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Two companies are challenging the Army’s $50 billion professional services contract. They argue that letting small businesses bid as teams only for the 125 slots reserved for small firms limits their shot at the roughly 350 planned awards.
AHS Business Services filed its protest Nov. 2 with the Government Accountability Office, the congressional watchdog that settles federal contract disputes. Mindboard followed the next day.
The 10-year contract, known as the Marketplace for the Acquisition of Professional Services, or MAPS, has drawn repeated protests since April. Small business teams have until Thursday Nov. 12 to submit proposals.
Which companies can win a share of the Army’s $50 billion contract?
MAPS covers five areas, from engineering and logistics to consulting and IT. In each one, the Army plans to pick 70 companies, a number it can adjust.
Each area has 30 spots for large businesses, half of them for firms that recently outgrew small business status. Small businesses get 25 spots, and 15 go to commercial-sector vendors, companies with little or no recent government work beyond commercial services.
The $50 billion is a ceiling, not a guaranteed payout. Winners earn the right to compete for individual orders over the decade.
What is the small business rule at the center of the Army contract protests?
The fight is over teaming, in which a small business leads a bid with other small firms as subcontractors. Unlike a joint venture, a team doesn’t require creating a new entity.
The Army first banned teams. In August, GAO ruled that the ban violated the Small Business Act, which lets small firms choose between teams and joint ventures.
The Army reopened bidding in October, but only for small business teams competing for small business slots. AHS Business Services and Mindboard want teams also allowed in the commercial-sector vendor pool. A win could force the Army to amend the rules again.
When will the Army decide on small business bids for the $50 billion contract?
GAO generally has 100 days to rule, which puts decisions on the new cases around Feb. 10 and Feb. 11, 2027. Federal law typically bars an agency from awarding a contract while a pre-award protest is pending.
A third protest, from Intelligence Consulting Enterprise Solutions, challenges the contract’s cybersecurity requirements after the Pentagon paused the next phase of its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program, which checks that contractors protect sensitive information.