Contract Procurement Committee Update

January 21, 2010
Staff Contact: Margaret Moree

State Budget Proposed Relevant Provisions

The Governor’s proposed state budget contains several provisions which may be of interest to members, some of which should look familiar to veterans of the state budget and legislative process.  The proposed budget does not include language to extend the Procurement Lobbying Law, which expires on March 10, 2010.

  • Repeals the fee implemented as part of prior year’s budget that contractors were to collect on sales from centralized contracts administered by OGS, with an immediate effective date. (Public Protection & General Government, Part P, Page 313)
  • Provides increased procurement flexibility for local governments and the State through increasing competitive bidding thresholds, authorizing reverse auctions, allowing local governments to award contracts based on “best value”; allowing local governments to piggyback on certain federal GSA contracts.  (Public Protection & General Government, Part FF, pages 491-505)
  • As part of school district only mandate and fiscal relief, proposed to repeal the Wicks Law, which requires multiple bidding requirements on public work construction projects, while preserving subcontractor protections enacted in 2008.  (Public Protection & General Government Article VII, Part CC, pages 479-485)
  • The New York State Public Higher Education Empowerment & Innovation Act (Part E of the Education, Labor & Family Assistance Article VII bill, pages 113-177) provides enhanced discretion for SUNY and CUNY in the areas of tuition, account management, asset maximization, administration, public-private partnerships, procurement and capital construction.  The proposed language does require that lease agreements and construction and financing by the Dormitory Authority of facilities for the benefit of SUNY by not-for-profit entities associated with SUNY, be subject to MWBE provisions, prevailing wage rates, and project labor agreements; broadens the authority of the SUNY Construction Fund to implement capital projects subject to procurement guidelines which must substantially conform to those applicable to existing public authorities. 
  • In the Health & Mental Hygiene Article VII legislation, two different procurement related provisions:  Part B, Section 31 which would authorize the Department of Health to manage non-emergency transportation through a contract with an external organization; and Part B, Section 51 which would authorize DOH to contract, without competitive bid or request for proposal, with one or more firms for the purpose of conducting audits of DSH payments and audits of hospital cost reports.
  • The Governor’s Office of Taxpayer Accountability Article VII legislation proposes the elimination of several procurement related advisory committees:  The Advisory Council on Procurement Lobbying; the Statewide Wireless Network Advisory Council; and the MWBE Advisory Board. 

Look for The Business Council’s complete budget write-up in Friday’s Government Affairs weekly update. 

Technology Efficiencies Promoted in Governor’s Budget

The Governor’s Briefing Book (pages 122-128) outlines numerous initiatives the executive branch anticipates taking to make government more efficient based on recommendations made by the Governor’s Office for Taxpayer Accountability.  Some examples include consolidating call centers; acting upon legislation enacted in 2009 to “in source” IT consultants; launching a new business model to jump start the consolidation of technology services under CIO/OFT; and the issuance of  an RFP to obtain the services of a strategic sourcing vendor to analyze what the State spends in the context of the current market economy and ensure an emphasis on operational improvements. This data will establish standards for commonly purchased goods and services, enabling the State to consolidate purchases at lower prices and with better terms and conditions.

Advisory Committee on Procurement Lobbying to meet January 27          

The next meeting of the ACPL is set for January 27 at 11am.  These meetings are Web cast with further details available from the ACPL Web page.

Given the Governor’s proposal to eliminate the ACPL, this could be your last chance to “tune in”.