mere fact that the protester was evaluated as “less than satisfactory” on four out of five non-price factors did not justify dismissing the protester’s size protest for lack of standing.

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GAO: Key Employee’s Resignation Justified Exclusion From Award

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It’s the day after you submitted an offer for a big government contract, when one of your key personnel walks into your office. “Thanks for everything you’ve done for me,” she says, “but I’ve decided to take an opportunity elsewhere.”

Employee turnover is a part of doing business. But for prospective government contractors, it can be a nightmare. As highlighted in a recent GAO bid protest, a offeror was excluded from the award simply because one of its proposed key personnel resigned after the proposal was submitted.

It’s a harsh result, but it highlights that contractors must not only attract key personnel—they must also retain them.

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GAO: Solicitation Terms Trump Standard Industry Practice

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An offeror’s proposal must conform to all technical requirements of an agency’s solicitation–even if the offeror believes those requirements to differ from standard industry practice.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that an agency appropriately rated an offeror’s proposal as technically unacceptable because the offeror failed to conform to certain material solicitation requirements; the offeror’s insistence that those requirements varied from standard industry practice was irrelevant.

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Agency’s Discussions Only With Awardee Were Improper, Says GAO

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When a procurement agency opens discussions with one offeror, it must open discussions with all offerors within the competitive range.

In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that a procuring agency conducted improper discussions when it limited discussions to only one offeror.

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