B-295529.4, Johnson Controls World Services, Inc.--Costs, August 19, 2005

B-295529.4 Aug 19, 2005 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Johnson Controls World Services, Inc. (JCWS) requests that we recommend that it be reimbursed the costs of filing and pursuing its protests of the Department of the Army's decision, made pursuant to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-76, that it would be more economical to provide base operations support services in-house at the Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C., than to contract for those services under solicitation No. DADA10-03-R-0001. We agree, and recommend that JCWS be reimbursed the reasonable costs of filing and pursuing its initial and supplemental protests, including those incurred in pursuing this request. View Decision B-295529.4, Johnson Controls World Services, Inc.--Costs, August 19, 2005 Decision Matter of: Johnson Controls World Services, Inc.--Costs File: B-295529.4 Date: August 19, 2005 David R. Johnson, Esq., Amanda J. Kastello, Esq., and Amy R. Napier, Esq., Vinson & Elkins, for the protester. Maj. Gregg A. Engler, Department of the Army, for the agency. Ralph O. White, Esq., and Christine S. Melody, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protester's request for a recommendation that it be reimbursed the costs of filing and pursuing its protest is granted where: (1) the issues raised in the initial protest filing clearly identified deficiencies in the agency's decision that it was more economical to provide base operations support services at Walter Reed Medical Center, in Washington, D.C., than to contract for those services; (2) the agency admits that it did not investigate the protester's detailed allegations; and (3) the agency withheld relevant protest documents until more than 70 days after the initial protest filing, when GAO convened a hearing. Under these circumstances, the record shows that the agency unduly delayed taking corrective action in the face of a clearly meritorious protest, thereby causing the protester to expend unnecessary time and resources to make further use of the protest process in order to obtain relief. DECISION Johnson Controls World Services, Inc. (JCWS) requests that we recommend that it be reimbursed the costs of filing and pursuing its protests of the Department of the Army's decision, made pursuant to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-76, that it would be more economical to provide base operations support services in-house at the Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C., than to contract for those services under solicitation No. DADA10-03-R-0001. We agree, and recommend that JCWS be reimbursed the reasonable costs of filing and pursuing its initial and supplemental protests, including those incurred in pursuing this request. BACKGROUND The facts regarding this procurement are largely set forth in our decision dismissing JCWS's protests, Johnson Controls World Servs., Inc., B-295529.2, B'295529.3, June 27, 2005, 2005 CPD para. 124; however, some of those facts, and others which are directly relevant to this decision, are set forth below. After the Army announced its intent to conduct an A-76 cost comparison study for Walter Reed, and after it issued a solicitation in 2003 to potential private-sector offerors, the agency submitted its plan for performing these services in-house to the agency's Independent Review Official (IRO), in this case, the Army Audit Agency.[1] An agency's proposal for performing services in-house in an A-76 cost comparison study is called the Most Efficient Organization (MEO). IRO review is required to ensure that the MEO's plan for performance will comply with the solicitation's performance work statement. Supplemental Handbook at 12. In the event changes to the MEO are needed to meet the requirements of the performance work statement, those changes must be made before the IRO can certify that the MEO –reasonably establish[es] the Government's ability to perform the [performance work statement] within the resources provided by the MEO.— Id.The IRO first certified the MEO proposal in April 2004. Hearing Transcript (Tr.) at 17, 84. After certification of the MEO, and after the receipt of proposals from private-sector offerors, the agency issued an amendment to the solicitation--amendment 16, issued July 23, 2004--that made numerous changes to the performance work statement. In September 2004, the MEO was reopened so that changes could be made to reflect the changes in work incorporated by amendment 16. In the last days of September, shortly before the cost comparison was conducted, the MEO was again certified by the IRO. Tr. at 44-49, 51-54. On September 29, the date of the cost comparison, the MEO was compared to the offer submitted by JCWS, and the Army determined that in-house performance of these services would be less expensive than having them performed by contract awarded to JCWS. Tr.