FAA Federal Aviation Regulations (FARS, 14 CFR)

(a) Filing of a protest or contract dispute may be accomplished by mail, overnight delivery, hand delivery, or by facsimile. A protest or contract dispute is considered to be filed on the date it is received by the Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition during normal business hours. The Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition's normal business hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. est or edt, whichever is in use. A protest or contract dispute received via mail, after the time period prescribed for filing, shall not be considered timely filed even though it may be postmarked within the time period prescribed for filing.

(b) Submissions to the Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition after the initial filing of a contract dispute may be accomplished by any means available in paragraph (a) of this section. Submissions to the Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition after the initial filing of a protest may only be accomplished by overnight delivery, hand delivery or facsimile.

(c) The time limits stated in this part are calculated in business days, which exclude weekends and Federal holidays. In computing time, the day of the event beginning a period of time shall not be included. If the last day of a period falls on a weekend or a Federal holiday, the first business day following the weekend or holiday shall be considered the last day of the period.