GAO: Agency Reasonably Required Resumes, Signed Employment Letters
How easy would be for you to obtain resumes and signed letters of intent from your competitor’s employees? If you answered “not very,” you’re not alone. A small business contractor, Maritime Institute...
View ArticleGSA Schedule: “Brand Name Only” Restriction Not Justified
A GSA Schedule solicitation restricted to a particular brand item was improper because the procuring agency failed to properly justify the restriction, according to a recent GAO bid protest decision....
View ArticleGAO Bid Protest Jurisdiction: No Intellectual Property Disputes
The GAO’s bid protest jurisdiction does not extend to complaints that a government agency has violated a company’s intellectual property rights. According to a recent GAO bid protest decision, the GAO...
View ArticleSolicitation Improperly Excluded Affiliates’ Past Performance, Says GAO
According to the GAO, a solicitation was unduly restrictive because it prohibited the consideration of the past performance of an offeror’s affiliates–even when the affiliates would contribute to...
View ArticleGAO: Small Business Set-Aside Did Not Violate Bundling Restrictions
A small business set-aside procurement did not violate the FAR’s restrictions on contract bundling, according to the GAO. In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO pointed out the bundling occurs when...
View ArticleAgencies May Evaluate Proposals During GAO Protests, Says Court
A procuring agency was entitled to evaluate proposals during the course of a pre-award GAO bid protest without violating the automatic stay provision of the Competition in Contracting Act. According to...
View ArticleGAO: No Protests Of “Insufficiently Restrictive” Solicitations
The GAO generally will not consider a protest contending that a solicitation’s specifications should be made more restrictive. In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO declined to consider a...
View ArticleGAO: Agency Could Disclose Incumbent’s Staffing Numbers
In a solicitation seeking the award of a follow-on services contract, a procuring agency could validly disclose the number of incumbent personnel performing a particular function. In a recent bid...
View ArticleAgency’s Discretion Over Solicitation’s Technical Specifications Isn’t Unlimited
A major tenet in government contracting is that agencies enjoy broad discretion in identifying their needs and developing the most appropriate solicitation to satisfy them. Though broad, this...
View ArticleGAO Denies Protest to LPTA Solicitation Ridden with Cost Uncertainty and...
Federal agencies have long been afforded wide discretion in defining solicitation requirements to meet their contracting needs. But are a solicitation’s requirements acceptable even where they’re...
View ArticleProprietary Information Proper Basis for Restricted Solicitation Terms
While the overarching goal of the federal procurement system is to provide as many opportunities for competition as possible, there are those instances where the unique circumstances of a procurement...
View ArticleGAO: Conversion of Sealed Bid to Negotiated Procurement Doesn’t Cure Untimely...
As seasoned government contractors know, an impropriety in a solicitation’s terms must be protested before the deadline to submit an offer. If the protest is submitted after the solicitation’s...
View ArticleIgnorance is Bliss? Not When it Comes to Timely Filing of Protest, Says GAO
Ignorance is bliss, right? Not always. In the world of government contracting, GAO recently dismissed a protest because its initial agency protest was not timely filed, reminding the protester that...
View ArticleSpecial Operations or Paint Ball? Protester Argues Solicitation is Ambiguous
Solicitations are intended to provide contractors with sufficient information about an agency’s needs to compete intelligently for government awards. In a recent procurement for special operations...
View ArticleGAO: Small Business Set-Aside Did Not Violate Bundling Restrictions
A small business set-aside procurement did not violate the FAR’s restrictions on contract bundling, according to the GAO. In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO pointed out the bundling occurs when...
View ArticleAgencies May Evaluate Proposals During GAO Protests, Says Court
A procuring agency was entitled to evaluate proposals during the course of a pre-award GAO bid protest without violating the automatic stay provision of the Competition in Contracting Act. According to...
View ArticleGAO: No Protests Of “Insufficiently Restrictive” Solicitations
The GAO generally will not consider a protest contending that a solicitation’s specifications should be made more restrictive. In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO declined to consider a...
View ArticleGAO: Agency Could Disclose Incumbent’s Staffing Numbers
In a solicitation seeking the award of a follow-on services contract, a procuring agency could validly disclose the number of incumbent personnel performing a particular function. In a recent bid...
View ArticleAgency’s Discretion Over Solicitation’s Technical Specifications Isn’t Unlimited
A major tenet in government contracting is that agencies enjoy broad discretion in identifying their needs and developing the most appropriate solicitation to satisfy them. Though broad, this...
View ArticleGAO Denies Protest to LPTA Solicitation Ridden with Cost Uncertainty and...
Federal agencies have long been afforded wide discretion in defining solicitation requirements to meet their contracting needs. But are a solicitation’s requirements acceptable even where they’re...
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