NY A10781

State agencies must conduct a cost comparison review before entering into consultant service contracts exceeding $500,000 in a 12-month period to determine if services can be performed at equal or lower cost by state employees.

"Consultant services" includes analysis, evaluation, research, training, data processing, computer programming, health services, accounting, and auditing, but excludes professional design services, legal services, litigation-related services, and public works design.

Cost comparison review exemptions apply when services are incidental to property purchases, necessary to avoid conflicts of interest, highly specialized, urgent in nature, short-term and non-repeating, or when the comparison cost exceeds 5 percent of the contract value.

Analysis must be completed within 15 days of commencement and initiated within 3 days of contract identification; all cost comparison documents are public records subject to disclosure.

The Office of General Services must report by December 31, 2015 on the effectiveness and cost savings of the comparison study requirement; this act takes effect 90 days after enactment and expires December 31, 2016.