Allegiance Environmental Services (W81K0221R0003)

B-419670 Jun 22, 2021 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights KDHK Inc. d/b/a Allegiance Environmental Services (AES), a minority-owned, women-owned small business, of San Antonio, Texas, protests the decision by the Department of the Army, Health Contracting Activity, and the Small Business Administration (SBA) to offer (and for the SBA to accept) to the SBA's section 8(a) business development (BD) program a requirement for healthcare housekeeping and related services at Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) in Hawaii. The contract was awarded on a sole-source basis to Teya Enterprises, LLC., an Alaska Native Corporation (ANC) of Anchorage, Alaska. The protester argues that the agency's decision to offer the requirement to SBA, and SBA's resulting acceptance, were improper. According to AES, the procurement could not properly be placed into the 8(a) program without an adverse impact analysis, as required by SBA's regulations. 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:  Allegiance Environmental Services File:  B-419670 Date:   June 22, 2021 Jamie F. Tabb, Esq., David Johnson, Esq., and Alison S Harmes, Esq., Vinson & Elkins LLP, for the protester. Andrew J. Smith, Esq., Stephen Hernandez, Esq., Philip Aubart, Esq., and Zachary Jacobson, Esq., Department of the Army; and Mark Hagedorn, Esq., Small Business Administration, for the agencies. Christopher An, Esq., and Edward Goldstein, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest alleging that the Small Business Administration (SBA) improperly accepted a requirement under the 8(a) program without first performing an adverse impact analysis, when the requirement had previously been set aside for small business concerns, is denied.  An adverse impact analysis was not required because the requirement was for the award of an interim contract, which SBA considered to be a “new requirement” under SBA’s regulations. DECISION KDHK Inc. d/b/a Allegiance Environmental Services (AES), a minority-owned, women-owned small business, of San Antonio, Texas, protests the decision by the Department of the Army, Health Contracting Activity, and the Small Business Administration (SBA) to offer (and for the SBA to accept) to the SBA’s section 8(a) business development (BD) program a requirement for healthcare housekeeping and related services at Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) in Hawaii.  The contract was awarded on a sole-source basis to Teya Enterprises, LLC., an Alaska Native Corporation (ANC) of Anchorage, Alaska.  The protester argues that the agency’s decision to offer the requirement to SBA, and SBA’s resulting acceptance, were improper.  According to AES, the procurement could not properly be placed into the 8(a) program without an adverse impact analysis, as required by SBA’s regulations. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND On July 31, 2018, the Army awarded a small business set-aside contract to AES under request for proposals (RFP) No. W81K04-18-D-0021 for healthcare housekeeping and related services at TAMC.  Agency Report (AR), tab 3, RFP at 1.  The agency subsequently amended this indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract four times, increasing the maximum value of the contract from $83,612,807.88 to $89,458,624.20.  Id. at 165.  The contract provided for a 5-year ordering period between August 1, 2018 and July 31, 2023, with a 6-month extension period.  Id. at 38. Shortly after the agency made award to AES, a different firm filed a protest at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in August 2018, challenging the agency’s award decision.  Among the challenges raised, the protester alleged procurement integrity violations, which were forwarded within the Army [DELETED].  [DELETED], the Court stayed further proceedings on the protest in October 2018.  As of the time of this decision, those proceedings remain [DELETED].  AR, tab 22, Court’s Denial of Req.