Writing bids and proposals for Federal procurements requires a great deal of careful attention.

Before you begin to prepare an offer - and again before submitting the bid - it is very important to closely study the description of the requirement to be sure that you can meet the government's needs. Particular attention should be given to the instructions of the requesting agency and to conditions of purchase, delivery, and payment.

When determining the amount of the offer, be especially careful to include all costs of material, labor, overhead, packaging, and transportation. And be sure to comply with other important provisions of the solicitation, such as properly tagging, marking and mailing any required samples well in advance of the due date.

The Federal Supply Service offers training sessions on "How to Prepare a Quality Offer." Details regarding these sessions are available here.

More information on training is available at your local GSA Business Service Center and Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC).

Unsuccessful Proposals
Each proposal is evaluated in detail before a contract is awarded. If your company was not awarded the contract, you may ask the contracting officer for a debriefing, in person or by phone, to discuss why your company did not receive the award and find out how you may improve in the future. Many business owners have found this constructive criticism to be the key to successfully responding to future contract solicitations.

       Certificate of Competency
A small business may not receive a Federal Government contract even if it is the lowest bidder. A contracting officer who determines that the small business lacks certain elements of responsibility may propose to reject the bid. Elements of responsibility include competency, capability, capacity, credit, integrity, perseverance, and tenacity. SBA is authorized by law to certify a small business with regard to any of these elements. If a contracting officer rejects or proposes to reject a bid of a responsive small business on any of the elements of responsibility, the case is referred to SBA. The small business is notified of this decision by SBA and given the opportunity to apply for a certificate of competency (COC). To establish responsibility, the bidder must furnish data and documentation, which may include letters of credit, current financial status, supplies or vendor quotations, or production plans. SBA will review the firm's application and, if it grants the COC, it is binding on the contracting officer. A COC is valid only for the specific contract for which it is issued.

       Protests with an Agency or with the General Accounting Office
Bidders who object to what they consider to be an improper award to another contractor have the right to file a protest against the award with the contracting officer. The protest must have a basis and it must be specific and timely. Contractors may file an initial verbal protest, but it must be followed up in writing.

The contracting officer will confirm, in writing, the telephone conversation with the protestor and advise her that she has a certain period of time, usually one week, to file the written complaint. Protests should generally be made before the contract award because, once made, the government rarely terminates a contract and issues a re-solicitation. The needs of the government for the product or service usually prevail. The protestor is notified in writing of the final decision on her protest. In addition to filing a protest with a contracting officer, the bidder can protest to the General Accounting Office. These are strict rules that must be followed in order for the protest to be timely. If not adhered to, the protest will be dismissed automatically.

A protest to GAO is initiated by filing a complete written protest addressed to General Counsel, General Accounting Office, Washington, DC 20548, Attention: Procurement Law Control Group. A copy of the protest must be filed with the contracting officer or the individual or location identified for that purpose in a solicitation within one day after filing with GAO.