Review of the New York State Procurement Statute
IT Procurement Workgroup
June 5, 2003
In 1995 the Procurement Stewardship Act (SFL Article 11) was enacted in order to consolidate, codify and update the procurement laws of the State of New York State. This statute is grounded in the principle of competition and was designed to guard against favoritism, fraud and collusion in the State procurement process. Section 161 of Article 11 established the State Procurement Council (Council) to oversee the implementation of the Statute. Among other responsibilities, the Procurement Council is mandated to “…recommend to the commissioner (of General Services) necessary legislative changes or modifications to existing or proposed rules, regulations and procedures which would simplify, accelerate or otherwise improve the state’s procurement process…”. In December of 2001 the Council began to develop a strategic plan for the improvement of procurement in New York State. The effort identified five priority objectives designed to streamline the procurement process and committees were established to research, analyze and develop recommendations in each of the areas. While each objective was specifically focused, it became increasingly clear that the underlying New York State statute—the body of laws that form the overall framework for purchasing in the state—needed further review as well.
The procurement of goods and services is a mission critical function that all state agencies utilize in order to meet their programmatic responsibilities. In 1995, when the Procurement Stewardship Act was enacted, the state’s overall framework for procurement was changed dramatically. Recognizing that the enactment of this law would need to be reevaluated after an initial period, the law sunset in 2000 and was renewed for an additional five years. In June 2005 several provisions will again sunset, requiring state policymakers to analyze and put in-place the next generation of laws governing New York State procurement. It is proposed that this review would be undertaken and recommendations made in order to inform considerations for improvements in the law which must be put forth in the fall of 2004.
Since 1995, much has changed--technology has significantly altered the methods by which agencies can procure goods and services and there has been a large change in the goods and services actually being procured. Finally, administrative practices and technology have led to the integration of a number of government functions, often resulting in more complex operational context within which agencies procure.
Finally, the natural conflicts between state operational needs, private sector solutions and the principle of competition have resulted in a need for a neutral, unbiased review of New York State statutes with the development of recommendations for any necessary changes to that statutory procurement framework.
The central objective of such a review is to determine how New York State procurement procedures might be made more efficient while maintaining the intent and spirit of the law and minimizing the state’s exposure to risk. This review would result in recommendations for a sound statutory foundation for updating and improving state procurement practices that reflect new and emerging state administrative, operational and technological considerations.
It is recommended that the services of the Government Law Center of the Albany Law School be engaged to (1) undertake a neutral, unbiased review of Article 11, (2) accomplish a review the current procurement procedures and (3) make recommendations related to any necessary changes to the statute and/or procurement procedures designed to better align procurement requirements to today’s world. Further, a steering committee comprised of a cross section of state and private sector representatives should be constituted to offer guidance on the initial concept paper. That steering committee should, at a minimum, include the Offices of General Services, State Comptroller, and Technology, and, the Division of the Budget and both Houses of the Legislature, state agencies, the New York State Forum for Information Resource Management (NYSFIRM) and the private sector. This steering committee should work in conjunction with the GLC to develop an initial scope of work.
Upon approval of the initial concept paper, the same steering committee should offer guidance in the scope, implementation and the development of recommendations. That steering committee will work with GLC on the review to: