Submission of Two Bids by Affiliated Firms

A firm objected to the proposed award of a contract, alleging that the low bidder and an affiliated firm which both submitted bids on the procurement violated the certification of independent price determination requirements since the same individual signed both bids as president of the respective firms. Submission of two bids by the affiliated concerns did not violate the Independent Price Determination certification since there was no evidence that the multiple bids provided an unfair competitive advantage or were prejudicial to the government or other bidders. The multiple bidder had no option to obtain the award at the higher bid in anticipation that it would not perform on the low bid in accordance with contract requirements since it was committed to perform in accordance with the specifications.