Oready, LLC (program-370-SR1)

B-424375 Jul 06, 2026 Jump To FULL REPORT VIEW DECISION RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Oready, LLC, a small business of Las Vegas, Nevada, protests the Government Publishing Office's (GPO) determination that Oready was not responsible to perform the contract awarded under invitation for bids (IFB) No. 370-S R1, issued by the agency for the printing of internal revenue manuals for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The protester asserts that the nonresponsibility determination was unreasonable and unsupported by the record. We deny the protest. View Decision Decision Matter of: Oready, LLC File: B-424375 Date: July 6, 2026 Mike Farro for the protester. Nicole Goldstein, Esq., and James Goodman III, Esq., Government Publishing Office, for the agency. Kasia Dourney, Esq., and Alexander O. Levine, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Protest challenging agency's determination that the protester is not responsible is denied where the record shows that the agency's determination was reasonable and supported by the record. DECISION Oready, LLC, a small business of Las Vegas, Nevada, protests the Government Publishing Office's (GPO) determination that Oready was not responsible to perform the contract awarded under invitation for bids (IFB) No. 370-S R1, issued by the agency for the printing of internal revenue manuals for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The protester asserts that the nonresponsibility determination was unreasonable and unsupported by the record. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND On February 6, 2026, the agency issued IFB No. 370-S R1, seeking bids for the printing of IRS internal revenue manuals. Agency Report (AR), Exh. B, IFB at 1. The IFB contemplated a single-award contract, for a base year ending on May 31, 2027, and four 1-year option periods. Contracting Officer's Statement (COS) at 1. The selected contractor will print IRS manuals, which requires the contractor to perform various activities to include “the establishment, updating, and maintenance of an XML text and graphics publishing database; electronic prepress; composition; output of electronic files in various formats; printing; binding; packing; and distribution.” Supp. AR, Exh. 2, March 20 Nonresponsibility Determination & Findings (D&F) at 1. The manuals have to meet the quality level (QL) IV standard for printing and finishing and are expected to contain sensitive but unclassified and personally identifiable information material. IFB at 2, 4, 7. The solicitation provided that “[i]n order to determine the responsibility of the contractor, the [g]overnment reserves the right to conduct an on-site preaward survey at the contractor's facility or to require other evidence of technical, production, managerial, financial, and similar abilities to perform.” Id. at 20. The IFB stated that, as part of the pre-award survey, the contractor “shall present” detailed pre-award production plans with respect to quality control, security control, and disposal of waste materials. Id. at 21. The IFB also instructed that “[i]f the [g]overnment requests additional information after review of plans, the contractor must submit updated plans within two (2) workdays of the request.” Id. at 21. The agency received two bids in response to the solicitation, one from Oready and another one from NPC, Inc. COS at 1. On February 26, after determining that Oready had submitted the lowest-priced bid, the GPO instructed Oready to submit its pre-award survey plans, as specified in the solicitation, including its plans regarding quality control, security control, and disposal of waste materials. Id. at 2; IFB at 21. Upon receipt and review of the protester's pre-award survey plans, the agency customer, the IRS, documented several concerns, including Oready's failure to “include details about surveillance (via cameras, digital access logs, etc.),” or to include “mention of fire or other hazard extinguishing equipment.” COS at 2. In addition, the GPO's quality control (QC) personnel, who also reviewed the plans, notified the contract specialist about multiple problematic issues in Oready's pre-award survey plans, noting, for example, that Oready does “not list printing at all in [its] products and services portion of [GPO] Publish,[[1]] they only list binding equipment” and that its second listed location, in Campbell, California, “is not a registered location in Publish, and [Oready does] not list any equipment at that location in their plans.” Id.; AR, Exh. G, GPO QC Issues at 1. The QC team continued “that Pantone colors may be used [on the contract but Oready] only has digital equipment available.” Id.; AR, Exh. G, GPO QC Issues at 1. Accordingly, the agency requested revised pre-award survey plans from Oready, with “more … detailed information” needed to assess its responsibility. COS at 3; AR, Exh. H, Email Exchange re: Pre-Award Issues at 3.