FS Federal, LLC (B-423450.2)

You should not care.

Category: Technical evaluation

Date: 17 July 2025

URL: https://www.gao.gov/products/b-423450.2

FS Federal, LLC, protested the US Army’s award of a fixed-price contract to Vistra Communications, LLC, for public affairs support services. The Army conducted the procurement using a lowest priced, technically acceptable (LPTA) methodology. FS Federal argued the Army unreasonably found its proposal technically unacceptable and ignored responsive information and misevaluated its approach to meeting several requirements in the PWS.

The core of the dispute revolved around the level of detail in FS Federal's proposal. The RFP explicitly warned offerors that they must "provide convincing rationale to address how the offeror intends to meet these requirements" and that simply restating the PWS or making "will comply" statements would be considered unacceptable.

GAO found the Army’s evaluation was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation. For multiple PWS requirements—including weekend media reporting, developing communication playbooks, creating the "Army 101 Brief," and managing exhibits—GAO agreed that FS Federal’s proposal failed to explain how it would perform the tasks. Instead, the proposal relied on broad statements and promises to perform, which the RFP directly prohibited. For example, the proposal stated it "will produce quarterly Communication Playbooks" but did not describe its process for developing them. GAO reiterated that it is an offeror's responsibility to submit a well written proposal with sufficient detail for the agency to evaluate, and agencies are not required to conduct a "scavenger hunt" for information.

Protest denied.

Digest

Protest that the agency unreasonably evaluated protester's proposal is denied where the record shows that the evaluation was consistent with the terms of the solicitation.