GAO Ruling Backs Set-Asides on Task Orders The Government Accountability Office has ruled that task and delivery orders must be set aside for small businesses under the Rule of Two. For the first time, GAO exercised new authority granted by Congress to decide protests on task and delivery orders worth more than $10 million under multiple award contracts. It ruled that those orders are subject to the same set-aside requirements as any other contract: That is, if two small firms are ready and able to do the work at a reasonable price, the order must be set aside. The decision could open substantial new opportunities for small firms, since task and delivery orders now account for more than half of federal procurement dollars. It also underscores the vital need for small companies to win places on multiple award contracts. In the 2008 Defense Authorization Act, Congress granted GAO authority over task and delivery order protests. Some government and industry officials fear an avalanche of protests that will slow procurement. This protest grew out of a solicitation issued by the Navy under its training systems contract (TSC) II, a multiple award contract. Delex Systems Inc., a small business on that contract, contended the order should have been set aside, but the Navy argued that the Rule of Two does not apply to task and delivery orders. GAO ruled, “The set-aside provisions of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) sect. 19.502-2(b) apply to competitions for task and delivery orders issued under multiple-award contracts.” The case is B-400403, Delex Systems Inc.