Protest of RFP Cancellation

The award of a contract to update computer hardware at a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) computer center was protested. Hardware vendors were required to include in their proposals an offer to complete the software conversion at a stated price. After award of the contract, USDA decided to perform the software conversion in-house and canceled the optional software conversion services. The protester objected to this method of procurement because an evaluation based on hardware costs alone might have resulted in an award to another firm. This type of procurement method was sanctioned previously by a prior GAO decision. The Government's later decision to perform software conversion did not alter the validity of the basis upon which evaluation and award of the contract were made. In addition, the awardee's price for hardware only was the lowest received. The protest was denied.