Protest Against the Award of a Negotiated Contract

A company requested reconsideration of a decision which denied its protest of a contract award to another firm. The protester had contended that the contracting officer arbitrarily and capriciously determined that the awardee was responsible. It was held that protests against affirmative determinations of responsibility are generally futile absent a showing of fraud. Upon appeal, the protester contended that the awardee's supplier quotation contained several qualifications which could result in the awardee not receiving the necessary supplies on time. The protester also suggested that the awardee may not have been able to adhere to the contract terms. It was held that the supplier's quotation provided some basis upon which the contracting officer could determine that the contract would be performed satisfactorily, and that since the information concerning the awardee's ability to perform the contract appeared after the award, it could not affect the reasonableness of the preaward determination. Accordingly, the previous decision was affirmed.