BNUMBER:  B-276294
DATE:  March 10, 1997
TITLE:  Esprit International Corp.

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Matter of:Esprit International Corp.

File:     B-276294

Date:March 10, 1997

Guido Gabbrielli for the protester.
Adam Vodraska, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated 
in the preparation of the decision.

DIGEST

Where solicitation contains standard provision permitting bidders to 
insert acceptance period of less than 60 days, bidder offering a 
14-day acceptance period may not be permitted to extend acceptance 
period after expiration of 14 days since acceptance of bid under such 
circumstances would afford bidder unfair advantage over other bidders.

DECISION

Esprit International Corp. protests the refusal of the Defense 
Reutilization and Marketing Service to consider its high bid for two 
items under sales invitation for bids (IFB) No. 31-7314, following the 
expiration of its bid acceptance period.

We dismiss the protest.

The IFB contained the following standard language concerning the bid 
acceptance period:

     "In compliance with the above, the undersigned offers and agrees, 
     if this bid is accepted within      calendar days (60 calendar 
     days if no period is specified by the Government or the Bidder, 
     but not less than 10 calendar days in any case) after date of Bid 
     Opening, to pay for and remove the property."

Esprit limited its bid acceptance period to 14-calendar days from bid 
opening.  At the January 7, 1997, bid opening, Esprit submitted the 
highest bids on items 166 and 263.

However, the agency could not process the award within the 14-day 
period due to certain administrative difficulties in connection with 
the sale.  On January 29, the contracting officer informed Esprit that 
she could not award Esprit the items because the bid acceptance period 
specified by Esprit in its bid had expired.  Esprit pursued the matter 
with the agency, which denied Esprit's request to revive its bid by 
extending its expired bid acceptance period.  Esprit then filed this 
protest.

Where, as here, the IFB does not contain a mandatory bid acceptance 
period, the bidder is free to offer a period shorter than the 
automatic 60-day period stated in the IFB; however, the bidder runs 
the risk that award will not be made either during this shorter time 
or by the date the IFB specifies as the date of award, since the 
government is not bound to award the contract on that date.  On the 
other hand, the bidder which offers a shorter acceptance period is 
exposed to the risk of the marketplace for a shorter period of time, 
and is thus taking less risk than other bidders who offer a longer bid 
acceptance period.  See Mid Atlantic Label, Inc., B-234120, Mar. 31, 
1989, 89-1 CPD  para.  338; Peck Iron and Metal Co., Inc., B-195716, Oct. 
17, 1979, 79-2 CPD  para.  265.

We have permitted a bidder to revive its expired bid only where the 
bidder would not, thereby, compromise the integrity of the competitive 
bidding process by obtaining an advantage over the other bidders.  
Discount Machinery & Equip., Inc., B-244392, Oct. 15, 1991, 91-2 CPD  para.  
334; John T. Jones Constr. Co., B-240643,
Nov. 27, 1990, 90-2 CPD  para.  430.  Here, to allow Esprit to revive its 
bid after the expiration of its 14-day acceptance period would afford 
the protester an unfair advantage since its initial exposure to the 
risk of the marketplace was for a shorter time period than that 
applicable to the bidders who offered a longer period.  See Mid 
Atlantic Label, Inc., supra; Peck Iron and Metal Co., Inc., supra.  
Accordingly, the agency properly refused to consider Esprit's bid for 
items 166 and 263 following the expiration of Esprit's bid acceptance 
period.

The protest is dismissed.

Comptroller General
of the United States