Public Contracting Institute Blog
COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS HAS JURISDICTION OVER REMOVAL FROM QUALIFIED PARTS LIST
Reversing a Court of Federal Claims ruling, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“CAFC”) recently held that a bidder that had been removed from a Qualified Parts List (“QPL”), and thereby barred from responding to solicitations subject that QPL, could...
“PERVASIVE ERRORS” IN SOURCE SELECTION
It is rare when the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) says that agency actions in its source selection for two different contractors showed “pervasive errors in the conduct of the competition and evaluation of proposals.” But that’s exactly what the GAO said...
SUM CERTAIN: CAN YOU CHOOSE BETWEEN TWO DIFFERENT AMOUNTS?
A claim for money requires “a written demand or written assertion … seeking, as a matter of right, the payment of money in a sum certain…” FAR 2.101. The Boards lack jurisdiction (which will result in dismissal of an appeal) if the claim seeks “approximately...
Did you know? FUN with the FAR Session 3
Did you Know? By: Lou Chiarella Government contracting can't be competitive or transparent unless contractors knows about it. FAR part 5, Publicizing, provides the rules on what and how things are publicized--and it's all in one place (beta.sam.gov). While the...
GAO SUSTAIN RATE AND EFFECTIVENESS RATE CONTINUE AT RELATIVELY STABLE RATES IN FISCAL 2020
By Richard D. Lieberman, Consultant The Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) released its annual bid protest report to the Congress for fiscal year 2020 on December 23, 2020 (B-158766). The GAO actually received 2,149 protests in fiscal year (“FY”) 2020 but...
Indefinite Quantity Contracts Are Contracts but Blanket Purchase Agreements are Not
In two recent decisions, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“CAFC”) have clearly stated that indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (“IDIQ”) contracts are contracts, but Blanket Purchase Agreements...
Report of the Armed Service Board of Contract Appeals for 2020
On October 27, 2020, the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“ASBCA” or “Board”) released its report on transactions and proceedings for fiscal year (“FY”) 2020. The report is interesting for its discussion, rather than the actual the case count. A total of 497...
Informal Agency Protests: A Reminder
Formal agency protests must be submitted in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) 33.103, which sets out specific rules, procedures and requirements. There is a simpler way to protest, the “informal agency protest,” which is governed by the rules...
Color Coded Training Chart Inadequate in Protest
This blog has frequently discussed poorly or inadequately written proposals which have caused agencies to deem them inadequate and not select the proposal for award. In a recent Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) protest, the protester’s proposal included a...
Typed Name is Acceptable as Signature for Contract Disputes Act
A recent decision of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“Board”) held that as long as a mark (such as a typed signature) purporting to act as a signature may be traced back to the individual making it, it counts as a signature for the purposes of the...
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