Decision Released: DOL OSHA Development, Modernization, Enhancement, O&M, and Helpdesk Support Services Protest Dismissal

Digest

Protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of the protester’s quotation and best‑value tradeoff determination in a task order procurement is dismissed where the protester does not allege that the agency’s issuance of the task order increases the scope, period, or maximum value of the underlying contract, and where the value of the issued task order does not exceed the applicable jurisdictional threshold.

Discussion

The agency requests dismissal of the protest because it does not allege that the task order increases the scope, period, or maximum value of the CHESS ITES 3‑S contract, and because it challenges the issuance of a task order valued not in excess of $25 million. Req. for Dismissal at 2‑5. Consequently, the agency contends, our Office lacks jurisdiction to consider the protest pursuant to 10 U.S.C. § 3406(f) and our Bid Protest Regulations, 4 C.F.R. § 21.5(l). Id. We agree with the agency.

Under the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act (FASA) of 1994, as amended, our Office is not authorized to hear a protest “in connection with the issuance or proposed issuance of a task or delivery order except” in certain circumstances. 10 U.S.C. § 3406(f); 41 U.S.C. § 4106(f). That authority allows GAO to hear protests in connection with the issuance or proposed issuance of task orders in two limited scenarios: (1) where the protester asserts that the task order increases the scope, period, or maximum value of the contract under which the order is, or will be, issued; or (2) where the task order is valued in excess of $25 million if the IDIQ contract under which the order is to be issued was awarded pursuant to the authority of title 10 of the United States Code, or in excess of $10 million if the IDIQ contract was awarded pursuant to the authority of title 41. Id.

Here, the protester challenges the evaluation of its quotation and the agency’s resultant best-value determination; it does not allege that the agency’s issuance of the task order increases the scope, period, or maximum value of the CHESS ITES 3‑S contract. Accordingly, for our Office to have jurisdiction over the protest, the task order in question must exceed the applicable jurisdictional threshold. As we previously have noted, for purposes of determining the applicable dollar value threshold for our Office’s jurisdiction to hear protests in connection with the issuance or proposed issuance of a task or delivery order, we look to …

Decision

Expression Networks, LLC, a small business of Washington, D.C., protests the issuance of task order No. 1605TA-24-F-00016 to Information Gateways, Inc., a small business of Novi, Michigan, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. 1605TA-24-Q-00011, issued by the Department of Labor for development, modernization, enhancement, operations and maintenance, and helpdesk support services for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The protester contends that the agency unreasonably evaluated its quotation and made an unreasonable best-value tradeoff determination.

We dismiss the protest.

Read the decision here.

Related

Contract Award: $17M DOL OSHA IT Services Portfolio DME | OM | Helpdesk

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