Valley Apparel, LLC; Coachys & Associates, LLC, GAO B-420423, B-420423.2
The government needed some new camouflage pants. The protesters offered some, but the government rejected their pants because they didn’t have the right dimensions. The protesters argued that the government had not measured the pants correctly. GAO disagreed, reasoning that there’s more than one way to measure pants, and the protesters’ had not proven that the government’s method was unreasonable.
Background
The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) issued an RFP for camouflage trousers. The RFP provided that DLA would evaluate based on constituency with stated visual and dimensional requirements.
DLA received proposals from Valley Apparenal ,LLC and Coachys & Associates, LLC. DLA excluded Valley and Coachys for deficiencies in their proposed trousers. Both companies protested.
Legal Analysis
- DLA’s Method for Measuring Trousers Was Reasonable – DLA rejected the protesters’ proposals because they did not comply with the RFP’s dimensional requirements. The protesters argued that the agency had improperly measured the trousers. They claimed DLA should have manipulated them in various ways—e.g., by pulling them flat. GAO found that the protesters’ disagreement with the measurements provided no basis to sustain the protest. While there may have been better, more accurate ways to measure the trousers, the protesters had not established that the agency’s method was unreasonable.
- Agency’s Explanation of Ratings Was Not Post Hoc Rationalization – The protesters complained that the evaluation failed to adequately explain the “Fail” rating assessed to their proposals. They claimed the agency’s post-protest explanation for the ratings were improper post hoc rationalization. GAO rejected this argument, finding that the agency’s post-protest explanations merely provided detail to the assigned ratings and did not add substantive information.
The protesters are represented by David S. Black, Gregory R. Hallmark, Amy L. Fuenes, and Jeremy Burkhart of Holland & Knight LLP. The agency is represented by Allision Colsey of the Defense Logistics Agency. GAO attorneys Samantha S. Lee and Peter H. Tran participated in the preparation of the decision.
