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

        

DiNapoli Announces State Contract and Payment Actions for July 2015

August 25, 2015

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today his office approved 1,693 contracts valued at $1.1 billion and approved more than 1.8 million payments worth approximately $8 billion in July. His office also rejected 204 contracts and related transactions valued at $356 million and nearly 2,000 payments valued at approximately $3 million due to fraud, waste or other improprieties.

Cumulatively through July for calendar year 2015, DiNapoli’s office has approved 11,930 contracts valued at nearly $136 billion and approved 20.4 million payments worth more than $79 billion. His office rejected 1,275 contracts and related transactions valued at $3.3 billion and approximately 24,000 payments valued at $58.4 million.

As the state’s chief financial officer, DiNapoli’s office reviews contracts for all state agencies and certain contracts for state public authorities and audits all state payments. This independent review ensures that costs are reasonable, the playing field is level and taxpayers get the best value for their money. These independent audits also help ensure payments are free from fraud, waste and improprieties. The Comptroller’s office averaged six days for contract reviews in July and two days to audit payments.

DiNapoli releases this monthly notice to provide current information about the number and types of contracts and payments by the state. This builds on his commitment to added transparency via his Open Book New York website.

Major Contracts Approved

New York State Canal Corporation

  • $150,000 grant to Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper for the Paddlesport Launch Project.

Deferred Compensation Board

  • $8.5 million with State Street Bank and Trust Company for trustee/custodian services for the NYS Deferred Compensation Plan.

State Education Department

  • $3.9 million with Albany-Schoharie-Schenectady-Saratoga BOCES for the NYS Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support Technical Assistance Center services.
  • $1 million with the Research Foundation for SUNY for education programs for students with autism spectrum disorders.
  • $750,000 to New Ventures Charter School for charter schools planning and implementation.
  • $750,000 to South Bronx Classical Charter School for charter school planning and implementation.

Office of General Services - Design and Construction

  • $9.6 million to construct a day care center at Building 3, State Office Building Campus, Albany.
  • 5.6 million with Bunkoff General Contractors, Inc. for general construction.
  • $2.1 million with Eckert Mechanical LLC for HVAC.
  • $1 million with Eckert Mechanical LLC for plumbing.
  • $898,000 with Schenectady Hardware & Electric Co., Inc. for electrical work.
  • $2 million with H2M Architects Engineers & Land Surveying for water tank design, inspection, and testing, statewide.
  • $300,000 contract increase to Adirondack Mechanical Services LLC for repairs at Clinton Correctional Facility to properly secure the prison.

Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Services

  • $28.1 million to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for the La Guardia Airport flood control project.

Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

  • $3.8 million with Scott Lawn Yard Inc. for seawall reconstruction and revetment, Buffalo Harbor State Park.
  • $1.6 million contract amendment with the PGA Tour Inc. for additional tournaments at Bethpage State Park in 2021 and 2027.

New York State Thruway Authority

  • $10.3 million with Callanan Industries Inc. for mill and inlay safety improvements and miscellaneous work, Ulster County.

Department of Transportation

  • $32.5 million with Tioga Construction Company Inc. for the design and construction of Rexford Bridge replacement, Rte. 146 over the Mohawk River, Saratoga and Schenectady Counties.
  • $23.1 million with Picone-Bove for the design and construction of the bridge replacement on Rte. 110 over Rte. 27, Suffolk County.
  • $18.4 million with ALAC Contracting Corp for I-495 Long Island Expressway, rehabilitation of 11 bridges in the Towns of Huntington, Islip, and Brookhaven.
  • $17 million with Cold Spring Construction Co. for the design and construction of the bridge replacement at Cascade Drive over Cattaraugus Creek.
  • $12.6 million with National Railroad Passenger Corp. (aka AMTRAK) for the state’s support of inter-city passenger rail services.
  • $7 million contract with Rifenburg Construction Inc. for the roadway reconstruction along Rte. 9 in the town of Lake George.

Major Payments Approved

Tax Refunds

  • $127.7 million for 74,000 personal income tax refunds.
  • $78.3 million for 21,000 corporate and other refunds.
  • $12,000 for 100 property tax freeze credits.

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision

  • $496,000 to Center for Employment for the neighborhood work project.

Unified Court System - Office of Court Administration

  • $10.5 million to The Legal Aid Society for the Attorney for the Child Program.

Department of Economic Development

  • $250,000 to Fuzehub Inc. for the marketing matching engagement program.
  • $24,000 to Aviacircle Limited and $21,000 to Travel Link Marketing Co Ltd. for tourism representatives in the United Kingdom, Europe and China.

State Education Department

  • $1.2 million to Public Consulting Group Inc. to develop the NYS Common Core.

New York State Gaming Commission

  • $10.4 million to 24 counties for tribal compact payments.
  • $114,000 to Morrisville Auxiliary Corporation at Morrisville State College for equine drug testing.

Department of Health

  • $599,000 to Columbia University for the Empire State Stem Cell Program.

Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services >

  • $945,000 to Catholic Charities Community Services for Superstorm Sandy disaster case management.
  • $7.7 million to New York City for the Urban Area Security Initiative Program.

New York State Legislature – Assembly

  • $27,000 to Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman for outside counsel.

Department of State

  • $506,000 to the Village of Dobbs Ferry for waterfront revitalization.

New York State Thruway Authority

  • $21.1 million to Tappan Zee Constructors LLC to design and construct the new bridge.

Department of Transportation

  • $5.5 million to EE Cruz & Tully Construction Co Inc. for Battery Place reconstruction.
  • $873,000 to Adirondack Railway Preservation Society Inc. for improvements to the Remsen to Lake Placid railroad line.

New York State Urban Development Corporation

  • $60 million to Empire State Development Corporation for Fort Schuyler Management Corporation to establish the Buffalo High-Tech Manufacturing Innovation Hub at RiverBend Park.
  • $10 million to Empire State Development Corporation for Fort Schuyler Management Corporation to construct the Buffalo Medical Innovation and Commercialization Hub.
  • $4.7 million to Empire State Development Corporation for Buffalo Bills Inc. capital improvements, game day operations, and working capital for the professional football team.

Payment Rejections and Other Cost Recoveries

The Comptroller’s rejection of nearly 2,000 payments valued at approximately $3 million included 270 tax refunds valued at nearly $800,000. DiNapoli’s auditors also recovered nearly $114,000 from vendors owing debts to the state, and held payments of more than $144,000 pending resolution of disputes between subcontractors and prime contractors.

Open Book New York

For access to state and local government spending, public authority financial data and information on 50,000 state contracts, visit Open Book New York. The easy-to-use website was created by DiNapoli to promote openness in government and provide taxpayers with better access to the financial workings of government.