[Protest of Contract Award for Services in Puerto Rico]

A firm protested the U.S. Marshals Service's contract award for Federal court security services in Puerto Rico. The protester contended that: (1) it did not receive a copy of the solicitation; and (2) the procurement was tainted by a conflict of interest and prejudicial motives. GAO noted that the solicitation was published in the Commerce Business Daily and, although 68 firms received copies of the solicitation, only one company submitted a proposal, which was accepted as reasonable. GAO concluded that the protester's failure to receive a copy of the solicitation would not prevent an award or require resolicitation because: (1) the agency made a significant effort to obtain competition; (2) a reasonable price was obtained; and (3) there was no attempt to exclude the protester from competition. These standards applied even though only one offer was received. Further, the protester has the burden of proving its case, but it failed to show convincing evidence that bias or a conflict of interest influenced the procurement. Accordingly, the protest was denied.