Bid Protests

How to Reduce Costs to Protesters and Streamline the Bid Protest Process Through Agency Level Protests

Most bid protests are filed with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) or brought before the Court of Federal Claims. However, there’s a third, often over-looked, forum to bring a bid protest – before the procuring agency itself. Agency-level protests were officially authorized by President Clinton in 1995 and are governed by Section 33.103 of...
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OHA Decision Illustrates the Importance of Reviewing Small Business Set-Aside Joint Venture Agreements Before Each New Opportunity

In CVE Protest of KTS Solutions Inc. (“KTS”), No. CVE-146-P, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals reminded everyone why it is vital to amend or supplement their joint venture agreement whenever your joint venture seeks a new bidding opportunity. KTS was connected to a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs solicitation for non-emergency, special...
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DoD to Reevaluate JEDI Contract after Court of Federal Claims Blocks Performance

Posted on March 17, 2020
On March 12, the US Department of Defense indicated in a court filing that it wished to re-evaluate its decision to award a multibillion-dollar cloud contract to Microsoft. That decision, a response to numerous “technical challenges presented by AWS,” signals a possible impending victory for Amazon in its bid protest. In February, a federal...
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Bid Protest Challenging Agency’s Evaluation of Protestor’s Criteria Is Denied When Evaluations Are Reasonable and Consistent with the Solicitation

On February 24, 2020, the GAO denied the bid protest of 22nd Century Technologies, Inc., which challenged the issuance of a task order to KCI-Acuity, LLC by the Department of State (DOS) on the grounds that DOS unreasonably evaluated the vendors’ quotations under the management and technical, price, and similar experience and past performance...
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DoD, GSA, and NASA to Issue Final Rule Conforming FAR to 2013 SBA Rule Regarding Multiple-Award Contracts and Small Businesses

DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule, effective March 30, 2020, that will amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement regulatory changes made by the Small Business Administration (SBA). That SBA rule, made pursuant to section 1331 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, provides for partial set-asides and reserves,...
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SBA’s Office of Hearings And Appeals (OHA) Confirms: Affiliation Rules Are Not A Basis To Protest SDVOSB Status Notwithstanding New SBA Rules

On November 3, 2018, Alpha4 Solutions LLC (Protester) protested the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) status of Veterans Medical Transcription Services, Inc. (VMTS) in connection with a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Request for Quotations. CVE Protest of Alpha4 Solutions LLC d/b/a Alpha Transcription, SBA No. CVE-103-P (2019). Protester contended that VMTS is...
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