The Value of Bid Protests

Daniel Gordon, President Obama's nominee to head the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, has commented on the delays that are often caused by bid protests. However, he goes on to state the following:

"More troubling is the phenomenon where disappointed bidders are deterred from protesting by fear that the contracting agency will retaliate against protesting vendors in competitions for further contracts. Concern that disappointed bidders may be unwilling to protest weighs in favor of providing due process and ensuring that the protest forum is seen to be fair and to be willing and able to provide meaningful relief, and that protesters will not be subject to retaliation."

"Bid protests play a central role in protecting the integrity of the procurement system. Neglecting, or crippling, an effective protest system will lead to a loss of transparency, and the shared experience of many procurement systems is that when transparency is decreased, corruption and related problems increase."