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NEWS from the Office of the New York State Comptroller
Contact: Press Office 518-474-4015

        

State Contract and Payment Actions in February

March 31, 2021

In February, the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) approved 1,407 contracts for state agencies and public authorities valued at $109 billion and approved more than 20.3 million payments worth nearly $14 billion. OSC rejected 110 contracts and related transactions valued at $100 million and more than 8,000 payments valued at nearly $18.2 million, primarily for mistakes, insufficient support for charges, and improper payments. More information on these contracts and payments is available at www.openbooknewyork.com.

The Governor’s Executive Order 202 suspended Office of the State Comptroller’s review and approval of contracts related to the COVID-19 crisis until April 25, 2021. At the administration's request, OSC has been expediting payments for purchases.

Major Contracts Approved

Department of Agriculture and Markets

  • $9.8 million with GPT Properties Trust to lease office space in Albany County.
  • $4.3 million with Studio City Holdings for marketing, advertising and public relations services for the New York State Fair.

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision

  • $5.1 million with Axon Enterprise Inc. for body-worn cameras and associated cloud storage services.

State Education Department

  • $38.5 million with NCS Pearson Inc. for administration of New York State teacher certification exams.

Department of Environmental Conservation

  • $14.5 million with Environmental Services Group for environmental remediation at the former Al Tech Specialty Steel facility in Albany County.

Office of General Services – Design & Construction

  • $17.7 million with O'Connell Electric Company Inc. to provide facility-wide video surveillance and alarm systems at Downstate Correctional Facility in Dutchess County.
  • $14.2 million with DA Collins Construction Co. Inc. for pump station upgrades at the Riverfront Pumping Station in Albany County.
  • $6 million with DiGesare Mechanical Inc. for HVAC system replacement at the Capital District Psychiatric Center in Albany County.

Office of General Services – Procurement Services

  • $61 million with The Remi Group LLC for the statewide Equipment Maintenance Program.
  • $8.5 million with Global Montello Group Corp. for the purchase of gasoline and E-85 fuel statewide.

Office of Information Technology Services

  • $63.3 million with Unisys Corporation for technical support services for the operation of the state consolidated data centers.

Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation

  • $3.4 million with Steven Dubner Landscaping Inc. for site improvements at Hempstead Lake State Park in Nassau County.
  • $1.2 million with Applied Ecological Services Inc. for forest pest control of hemlock woolly adelgid.

Division of State Police

  • $41.9 million with Axon Enterprise Inc. for body-worn cameras with accessories and associated cloud storage services.

State University Construction Fund

  • $3.6 million with LeChase Construction Services LLC to repair masonry and replace windows at SUNY Delhi.

State University of New York

  • $16.6 million for temporary clinical, administrative, and personnel support services at Upstate Medical University including $11 million with CR Fletcher Temps Inc., $3.5 million with Royal Temporaries Inc., and $2.1 million with First Choice Group CNY Inc.
  • $2.9 million with Frey Electric Construction Co. Inc. to replace switchgear and panels at Buffalo State College.
  • $1.4 million with Fahs Construction Group Inc. for renovations at Bartle Library at Binghamton University.

Department of Transportation

  • $18.4 million with Callanan Industries Inc. for roadway resurfacing on I-84 in Orange County.
  • $15.9 million with Lancaster Development & Tully Construction Co. LLC for bridge replacement on Route 11 in Broome County.
  • $10.7 million with Constar Inc. for bridge joint replacement and deck joint resealing at various locations in New York County.
  • $4.8 million with CCI Companies Inc. for reconstruction of Route 11 in Jefferson County.
  • $2.6 million with Tioga Construction Company Inc. for bridge superstructure replacement on Route 5 over Kayaderosseras Creek in Montgomery County.
  • $2.4 million with Amstar of Western New York Inc. for painting 12 bridges in Chautauqua County.

Major Payments Approved

Tax Refunds and Credits

  • $194.8 million for 191,692 personal income tax refunds.
  • $158.1 million for 20,784 corporate and other refunds.
  • $4.9 million for 4,822 property tax credits.

Department of Civil Service

  • $270 million to CVS Caremark to provide pharmacy benefit services for the Empire, Excelsior and Student Employee Health plans.
  • $25.2 million to Beacon Health Options Inc. for benefit services for the Mental Health & Substance Abuse Program for the NYS Empire Plan.

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision

  • $3 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response.

State Education Department

  • $581.6 million in general aid to 254 school districts.
  • $131.7 million in excess cost aid to 671 school districts.
  • $99.6 million in BOCES aid to 37 school districts.

Empire State Development Corporation

  • $25 million to Cree, Inc. for the design, construction, fit-out and equipping of a silicon carbide semiconductor device manufacturing facility in Marcy.
  • $20 million to SUNY Research Foundation for furniture, fixtures and equipment for clinics, teaching and training in the newly constructed Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at the State University of New York at Buffalo.
  • $10 million to Alstom Transportation, Inc. to expand and modernize company operations, and to develop next-generation high-speed trains.
  • $1.7 million to NextCorps Inc. for the Luminate NY program to attract and grow optics, photonics and imaging companies in the Finger Lakes region.
  • $1.3 million to Central Terminal Restoration Corporation for renovations to the historic lobby and concourse of the Buffalo Central Terminal.
  • $1 million to Saab North America, Inc. for machinery and equipment related to the relocation of the North American headquarters of Saab Defense and Security USA to Onondaga County.

Gaming Commission

  • $5.6 million for tribal-state compact payments to Cayuga, Chenango, Cortland, Herkimer, Lewis, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego and Otsego counties.

Office of General Services

  • $10.1 million for hourly-based IT services, including $1.7 million to Knowledge Builders Inc., $1.7 million to PSI International Inc., and $6.7 million to 32 other vendors.

Department of Health

  • $6.2 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including nursing services and medical and dental supplies and equipment.
  • $3.8 million to New York eHealth Collaborative, Inc. for the Statewide Health Information Network for New York.

Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services

  • $11.2 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including warehouse management services and medical supplies and materials.

Office of Information Technology Services

  • $4.8 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Department of Labor

  • $5.5 billion for payments under the Unemployment Insurance, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation and Lost Wages Assistance programs.

State University of New York

  • $15.1 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including dental, medical and laboratory supplies and materials.

Department of Transportation

  • $2.1 million to National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) for design and construction of the Hudson Line Positive Train Control system.

Unified Court System

  • $1.5 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including local grants and public assistance.

Payment Rejections and Other Cost Recoveries

OSC rejected tax refunds and credits valued at nearly $3 million. The Comptroller’s auditors also recovered nearly $205,000 from vendors owing debts to the state, and held payments of nearly $6,000 pending resolution of disputes between subcontractors and prime contractors.

Cumulatively through February for calendar year 2021, the Comptroller’s office has approved 2,603 contracts valued at $112.7 billion and has approved nearly 40.7 million payments worth nearly $28.9 billion, including nearly 42.8 million unemployment insurance payments valued at more than $10.9 billion. The office has rejected 218 contracts and related transactions valued at $270 million and more than 13,500 payments valued at nearly $26.2 million primarily due to errors, improprieties or lack of documentation.

Find out how your government money is spent at Open Book New York. Track municipal spending, the state's 180,000 contracts, billions in state payments and public authority data. Visit the Reading Room for contract FOIL requests, bid protest decisions and commonly requested data, including Legislative travel and per diem expenses.