[Protest of Army Contract Award to Any Other Firm]

A firm protested an Army contract award to any other firm after the Army determined that the protester was nonresponsible and the Small Business Administration (SBA) declined to issue a Certificate of Competency (COC). The protester alleged that SBA failed to consider relevant material and conduct an adequate investigation; therefore, it argued that the SBA decision was improper. SBA has conclusive authority to determine the responsibility of small businesses. Absent a showing of fraud or bad faith or that definitive responsibility criteria were not considered, GAO will not review such determinations. In this case, the protester did not meet the necessary standards for review. Furthermore, after a review of its determination and consideration of the evidence presented by the protester, SBA failed to reverse its ruling. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.