Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

GAO says strict bid compliance with Buy American Act exception requirements not necessary

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The GAO recently sustained a protest finding that it was unreasonable for the Department of Energy (DOE) to reject a bid simply because it failed to strictly comply with all of the requirements for an exception to the BAA.

In Addison Constr. Co., B-416525, Addison Construction Company submitted a bid to construct a capacitor bank for DOE in Arizona. Addison’s bid informed DOE that a portion of the construction materials used would be foreign, not domestic. Addison’s bid requested an exception to the BAA pursuant to FAR clause 52.225-9, available when the cost of domestic construction material is “unreasonable” (i.e., it exceeds the cost of foreign material by more than six percent).

Under FAR clause 52.225-9, a contractor seeking an exception to the BAA construction materials requirement on the basis of unreasonable cost must include the following with its bid: price, quantity, unit of measure, and a description of the foreign and domestic materials at issue, along with a detailed justification for the use of foreign construction materials, a “reasonable survey of the market,” and a completed price comparison table in the format provided in FAR clause 52.225-9(d). In addition, the clause requires the contractor to provide the time of delivery or availability of the materials, the location of the construction project, specific supplier information (including the name, address, and telephone number for the supplier, and a copy of the supplier’s response or a summary thereof), and “other applicable supporting information.”

Keep reading this article at: https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=5c1472f9-6d91-4b8e-8983-ca1b544bf880 

On-time bid proposals, not a second too late

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Submitting your company’s bid proposal close to the deadline can be risky and have grave consequences.

The government has repeatedly rejected proposals submitted before, but received after, the deadline because of technical glitches.

In submitting a proposal for a government contract, the onus is on the contractor to ensure that its proposal is received prior to the exact time specified for receipt of proposals.  The deadlines set forth in the solicitation are strictly enforced unless: the agency receives the proposal before the contract is awarded, the contracting officer determines that accepting the late proposal would not unduly delay the acquisition, and: (i) the proposal was submitted electronically and received at “the initial point of entry to the Government infrastructure not later not later than 5:00 p.m. one working day prior to the date specified for the receipt of proposals,” (ii) the proposal was “received at the Government installation” and was “under the Government’s control” before the solicitation deadline, or (iii) it was the only proposal that the Government received.  (FAR 15.208(b)(1)(i)-(iii))

This applies not only to Defense and IT contractors, but also to health care companies competing for government contracts. (See FAR 15.208(b)(1): “Any proposal, modification, or revision, that is received at the designated Government office after the exact time specified for receipt of proposals is ‘late” and will not be considered.”; see also FAR 52.212-1(f)(2): “offer, modification, revision, or withdrawal of an offer received at the Government’s office designated in the solicitation after the exact time specified for receipt of offers is ‘late’ and will not be considered.” )

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=598620

When submitting a proposal, late is late — now, even early may be late

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GAO-GovernmentAccountabilityOffice-SealOfferors must overcome numerous hurdles in preparing and submitting proposals on a timely basis. A recent decision by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has added yet another, and unexpected, obstacle – offerors now must be aware of and plan for the kidnapping of an otherwise timely proposal by an agency’s spam filter.

It is a well-established principle that offers submitted after the submission deadline will not be considered for award, unless the circumstances specified in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) permitting acceptance of a late offer are met. The FAR is clear that the obligation is on the offeror to submit the proposal on time:

“Offerors are responsible for submitting offers, and any modifications, revisions, or withdrawals, so as to reach the Government office designated in the solicitation by the time specified in the solicitation.” FAR 52.212-1.

Applying this principle in a recent decision, Advanced Decisions Vectors, Inc., B-412307, Jan. 11, 2016, the GAO ruled that a contractor failed to timely submit its quote when the contractor’s email containing the quote was blocked by the agency’s spam filter from reaching the individual designated to receive quotes by the time specified in the solicitation. The decision serves as a warning to contractors that even an early submission of an offer may be ensnared by the tentacles of a spam filter and deemed late if it does not reach the intended recipient by the deadline as a result.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.wileyrein.com/newsroom-newsletters-item-When-Submitting-a-Proposal-Late-Is-Late.html

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