Tesla Laboratories, Inc.

B-414428 Jun 07, 2017 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Tesla Laboratories, Inc., of Arlington, Virginia, protests the Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) exclusion of its quotation from the competition under request for quotations (RFQ) No. DJD-16-Q-0102, for financial investigator support services. Tesla challenges the agency's technical evaluation of the firm's quotation. We deny the protest. We deny the protest. 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:  Tesla Laboratories, Inc. File:  B-414428 Date:  June 7, 2017 James K. Kearney, Esq., and Joshua L. Rodman, Esq., Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, LLP, for the protester. James E. Hicks, Esq., and Susan M. Colarco, Esq., Drug Enforcement Administration, for the agency. Peter D. Verchinski, Esq., and Amy B. Pereira, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest of the rejection of the protester’s quotation is denied, where the agency reasonably found, consistent with the stated evaluation criteria, that the protester’s proposed personnel failed to satisfy the solicitation’s minimum requirements. DECISION Tesla Laboratories, Inc., of Arlington, Virginia, protests the Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) exclusion of its quotation from the competition under request for quotations (RFQ) No. DJD-16-Q-0102, for financial investigator support services.  Tesla challenges the agency’s technical evaluation of the firm’s quotation. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND DEA issued the RFQ as a small business set-aside on October 18, 2016, using the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) procedures of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 8.4.  The RFQ anticipated the issuance of a fixed‑price blanket purchase agreement (BPA) with a base period of 1 year, and four 1-year options.  Agency Report (AR), Tab 4, RFQ, at 19.  The competition was limited to vendors holding FSS Professional Services Schedule (PSS) contract 00CORP with special item numbers (SIN) Nos. 520‑1, 520-6, 520-9, 520-12, or 520-14.[1]  Id.  The RFQ sought quotations to provide financial investigators for DEA’s Diversion Control Division, Pharmaceutical Investigations Section.  Id. at 6.  The RFQ stated that, in order to combat the illicit diversion of pharmaceutical controlled substances and chemicals, the agency examined complex financial transactions and business records.  Id.  The RFQ sought personnel who possessed financial accounting and analytical skills, and who were able to conduct analysis of complex financial and business records.  Id. Award was to be made on a lowest-price, technically acceptable basis considering three technical evaluation factors:  (1) corporate capability; (2) quality control plan; and (3) staffing qualifications and experience/key personnel.[2]  Id. at 23-25, 28.  The first and third technical evaluation factors contained numerous subfactors.  For example, as relevant to this protest, under the staffing qualifications and experience/key personnel technical evaluation factor, subfactor j required vendors to “provide eight resumes for financial investigators that demonstrate the company’s ability to recruit financial investigators meeting the requirements for the position from diverse geographic areas.”  Id. at 24‑25 (emphasis removed).  The RFQ provided that, if a vendor did not meet the minimum technical acceptability under any of the technical evaluation subfactors, the vendor would no longer be considered for award.  Id. at 29. With regard to the requirements for the financial investigator positions, the RFQ laid out certain minimum qualifications.  RFQ at 9.  The RFQ stated that the functional responsibilities for the “Financial Investigator or Equivalent” were Organizes and conducts detailed examinations of information generated during complex financial criminal/civil investigations and information available through alternative sources for the purpose of conducting financial analyses of personal/business assets of targeted organizations/individuals.  Utilizes information obtained as a result of the financial analysis and prepares documentation for use by law enforcement personnel pursuing civil and criminal matters. Id.  The RFQ also stated that the financial investigators had to hold a bachelor’s degree, and had to meet two minimum experience requirements:  5 years criminal investigative experience, and 2 years “experience specializing in financial investigations (Section IV, SOW [Statement of Work]).”  Id. Section IV of the SOW laid out the required services that the contractor was to perform.  Id.