Government Accountability Office (GAO)

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the US Congress's independent, nonpartisan auditing and investigative agency that provides oversight of federal spending, evaluates program effectiveness, and adjudicates bid protests filed by contractors challenging the propriety of federal contract award decisions.

What is the GAO?

The GAO was established in 1921 as the General Accounting Office (renamed Government Accountability Office in 2004) to provide Congress with independent information about how the executive branch manages taxpayer money. The Comptroller General of the United States leads the GAO, which employs approximately 3,000 analysts, auditors, lawyers, economists, and information technology specialists across headquarters and field offices.

For federal contractors, the GAO's most operationally relevant function is bid protest adjudication. GAO has statutory authority under the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) to consider and decide bid protests by interested parties - companies that believe a federal contract award was made in violation of procurement law or regulation. A GAO protest must be filed within 10 days of the basis of protest arising (or 10 days after a required debriefing), GAO has 100 days to issue a decision, and a filed protest typically triggers an automatic stay of contract performance pending the decision.

GAO publishes all bid protest decisions publicly at gao.gov, creating a publicly searchable body of procurement law that is invaluable to contractors studying the legal standards agencies must follow in source selections. These published decisions contain evaluator comments, strengths and weaknesses assessments, and explanations of the legal standards that govern evaluation criteria, competitive range determinations, and discussions with offerors - information that competitors use to improve future proposals. Read how to file a GAO bid protest for a complete procedural guide.

Why GAO matters for government contractors

GAO bid protests are the most accessible dispute resolution mechanism for contractors who believe they were unfairly evaluated. The process is less expensive than federal court litigation, has a definitive 100-day timeline, and results in public decisions that are binding on the procuring agency. GAO sustains approximately 15 to 20 percent of the protests it decides - a rate that underscores that agencies do make evaluation errors that are worth challenging. Beyond protests, GAO audit reports on agency procurement programs frequently drive policy changes that affect the entire contracting landscape.

Example

A professional services firm submits a proposal for a HHS contract and receives an award notification indicating it was not selected. After requesting a debriefing, the firm learns that the agency rated its technical approach as "Acceptable" while awarding to a competitor with a "Good" rating. The firm's proposal manager reviews the solicitation's Section M evaluation criteria and identifies that the agency appears to have evaluated factors not disclosed in the solicitation - a potential evaluation error. The firm files a GAO protest within 10 days of the debriefing, arguing that the agency conducted a flawed evaluation. GAO sustains the protest after 95 days, finding that the agency evaluated undisclosed subfactors. GAO recommends that the agency reevaluate proposals consistent with the solicitation's stated criteria. The agency reevaluates and selects the protesting firm.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does filing a GAO bid protest cost?

There is no filing fee to submit a GAO bid protest. The cost of a protest is primarily the attorney fees for legal representation in the process, which typically range from $30,000 to $150,000 or more for a fully litigated protest depending on complexity. Some contractors self-represent in simple protests, though the technical procurement law arguments involved usually benefit from experienced legal counsel. If a protest is sustained, the contractor may request reimbursement of reasonable protest costs from the agency.

What happens if GAO sustains a protest?

If GAO sustains a protest, it recommends corrective action to the procuring agency. Common recommendations include: reevaluating proposals under the correct criteria, conducting discussions with offerors before a new award, amending the solicitation and requesting revised proposals, or in rare cases canceling the solicitation entirely. The agency has discretion to comply or override the recommendation with a written finding that doing so is not in the public interest, though overrides are rare. GAO monitors agency compliance with its recommendations.

How is a GAO protest different from an agency-level protest?

An agency-level protest is filed directly with the procuring agency, which then reviews and adjudicates its own procurement decision. Agency-level protests must typically be filed before award (for pre-award issues) or within 10 days of award (post-award). They are less formal than GAO protests, often decided by the same agency that made the challenged decision, and do not impose automatic stays. GAO protests are filed with an independent body (GAO) and typically impose an automatic CICA stay. Contractors sometimes file agency-level protests for speed or as a precursor to GAO protest, but GAO is the preferred forum for most significant protests.

Can a GAO protest decision be appealed?

GAO decisions are not appealable within the GAO system. However, a party dissatisfied with a GAO decision can file a protest at the US Court of Federal Claims (COFC), which conducts its own de novo review of the procurement record. COFC litigation is substantially more expensive than GAO protest proceedings and is generally reserved for protests involving very large contract values or significant legal questions where GAO's decision is believed to be clearly erroneous.