The plaintiff challenged the government's decision to direct a task order to a competing contractor. The plaintiff contended that this decision was unlawful under the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) because it exceeded the contract's scope and required a "Rule of Two" analysis that was not conducted. The Court ruled that the plaintiff's claim did not establish jurisdiction because the task order work fell within the scope of the the IDIQ's statement of work. It therefore dismissed the complaint.
United Aero Group, LLC v. The United States, COFC No. 25-248
- Background - AAR Government Services, Inc. (the awardee) was authorized to perform maintenance work on UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters under a task order, which the plaintiff alleged was outside the contract's scope and violated CICA's competition requirements. The protest challenged the government’s direction for AAR to perform the work at a specific facility, claiming it exceeded the authorized locations specified in the contract.
- Scope of Task Order - The plaintiff argued that the work performed by AAR was outside the authorized tasks under the existing contract. CICA mandates full and open competition, but the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act (FASA) prohibits protests concerning task orders that do not expand the scope of the original contract. The Court held that the Agency’s actions were consistent with the contract’s provisions, which allowed flexibility in performance locations, thus falling within the established jurisdictional limits.
- "Rule of Two" Analysis - The plaintiff claimed that the government's failure to perform a "Rule of Two" analysis constituted a legal violation. However, the Court found that this analysis did not apply since the government’s actions related to a technical direction under an existing order rather than the issuance of a new task order. The Court deemed the agency's decisions regarding in-scope services to be administrative actions not requiring further competition.
The plaintiff is represented by W. Brad English, Emily J. Chancey, Taylor R. Holt, Hunter M. Drake, and Holdon D. Guy of Maynard Nexsen PC. The government is represented by Elizabeth M.D. Pullin of the United States Department of Justice, Civil Division.