A Maryland small business lost its GAO protest because SBA’s recent rule change allows an agency to rely solely on the experience of the mentor in a mentor-protégé joint venture. The incumbent on a CMS contract formed a mentor-protégé joint venture with a small business, and together they received technically superior ratings. A competitor, iAdeptive, argued that CMS did not consider the experience of the small business protégé. But GAO ruled that SBA’s recent rule—effective January 2025—allows a joint venture to “rely solely on the past performance and experience of the mentor.” GAO also found no reason to doubt that the protégé would perform 40% of the work performed by the joint venture. iAdeptive Technologies, LLC, B-424158, B-424158.2, March 6, 2026. gao.gov/products/b-4241…