[Protest of Contract Award Alleging Restrictive RFP]

A firm protested the award of any contract under a request for proposals (RFP) issued by the General Services Administration for several furniture items. The protester contended that the RFP was unduly restrictive because it contained a delivery schedule which it was unable to meet. The protester claimed that it could offer the Government a lower price if the delivery schedule were extended by 1 month. Bid protest procedures require that protests based on alleged defects apparent on the face of an RFP be filed prior to the closing date for receipt of initial proposals. The protester's contention that the delivery schedule was unduly restrictive clearly was based on information contained in the RFP. Thus, the protester was required to assert this ground of protest prior to the closing date. Because the protest was not received until almost 2 weeks after the closing date, it was untimely and was not considered on the merits. Accordingly, the protest was dismissed.