Crosstown Courier Service, Inc.

B-415818 Mar 27, 2018 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Crosstown Courier Service, Inc., of Springfield, Massachusetts, a small business, protests the terms of request for quotations (RFQ) No. 36C24918Q0161, issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for commercial pharmacy courier services for veterans served by the Lexington VA Medical Center (VAMC), Cooper Division and Leestown Division, in Kentucky. Crosstown argues that the contracting officer improperly failed to set aside the RFQ for award to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB), and instead designated the RFQ as a small business set-aside. 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. No party requested redactions; we are therefore releasing the decision in its entirety. Decision Matter of:  Crosstown Courier Service, Inc. File:  B-415818 Date:  March 27, 2018 Joseph A. Camardo, Jr., Esq., Nancy M. Camardo, Esq., and Justin T. Huffman, Esq., Camardo Law Firm P.C., for the protester. David W. Altieri, Esq., and Donald C. Mobly, Esq., Department of Veterans Affairs, for the agency. Paul N. Wengert, Esq., and Tania Calhoun, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest that agency failed to set aside solicitation for pharmacy courier services for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB) is denied where agency reasonably determined that it was unlikely to receive quotations from two or more SDVOSBs and that award could be made at a fair and reasonable price. DECISION Crosstown Courier Service, Inc., of Springfield, Massachusetts, a small business, protests the terms of request for quotations (RFQ) No. 36C24918Q0161, issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for commercial pharmacy courier services for veterans served by the Lexington VA Medical Center (VAMC), Cooper Division and Leestown Division, in Kentucky.  Crosstown argues that the contracting officer improperly failed to set aside the RFQ for award to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB), and instead designated the RFQ as a small business set-aside.  We deny the protest.  BACKGROUND The RFQ at issue here was preceded by three earlier solicitations for pharmacy courier services for the Lexington VAMC.  The issues raised in the protest make the history of two of the earlier procurement efforts relevant.[1]  The VA issued one of the earlier RFQs on September 14, 2017, as an SDVOSB set-aside, seeking quotations to provide services for 1 year for a fixed price.  Contracting Officer's Statement at 1.  The VA received quotations from four SDVOSBs, the lowest of which was 42 percent higher than the agency's independent government cost estimate (IGCE).  Id.  The contracting officer concluded that none of the prices obtained were fair and reasonable, and canceled the RFQ.  Id.  The next RFQ, issued on November 6, was like the previous, but was set aside for competition by veteran-owned small businesses (VOSB).  The VA received three quotations from SDVOSBs and one from a VOSB, the lowest of which was 26 percent higher than the IGCE.  Id.  The contracting officer again concluded that none of the prices obtained were fair and reasonable, and canceled that RFQ.  Id.  Following that, the RFQ at issue in this protest was issued on December 19, as a small business set-aside, once again seeking quotations to provide services for 1 year for a fixed price.  Id.  The VA reports that it has received seven quotations, of which four were from SDVOSBs, one was from a VOSB, and two were from small businesses.  Id. Crosstown filed this protest before quotations were due, challenging the terms of the RFQ.  Accordingly, the VA has not awarded a contract.  PROTEST Crosstown argues that the VA had a reasonable basis to expect quotations from two or more SDVOSBs, and therefore the agency should have set aside the current RFQ for SDVOSBs, rather than for small businesses.  Under a provision of the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, a contracting officer in an acquisition conducted by the VA is required to set aside the procurement for either SDVOSBs or VOSBs where there is "a reasonable expectation that two or more small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans will submit offers and that the award can be made at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States."  38 U.S.C. § 8127(d).