The Government Accountability Office reported that the total number of protests filed with the agency to dispute federal contract awards hit 2,596 in fiscal year 2017, a figure that represents a 7 percent decline over the 2,789 recorded in the previous fiscal year.
GAO told congressional committees in a report published Monday that contractors filed 2,433 bid protests, 86 reconsideration requests and 77 cost claims in FY 2017.
The agency closed 2,672 bid protest cases and 256 of those cases were associated with the congressional watchdog’s jurisdiction over task orders, the report said.
GAO said it sustained 17 percent of the total bid protests in the past fiscal year due to several reasons such as “unreasonable†technical assessment and cost evaluation as well as inadequate documentation and flawed selection decision.
