[Protest of Contract Award Alleging Competition Restriction]

A firm protested the award of a contract by the Defense Logistics Agency. The protester contended that a provision in the solicitation restricted competition. Bid protest procedures require that protests based upon alleged improprieties in a solicitation which are apparent prior to the closing date for receipt of initial proposals must be filed prior to that date to be considered on their merits. The protester submitted its initial proposal on the required date for receipt of initial proposals. Enclosed with the protester's proposal was its protest to the agency against the inclusion of the provision in the solicitation. The protest to GAO was not filed until almost 3 weeks after the closing date. Since neither protest was filed before the date set for receipt of initial proposals, the protest was dismissed as untimely.