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(4) The Administrator shall revise the Federal information resources management regulations (41 CFR ch. 201) to be consistent with the standards and guidelines promulgated by the Secretary of Commerce under this subsection.

(5) As used in this subsection, the terms "Federal computer system" and "operator of a Federal computer system" have the meanings given in section 20(d) of the National Bureau of Standards Act.

(e) The authority conferred upon the Administrator and the Secretary of Commerce by this section shall be exercised subject to direction by the President and to fiscal and policy control exercised by the Office of Management and Budget. Authority so conferred upon the Administrator shall not be so construed as to impair or interfere with the determination by agencies of their individual automatic data processing equipment requirements, including the development of specifications for and the selection of the types and configurations of equipment needed. The Administrator shall not interfere with, or attempt to control in any way, the use made of automatic data processing equipment or components thereof by any agency. The Administrator shall provide adequate notice to all agencies and other users concerned with respect to each proposed determination whether or not the automatic data processing equipment will be provided by the Administrator or whether or not the authority to lease, purchase, or maintain the equipment will be delegated. If the Administrator denies an agency procurement request such denial shall be subject to review and decision by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, unless the President otherwise directs. Such review and decision shall be made only on the basis of a written appeal, and such written appeal, together with any written communications to the Administrator or any officer or employee of the Office of Management and Budget concerning such denial shall be made available to the public.

(f)(1) Upon request of an interested party in connection with any procurement that is subject to this section (including any such procurement that is subject to delegation of procurement authority), the board of contract appeals of the General Services Administration (hereafter in this subsection referred to as the "board") shall review, as provided in this subsection, any decision by a contracting officer that is alleged to violate a statute, a regulation, or the conditions of a delegation of procurement authority. Such review shall be conducted under the standard applicable to review of contracting officer final decisions by boards of contract appeals. The authority of the board to conduct such review shall include the authority to determine whether any procurement is subject to this section and the authority to review regulations to determine their consistency with applicable statutes. A proceeding, decision, or order of the board pursuant to this subsection shall not be subject to interlocutory appeal or review. An interested party who has filed a protest under subchapter V of chapter 35 of title 31, United States Code, with respect to a procurement or proposed procurement may not file a protest with respect to that procurement or proposed procurement under this subsection.

(2)(A) When a protest under this subsection is filed before the award of a contract in a protested procurement, the board, at the

request of an interested party and within 10 days of the filing of the protest, shall hold a hearing to determine whether the board should suspend the procurement authority or the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority for the protested procurement on an interim basis until the board can decide the protest.

(B)(i) The board shall suspend the procurement authority of the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority unless the Federal agency concerned establishes that

(I) absent action by the board, contract award is likely to occur within 30 days of the hearing; and

(II) urgent and compelling circumstances which significantly affect interests of the United States will not permit waiting for the decision of the board.

(ii) A suspension under this subparagraph shall not preclude the Federal agency concerned from continuing the procurement process up to but not including award of the contract unless the board determines such action is not in the best interests of the United States.

(3)(A)(i) If, with respect to an award of a contract, the board receives notice of a protest under this subsection within the period described in clause (ii), the board shall, at the request of an interested party, hold a hearing to determine whether the board should suspend the procurement authority of the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority for the protested procurement on an interim basis until the board can decide the protest.

(ii) The period referred to in clause (i) is the period beginning on the date on which the contract is awarded and ending at the end of the later of

(I) the tenth day after the date of contract award; or

(II) the fifth day after the debriefing date offered to an unsuccessful offeror for any debriefing that is requested and, when requested, is required.

(iii) The board shall hold the requested hearing within 5 days after the date of the filing of the protest or, in the case of a request for debriefing under the provisions of section 2305(b)(5) of title 10, United States Code, or section 303B(e) of this Act, within 5 days after the later of the date of the filing of the protest or the date of the debriefing.

(B) The board shall suspend the procurement authority of the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority to acquire any goods or services under the contract which are not previously delivered and accepted unless the Federal agency concerned establishes that urgent and compelling circumstances which significantly affect interests of the United States will not permit waiting for the decision of the board.

(4)(A) The board shall conduct such proceedings and allow such discovery as may be required for the expeditious, fair, and reasonable resolution of the protest.

(B) Subject to any deadlines imposed by section 9(a) of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (41 U.S.C. 608(a)), the board shall give priority to protests filed under this subsection. The board shall issue its final decision within 65 days after the date of the filing

of the protest, unless the board's chairman determines that the specific and unique circumstances of the protest require a longer period, in which case the board shall issue such decision within the longer period determined by the chairman. An amendment which adds a new ground of protest should be resolved, to the maximum extent practicable, within the time limits established for resolution of the initial protest.

(C) The board may dismiss a protest that the board determines

(i) is frivolous;

(ii) has been brought or pursued in bad faith; or

(iii) does not state on its face a valid basis for protest.

(5)(A) In making a decision on the merits of protests brought under this section, the board shall accord due weight to the policies of this section and the goals of economic and efficient procurement set forth in this section. The board may consider any decision, determination, opinion, or statement made by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget or any officer of any other Federal agency regarding applicability of this section to a particular procurement, and may request the advice of the Director or such officer with regard to such applicability, but shall not be bound by any such decision, determination, opinion, or statement when determining whether a procurement is subject to this section.

(B) If the board determines that a challenged agency action violates a statute or regulation or the conditions of any delegation of procurement authority issued pursuant to this section, the board may suspend, revoke, or revise the procurement authority of the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority applicable to the challenged procurement.

(Č) Whenever the board makes such a determination, it may, in accordance with section 1304 of title 31, United States Code, further declare an appropriate prevailing party to be entitled to the cost of filing and pursuing the protest (including reasonable attorneys' fees and consultant and expert witness fees), and bid and proposal preparation. However, no party (other than a small business concern (within the meaning of section 3(a) of the Small Business Act)) may be declared entitled to costs for consultants and expert witness fees that exceed the highest rate of compensation for expert witnesses paid by the Federal Government, and no party (other than a small business concern (within the meaning of section 3(a) of the Small Business Act)) may be declared entitled to attorneys' fees that exceed $150 per hour unless the board, on a case by case basis, determines that an increase in the cost of living or a special factor, such as the limited availability of qualified attorneys for the proceedings involved, justifies a higher fee.

(D) Any agreement that provides for the dismissal of a protest and involves a direct or indirect expenditure of appropriated funds shall be submitted to the board and shall be made a part of the public record (subject to any protective order considered_appropriate by the board) before dismissal of the protest. If a Federal agency is a party to a settlement agreement, the submission of the agreement to the board shall include a memorandum, signed by the contracting officer concerned, that describes in detail the procurement, the grounds for protest, the Federal Government's position

regarding the grounds for protest, the terms of the settlement, and the agency's position regarding the propriety of the award or proposed award of the contract at issue in the protest.

(E) Payment of amounts due from an agency under subparagraph (C) or under the terms of a settlement agreement under subparagraph (D) shall be made from the appropriation made by section 1304 of title 31, United States Code, for the payment of judgments. The Federal agency concerned shall reimburse that appropriation account out of funds available for the procurement.

(6)(A) The final decision of the board may be appealed by the head of the Federal agency concerned and by any interested party, including interested parties who intervene in any protest filed under this subsection, as set forth in the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (41 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).

(B) If the board revokes, suspends, or revises the procurement authority of the Administrator or the Administrator's delegation of procurement authority after the contract award, the affected contract shall be presumed valid as to all goods or services delivered and accepted under the contract before the suspension, revocation, or revision of such procurement authority or delegation.

(C) Nothing contained in this subsection shall affect the board's power to order any additional relief which it is authorized to provide under any statute or regulation. However, the procedures set forth in this subsection shall only apply to procurements conducted under the authority contained in this section. In addition, nothing contained in this subsection shall affect the right of any interested party to file a protest with the contracting agency or to file an action in a district court of the United States or the United States Claims Court. 4

(7)(A) The board shall adopt and issue such rules and procedures as may be necessary to the expeditious disposition of protests filed under the authority of this subsection.

(B) The procedures shall provide that, in the computation of any period described in this subsection

(i) the day of the act, event, or default from which the designated period of time begins to run not be included; and

(ii) the last day after such act, event, or default be included, unless

(I) such last day is a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal holiday; or

(II) in the case of a filing of a paper at the board, such last day is a day on which weather or other conditions cause the closing of the board in which event the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday shall be included.

(C) The procedures may provide for electronic filing and dissemination of documents and information required under this subsection and in so providing shall consider the ability of all parties to achieve electronic access to such documents and records.

Pursuant to section 902(b)(1) of the Court of Federal Claims Technical and Procedural Improvements Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-572), the reference to the United States Claims Court in paragraph (6)(C) of section 111(f) is deemed to be a reference to the United States Court of Federal Claims.

(D) The procedures shall provide that if the board expressly finds that a protest or a portion of a protest is frivolous or has been brought or pursued in bad faith, or that any person has willfully abused the board's process during the course of a protest, the board may impose appropriate procedural sanctions, including dismissal of the protest.

(9) For purposes of this subsection:

(A) The term "protest" means a written objection by an interested party to any of the following:

(i) A solicitation or other request by a Federal agency for offers for a contract for the procurement of property or services.

(ii) The cancellation of such a solicitation or other request.

(iii) An award or proposed award of such a contract. (iv) A termination or cancellation of an award of such a contract, if the written objection contains an allegation that the termination or cancellation is based in whole or in part on improprieties concerning the award of the contract.

(B) The term "interested party" means, with respect to a contract or proposed contract described in subparagraph (A), an actual or prospective bidder or offeror whose direct economic interest would be affected by the award of the contract or by failure to award the contract.

(C) The term "prevailing party", with respect to a determination of the board under paragraph (5)(B) that a challenged action of a Federal agency violates a statute or regulation or the conditions of a delegation of procurement authority issued pursuant to this section, means a party that demonstrated such violation.

(g) The justifications and approvals required by section 303(f)(1) of this Act shall apply in the case of any procurement under this section for which the minimum needs are so restrictive that only one manufacturer is capable of satisfying such needs. Such procurement includes either a sole source procurement or a procurement by specific make and model. Such justification and approval shall be required notwithstanding that more than one bid or offer is made or that the procurement obtains price competition and such procurement shall be treated as a procurement using procedures other than competitive procedures for purposes of section 19(b) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 417(b)).

(h) DATA COLLECTION.-(1) The Administrator shall collect and compile data regarding the procurement of automatic data processing equipment under this section. The data collected and compiled shall include, at a minimum, with regard to each contract for such a procurement, the following:

(A) The procuring agency.

(B) The contractor.

(C) The automatic data processing equipment and services procured.

(D) The manufacturer of the equipment procured.

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