ITility, LLC (70RDAD20Q00000133)

B-419167 Dec 23, 2020 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights ITility, LLC, a small business of Chantilly, Virginia, protests the issuance of a task order to Enterprise Information Services, LLC (EIS), of Vienna, Virginia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. 70RDAD20Q00000133, issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), for program management and information technology support for the DHS Financial Systems Modernization (FSM) Joint Program Management Office (JPMO). ITility alleges that DHS conducted inadequate market research to determine whether the procurement should have been set aside for small business concerns, and otherwise failed to comply with other applicable acquisition planning requirements. 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:  ITility, LLC File:  B-419167 Date:  December 23, 2020 Isaias Alba, IV, Esq., Jacqueline K. Unger, Esq., Christine C. Fries, Esq., and Jonathan I. Pomerance, Esq., Piliero Mazza PLLC, for the protester. Alexander B. Ginsberg, Esq., Meghan D. Doherty, Esq., Robert Starling, Esq., and Kevin R. Massoudi, Esq., Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, for Enterprise Information Services, LLC, the intervenor. Christine Fontenelle, Esq., and Pavan Mehrotra, Esq., Department of Homeland Security; John W. Klein, Esq., and Sam Q. Le, Esq., Small Business Administration, for the agencies. Evan D. Wesser, Esq., and Edward Goldstein, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest alleging that a procuring agency was required to set aside a procurement for small businesses, instead of issuing its requirements as a task order on an unrestricted basis under a multiple-award contract, is denied where the procuring agency used its discretion pursuant to Federal Acquisition Regulation sections 16.505 and 19.504, as well as 13 C.F.R. § 125.2(e)(6)(ii), not to set aside for small businesses a task order issued under a multiple-award contract. DECISION ITility, LLC, a small business of Chantilly, Virginia, protests the issuance of a task order to Enterprise Information Services, LLC (EIS), of Vienna, Virginia, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. 70RDAD20Q00000133, issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), for program management and information technology support for the DHS Financial Systems Modernization (FSM) Joint Program Management Office (JPMO).  ITility alleges that DHS conducted inadequate market research to determine whether the procurement should have been set aside for small business concerns, and otherwise failed to comply with other applicable acquisition planning requirements. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND DHS was officially created in January 2003, merging 22 formerly independent agencies into one cabinet-level department.  DHS currently includes 14 component operational and support organizations.  When DHS was first established, there were 13 separate core financial systems across its components, operating under legacy policies and disparate business processes.  In accordance with a September 2011 memorandum issued by the DHS Under Secretary for Management, DHS established the FSM Program to plan and execute key financial management requirements, minimize investment in duplicative systems, meet federal guidance, and deliver financial management information to leadership to support the DHS mission.  The FSM Program is coordinated by the DHS Office of the Chief Financial Officer through the JPMO.  Agency Report (AR), Tab 13, RFQ No. 70RDAD19Q00000101 at 1-2.[1]  DHS intends to transition DHS headquarters and its components to standard financial, procurement, and asset management business processes using as few separate solutions as is practicable and in a cost-effective manner.  AR, Tab 2, Contracting Officer’s Statement (COS) at 2. The JPMO is responsible for:  (i) identifying, implementing, and overseeing modern and compliant financial management systems and business processes across DHS; (ii) providing standardized business processes to align with statutory mandates; (iii) providing change and program management services; (iv) leading and managing DHS business integration, financial management process standardization, functional requirements management, and the people side of change; (v) preparing cost estimates and budget requests; (vi) managing available funds, program schedule, risks, and personnel; (vii) managing the execution of contracts and agreements; and (viii) ensuring that project plans are implemented on schedule, within scope, and within budget.  AR, Tab 9, Task Order No. 70RDAD18FR0000032, at 12.  On October 23, 2018, DHS awarded service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB) set-aside task order No.