GAO decisions/Sustained/Decided 18 Feb 2026
Effective Communication Strategies, LLC
Unreasonably short time to respond to amendments
The procurement
Replacement appliances (microwaves, dehumidifiers and a refrigerator-freezer) for Navy installations, bought under FAR subpart 12.6 streamlined procedures and part 13 simplified procedures on a lowest-priced, technically acceptable basis. Export 220Volt, Inc. won at $2,039,912; ECS's final quotation was $2,103,073.
The protest
Late in the competition the Corps issued a string of amendments and technical revision notices that changed the refrigerator-freezer requirements, several over a weekend, with response windows from a few hours down to less than one hour. ECS, which buys rather than manufactures the appliances, argued it could not identify and source a compliant model in that time, and its final quotation was rated technically unacceptable.
The agency’s answer
The Corps said the response times were sufficient and reasonable because the changes the amendments required were minor, were directed to only one product, and came with technical revision notices that told vendors the exact problems with their quotations.
What decided it
Material changes to a product vendors had to source, with deadlines under an hour, didn't give a reasonable chance to respond.
GAO found the Corps's requirements underwent rapid and material changes from Friday afternoon through Monday morning, including an amendment issued on Sunday with less than one hour to respond, and that vendors buying rather than manufacturing the product needed time to find a compliant source. It rejected the argument that the changes were minor, and also found the time allowed to answer technical revisions unreasonable. GAO recommended amending the RFQ to allow revised quotations, reconsidering whether the requirements reflect the agency's needs, making a new award decision, and reimbursing ECS's protest costs.
“The agency then subsequently made material revisions to its requirements when it issued amendment 0008 on Sunday and provided vendors less than one hour to respond to the amendment with a revised quotation.”
GAO, B-423993
For the file: Simplified procedures don't excuse deadlines vendors can't meet. If an amendment changes which products can comply, give resellers time to find and price one, and don't run the clock over a weekend.
Authorities: FAR 5.203(b); FAR 13.003(h)(2). Read the decision at GAO →
Facts are condensed from the published decision and the quote is verbatim; the takeaway is ours. Where GAO decided several grounds, only this one is described.
Could you have called it?
Protest! is the daily game: three real GAO decisions, both sides laid out. Rule sustain, deny or dismiss, then pick what decided it.
Play today’s Protest!