5. CHANGED REQUIREMENTS AND SOLICITATION AMENDMENTS 
Overview of This Protest Ground: This protest ground is primarily filed post-award by disappointed offerors that believe the government’s requirement materially changed before the award date. The regulatory basis for this protest ground is found at FAR § 15.206(a), which states: “When, either before or after receipt of proposals, the Government changes its requirements or terms and conditions, the contracting officer shall amend the solicitation.” The GAO correctly interprets that section as mandating the amendment of a solicitation when there is a “material” change to the government’s requirements.
COFC’s Key Language
Regarding amendments, FAR § 15.206(a) states that “[w]hen, either before or after the receipt of proposals, the government changes its requirements or terms and conditions, the contracting officer shall amend the solicitation.” Numerous cases indicate that this provision may—indeed, must—be invoked where “after a solicitation is issued, [the agency] determines that a noncompliant proposal represents the best value to the Government.” Beta Analytics, 44 Fed. Cl. at 139; see also MVM Inc. v. United States, 46 Fed. Cl. 126, 131-32 (2000); Candle Corp. v. United States, 40 Fed. Cl. 658, 663 (1998). Amendments under this provision may also be appropriate “to avoid award decisions not based on the agency’s most current view of its needs.” Indeed, most cases in which agencies have run afoul of this FAR provision involve situations in which evaluation requirements were changed without the requisite formal amendment.
EP Prods., Inc. v. United States, 63 Fed. Cl. 220 (2005).
GAO’s Key Language
Where an agency’s requirements materially change after a solicitation has been issued, it must issue an amendment to notify offerors of the changed requirements and afford them an opportunity to respond. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) § 15.206(a). Amending the solicitation provides offerors an opportunity to submit revised proposals on a common basis that reflects the agency’s actual needs. Where an agency’s estimates for the amount of work to be ordered under an ID/IQ contract changes significantly, prior to award, the agency must amend the solicitation and provide offerors an opportunity to submit revised proposals.
Global Compute Enterprises, Inc., Savantage Financial Services, Inc., B-404597, B-404597.2, B-404597.3, March 9, 2011.
Generally, where an agency’s requirements change after a solicitation has been issued, it must issue an amendment to notify offerors of the changed requirements and afford them an opportunity to respond. FAR § 15.206(a). The object of the requirement is to avoid award decisions not based on the agency’s most current view of its minimum needs. One circumstance requiring the issuance of an amendment is a significant change in the government’s estimate of the quantity it expects to order.
Murray-Benjamin Electric Company, L.P., B-400255, Aug. 7, 2008.
FAR Crosswalk: FAR § 15.206(a).
Other Relevant Cases: See page 294 in the Index of Representative Cases.
Commentary: Although there are many scenarios in which the government’s requirements change prior to award, a common (and somewhat avoidable) situation occurs when the agency takes an extraordinarily long time to evaluate proposals. Since requirements often change with time, an agency that takes an exceedingly long time to evaluate competing proposals risks a protest on this ground. Given the use of the word “shall” (and general lack of further context) in FAR § 15.206(a), a disappointed offeror can file a protest on this ground arguing that the agency’s needs materially changed during the lengthy evaluation period and therefore the agency was required to issue an amendment as opposed to forging ahead with an award. If this assertion is supported by the facts, the protester could undo the source selection and get another bite at the apple. This is not an uncommon result. Contracting officers should coordinate with the requiring office to minimize delays in source selections to the extent possible.