In June, the Office of the State Comptroller approved 1,487 contracts for state agencies and public authorities valued at $18.6 billion and approved more than 20.9 million payments worth more than $18.1 billion. The office rejected 149 contracts and related transactions valued at $2.9 billion and nearly 9,300 payments valued at nearly $25.4 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, which had suspended the Office of the State Comptroller’s review and approval of contracts related to the COVID-19 crisis, was rescinded effective June 25, 2021.

Major Contracts Approved

State Education Department

• $71.9 million with Questar Assessment Inc. for development and administration of tests in English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics.
• $10.1 million with Successful Practices Network Inc. for technical assistance and support services to secondary and postsecondary career and technical education programs.

Department of Motor Vehicles

• $58.3 million with Opus Inspection Inc. for installation maintenance, training and oversight of the NYS vehicle inspection program.
• $2.6 million with DPSW Samsondale LLC to lease office space in Rockland County.

State University Construction Fund

• $5.2 million with Pullman SST Inc. for masonry repair at the Kehoe Administration Building and Feinburg Library at SUNY Plattsburgh.
• $3.5 million with AOW Associates Inc. for renovations at Bouck Hall at SUNY Cobleskill.

State University of New York

• $3.5 million with Pro Pump Corp. for maintenance and repair of pumps, motors and variable frequency drives at Stony Brook University.
• $2.7 million with JP Morgan Chase Bank NA for banking services at Stony Brook University.
• $2.2 million with Custom Lighting Services LLC to replace a transformer and circuit breakers at University at Buffalo.
• $2.1 million with Murnane Building Contractors for facade and brick repair at Upstate Medical University.
• $2 million with Apogee Telecom Inc. for internet services at SUNY Maritime College.
• $1.2 million with Lake Side Contracting Co., Inc. to replace windows in Butler Library at Buffalo State College.

New York State Thruway Authority

• $19.9 million with Yonkers Contracting Company, Inc. for pavement resurfacing and the jacking of three bridges on the Thruway in Westchester County.
• $1.6 million with DiGesare Mechanical Inc. for computer room renovations in Albany County.

Department of Transportation

• $45.1 million with Defoe Corporation for ramp replacement and rehabilitation of four bridges over I-95 in Bronx County.
• $26.9 million with ELQ Industries Inc. for asphalt concrete resurfacing on I-684 in Westchester County.
• $11.7 million with Henningson Durham & Richardson Architecture and Engineering PC for construction management services for the Hunts Point interstate access improvement project in Bronx County.
• $4.2 million with Harrison & Burrowes Bridge Constructors Inc. for culvert repair and replacement along I-88 in Schenectady County.
• $2.9 million with Slate Hill Constructors Inc. for concrete pavement treatment at I-81 and Route 17 in Broome County.
• $1.5 million with McLaughlin Construction Corp. for safety improvements, signs, milling and resurfacing at Route 277 in Erie County.

Major Payments Approved

Tax Refunds and Credits

• $714.7 million for 521,888 personal income tax refunds.
• $208.4 million for 19,069 corporate and other tax refunds.
• $1.6 million for 2,002 property tax credits.

City University of New York

• $1.9 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including cleaning supplies and materials, as well as desktop computers.

Department of Civil Service

• $288.8 million to CVS Caremark to provide pharmacy benefit services for the Empire, Excelsior and Student Employee Health plans.
• $36.7 million to Beacon Health Options Inc. for benefit services for the Mental Health & Substance Abuse Program for the state Empire Plan.

State Education Department

• $1.5 billion in general aid to 624 school districts.
• $577.9 million in excess cost aid to 668 school districts.

Empire State Development Corporation

• $50 million to Cree, Inc. for the design, construction, fit-out and equipping of a silicon carbide semiconductor device manufacturing facility in Marcy.
• $3.2 million to NextCorps Inc. for the Luminate NY program to attract and grow optics, photonics and imaging companies in the Finger Lakes region.
• $2.6 million to 43North LLC for working capital and equity investment awards for the startup business plan competition in Buffalo.
• $1.5 million to CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity under the Growing Entrepreneurs & Innovators in UpState New York (GENIUS NY) business competition.

Office of General Services

• $11.9 million for hourly-based IT services, including $1.9 million to Knowledge Builders Inc., $1.6 million to PSI International Inc., $1.5 million to MVP Consulting Plus Inc. and $6.9 million to 34 other vendors.
• $1.2 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response including custodial services.

Department of Health

• $68.9 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including administrative and clerical services, temporary staffing, and medical supplies and materials.
• $31.4 million to Maximus Inc. for assistance with the Health Benefit Exchange, including insurance enrollment and call center operations.
• $20.3 million to Maximus Inc. for the operation of the COVID-19 hotline for New York state.
• $1.8 million to New York eHealth Collaborative Inc. for the Statewide Health Information Network for New York.

Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services

• $3.3 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including medical supplies and materials.
• $2.1 million to New York City for the Urban Area Security Initiative Program.

Office of Information Technology Services

• $6.9 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including computers and software maintenance and support.

Department of Labor

• $5.4 billion for payments under the Unemployment Insurance, Pandemic Unemployment Assistance,  Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, Mixed Earner Unemployment Compensation, and Lost Wages Assistance programs.

Office of Mental Health

• $2.1 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including temporary nursing services.

Division of Military and Naval Affairs

• $1.4 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response.

State University of New York

• $13.2 million for purchases to support the COVID-19 pandemic response, including administrative and clerical services, and medical supplies and materials.

Other Payment Rejections and Cost Recoveries

OSC rejected tax refunds and credits valued at more than $7.6 million. The Comptroller’s auditors also recovered more than $151,000 from vendors owing debts to the state and held payments of nearly $5,000 pending resolution of disputes between subcontractors and prime contractors.

Cumulatively through June for calendar year 2021, the Comptroller’s office has approved 8,183 contracts valued at $146.9 billion and has approved nearly 127.7 million payments worth more than $119.5 billion, including nearly 114.5 million unemployment insurance payments valued at nearly $32.6 billion. The office has rejected 745 contracts and related transactions valued at $4.6 billion and more than 82,100 payments valued at more than $152 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.