CORE DC, LLC (B-423475.3)

You should not care.

Categories: Small business set-aside, Rule of Two

Date: 18 December 2025

URL: https://www.gao.gov/products/b-423475.3

CORE DC protested DOJ’s decision to issue a Bureau of Prisons residential reentry-center procurement on an unrestricted basis rather than as a small-business set-aside. The company argued the agency’s market research was too narrow and that at least two capable small businesses could perform the work.

GAO disagreed. After the protester’s earlier challenge prompted corrective action, the agency conducted additional market research, issued another RFI, contacted current contractors and other potential sources, and evaluated the small-business responses against the requirement’s actual facility, zoning, staffing, and operational needs. GAO found the record supported the agency’s conclusion that it lacked a reasonable expectation of receiving offers from at least two responsible small businesses capable of performing at fair and reasonable prices.

The protest is denied.

Digest

Protest challenging agency's decision not to set aside a procurement for small business concerns is denied where the agency reasonably concluded from its market research that it did not have a reasonable expectation of receiving offers from two or more small businesses capable of performing the required services at fair and reasonable prices.