Penalties for “Unwarranted” GAO Protests?

Protests, 2001-2007(click to view full) In “General bemoans glut of Air Force contract protests“, Government Executive magazine quotes Gen. Bruce Carlson, the commander of US Air Force Material Command [link added by DID]: “[he said] that the contract for the huge airborne tanker program will be awarded by the end of this month, but he also expressed confidence that the protest against the decision already has been written. The reason… is that there are no penalties for a losing bidder to protest, even though the appeals delay vital acquisition programs and cost the military hundreds of millions of dollars. The protest of the November 2006 decision on the Air Force’s new combat search and rescue helicopter, won by the Boeing CH-47, has cost the Air Force $800 million, Carlson said… The general told reporters at a forum sponsored by Aviation Week that there should be some form of penalty instituted for protests that are found to be unwarranted. He said that some losing bidders file protests with 20 or 30 elements when perhaps only one part has any foundation…” The general is correct concerning the costs, and some US Government Accountability Office protests do appear to cross the line between […]