[Protest Against Geographic Scope of Contract and Noncancellation of Solicitation]

A firm protested a request for proposals (RFP) issued by the General Services Administration (GSA) for automatic data processing support. Essentially, it protested the agency's decision not to cancel the solicitation and reopen competition when the Department of Labor ruled that the wage determination included in the solicitation was improper. Instead, GSA amended the solicitation to delete the original determination and included the new, correct wage determinations. The protester did not submit a proposal, claiming that the erroneous wage determination made that too risky. The protester contended that the GSA action prevented it from joining the competition. It also protested the geographic scope of potential performance of the contract, contending that it was so broad that the task orders issued for the services outside the primary and secondary areas would constitute improper sole-source procurements. GAO held that: (1) the protest that the geographic scope of the contract was excessively broad was untimely; and (2) the contracting agency was not required to cancel the solicitation and resolicit to include the firm that protested the initial wage determination but did not submit a proposal. The initial wage determination was not void ab initio and the change resulting from the determination was not so substantial as to require a complete revision of the solicitation. The protester has not shown that it was reasonably prevented from submitting a competitive proposal. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.