What is a contracting officer allowed to tell me, and when is it OK to email them?

A contracting officer's communication with offerors during an active solicitation is governed by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), specifically FAR Part 15 for negotiated procurements like an RFP. The CO's response was not a brush-off but a correct adherence to procurement integrity. The rules are designed to ensure fair and equal treatment of all potential offerors and to prevent any one company from gaining an unfair advantage.

During an active solicitation, COs generally limit communication to formal channels and specific periods, such as the designated Q&A period. This prevents the disclosure of proprietary information or any information that could lead to an unfair competitive edge. Your question about a partial response and past performance could have been seen as seeking clarification or modification of the solicitation terms, which typically needs to be addressed through a formal amendment or the Q&A process. After the Q&A deadline, COs are very careful about what they say to avoid giving one offeror an advantage over others. They will usually only respond to administrative questions, such as technical issues with the submission portal. For state and local procurements, the rules are found in the state's procurement code and the specific portal's vendor guide, but the principle of fair and equal treatment remains the same.