Allegation That Contractor Was Not Furnished a Copy of the Invitation

The award of a contract by the Forest Service is protested by the incumbent contractor on the basis that the contracting activity failed to provide a copy of the invitation for bid (IFB) and consequently, the incumbent was not allowed to compete for the procurement. The IFC was advertised by newspaper and copies were sent to two Forest Service Districts, the Regional Office, and two post offices for posting. Copies of the IFB were sent to contractors (including the incumbent) on the bidders list. The copy sent to the protester was mailed to the address that was on the bidders list, which happened to be the address of its former owner. Although all other correspondence, including payments, was mailed to the corrected address of the protester, the bidders list had not been changed. Inadvertent actions of an activity which preclude a potential bidder (even an incumbent contractor) from competing on a procurement do not constitute a compelling reason to resolicit if adequate competition and reasonable prices were obtained, and there was no deliberate or conscious attempt to preclude the potential bidder from competing. There appeared to be no conscious attempt to preclude the protester from competing, and the protest was denied.