American Commercial Group, Inc.

B-410157.4 May 16, 2017 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights American Commercial Group (ACG) requests that we recommend that it be reimbursed the costs of filing and pursuing its protest challenging the award of contract No. HHSF223201510167C to Laboratory Equipment Service, LLC (LES) by the Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for operations and maintenance support of laboratory equipment at FDA's White Oak campus. The protester also requests reimbursement of its costs for filing and pursuing a prior protest based on the agency's alleged failure to implement the corrective action the agency promised to take in response to that protest. We deny the request. We deny the request. View Decision 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:  American Commercial Group, Inc. File:  B-410157.4 Date:   May 16, 2017 Eric S. Galler, Esq., Galler Law Corporate Group, for the protester. Jason Blindauer, Esq., Food and Drug Administration, for the agency. Lois Hanshaw, Esq., and Christina Sklarew, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Request for recommendation that an agency reimburse the protester its costs of filing and pursuing protests is denied where the record does not establish that the grounds in the first protest were clearly meritorious, and the agency did not unduly delay taking corrective action in response to a second protest. DECISION American Commercial Group (ACG) requests that we recommend that it be reimbursed the costs of filing and pursuing its protest challenging the award of contract No. HHSF223201510167C to Laboratory Equipment Service, LLC (LES) by the Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for operations and maintenance support of laboratory equipment at FDA’s White Oak campus.  The protester also requests reimbursement of its costs for filing and pursuing a prior protest based on the agency’s alleged failure to implement the corrective action the agency promised to take in response to that protest. We deny the request. BACKGROUND On March 10, 2014, the agency issued solicitation No. 14-223-SOL-00021 as a set-aside for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB).  The agency selected ACG for award, and another offeror, LES, protested to our Office (B-410157).[1]  The agency proposed to take corrective action by reevaluating proposals and making a new best-value decision, and we dismissed LES’s protest as academic.[2]  See Laboratory Equipment Services, LLC, B-410157, Aug. 19, 2014 (unpublished decision).  After completing the corrective action proposed in response to the B-410157 protest, FDA notified ACG on August 18, 2015, that award had been made to LES.  On August 28, ACG protested to our Office (first protest) contending that:  (1) the agency improperly determined that its revised proposal was not timely submitted; (2) the agency did not engage in meaningful discussions with ACG; (3) the agency engaged in significant improprieties after the initial contract award in July 2014;[3] and (4) LES was not a qualified SDVOSB and could not perform the work as required.  Prior to the due date for filing the agency report, the agency stated that it was again “undertaking voluntary corrective action under [the solicitation] due to issues with the [a]gency’s determination that ACG’s proposal did not adequately demonstrate [a] willingness to adhere to limitations on subcontracting.”  Notice of Corrective Action, September 2, 2015.  Specifically, the agency proposed to, at a minimum, re-open discussions, subsequently evaluate the revised proposals, and make a new best value determination.[4]  Based on the agency’s proposed corrective action, we dismissed that protest as academic.  See American Commercial Group, B-410157.2, Sept.