[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2438 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
108th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2438
To amend title 31, United States Code, to provide Federal Government
employees with bid protest rights in actions under Office of Management
and Budget Circular A-76, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 19, 2004
Ms. Collins (for herself, Mr. Levin, Mr. Chafee, Mr. Lieberman, Mr.
Akaka, Mr. Sarbanes, and Ms. Mikulski) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Governmental
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 31, United States Code, to provide Federal Government
employees with bid protest rights in actions under Office of Management
and Budget Circular
A-76, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. BID PROTESTS BY FEDERAL EMPLOYEES IN ACTIONS UNDER OFFICE OF
MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET CIRCULAR A-76.
(a) Eligibility To Protest.--(1) Section 3551(2) of title 31,
United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(2) The term `interested party'--
``(A) with respect to a contract or a solicitation
or other request for offers described in paragraph (1),
means 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;
and
``(B) with respect to a public-private competition
conducted under Office of Management and Budget
Circular A-76 regarding performance of an activity or
function of a Federal agency, includes--
``(i) any official who submitted the agency
tender in such competition; and
``(ii) any one person who, for the purpose
of representing them in a protest under this
subchapter that relates to such competition,
has been designated as their agent by a
majority of the employees of such Federal
agency who are engaged in the performance of
such activity or function.''.
(2)(A) Subchapter V of chapter 35 of such title is amended by
adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 3557. Expedited action in protests for public-private
competitions
``For protests in cases of public-private competitions conducted
under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 regarding
performance of an activity or function of Federal agencies, the
Comptroller General shall administer the provisions of this subchapter
in a manner best suited for expediting final resolution of such
protests and final action in such competitions.''.
(B) The chapter analysis at the beginning of such chapter is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3556 the
following new item:
``3557. Expedited action in protests for public-private
competitions.''.
(b) Right To Intervene in Civil Action.--Section 1491(b) of title
28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following
new paragraph:
``(5) If a private sector interested party commences an action
described in paragraph (1) in the case of a public-private competition
conducted under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 regarding
performance of an activity or function of a Federal agency, then an
official or person described in section 3551(2)(B) of title 31 shall be
entitled to intervene in that action.''.
(c) Applicability.--Subparagraph (B) of section 3551(2) of title
31, United States Code (as added by subsection (a)), and paragraph (5)
of section 1491(b) of title 28, United States Code (as added by
subsection (b)), shall apply to--
(1) protests and civil actions that challenge final
selections of sources of performance of an activity or function
of a Federal agency that are made pursuant to studies initiated
under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 on or after
January 1, 2004; and
(2) any other protests and civil actions that relate to
public-private competitions initiated under Office of
Management and Budget Circular A-76 on or after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
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