ASBCA 59797

ARMED SERVICES BOARD OF CONTRACT APPEALS Appeal of-- ) ) Pros Cleaners ) ASBCA No. 59797 ) Under Contract No. FA3300-13-P-0033 ) APPEARANCE FOR THE APPELLANT: Mr. Bruce Webber President/CEO APPEARANCES FOR THE GOVERNMENT: Lt Col Matthew J. Mulbarger, USAF Air Force Chief Trial Attorney William M. Lackermann, Jr., Esq. Alexis J. Bernstein, Esq. Trial Attorneys OPINION BY ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGE WILSON This appeal involves the claim of Pros Cleaners (appellant or Pros) arising out of the Air Force's (government's) termination for convenience of its commercial items contract for laundry services at the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) training site located at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. Appellant has elected to proceed under the Small Claims (Expedited) Procedure pursuant to Rule 12 .2 1. The parties waived an oral hearing to have the appeal decided on the record under Rule 11. The record consists of the government's Rule 4 file (tabs 1-32), as supplemented (tabs 33-135), and appellant's exhibits (1-3). Both parties have submitted briefs. Entitlement and quantum are before the Board. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The government entered into Contract No. FA3300-13-P-0033, which was set aside specifically for a small business, with appellant on 6 May 2013 for laundry_ services for the AFROTC at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. The contract specifically required appellant to provide laundry services under two contract line item numbers (CLINs): cadet uniforms and undergarments (CLIN 0001); and comforters (CLIN 0002), on a firm-fixed-price (FFP) basis of $0.70 per pound. The contract did not contain any prices for hourly wages or salaries for employees, or any methodologies 1 The Contract Disputes Act, implemented by Board Rule 12.2, provides that this decision shall have no value as precedent, and in the absence of fraud shall be final and conclusive and may not be appealed or set aside. for determining overhead or profit. The total for all services under the contract (based upon estimated quantities) was $57,190.00. (R4, tab 1) 2. The contract also incorporated FAR 52.212-4, CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS - COMMERCIAL ITEMS (FEB 2012) which reads in pertinent part: (i) Payment .... (2) Prompt Payment. The Government will make payment in accordance with the Prompt Payment Act (31 U.S.C. 3903) and prompt payment regulations at 5 CFRpart 1315. (4) Discount. In connection with any discount offered for early payment, time shall be computed from the date of the invoice .... (1) Termination/or the Government's convenience. The Government reserves the right to terminate this contract, or any part hereof, for its sole convenience. In the event of such termination, the Contractor shall immediately stop all work .... Subject to the terms of this contract, the Contractor shall be paid a percentage of the contract price reflecting the percentage of the work performed prior to the notice of termination, plus reasonable charges the Contractor can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Government using its standard record keeping system, have resulted from the termination. The Contractor shall not be required to comply with the cost accounting standards or contract cost principles for this purpose. This paragraph does not give the Government any right to audit the Contractor's records. The Contractor shall not be paid for any work performed or costs incurred which reasonably could have been avoided. Moreover, the Prompt Payment regulations found at 5 C.F.R.