HUD PBCA Awards Still Not Decided By Courts

February 28, 2013

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was expected to announce state performance-based contract administrator (PBCA) notice of funding availability (NOFA) awards on December 14, 2012, but due to lawsuits filed in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims by 5 plaintiffs just days prior, the agency agreed not to proceed with making the awards until the court rules on the matter.

The plaintiffs, many of which filed protests earlier with the Government Accountability Office (GAO), were successful in getting an injunction on HUD's announcing awards under the NOFA and are still seeking a judicial ruling on whether HUD should rebid going forward.

On February 19, 2013, the Court of Federal Claims in Washington, DC, held an oral hearing on protests about the changed format for the competition to select Performance-Based Contract Administrators (PBCA) and HUD’s restriction against out-of-state applicants in states where qualified in-state applicants submitted bids. Despite expectations that the judge in the case would issue a ruling from the bench on the same day, he ultimately said he would need more time to review the case due to its complexity.

So the saga continues. It is now unclear when the ruling may be issued and/or what next steps might be required before full resolution of the case. In the meantime, HUD continues to extend the existing PBCA contracts in 3 month increments. Depending on the end result, HUD may be forced to rebid the contracts altogether.

For more information, click here.