B-297219, Charter Environmental, Inc., December 5, 2005

B-297219 Dec 05, 2005 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Charter Environmental, Inc. protests the proposed award of a contract to ECI Northeast, LLC, under invitation for bids (IFB) No NEAT-05-190, issued by the Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, for restoration of the Ore Hill Mine Site in New Hampshire. Charter argues that ECI Northeast's bid should have been rejected as nonresponsive, and that ECI Northeast does not meet the IFB's definitive responsibility criteria and is thus ineligible for award. We sustain the protest in part and deny it in part. View Decision B-297219, Charter Environmental, Inc., December 5, 2005 Decision Matter of: Charter Environmental, Inc. File: B-297219 Date: December 5, 2005 Daniel J. Kelly, Esq., and Gary J. Campbell, Esq., Gadsby Hannah, for the protester. Azine Farzami, Esq., Department of Agriculture, for the agency. John L. Formica, Esq., and James A. Spangenberg, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1. Contracting agency unreasonably determined that apparent low bidder on invitation for bids for the stabilization and removal of mine waste met the solicitation's definitive responsibility criterion requiring that the awardee have completed three similar projects, where the agency only considered the experience of what is apparently the low bidder's parent company, even though the record does not contain a commitment by the parent company to the low bidder's successful performance of the work. 2. Bid cannot be rejected as nonresponsive on the basis that the bid did not include completed standard representations and certifications or the bidder had not yet registered in the Central Contractor Registration. DECISION Charter Environmental, Inc. protests the proposed award of a contract to ECI Northeast, LLC, under invitation for bids (IFB) No NEAT-05-190, issued by the Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, for restoration of the Ore Hill Mine Site in New Hampshire. Charter argues that ECI Northeast's bid should have been rejected as nonresponsive, and that ECI Northeast does not meet the IFB's definitive responsibility criteria and is thus ineligible for award. We sustain the protest in part and deny it in part. The IFB provides for the award of a fixed-price contract for the mine restoration services, which include, for example, the removal and stabilization of mine waste. The solicitation (at 4), under the heading –RESPONSIBILITY CRITERIA,— provided in part as follows: While this information does not need to be furnished with your bid, to be eligible for award bidders must meet the following affirmative responsibility criteria: Contractor Experience The Contractor shall have successfully completed at least 3 [solidification/stabilization] S/S projects requiring stabilization of lead with a phosphate based reagent. In addition the Contractor shall have successfully completed at least 3 S/S projects of comparable size and scope in accordance with local, state, and federal requirements using the proposed system or a similar system. The agency received six bids, with ECI Northeast submitting the apparent low bid of $2,232,309, and Charter submitting the second low bid of $2,394,261. Agency Report (AR), Tab 7, Bid Abstract. After requesting and receiving certain information from ECI Northeast, the agency determined that ECI Northeast met the above –responsibility criteria— and selected that firm for award. This protest followed. Charter argues that ECI Northeast does not have the experience required as set forth in the IFB's responsibility criteria under –Contractor Experience,— and that the agency's determination that ECI Northeast satisfied the experience requirements, based upon the agency's consideration of projects completed by ECI Northeast's parent company--Environmental Contractors of Illinois (ECI)--was improper. Definitive responsibility criteria are specific and objective standards designed to measure a prospective contractor's ability to perform the contract. Such criteria, which must be met as a precondition to award, limit the class of contractors to those meeting specified qualitative and quantitative qualifications necessary for adequate performance, e.g., unusual expertise or specialized facilities. MEI, Inc., B-277235.2, Nov. 12, 1997, 97-2 CPD para. 138 at 2.