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Protest of Procurement

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How to Protest a Procurement

What is a Protest?

A protest is a formal complaint about BJCTA’s purchasing process. You can file a protest if you believe we did not follow federal or state laws or our own purchasing rules.

Who Can File a Protest?

You must be an “interested party” to file a protest. This means you are:

  • An actual bidder or someone who wanted to bid on the contract
  • Someone whose business would be directly affected by whether the contract is awarded or not

Before You File a Protest

We encourage you to try to solve the problem informally first. Talk to our procurement staff about your concerns before filing a formal protest.

Types of Protests and Deadlines

1. Problems with the Bid Documents

When to file: At least 7 working days before the bid opening

Examples: Unfair requirements, discriminatory specifications, or errors in the bidding process

2. Problems with Requirements and Responsiveness

When to file: Within 5 business days after you receive notice that your bid was rejected

Examples: Disagreeing with our decision about whether a bid meets the requirements

3. Problems with Contract Award

When to file: Within 5 business days after you receive notice that you did not win the contract

Examples: Believing the winner provided false information or that we broke our rules in selecting them

How to File a Protest

Your protest must include:

  • Your name, phone number, email, and address
  • The bid number and contract number
  • Clear explanation of what we did wrong
  • What you want us to do to fix it
  • Any documents that support your case
Send your protest to: Procurement Manager ATTN: BJCTA PROCUREMENT DEPARTMENT 1801 MORRIS AVENUE, 2ND FLOOR BIRMINGHAM, AL 35203
What Happens After You File

  • We confirm receipt of your protest within the required timeframes
  • We may ask for more information or meet with you to discuss your concerns
  • We review your protest and investigate the issues you raised
  • We provide a written decision explaining our findings
  • You have 5 working days to appeal our decision if you disagree
Our Response Times
  • Solicitation protests: We respond within 5 working days
  • Other protests: We respond within 5 working days after the next Board meeting (if received at least 10 days before the meeting)
  • Final decisions on appeals: Within 10 working days after receiving your appeal
When We May Continue the Process

Even if you file a protest, we may continue with the purchasing process if:

  • We urgently need the item or service
  • We determine your protest lacks merit
  • Delays would cause significant harm to our operations
Federal Appeals Process

If you’re not satisfied with our final decision, you may appeal to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) if federal funds are involved. You must:

  • Complete our protest process first
  • File your FTA appeal within 5 working days of receiving our final decision
  • Meet FTA requirements for appeals
The FTA will only review cases where we:
  • Don’t have proper protest procedures
  • Didn’t follow our protest procedures
  • Didn’t review your protest properly
Contract Claims

If you have a claim about an existing contract (not a protest about the bidding process), contact our Procurement Manager. We will:

  • Meet with you to gather information
  • Investigate your claim
  • Provide a written decision within 10 business days
  • Allow you to appeal to our Executive Director within 5 days if you disagree
Important Notes
  • All deadlines are based on working days (Monday through Friday)
  • The FTA is notified of all formal protests involving federal funds
  • We keep detailed records of all protests and decisions
  • Missing deadlines may result in your protest not being considered
Questions?

Contact the BJCTA Procurement Department for questions about the protest process or help with filing your protest.