Matter of Wyle Laboratories, Inc. Agency: Department of the Navy Disposition: Dismissed Keywords: jurisdiction Decided: December 5, 2016 General Counsel P.C. Highlight: The jurisdiction of the General Accounting Office (GAO) to consider protests of task and delivery orders awarded by civilian agencies expired on September 31, 2016. General Facts Wyle Laboratories, Inc. protests the
Matter of Vectrus Systems Corporation
Matter of Vectrus Systems Corporation Agency: Department of the Army Disposition: Protest Denied Decided: December 21, 2016 General Counsel P.C. Highlight: The burden of compliance is upon the offerors; the evaluation of prior joint venture is unnecessary where proposed venture does not include prior venture partner, where cost realism is well documented, follow-up questions
Matter of Walker Development Trading Group
Matter of Walker Development & Trading Group Agency: Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Disposition: Protest Sustained Decided: January 12, 2017 General Counsel P.C. Highlight: Agencies must provide a reasonable basis for cancelling a solicitation. Agencies must also provide a reasonable basis for extending the period of performance on a contract. Consequently, failure to provide a reasonable basis leads
Matter of Phoenix Environmental Design, Inc
Matter of Phoenix Environmental Design, Inc. Agency: Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Disposition: Sustained Keywords: unduly restrictive competition Decided: October 14, 2016 General Counsel P.C. Highlight: Government Agencies cannot exclude products from a list of agency-approved products without a reasonable basis. Summary of Facts Phoenix Environmental Design, Inc. (“Phoenix”), a service
Matter of Express Medical Transporters Inc.
Matter of Express Medical Transporters, Inc. (April 20, 2016) Agency: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Disposition: Denied in part and dismissed in part General Counsel P.C. Highlight: Protestors bear the burden of demonstrating, affirmatively, that the awardee’s proposal does not comply with the terms of the RFP. Summary of Facts On July 21, 2015,
Matter of Engility Corporation, B-413202; B-413202.2
Matter of Engility Corporation, B-413202; B-413202.2 Agency: Department of the Army Disposition: Sustained Keywords: Non-responsible Decided: September 2, 2016 General Counsel P.C. Highlight: The distinction between matters that are required to be “technically acceptable” and matters that establish “responsibility” dictate whether a proposal can be supplemented with additional, clarifying information. General Facts Engility Corporation was
Rotech Healthcare, Inc.
Bid Protest Weekly Rotech Healthcare, Inc. August 17, 2016 Written by Sharon O. Steele, Chair of Government Contracts Practice Group Past performance and unequal discussions Link: GAO Bid Protest – Rotech Protester: Rotech Healthcare, Inc. Agency: Department of Veteran Affairs Disposition: Protest Sustained. Case Summary Rotech Healthcare, Inc. (Rotech), of Orlando, Florida, the incumbent contractor,
Proposed changes to the rules that govern bid protests.
On April 15, 2016, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a proposed rule in the Federal Register that would amend its current bid protest Regulations, codified at 4 C.F.R. Part 21. On April 15, 2016, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) published proposed changes to the rules that govern bid protests. See 81 Fed. Reg. 22197.
How to Protest without Antagonizing
Bid Protests – Protesting An Award Decision without Antagonizing Your Government Customer General Counsel, P.C. Contractors often worry whether a bid protest will antagonize the Government Customer and hurt the client’s chances for other Federal Government Contracts. The answer is always: it depends. It depends on the individual Contracting Officer or Contracting Officer’s representative and
CROWLEY LOGISTICS, INC.; B-412628; B-412628; B-4122628.4
Written by Sharon O. Steele, Chair of the Government Contracts Practice Group Link: GAO Decision Protestor: Crowley Logistics, Inc. Agency: Department of Defense, U.S. Transportation Command Disposition: Protest Sustained in part; Denied in part GAO Digest: Where the agency did not convey its concern regarding what was evaluated as a significant performance risk, thus denying
M7 AEROSPACE LLC, B-411986; B-411986.2
Written by Sharon O. Steele, Chair of the Government Contracts Practice Group Basis of Protest more likely to be sustained– Misevaluation of proposals and unreasonable source selection decisions. Link: GAO Decision Protestor: M7 Aerospace LLC Agency: U.S. Department of the Navy Disposition: Protest Sustained. Bid protest activity at the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) has
Rely on the Rules of the Forum
Written by Marci Love Thomas, a Senior Counsel in the Government Contracts Practice Football has quarters, baseball has innings, and professional soccer has halves. All are much loved sports, arguably with some similarities, but each with its own set of timing rules. Similarly, in government contracting, there are multiple forums in which a contractor
Late is Late–Especially in Government Contracting
General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., the Bid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community to stay on top of the latest developments involving bid protests by providing summaries of recent bid protest
Akira Technologies, Inc., B-410898, March 10, 2015
Home | About the Firm | Practice Areas | Resources | Contact General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., theBid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community
C2G Ltd. Company, B-411131, May 12, 2015
Home | About the Firm | Practice Areas | Resources | Contact General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., theBid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community
In and Out Valet Company, B-411019; April 15, 2015
Home | About the Firm | Practice Areas | Resources | Contact General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., the Bid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community
SBSI, Inc., B-410923, March 20, 2015
General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., the Bid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community to stay on top of the latest developments involving bid protests by providing summaries of recent bid protest
General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly.
General Counsel, P.C.’s Government Contracts Practice Group is pleased to provide you with the Bid Protest Weekly. Researched, written and distributed by the attorneys of General Counsel, P.C., the Bid Protest Weekly allows the Government Contract community to stay on top of the latest developments involving bid protests by providing summaries of recent bid protest
Rocky Galloway interview with Federal News Radio about Teaming Agreements
Rocky Galloway interview with Federal News Radio about Teaming Agreements On Thursday, April 9, 2015, Rocky Galloway, Senior Counsel with General Counsel, P.C.’s GovCon Legal Practice Group, spoke with Francis Rose on Federal News Radio about Teaming Agreements, Litigation, and Best Practices for Government Contractors. Click “Download“ to listen to the interview here: http://media.dev-cms.com/wtop/37/3740/374030.mp3
CFS-KBR Marianas Support Services, LLC; Fluor Federal Solutions LLC January 2, 2015
Link: GAO Opinion Agency: Department of the Navy Disposition: Fluor’s protest sustained; CFS’s protest dismissed. Keywords: Meaningful Cost Realism Evaluation; Misleading Discussions General Counsel P.C. Highlight: An agency may not mechanically apply its own estimates for labor or costs without considering the offeror’s unique technical approach. When an agency has discussions with an offeror, those
ERIMAX, Inc., B-410682, January 22, 2015
Link: GAO Opinion Agency: Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Disposition: Protest denied. Keywords: Material Misrepresentation; Price Realism Analysis General Counsel P.C. Highlight: The protester alleges that the awardee made a material misrepresentation in its proposal by including the name of a key subcontractor without the subcontractor’s consent and with whom protester had
WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT CAN YOU DO FOR ME?
*Editor’s Note: Because of Rocky Galloway’s unique experience as a GovCon attorney and Sales Executive and Program Manager for Hewlett Packard Corporation, from time-to-time in this forum we will not only share areas of the law that are of interest to clients, but also highlight business practices that have proven to be successful to our
Michael Daniels Joins General Counsel, P.C. as GovCon Consultant
Michael Daniels Joins General Counsel, P.C. as GovCon Consultant General Counsel, P.C. is pleased to announce the addition of: Michael Daniels to its Government Contracts Law Practice Group Michael Daniels spent his early career as a software engineer in the intelligence community. Following his government service, Mr. Daniels founded Incisive Technology, Inc., which provides
New Year’s Resolutions for Government Contractors – BID PROTEST WEEKLY
The start of a new year is always exciting and re-invigorating. It is a great time to look forward and it is also a great time to reflect on the year just past. Here are some steps government contractors can take to prepare themselves for a prosperous new year. Take advantage of 20/20 hindsight.
BID PROTEST WEEKLY: To reimburse? or NOT to reimburse? (That’s the Protest)
In this week’s article, we discuss a recent GAO decision which highlights; ….taking corrective action (meritorious or not) before the deadline for submitting the agency report, DHS avoided having to expend significant resources in preparing the report and was successful in getting the initial protest dismissed. Click here to view the article on bidprotestweekly.com. The
Can You File a Protest and Maintain a Good Relationship with Your Government Customer?
by Rocky Galloway Bid protests provide a remedy under federal government contracting procedures for aggrieved contractors to challenge the award or prospective award of a contract for goods and services, or to challenge the terms of a solicitation. When deciding on whether to file a bid protest, contractors often have to consider two factors: Are
In Matter of AeroSage LLC, AeroSage, LLC “AeroSage” protested the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Prisons
In Matter of AeroSage LLC, AeroSage, LLC “AeroSage” protested the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Prisons (“DOJ”) award to another bidder, under a request for quotations (RFQ) for next day delivery of 6,000 gallons of unleaded fuel for the Federal Prison in Florida. Protester argued that it was improperly denied the award. The protest was
It Is All in the Details: Offeror’s Proposal Must Exactly Follow the Requirements in the RFP
In the matter of Veteran Technologists Corporation, Vet Tech argued that it was improperly excluded from consideration under the Department of Veteran Affairs request for proposals (RFP) for general management and business support services. Vet Tech was excluded from consideration because it failed to sign and return all the amendments listed in the solicitation requirements.
When Does a GAO’s Communication with One Offeror Rise to the Level of “Unequal Discussion”?
Marathon Medical Corporation Sometimes the GAO will sustain a protest where it is found that the agency improperly held discussions with one offeror and not the other. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) §15.306 describes a range of exchanges that may take place between an agency and an offeror during negotiated procurements. But, it is important to
When is a Protester Entitled to Costs of Filing and Pursuing a Protest?
Wilson 5 Service Company, Inc. B-40-9402.2 June 9, 2014 Often, a procuring agency may take corrective action in response to a protest. When such action is taken, the GAO may recommend reimbursing the protestor its costs where, based on the circumstances of the case, it is determined that the agency unduly delayed taking corrective action
Agencies Must Provide an Accurate Estimate of Requirements in a Solicitation
Bid Protest Weekly Newsletter by Bryan R. King, Attorney, General Counsel PC Date: Thursday, May 29, 2014, 9:45pm EST System Studies & Simulation, Inc., B-409375.2, B-409375.3, May 12, 2014 Deciding on the prices to offer in response to a solicitation for a federal government contract is not exactly an easy process. It requires a multitude
Low Balling the Government: Not Always a Win
It’s no secret that budgets are tight in the recovering economy. With the prospect of reduced spending growth from sequestration, nearly every government agency has had to tighten its purse strings and prioritize expenditures. For contractors already operating on razor thin profit margins, this harsh environment has directly affected the quantity and type of contracts
Counting Independent Contractors As Employees Can Lead to Rejection of a Proposal
Bid Protest Weekly Newsletter by Bryan R. King, Attorney, General Counsel PC Date: Wednesday, May 16, 2014, 11:22am EST MindPoint Group, LLC, B-409562, May 8, 2014 A common issue that faces many employers is the question of whether an individual working for them should be classified as an employee or an independent contractor. This issue typically arises
Bid Protest Weekly: Bad Idea to Assume Agency Will Know What Proposal Was Supposed to Say
In this week’s article, we discuss a recent GAO decision which highlights the importance of offerors submitting proposals that clearly articulate what is being offered. Click here to view the article on bidprotestweekly.com. The Bid Protest Weekly is an online journal created and maintained by our Government Contracts Practice Group. This and similar articles analyzing
Bad Idea to Assume Agency Will Know What Proposal Was Supposed to Say
Bid Protest Weekly Newsletter by Bryan R. King, Attorney, General Counsel PC Date: Tuesday, May 6, 2014, 6:29pm EST Watts-Obayashi, Joint Venture; Black Construction Corp., B-409391, et al., April 4, 2014 There’s an old saying about what happens when you assume something, but this is a family article series, so I’ll let you Google that one on