Protest Alleging Awardee's Bid Was Late and Nonresponsive

A company protested the award of a contract by the Department of Agriculture for helicopter seeding of a forest burn area, alleging that the awardee's bid was accepted after the time for bid opening; that the bid was nonresponsive; and that the contract was improperly awarded before resolution of a previously filed protest and without notice of intention to so award. The company also claimed bid preparation and bid protest costs. The protester did not meet the burden of affirmative proof in its case regarding timeliness. The contracting officer's conclusion that sufficient evidence indicated the awardee's intent to be bound was reasonable, despite omission of the awardee's name and address from the bid form. Failure to submit a required equipment list was related to bidder responsibility, not responsiveness, and therefore could be rectified after bid opening. Failure to notify of intention to award was a procedural deficiency which did not affect the validity of the award. Bid protest costs are not compensable; and the claim for bid preparation costs was denied where there was no evidence that the agency deprived the protester of an award to which it was otherwise entitled.