Understanding and Mitigating Protests of Department of Defense Acquisition Contracts

Abstract

The defense acquisition process, which is governed by federal statutes, executive orders, administrative rules, and judicial rulings, includes opportunities for bidders to protest decisions, especially the final award, triggering a review and administrative hearing by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). In theory, the benefits of allowing protests include more competitive and accountable procurements. The costs of protests include the resources expended by the Department of Defense (DOD) and GAO in responding to legitimate and frivolous protests and delays in awarding and executing contracts. Delays have consequences for both the costs of the contract, defense policy, and national security. This report outlines research on the defense acquisitions process, focusing upon source selections and bid protests, to identify potential improvements.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 2010
Accession Number
ADA564891

Entities

People

  • G. F. Thompson
  • Steven M. Maser

Organizations

  • Willamette University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Engineered Resilient Systems
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Business Administration
  • Congress
  • Contracts
  • Department Of Defense
  • Employment
  • Government Procurement
  • Governments
  • Law
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Acquisition
  • National Governments
  • National Security
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Public Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Systems Engineering

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • Government Contracting/Procurement.