This is the accessible text file for GAO report number GAO-09-251R entitled 'GAO Bid Protest Annual Report to the Congress for Fiscal Year 2008' which was released on December 22, 2008. This text file was formatted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to be accessible to users with visual impairments, as part of a longer term project to improve GAO products' accessibility. Every attempt has been made to maintain the structural and data integrity of the original printed product. Accessibility features, such as text descriptions of tables, consecutively numbered footnotes placed at the end of the file, and the text of agency comment letters, are provided but may not exactly duplicate the presentation or format of the printed version. The portable document format (PDF) file is an exact electronic replica of the printed version. We welcome your feedback. Please E-mail your comments regarding the contents or accessibility features of this document to Webmaster@gao.gov. This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright protection in the United States. It may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without further permission from GAO. Because this work may contain copyrighted images or other material, permission from the copyright holder may be necessary if you wish to reproduce this material separately. GAO-09-251R: United States Government Accountability Office: Washington, DC 20548: B-158766: The Honorable Nancy Pelosi: Speaker of the House of Representatives: Dear Madam Speaker: This letter responds to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984, 31 U.S.C. § 3554(e)(2) (2000), that the Comptroller General report to Congress each instance in which a federal agency did not fully implement a recommendation made by our Office in connection with a bid protest decided the prior fiscal year. We are pleased to report that there was no such occurrence during fiscal year 2008. During the fiscal year, we received 1,563 protests (including 59 cost claims) and 89 requests for reconsideration, for a total of 1,652 cases. We closed 1,581 cases: 1,506 protests (including 52 cost claims), 71 requests for reconsideration and 4 non-statutory decisions. Enclosed for your information is a chart comparing the bid protest activity for fiscal years 2004-2008. A copy of this report, with the enclosure, is being furnished to the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member of the House Committee on Government Reform. A similar report is being furnished to the President of the Senate. Sincerely yours, Signed by: Gary L. Kepplinger: General Counsel: Enclosure: [End of letter] Bid Protest Statistics for Fiscal Years 2004-2008: Cases Filed[1]: FY 2008: 1,652[2] (up 17%)[3]; FY 2007: 1,411 (up 6%); FY 2006: 1,327 (down 2%); FY 2005: 1,356 (down 9%); FY 2004: 1,485. Cases Closed: FY 2008: 1,582; FY 2007: 1,393; FY 2006: 1,274; FY 2005: 1,341; FY 2004: 1,405. Merit (Sustain + Deny) Decisions: FY 2008: 291; FY 2007: 335; FY 2006: 249; FY 2005: 306; FY 2004: 365. Number of Sustains: FY 2008: 60; FY 2007: 91; FY 2006: 72; FY 2005: 71; FY 2004: 75. Sustain Rate: FY 2008: 21%; FY 2007: 27%; FY 2006: 29%; FY 2005: 23%; FY 2004: 21%. Effectiveness Rate (reported)[4]: FY 2008: 42%; FY 2007: 38%; FY 2006: 39%; FY 2005: 37%; FY 2004: 34%. ADR[5] (cases used): FY 2008: 78; FY 2007: 62; FY 2006: 91; FY 2005: 103; FY 2004: 123. ADR Success Rate[6]: FY 2008: 78%; FY 2007: 85%; FY 2006: 96%; FY 2005: 91%; FY 2004: 91%. Hearings[7]: FY 2008: 6% (32 cases); FY 2007: 8% (41 cases); FY 2006: 11% (51 cases); FY 2005: 8% (41 cases); FY 2004: 9% (56 cases). [1] All entries in this chart are counted in terms of the docket numbers (“B” numbers) assigned by our Office, not the number of procurements challenged. Where a protester files a supplemental protest or multiple parties protest the same procurement action, multiple iterations of the same “B” number are assigned (i.e., .2, .3). Each of these numbers is deemed a separate protest for purposes of this chart. [2] Of the 1,652 cases filed in FY 2008, 87 are attributable to expanded bid protest jurisdiction over task orders (49 filings), A-76 protests (30 filings), and Transportation Security Administration protests (8 filings). If these expanded jurisdiction protests are subtracted from the FY 2008 total, the result is 1,565 cases filed, which represents a 10.9% increase over FY 2007. [3] From the prior fiscal year. [4] Based on a protester obtaining some form of relief from the agency, as reported to GAO. [5] Alternative Dispute Resolution. [6] Percentage resolved without a formal GAO decision. [7] Percentage of fully developed decisions in which GAO conducted a hearing. [End of enclosure]