A firm protested a Coast Guard contract award for solid-state flashers, contending that: (1) the awardee's flashers did not comply with the requirements for a qualified product; (2) the solicitation specifications were ambiguous; and (3) the Coast Guard should have rejected the awardee's bid as nonresponsive or waived the specifications that the awardee had not met. GAO noted that: (1) the procure...

A BID OF AN ITEM ON THE LIST IS RESPONSIVE NOTWITHSTANDING COMPETITOR'S COMPLAINT THAT THE PRODUCT DOES NOT COMPLY WITH THE SPECIFICATION AND. WHETHER A PRODUCT SHOULD HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM A QUALIFIED PRODUCTS LIST BEFORE BID OPENING IS A MATTER FOR THE DETERMINATION OF THE QUALIFYING AGENCY. THE GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE WILL NOT QUESTION THE AGENCY'S JUDGMENT UNLESS IT IS SHOWN NOT TO HAVE A R...