Comfort Inn South

B-270819.2 May 14, 1996 Jump To VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Use of negotiated procedures was justified. States that the agency will consider price and past performance in selecting the offer most advantageous to the government. The RFP also states that any offeror without relevant past performance history will receive a neutral rating for past performance. The protester contends that consideration of past performance will provide an unfair advantage to the incumbent contractor. Is the only motel in the Jacksonville area that has performed on a similar contract. The Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 (CICA) directs contracting agencies to use the competitive procedure that is best suited to the circumstances of the procurement. 10 U.S.C. (2) award will be based on price. View Decision Matter of: Comfort Inn South File: B-270819.2 Date: May 14, 1996 Where record supports agency determination that the need for providing a smooth transition between civilian and military life mandated consideration of offeror's past performance in solicitation for lodging and transportation of applicants for military service, use of negotiated procedures was justified, since award would not be based on price alone. Attorneys DECISION Comfort Inn South protests the terms of request for proposals (RFP) No. N00140-96-R-0422, issued by the Department of the Navy, Fleet and Industrial Supply Center, for accommodations for applicants for military service. Comfort Inn South essentially challenges the agency's decision to conduct the procurement using negotiated procedures, rather than sealed bidding. We deny the protest. The RFP, issued on December 15, 1995, provides for award of an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract for a period of 1 year, with three 1-year option periods, to provide applicants with lodging, meals (breakfast and supper), and transportation to the Jacksonville, Florida, military entrance processing station (MEPS) in accordance with the statement of work (SOW). The schedule, section B of the RFP, requires pricing on the basis of serving an estimated 16,000 applicants during each year of contract performance, in addition to providing testing rooms (an estimated 264 during the year) and delivering technical data as specified in the SOW. Section M of the RFP, as amended, states that the agency will consider price and past performance in selecting the offer most advantageous to the government, with past performance more important than price. Paragraph 1.10.1 of the SOW, in pertinent part, requires the successful offeror to provide transportation to incoming applicants from the Greyhound bus terminal in Jacksonville to the contractor's facility. The contractor must pick up applicants within 30 minutes of receiving a phone call from the bus terminal. On January 4, 1996, prior to the amended date of January 23 set for receipt of proposals, the agency issued amendment No. 0003 to the solicitation, which advised potential offerors that approximately 10 percent of the estimated 16,000 applicants would require transportation from the bus terminal. Section L of the RFP, the instructions for preparing and submitting proposals, calls for offerors to describe past performance on directly related or similar contracts held within the last 4 years, of similar scope, magnitude, and complexity, emphasizing similarity of such contracts to the SOW. The RFP also states that any offeror without relevant past performance history will receive a neutral rating for past performance. Comfort Inn filed this protest with our Office on January 22, 1 day prior to the date set for receipt of initial proposals, challenging the agency's use of negotiated procedures and intention to evaluate past performance. The protester asserts that, for the last 10 years, the agency has satisfied its lodging requirements through sealed bidding procedures. The protester argues that the decision here to use negotiated procedures cannot be supported by the need either to consider factors other than price in selecting a contractor or to conduct discussions with offerors. The protester contends that consideration of past performance will provide an unfair advantage to the incumbent contractor, which, Comfort Inn asserts, is the only motel in the Jacksonville area that has performed on a similar contract. The Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 (CICA) directs contracting agencies to use the competitive procedure that is best suited to the circumstances of the procurement. 10 U.S.C. Sec. 2304(a)(1)(B) (1994). CICA does, however, provide that sealed bidding shall be used if: (1) time permits; (2) award will be based on price; (3) discussions are not necessary; and (4) more than one bid is expected. 10 U.S.C. Sec. 2304(a)(2)(A); F&H Mfg. Corp., B-244997, Dec. 6, 1991, 91-2 CPD para. 520.