Protest Involving Proposal Evaluation

A company protested a contract award after protesting to the agency and seeking court action to stay performance of the contract. The protest was timely since "initial adverse agency action" occurred upon receipt of the agency's formal adverse decision and not upon commencement of contract performance. The protest was denied since the agency acted properly with reference to the following: the evaluation board explored the protester's proposal and identified areas needing clarification prior to the cutoff date for the best and final offer; evaluation of proposals was in accordance with established criteria and reasonable, and judgments in this regard are the responsibility of the contracting agency; and Department of Transportation Orders were not violated by failure to provide the protester an opportunity to rebut unfavorable general agency experiences.