Stale offer?

The agency can hold the offeror to its stale data only so long as the offeror agrees to be held. The offeror is under no obligation to further extend the validity of its offer. Likewise, the agency is not obligated to allow offerors to revise proposals. It appears that the agency in this case has been successful it getting extensions of offers. When it is no longer successful, there will be a decision point - either (1) allow for revisions, (2) award before expiration of offers, or (3) cancel and re-solicit.

I would refer to FAR 15.307 Proposal revisions.

FAR 15.307 presumes discussions are taking place, but if the agency has been requesting offerors to extend the validity of their offers, then either discussions never took place, or they have long been completed, and it's the validity of the final proposal revisions that is being confirmed.

For nearly two years since an offeror submitted its offer, the agency has periodically requested that the offeror confirm that its offer remains available. And the offeor has so confirmed. Now that a significant length of time since passed since the offer was submitted, the offeror would like to update its offer with revised information, especially past performance data.

Is offeror ever able to revise its offer with new data? How long can the agency continue to hold the offeror to this stale data?

Thanks in advance.

www

I agree with the others. But, why would you consider allowing a revision to past performance data or other information from a proposer? Would such a revision possibly make a difference in who the successful offeror is? Or is there only one offeror? If there is only one offeror, why would you need updated past performance data or other information? Your psot only refers to one proposer...

But what about from the perspective of the offeror? Is it unfair to the offeror that its offer will be judge using very old data? What if the offeror has had significant experience in the last two years that would make the past performance section of its offer far more competitive?

Does their ever come a time when the agency just has to issue a new RFP and accept new bids?

Thanks,

www

It strikes me as absurd to ask offerors to extend the period of acceptance of their offers for two years beyond the original deadline. I suppose that there could be a valid reason, but I cannot think of what it might be. So many things can change in the fortunes of a company, an industry, a market, and an economy in the course of two years that to expect stasis over such a period makes little business sense.

I suspect that it takes so much work for the agency to plan and issue a solicitation that they just don't want to have to go through that again. If that is the case, then you are dealing with simple incompetence.

A small company is in a situation where it was fairly new when it submitted its offer 2+ years ago under a solicitation in which it was competing against multiple, more established bidders. The CO has continued to extend out the decision date, asking the offerors to confirm that their offers are still available. In that time, the client has improved its corporate capabilities, management capabilities, and has more/better past performance reports. The "snapshot" of the company encapsulated in its offer 2+ years ago does not reflect the company's current capabilities. The agency, at this point, cannot make a rational decision regarding the company's abilitity to perform.

The small company does not want to annoy its potential client, so it is cooperating for now. At some point, when the absurdity becomes too obvious to ignore, can the small company file a pre-award protest on grounds that any evaluation and selection, at this point, will be arbitrary and capricious? If not, any other grounds?

Doctor John,

before filing a protest,

send the CO a letter, explaining what you just said.