A sustained protest is likely to give small businesses more flexibility in the tough competition of the Marketplace for the Acquisition of Professional Services (MAPS).

The Government Accountability Office partially sustained the protest filed by Intelligence Consulting Enterprise Solutions, Inc. (ICES) (B-424433.3, B-424433.7) on August 11, 2026, determining that the Army misinterpreted the intent of small business legislation.

GAO established that the Army limited small business competition and too narrowly read the Small Business Act requirements and related regulations regarding the option for teaming arrangements. GAO recommended the Army allow for small business teams, not just joint ventures, and reopen the Solicitation to provide time for new and revised Proposals.

GAO denied other issues in the protest, including Solicitation number and posting Amendments, restrictive competition, and failures to provide clear answers to pre-proposal questions.

Who decides on ‘And’ and ‘Or’?

The key issue boils down to the word “and” vs. “or” in the Small Business Act. The Army stated that it met the legislative requirements when it considered allowing joint ventures or teaming arrangements for its 10-year, $50B MAPS MATOC and then opted for joint ventures.

ICES disagreed, filing a protest.

In response to disallowing team arrangements, the Army stated that the protestor “overlooks the plain language of the statute itself, which explicitly provides the Agency with the ‘or’ option—allowing the evaluation of joint ventures as a legally sufficient alternative to prime/subcontractor teaming,” according to the GAO Protest Decision document. It has the authority to decide on whether to use teaming arrangements or joint ventures, as long as officials considered them.

“If Congress had wanted an Agency to consider both, it would have used the word 'and' instead of 'or,'” according to the Decision.

However, GAO sided with ICES.

The company decides

GAO and ICES say the decision is in the companies’ hands.

“The agency’s reading thwarts the underlying purpose of the relevant statutory framework,” GAO argues. Further, “the Army’s interpretation isolates a single instance of the word ‘or’ and fails to read the section as a whole.”

As a result, GAO states that the relevant provisions of the Small Business Act and regulations do not put with the Army the discretion to stop small businesses from competing together as teams. Companies have the authority to compete as they see best in order to meet the challenges of the Solicitation.

GAO recommended the Army allow for small business teams, not just joint ventures, and reopen the Solicitation to provide time for new and revised Proposals.

The sustained protest is likely to delay the MAPS Awards that were expected in August 2026.

• Issues Denied in the Protest
  • Solicitation numbering and amendment posting methods complied with procurement regulations.
  • Prohibition on using classified contracts as past performance references was reasonable and justified.
  • Solicitation provided sufficient information and was not ambiguous in the areas challenged by ICES.
• Recommended Next Steps
  • Amend the MAPS solicitation to allow small business teams in addition to small business joint ventures.
  • Reopen the solicitation.
  • Provide a reasonable opportunity for offerors to submit new or revised proposals.
  • Reimburse ICES for reasonable protest costs.