Agency Cannot Challenge Unsupported Costs on Contract Not Awarded as Cost-Type Vehicle; CBCA 2862, Turner Construction Co. v. Smithsonian Institution

Appeals seeking payment of base costs under a contract for which the parties failed to negotiate a set, final price are granted, where the contractor demonstrated that its general conditions costs were reasonable, where the agency accepted and obtained the benefit of additional equipment even though the need for the equipment arose from errors in the contractor’s design, and where the appellant’s subcontractors’ release of claims related to payments already received, not to unpaid final payments; and appeal of the agency’s claim seeking reimbursement of overpayments is granted, where the contract did not require the appellant to maintain its accounting records in the manner asserted by the agency, where the contractor adhered to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, and where the agency cannot challenge unsupported costs because the contract was not awarded as a cost-type vehicle and contained no language requiring the repayment of the amounts sought.