Award: Evaluation, Negotiation, and Contract Formation
Evaluation architecture
Evaluation factors, their relative importance, and the rating method belong in Section M before proposals arrive. Best-value tradeoff (FAR 15.101-1) lets the government pay a premium for superior non-price value. Lowest price technically acceptable (FAR 15.101-2) is proper only when requirements are clearly defined, minimums are objective, and the government would not pay more for better performance.
Exchanges and discussions
- Clarifications (FAR 15.306(a)): limited to minor or clerical errors; they may not cure a proposal deficiency or change price or technical content.
- Communications and discussions: once discussions open with any offeror in the competitive range, they must be held with all of them, and each must have the opportunity to revise its proposal.
- Award without discussions is permitted only if the solicitation says so.
Price and cost
Establish price reasonableness through adequate price competition, catalog or market prices, or comparison with the IGE. Certified cost or pricing data is required above $2 million unless an exception applies (adequate price competition, commercial item, modification of a catalog item, or waiver). Cost analysis examines elements of proposed cost and is mandatory when price analysis alone is insufficient.
Responsibility and negotiation
Responsibility (FAR 9.104) is a separate gate: a technically superior offeror can still be ineligible for lack of financial capacity, integrity, or facilities. Negotiation aims at a fair and reasonable price documented in a price negotiation memorandum; simply demanding a percentage discount is not negotiation.
Protests and debriefing
GAO protests generally must be filed within 10 days of knowing the basis; a required debriefing can extend that window, and a timely protest may stay performance.
Rule of thumb
If you can write objective minimum requirements that all acceptable offerors would meet equally well, LPTA is defensible; if quality differences matter and the minimum is hard to pin down, use a tradeoff.