[Protest of GSA Contract Award for Electrostatic Painting of Metal Furniture]

A firm protested a General Services Administration's (GSA) contract award for electrostatic painting of metal furniture, contending that GSA improperly rejected its bid for failure to acknowledge a solicitation amendment, since it never received the amendment. GAO held that it would not consider the protest since the protester: (1) waited approximately 4 months after bid opening to obtain information on the award; (2) failed to acknowledge a material amendment and its bid was, therefore, nonresponsive; and (3) failed to show that GSA deliberately excluded it from the competition. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.