Allegation That Award Was Not Made to the Lowest Qualified Offeror

A firm protested a contract award, contending that there were improprieties in the solicitation and that the award was not made to the lowest bidder. The firm had submitted a proposal for an item which was lower in cost than that of the awardee, but the procuring agency found the offered item to be technically unacceptable. It was held that a protest filed after the closing date is untimely and even if a protest was made to the agency prior to the closing date, it was not filed with GAO until 2 months later. Also, the protest of the agency's determination that the proposal was not acceptable was denied because the protester failed to show that the agency determination was without a reasonable basis. Accordingly, the protest was denied.