[Request for Reconsideration of Prior Decision]

A firm, which had acquired all the assets and rights of a former protester, requested reconsideration of a GAO decision which held that, while the former protester's technical point rating was higher than that of the awardee, the agency could determine the award on the basis of cost because it determined the two proposals to be essentially equal. Further, GAO had held that an allegation against the applicability of the Trade Agreements Act of 1979 was untimely since it was not raised prior to the submission of initial proposals. The protester now contended that the awardee could not produce the product it offered. GAO found this issue to be untimely, since it was not raised within 10 days after the basis for the protest was known. In addition, it concerned a matter of responsibility which GAO does not review absent a showing of fraud or that definitive responsibility criteria have not been met. Neither exception applied in this case. Moreover, whether a contractor adheres to its contract is a matter of contract administration which GAO does not consider. Accordingly, the request for reconsideration was dismissed.