B-294572.3; B-294572.4, Spherix, Inc., October 20, 2005

B-294572.3; B-294572.4, Spherix, Inc., October 20, 2005 TITLE: B-294572.3; B-294572.4, Spherix, Inc., October 20, 2005 BNUMBER: B-294572.3; B-294572.4 DATE: October 20, 2005 ******************************************************* B-294572.3; B-294572.4, Spherix, Inc., October 20, 2005 DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE The decision issued on the date below was subject to a GAO Protective Order. This redacted version has been approved for public release. Decision Matter of: Spherix, Inc. File: B-294572.3; B-294572.4 Date: October 20, 2005 Eric J. Marcotte, Esq., Nathan C. Guerrero, Esq., and Scott A. Schipma, Esq., Winston & Strawn, for the protester. Joseph D. West, Esq., Robert S. Metzger, Esq., Michael K. Murphy, Esq., Pepin A. Tuma, Esq., and Mary Ita Snyder, Esq., Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, for ReserveAmerica NY, Inc., the intervenor. Mark G. Garrett, Esq., Department of Agriculture, for the agency. Henry J. Gorczycki, Esq., and James A. Spangenberg, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1. Protest sustained where several significant technical discriminators in the cost/technical tradeoff justifying award lacked a reasonable basis. 2. Agency misled protester regarding the propriety of offering alternative implementation plan that did not comply with the solicitation requirements when it recognized a strength in the awardee's proposal for making such a proposal while specifically advising the protester that the required implementation plan was that stated in the solicitation. DECISION Spherix, Inc. protests the award of a contract to ReserveAmerica NY, Inc. under request for proposals (RFP) No. WO-04-06VM, issued by the Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, for the National Recreation Reservation Service (NRRS). This protest follows a decision by our Office, Spherix, Inc., B-294572, B-294572.2, Dec. 1, 2004, 2005 CPD para. 3, sustaining Spherix's protest of the agency's previous award to ReserveAmerica under this RFP, and the agency's subsequent request for and evaluation of revised proposals. Spherix's present protest challenges the agency's conduct of discussions, evaluation of revised proposals, and latest source selection decision. We sustain the protest. BACKGROUND Historically, the various reservation, sales, permitting and ticketing processes for public use of recreational facilities and activities located on federal lands (e.g., national parks, national monuments, recreation areas, wilderness areas, and historic sites) have been separate operations under the management of a number of federal agencies. Most recently, two major federal reservation systems have operated, i.e., the National Park Reservation Service (NPRS) under the National Park Service, Department of Interior, and the NRRS under the Forest Service in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Land Management, Department of Interior. Spherix is the incumbent contractor for the NPRS and ReserveAmerica is the incumbent contractor for the NRRS. The RFP is part of an "E-Government Initiative," under which the government seeks to consolidate its reservation systems for all federal parks and federal recreation areas, facilities and activities into the NRRS with the goal of providing "one-stop" reservation shopping. The RFP seeks a solution that improves the existing reservation service through a contractor-developed, -provided and -operated state-of-the-art reservation system with a web-based portal that will include multiple sales channels (telephone call center, Internet, and "walk-up" at the recreation site/activity), providing "one-stop" reservation shopping directly to the public for camping, tours, tickets, permits, activities, and recreation-related sales, as well as providing general recreation and trip planning information about all federal recreation areas. The system would also provide administrative and field personnel of federal land management agencies with the ability to access and manage reservation and recreation information. RFP sect. C, Performance Work Statement (PWS), at 64-71.[1] To satisfy the requirements outlined above, the PWS required the contractor to provide and staff a web-based central reservation system (CRS) that supports seamless interfacing with other portals for third party sales, and which includes an Internet sales channel capable of presenting customers with large quantities of information on participating recreation facilities and activities and completing reservation and other recreation related sales and services. RFP sect. C, at 89-91.