LIS Solutions (FA4890-22-Q-0008)

B-421368,B-421368.2 Apr 07, 2023 Jump To FULL REPORT VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Legal Interpreting Services, Inc., doing business as LIS Solutions, of Herndon, Virginia, a small business, protests the issuance of a multiple-award schedule (MAS) order to Rally Point Management, LLC, of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, also a small business, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. FA4890-22-Q-0008. The Department of the Air Force, Air Combat Command issued the RFQ for commercial locally-employed person screening teams support services at multiple locations, primarily outside the United States. Legal argues that the agency misevaluated its quotation, the agency should have rejected Rally's quotation for failing to demonstrate compliance with a required limitation on subcontracting clause, and that the Air Force made an unreasonable source selection decision. 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 version has been approved for public release. Decision Matter of: Legal Interpreting Services, Inc., d/b/a LIS Solutions File: B-421368; B-421368.2 Date: April 7, 2023 Ryan C. Bradel, Esq., and Michael E. Hatch, Esq., Ward & Berry PLLC, for the protester. Colonel Frank Yoon, Isabelle P. Cutting, Esq., and David J. Dusseau, Esq., Department of the Air Force, 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 1. Protest that agency misevaluated quotations for order under multiple-award schedule is denied where the evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation. 2. Protest that agency failed to reject successful vendor’s quotation as unacceptable for failing to show compliance with limitation on subcontracting clause for each option period is denied where agency properly considered compliance based on the full term of the order. DECISION Legal Interpreting Services, Inc., doing business as LIS Solutions, of Herndon, Virginia, a small business, protests the issuance of a multiple-award schedule (MAS) order to Rally Point Management, LLC, of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, also a small business, under request for quotations (RFQ) No. FA4890-22-Q-0008. The Department of the Air Force, Air Combat Command issued the RFQ for commercial locally-employed person screening teams support services at multiple locations, primarily outside the United States. Legal argues that the agency misevaluated its quotation, the agency should have rejected Rally’s quotation for failing to demonstrate compliance with a required limitation on subcontracting clause, and that the Air Force made an unreasonable source selection decision. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND The RFQ, issued June 8, 2022, sought quotations from vendors holding General Services Administration (GSA) MAS special item No. 541611 small business contracts. The successful vendor will provide screener teams to perform screening of all non-government, locally-employed laborers and workers at airbases in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Germany. The selection of a vendor was to be conducted in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) section 8.404. Agency Report (AR) Tab 3, Conformed RFQ at 1-2. The GSA contracts here included a standard limitation on subcontracting clause, requiring the small business contractor to “not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the Government for contract performance to subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities.” E.g., AR, Tab 19, Rally MAS Contract Excerpt at 5 (FAR clause 52.219‑14(e)(1)). Where an order was set aside for small businesses under a MAS contract, as here, the clause further specifies that the limitation had to be satisfied “by the end of the performance period for the order.” Id. (FAR clause 52.219-14(f)(2)). The RFQ also incorporated a performance work statement (PWS) describing the tasks the vendor would perform, such as conducting screenings and background checks on locally-employed persons. AR, Tab 4, PWS at 7. The RFQ identified three evaluation factors: technical capability, past performance, and price. The technical capability factor was to be evaluated on an acceptable/ unacceptable basis; only quotations rated acceptable would be considered for award, but no additional credit would be given for exceeding minimum technical requirements. Accordingly, beyond acceptability, the technical capability factor would not be considered otherwise in determining which quotation offered the best value. The Air Force would award the task order to the vendor whose quotation provided the best value based on a past performance-price tradeoff, where past performance would be significantly more important than price.