Agency's Failure To Exercise Contract Options and Agency's Choice of Negotiation Procedures

The protesters raised questions relating to the agency's rights and obligations with regard to exercising options under an existing contract as opposed to making an award under a request for proposals, whether the agency should have formally advertised the procurement rather than negotiating it, and the manner in which the Buy American Act applied to the procurement. There was no showing that award under the request for proposals would eliminate any requirements covered by the third program year of the existing multi-year contract, and there was no basis to object to the agency's finding that items available under existing contract options would fulfill the existing need of the government. The contract option may, therefore, be considered as a means of satisfying the requirements. There was no reasonable grounds to support the conclusion that it was impossible to draft adequate specifications, and there was not adequate justification for proceeding with a negotiated procurement rather than an advertised procurement. If the agency cannot find other bases to authorize the negotiated procurement, the request for proposals should be cancelled. Since matters relating to the manufacture of products in Mexico from parts manufactured in the United States were being considered by the Armed Services Procurement Regulation Committee, consideration of the matter in the present protest was inappropriate.