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Federal Market Intelligence for Small Business |
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Set-Aside Alert news analysis:DHS halts $1.5B small biz contractThe Homeland Security Department abruptly canceled its $1.5 billion small business contract for agile services, saying that the procurement was so flawed that the awards made to date could not be justified. The agency had made nine awards for the Flexible Agile Support for the Homeland (FLASH) contract, and several protests were filed. On May 26, DHS filed a “motion to dismiss” with the Government Accountability Office, asking that the current protests be dismissed for the reason that the entire procurement was being withdrawn. “DHS has determined that it is in the best interest of the government to cancel the requirement because it no longer represents DHS’ needs and the record does not adequately support the award determinations that were made,” the DHS letter to GAO stated. “DHS recognizes that there are significant errors and missteps in the procurement process,” the letter added. DHS said the price and evaluation criteria and ratings did not permit reasonable evaluations. The evaluations were so flawed that they may have resulted in unequal treatment of the offerors’ weaknesses and risks, DHS attorneys wrote in the letter. The department also identified shortcomings in the price evaluations report and best value tradeoff analyses, saying that they do not adequately support the award decisions. While normally DHS would consider reevaluations, in this case the documents in the record--including video evaluations--are of uneven quality and not suitable for a reevaluation, the letter added. In addition, DHS said it has determined that major changes would need to be made to the contract to meet DHS’ evolving needs. “Through the process of awarding FLASH, DHS has learned more about its needs and the ways that FLASH does not meet them. The FLASH requirements, while extensive, do not include services that DHS now sees as critical components,” the DHS letter stated. For DHS to admit to extensive problems with the procurement, and also to acknowledge that the procurement no longer meets its requirements, is unusual. It is not clear whether the department would move forward on another agile services contract to replace FLASH, or whether the problems are a one-off or a sign of broader concerns. The letter from DHS to the GAO was obtained and published by FedNewsRadio. More information: DHS letter: http://goo.gl/jdvooH
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