in accordance with the procedures contained in Title 7, Chapter 5200, GAO Policy and Procedures Manual.

(b) Title 44, U.S.C., 321 prohibits advertising in any newspaper published and printed in the District of Columbia unless the supplies or labor to be secured are to be furnished or performed in the District of Columbia or in the adjoining counties of Maryland and Virginia.

§ 2–2.203–4 Synopsis of invitations for bids.

Synopsis of invitations for bids shall be prepared and publicized in the Commerce Business Daily in accordance with § 1-1.1003 of this title and Subpart 2-1.10 of this chapter.

§ 2-2.205 Bidders mailing lists.
§ 2-2.205-1 Establishment of lists.

(a) Firms, other than local suppliers, applying to be placed on the bidders' mailing list of a procurement office shall be briefed on the procurement programs of the various procurement offices throughout the Agency. If a firm indicates an interest in being placed on the bidders' list of certain other Agency procurement offices, the office receiving the "Bidders Mailing List Application," SF129 shall send copies of the form to the selected offices with an appropriate covering memorandum. The selected offices shall acknowledge receipt of the application by letter to the bidder with a copy to the initiating office.

(b) Developing the source list for a procurement requires the coordinated effort of contracting, technical, and other personnel-all of whom share responsibility for the final results of the procurement. Procurement requests may include a list of sources recommended for solicitation by the initiator based on the following considerations: (1) The availability and capability of physical resources and techincal, engineering, or production personnel; (2) past performance or experience in a given area or with a particular item or product line; and (3) available production capacity.

(c) The contracting officer may accept the initiator's suggested sources as technically qualified to bid. Or, he may ask the initiator to provide supporting data when (1) he has good reason to question a firm's qualifications, or (2) a suggested firm has not previously worked on a FAA procurement. Generally, the contracting officer or the assigned contract specialist reviews the list to ascertain

whether the recommended sources are qualified to perform the work. Next and very important since the procurement request should permit the broadest possible competition consistent with the nature of the proceurement, he must make sure that the list of recommended sources is not restrictive. For instance, the contracting officer must require the initiator to justify any suggested single-source or limited source solicitation. Finally, the contracting officer must be satisfied that the list fully considers other Government policies and regulations governing the solicitation of sources. These include the Small Business and Laobr Surplus Area Programs.

(d) The contracting officer may wish to add to the list of recommended sources on the procurement request. To do this, he can refer to the bidders mailing list and, as appropriate, trade directories. On the other hand, the contracting officers may wish to remove sources from the recommended list. He may, for instance, have information on a proposed source that was not available to the initiating activity. However, he must have good reasons for doing so. This applies to deletion of a proposed source at the suggestion of any FAA activity. § 2-2.205-5

lists.

Release of bidders mailing

§ 2-2.250 § 2-2.250-1

Discussions with bidders.

Discussions with bidders

prior to opening date.

(a) One of the essential elements of formal advertising is that all bidders are afforded an equal oportunity to compete. For this reason, during the interval between the mailing of invitations for bids and the making of awards, discussion of the procurement with prospective bidders will be conducted only by or with the knowledge of the contracting officer.

(b) If discussions with prospective bidders reveal any ambiguities or inconsistencies in the invitation which, if not corrected, may result in the receipt of nonresponsive bids such ambiguities or inconsistencies will be corrected by issuing prior to the opening date a timely amendment to the invitation for bids, or by cancelling as appropriate. § 2-2.250-2 Prebid conference.

The prebid conference is a procedure which may be used, generally in complex procurements, as a means of briefing prospective bidders (e.g., where procurements which were formerly negotiated are to be formally advertised) and explaining complicated specifications and requirements to them as early as possible after the invitation has been issued and before the bids are opened. Since the invitation itself must be sufficiently clear and complete to insure that bidders are bidding on the same basis, the need for this procedure should be rare. The prebid conference shall never be used as a substitute for amending a defective or ambiguous invitation, and may be used only when approved by the head of the procuring activity. It shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures prescribed in § 2-3.504 of this chapter. Subpart 2-2.3-Submission of Bids § 2–2.301 Responsiveness of bids.

Where a bid does not appear to comply with all of the terms of the solicitation, the matter should be referred to counsel for advice as to whether the bid is nonresponsive. Nonresponsive bids must be rejected.

§ 2-2.302 Time of bid submission.

Where a telegraphic bid is received by telephone under circumstances described in § 1-2.302 of this title, the identity of the telegraphic employee telephoning the message shall be obtained and recorded in the invitation file.

§ 2-2.303 Late bids. § 2-2.303-1 General.

The bidder must make sure that his bid reaches the designated office before the exact time fixed for the opening. Bids received after that time are late bids, which may be considered under conditions prescribed in § 1-2.303 of this title and in this § 2-2.303.

§ 2-2.303-2 Consideration for award.

Late bids which are mailed by registered or certified mail or late telegraphic bids, may be considered only if received prior to award and if failure to arrive on time was solely because of:

(a) A delay in the mail for which the bidder was not responsible.

(b) A delay by the telegraph company (when telegraphed bids are authorized) for which the bidder was not responsible. (c) Mishandling by the Government at the receiving activtiy.

§ 2-2.303-3 Mailed bids.

(a) Several presumptions apply in determining the time a late bid was mailed. In each case, the presumption can be rebutted only by evidence presented by the bidder. First, when the postmark on a bid sent by registered mail does not show the hour of mailing, the time of mailing is deemed to be the last minute of the date shown. Second, if no date is shown, it is presumed the bid was mailed too late. Third, if certified mail was used and a properly stamped receipt was obtained by the bidder but fails to show the hour of mailing, the first presumption above applies. However, if the post office station of mailing is indicated, then the time of mailing is presumed to be the last minute of the station's business day. If the certified mail postmark does not show a date, the second presumption above applies.

(b) When the time of delivery to the Government installation is at issue, the purchasing activity must consult the postmaster, superintendent of mails, or someone with authority at the post office that serves the installation. Information about the normal time for mail delivery to the installation should be obtained. When time permits, this information should be in writing.

§ 2-2.303-4 Telegraphic bids.

If a bid sent by wire is received after bid opening, it may be presumed that it was filed too late with the telegraph company. This rule prevails unless the bid

der can show plainly that the bid was filed in time to have been delivered before opening. This evidence must be supported by a statement from an authorized telegraph company official. § 2-2.303-5 Hand-carried bids.

A late bid that was not sent by registered or certified mail or by wire, if authorized (for example a hand-carried bid) cannot be considered for award. § 2-2.303-6 Notification to late bidders. If the contracting officer decides that a late bid cannot be considered for award, he should so inform the bidder. Section 1-2.303-6 of this title provides the proper form for this notice. (The wording of the form must be appropriately modified for telegraphic bids.)

The contracting offices must record the handling of each late bid received. This record should include:

(a) The date and hour of mailing, filing, or delivery.

(b) The date and hour of receipt.

(c) A statement of whether the late bid was considered for award and the facts supporting the decision.

(d) The disposition of the bid. (e) The envelope or other covering, if the bid was considered for award. Subpart 2-2.4-Opening of Bids and Award of Contract 82-2.401 Receipt and safeguarding of bids.

(a) All bids, modifications thereto, and bid samples received in response to invitations will be received and safeguarded by the appropriate procurement office in a secure location until the time prescribed for opening.

(b) Bid custodians, and alternates as necessary, will be designated by each procurement activity to conduct the functions involved in the receipt, custody, and recording and handling of bids.

(c) Incoming bids shall be handled as follows:

(1) Upon initial receipt of a bid (or any modification thereto) it will be immediately time-stamped (or be otherwise marked to indicate the place, date, and time of receipt), and then shall be placed in a secure location by the bid custodian.

(2) Bids received in unidentified or unsealed envelopes and bids opened by mistake will be handled as prescribed in § 1-2.401(b) of this title.

(3) All telegraphic bids and modifications will be sealed in envelopes immediately upon receipt, identified, and handled in the same manner as other bids. § 2-2.402 Opening of bids.

(a) The general procedures for opening bids are set forth in § 1-2.402 of this title. The bid-opening officer decides when the time set for bid opening has arrived. He announces it to those assembled for the opening. The bidopening officer then publicly opens each bid that was received before his announcement. When it is practical to do so, he reads the bids aloud and has them recorded as prescribed in § 2-2.403.

(b) If it does not interfere with Government business, interested persons should be allowed to examine the bids. Second copies of the bids, if submitted, should be used for this purpose. The original bids should remain in the hands of the Government official. If there is no duplicate bid, the original copy may be examined, but under adequate Government supervision to insure that the bid is not changed in any way. As regards examination of descriptive literature accompanying bids, by competitive bidders, refer to § 1-2.404-4 of this title. § 2-2.403 Recording of bids.

An abstract of bids will be prepared on FAA Form 275, "Abstract of Bids (Procurement)," for each IFB as soon as practicable after bids have been opened or as soon as it is decided to cancel the invitation before opening of bids. The abstract will set forth all qualifications to the IFB made by bidders and included in their bid. As soon as practicable after bid opening a preliminary abstract of bids will be made available for public examination in the procurement office or other appropriate location. The preliminary abstract will be replaced by the abstract prepared when award has been made or bids have been rejected.

§ 2-2.404 Rejection of bids. § 2-2.404-1 Cancellation of invitation after opening.

Invitations should not be canceled after bids are opened unless there is a compelling reason for doing so. Every effort should be made to preserve the solicitation. Thus, for an increased requirement, it is generally in the Government's interest to award on the existing invitation and process the increase as a new procurement.

§ 2-2.406 Mistakes in bids.

§ 2-2.406-3 Other mistakes disclosed before award.

(a) The Chief, Procurement Policy and Standards Division, Installation and Materiel Service, IM-600, Federal Aviation Agency, Washington (or any one acting in that position), is the designated central authority to make the determinations set forth in § 1-2.406-3 of this title.

(b) Cases referred to the Chief, IM600, shall be accompanied by the data prescribed in § 1-2.406-3(d) (3) of this title.

(c) When a determination has been made by the Chief, IM-600, the signed original will be forwarded to the contracting officer. All supporting documents submitted by the contracting officer, except his written statement will be returned to him. The contracting officer shall withhold award action until he has received the signed determination or official notice thereof.

(d) Cases considered doubtful by the contracting officer shall be referred to the Chief, IM-600, who will take appropriate action either to make a determination or to prepare a submittal over his signature to the Comptroller General.

(e) Where a case clearly must be submitted to the Comptroller General for decision (either pursuant to a specific request from the contractor or because the case does not fall within the criteria set forth in § 1-2.406-3 of this title) it may, if urgent, be submitted directly to the Comptroller General by the contracting officer. The submittal shall be forwarded through Agency legal personnel for this coordination and shall be accompanied by substantially the same data as cited in paragraph (b) of this section. A copy of the submittal letter shall be sent to the Chief, IM-600. If urgency is not a factor, the case shall be

referred to the Chief, IM-600 for submission by him to the Comptroller General.

§ 2-2.406-4 Disclosure of mistakes after award.

(a) Agency contracting offcers are authorized to correct mistakes in the kinds of cases contemplated in § 1-2.406-4(a) of this title.

(b) The Chief, Procurement Policy and Standards Division, Installation and Materiel Service, Federal Aviation Agency, Washington (or anyone acting in that position), is the designated central authority to make the determinations set forth in § 1-2.406-4(b) of this title.

(c) Cases referred to the Chief, IM600, shall be accompanied by the data prescribed in § 1-2.406-4(f) (2) of this title.

(d) When a determination has been made by the Chief, IM-600, the signed original will be forwarded to the contracting officer. All supporting documents submitted by the contracting officer, except his written statement, will be returned to him. Upon receipt of the signed determination, the contracting officer shall take appropriate action to rescind or reform the contract, or to notify the contractor that the award will stand as made.

(e) Where administrative determination is precluded by the limitations set forth in § 1-2.406-4 of this title, or where the contractor has specifically requested review by the Comptroller General, the case shall be referred to the Chief, IM600, who will prepare a submittal from the Administrator to the Comptroller General. The submittal shall be forwarded through the Office of the General Counsel for their coordination.

§ 2-2.407 Award.

§ 2-2.407-3 Discounts.

The discounts clause of the Bidding Instructions, Terms, and Conditions (Supply Contract) (Standard Form 33-A) establishes 20 calendar days as the minimum period for prompt payment discounts to be considered for bid evaluation unless otherwise specified in the invitation for bids. Prior to issuing an invitation for bids (except for construction), a determination shall be made as to whether the 20-calendar-day minimum period of prompt payment of discounts is appropriate. If a minimum

days where delivery and accept

ance are point of origin or

(b)

days where delivery and acceptance are at destination.

The offered discounts of a successful bidder will form a part of the award whether or not such discount was considered in the evaluation of his bid and such discount will be taken if payment is made within the discount period.

§ 2-2.407-5 Other factors to be considered.

(a) Multiple awards. Advantages or disadvantages to the Government that might result from making multiple awards will be considered if the Multiple Award Evaluation clause specified in § 2-2.201 was included in the invitation.

(b) Reasonableness of bid prices. (1) Assurance shall be secured that the prices to be paid are fair and reasonable on the basis of valid criteria such as, but not limited to, (i) previous prices paid for similar items, (ii) independent Government estimates, (iii) current prices paid by other Government purchasing offices, or (iv) appropriate catalog prices, etc. The contract file shall be documented to show the actions taken in determining the reasonableness of the bid prices. (2) When the review performed pursuant to subparagraph (1) of this paragraph shows the bid prices to be unreasonable, the contracting officer shall cancel the invitation pursuant to § 12.404 of this title, and the procurement shall be (i) readvertised or (ii) negotiated under § 1-3.214 of this title. § 2-2.407-7 Statement and certificate of award.

For each contract made by formal advertising, Standard Form 1036 shall be prepared and executed by the contracting officer.

§ 2-2.407-8 Protests against award.

(a) Where a protest affects another bidder, a contractor, or any other party having a legitimate interest, the contracting officer shall, if he deems it necessary, give prompt notice of the protest to such parties so that they may take appropriate action on their own behalf. The extent and nature of the information to be furnished the affected parties will require the exercise of prudent judgment and will be determined by the particular aspects involved in the specific case. These aspects may include, but are not limited to, legal considerations, equitable consideration of the interests of the affected parties, mitigation of losses or other injuries to any and all parties concerned, and the interests of the Government. The recipients of such notice of protest shall be advised that the notice is primarily intended to afford them an opportunity to present pertinent comment for consideration of the Agency and that it in no way relieves them of any obligations, under contract or otherwise.

a

(b) Where it is known that a protest against the making of an award has been made directly with the Comptroller General or other level of authority above that of the head of the procuring activity and a determination is made to make award under § 1-2.407-8(b)(3) of this title, the determination shall be approved by the head of the procuring activity. The notice of intent to make award required by § 1-3.407-8(b) (2) of this title shall be submitted to the Comptroller General over the signature of the head of the procuring activity.

(c) Where a protest is submitted to the Comptroller General by the Agency for resolution, the file shall contain a statement signed by the contracting officer setting forth his findings, actions, and recommendations. If a contract award was made pending resolution of the protest, the statement shall include the determination made under § 12.407-8(b) (3) of this title. The file shall include the following documentation, as appropriate or applicable:

(1) Copy of the invitation for bid; (2) Copy of abstract of bids received; (3) Copy of the low bid or copy of the bid of the successful bidder to whom award is proposed to be made;

(4) Copy of bid submitted by protester, if any, with his written statement