Eagle Investigative Services, Inc. (N0018922QZ064)

B-420849 Sep 23, 2022 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Eagle Investigative Services, Inc., a service-disabled veteran-owned small business located in Columbia, South Carolina, protests the award of a contract to Forensic Genealogy Research Services, LLC, of Manvel, Texas, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. N0018922QZ064, issued by the Department of the Navy for professional genealogy services in support of the Navy Personnel Command. Eagle contends that the agency unreasonably evaluated its proposed performance approach as unacceptable. The protester also challenges various other aspects of the agency's evaluation. We deny the protest. View Decision Decision Matter of: Eagle Investigative Services, Inc. File: B-420849 Date: September 23, 2022 Joshua P. Taylor, for the protester. James Stellabotte, Esq., Department of the Navy, for the agency. Christopher Alwood, Esq., and Alexander O. Levine, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1. Protest challenging agency’s evaluation of protester’s quotation as unacceptable under performance approach factor is denied where the agency’s evaluation was reasonable. 2. Protester is not an interested party to challenge other aspects of the evaluation where its quotation was reasonably evaluated as unacceptable under one factor. DECISION Eagle Investigative Services, Inc., a service-disabled veteran-owned small business located in Columbia, South Carolina, protests the award of a contract to Forensic Genealogy Research Services, LLC, of Manvel, Texas, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. N0018922QZ064, issued by the Department of the Navy for professional genealogy services in support of the Navy Personnel Command. Eagle contends that the agency unreasonably evaluated its proposed performance approach as unacceptable. The protester also challenges various other aspects of the agency’s evaluation. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND The Navy issued the RFQ on March 7, 2022, under the commercial item procedures of Federal Acquisition Regulation part 12, seeking quotations for professional genealogy services in support of the Navy Personnel Command, Navy Casualty Division, Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Branch. Contracting Officer’s Statement and Memorandum of Law (COS/MOL) at 2; Agency Report (AR), Attach. 3, RFQ at 1, 6.[1] The RFQ contemplated the award of an indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract with a 5-year ordering period. RFQ at 8, 15. The RFQ provided for award on a best-value tradeoff basis considering three evaluation factors: (1) performance approach; (2) past performance; and (3) price. Id. at 23. As relevant here, the RFQ required quotations to: provide in detail a performance approach that will successfully accomplish the requirements of the solicitation, including the Performance Work Statement (PWS). The quoter shall detail its approach to performing Phase I and Phase II Genealogy as described in section 4 of the PWS. The quoter should describe the qualifications of it[s] personnel that will be utilized to perform the required Genealogy services. The quoter should provide any other information the quoter considers relevant to the solicitation. Id. at 73. If a vendor’s quotation received a rating of marginal or unacceptable for the performance approach factor, the RFQ provided that the quotation would be ineligible for award. [2] Id. at 23. The agency defined a rating of unacceptable as a quotation that “does not meet the requirements of the solicitation, and thus, contains one or more deficiencies, and/or [the] risk of unsuccessful performance is unacceptable.” AR, Attach. 5, SSET Report at 3. The Navy received four timely quotations, including one from Eagle. COS/MOL at 3. In evaluating Eagle’s performance approach, the agency assessed Eagle’s quotation a deficiency for failing to provide a detailed performance approach for successfully accomplishing the requirements of the solicitation. AR, Attach. 5, SSET Report at 4. Based on the assessed deficiency, the agency assigned Eagle’s quotation a rating of unacceptable under the performance approach factor. Id. The Source Selection Authority (SSA) agreed with the SSET’s evaluation, noting that the protester’s quotation was “unawardable” because it failed to provide an approach to performing the genealogy services “as described in section 4 of the PWS.” AR, Attach. 6, Source Selection Decision Document at 5‑6. The agency subsequently notified Eagle that it had not been selected for award. AR, Attach. 7, Notice of Award. This protest followed. DISCUSSION The protester challenges the Navy’s evaluation of its quotation under the performance approach factor.