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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 November 2015

Disclosure Part of Comptroller’s Open Government Efforts

December 23, 2015

State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced today his office approved 1,448 contracts valued at $1.47 billion and approved 1.9 million payments worth $8.9 billion in November. His office also rejected 168 contracts and related transactions valued at $500 million and 900 payments valued at $3.7 million due to fraud, waste or other improprieties.

Cumulatively through November for calendar year 2015, DiNapoli’s office has approved approximately 17,690 contracts valued at $143 billion and approved 27.4 million payments worth $116 billion. His office has also rejected 1,828 contracts and related transactions valued at $4.9 billion and approximately 34,000 payments valued at $131.2 million.

As the state’s chief financial officer, DiNapoli 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 eight days for contract reviews in November 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 increase transparency on his Open Book New York website.

Major Contracts Approved

State Education Department
  • $51.5 million for 44 Science and Technology Entry Program grants, including: $1.15 million to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, $650,000 to Union College and $400,000 to Albany Medical College.
  • $11.2 million for 21 Adult Literacy grants.
Office of General Services
  • $11.2 million with Burgio and Campofelice Inc. to replace windows at Mid-State Correctional Facility.
  • $10.3 million for 43 emergency construction contracts at various state facilities.
  • $10.2 million with Hudson Valley Electrical Construction and Maintenance Inc. for fence replacement at Sullivan Correctional Facility.
  • $9 million to rehabilitate the Empire State Plaza bus loop and concrete roadways, including $8.3 million to Bette & Cring LLC.  
  • $2.4 million to rehab showers at Franklin Correctional Facility, including $1.3 million to Con-Tech Building Systems Inc. and $964,000 to Skelly Contractors Inc.
Department of Health
  • $132.5 million with Crystal Run Health Plan LLC for Medicaid Managed Health Care and Family Health Plus.
  • $13.3 million for 67 grants to foster care agencies.
Department of Homeland Security
  • $6.3 million for 15 Security Initiative Program grants.
  • $5.5 million for Homeland Security grants to 13 municipalities.
  • $1.3 million for Bomb Squad Initiative grants to municipalities.
  • $1.3 million for Emergency Management Performance grants to counties
New York State Legislature - Assembly
  • $11,000 contract amendment with Zuckerman Spaeder LLP for representation in the investigation of former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
  • $2.2 million for the rehabilitation of the Golf Course Clubhouse at Green Lakes State Park, including $1.6 million to SJ Thomas Co. Inc.
Department of Transportation
  • $28.6 million with El Sol Contracting and Construction Corp. for bridge maintenance at various NYC area locations.
  • $27.2 million with Harrison and Burrowes and the Wesson Group Joint Venture LLC for the design and construction of bridge replacements in Ulster County.
  • $20.5 million with Lancaster Development and Tully Construction Co. LLC to rehabilitate pavement on I-88.
New York State Urban Development Corporation
  • $100 million with Lowe and Partners Worldwide Inc. (d/b/a Campbell Ewald New York) for marketing, advertising, branding and communications.

Major Payments Approved

Tax Refunds
  • $340.3 million for 60,000 personal income tax refunds.
  • $149.6 million for 25,000 corporate and other refunds.
  • $741,000 for approximately 6,000 property tax freeze credits.
Department of Economic Development
  • $179,000 to Fuzehub Inc. for the Marketing, Matching and Engagement Program to help manufacturers find needed services to address challenges to growth and other issues.
Gaming Commission
  • $16.5 million in tribal compact payments to 33 county and city recipients.
  • $6 million to McCann Erickson USA Inc. for creative and marketing services for traditional lottery products such as Mega Millions, Power Ball and scratch-off tickets.
  • $388,000 to Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP for gaming advisory services related to the selection of applicants to develop and operate a casino.
Office of General Services
  • $2.1 million to PSI International Inc. for hourly based IT services.
Department of Health
  • $27.4 million to Maximus Inc. to assist with the state’s Health Benefit Exchange.
  • $1.4 million to Island Peer Review Organization Inc. for Medicaid quality and utilization reviews.
Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services
  • $5.2 million to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for the Urban Areas Security Initiative.
New York State Assembly
  • $69,000 to Rossein Associates for outside counsel related to sexual harassment policy development and investigations.
  • $18,000 to Hogan Lovells for legal services in sexual harassment litigation.
Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
  • $216,000 to Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc. and $148,000 to Bergmann Associates for design services for Allegany, Genesee and Niagara State Park regions.
Office for People with Developmental Disabilities
  • $720,000 to Birnie Bus Service Inc. for transportation provider services for Lewis, Oneida and Onondaga counties.
State University of New York
  • $2.2 million to Pitts Management Associates Inc. for restructuring consultant services at SUNY Downstate Medical Center.
  • $1 million to Smith Site Development LLC for synthetic turf at SUNY Binghamton.
New York State Thruway Authority
  • $75.5 million to Tappan Zee Constructors LLC for the Tappan Zee Bridge Project.
  • $2.1 million to HNTB New York Engineering & Architecture PC for the Tappan Zee Bridge Project engineering services.
Department of Transportation
  • $7.7 million to Halmar/A Servidone-B Anthony LLC to rehabilitate the Patroon Island Bridge on I-90 in Albany.
  • $3.2 million to H&L Contracting LLC for bridge improvements in the towns of Hempstead and Islip.
New York State Urban Development Corporation
  • $53 million to Fort Schuyler Management Co. for design, planning and construction at the Buffalo High-Tech Manufacturing Innovation Hub, SolarCity factory project.

Payment Rejections and Other Cost Recoveries

The Comptroller’s rejection of 900 payments valued at approximately $3.7 million included more than 100 tax refunds valued at $591,000. DiNapoli’s auditors also recovered more than $71,000 from vendors owing debts to the state, and held payments of more than $547,000 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.

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