Includes entities that provide employment or services to formerly incarcerated persons in the preferred source exemption for purposes of state purchasing.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9544A
SPONSOR: McDonald TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the state finance law, in relation to preferred source
status for entities that provide employment and services to certain
persons
PURPOSE:
This legislation would allow the commissioner of education to approve
qualified charitable non-profit making agencies that provide vocational
and rehabilitative training to formerly incarcerated persons to partic-
ipate in the preferred source program. The legislation also makes other
minor language changes to accommodate the modernization of preferred
source services.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one amends subdivision 1 of section 162 of the state finance law
to add assembled or fulfilled to the tasks performed by preferred sourc-
es.
Sections two, three, three-a, four, four-a, and five amend section 162
of the state finance law to add formerly incarcerated persons, so that
qualified charitable non-profits that provide vocational and rehabilita-
tive training programs for formerly incarcerated may be approved by the
commissioner of education and participate in the preferred source
program.
Section six establishes the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
People with disabilities are overrepresented at all stages of the crimi-
nal justice system, from jail and prison to probation and parole.
According to a February 2024 report by the Prison Population Initiative
individuals in the prison population with disabilities is 40% as
compared to 15% of the United States general population. For women those
incarcerated with disabilities rises to 50%. While cognitive disabili-
ties such as autism, Down syndrome, and learning disorders impact about
1/4 of incarcerated people, visual, hearing, and ambulatory disabilities
are not uncommon, and individuals with these disabilities are often
overlooked and subject to inhumane treatment.
This legislation would help the formerly incarcerated, many of whom
suffer from a disability, secure stabilizing employment opportunities.
NYSID has a network of service providers that provide vocational and
rehabilitative training to formerly incarcerated individuals. Allowing
access to the preferred source program would allow those individuals
employment opportunities at re-entry. NYSID could better capture indi-
viduals with disabilities through expansion of its service/catchment to
those who have been formerly incarcerated.
NYSID currently works with non-profits that serve both individuals with
disabilities and individuals that have been formerly incarcerated. Those
agencies include but are not limited to Second Chance Opportunities
(Albany), Osborne Associates (NYC), Good Will of NY (NYC), Good Will
Finger Lakes (Rochester), and Peter Young Housing Industries (Albany).
There are a host of other NFP's in the formerly incarcerated space that
could become members of NYSID.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
APPENDIX:
Prison Policy Initiative www.prisonpolicy.org
*Percent of people in state prisons who have a disability: 40*+
*Of Women in state prisons: 50%
*Percent of people on probation or parole who have a disability: 23%
*Fraction of people killed by law enforcement who have a disability: 1/3
*Percent of people in state prisons with a history of taking special
education classes: 25%.
*People with disabilities are overrepresented at all stages of the crim-
inal justice system, from jail and prison to probation and parole.
Compared to 15% of the US population, 40% of people in state prisons
have a disability. Cognitive disabilities such as autism, down syndrome
and learning disabilities impact k of incarcerated people."
Barriers to Justice: Inaccessibility of New York's Criminal Justice
System for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
by Michelle H. Walton
*ID/DD is an invisible disability the criminal justice system often
fails to acknowledge or accommodate. Instead, behavioral manifestations
of disability may be misconstrued as criminal behavior. Individuals with
ID/DD are overrepresented in the justice system. Given the substantial
discrimination and challenges encountered by justice-involved individ-
uals with ID/DD from the time of arrest to incarceration, disproportion-
ality is inevitable.
Justice-involved individuals with ID/DD are likely to come from econom-
ically disadvantaged backgrounds and from communities with increased law
enforcement presence. Many individuals with ID/DD have histories of
victimization and may struggle with the long-term e4e+-;..s of trauma.
-ndividuals with mild ID may have-learned to pass as, nondisabled, mal
attempt to hide their disability to gain social acceptance, and may have
developed skills to hide limitations in communication and cognition.
Individuals may not be willing to disclose their disability with crimi-
nal justice personnel because of fear. As a result, many individuals are
processed through the criminal justice system without being identified
as having a disability or being in need of additional support services.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9544--A
IN ASSEMBLY
March 20, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. McDONALD, BURDICK, SIMON, HEVESI, GLICK, WOERNER,
DeSTEFANO, DAVILA, REYES, BURGOS, BENDETT, HYNDMAN -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in relation to preferred source
status for entities that provide employment and services to certain
persons
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 162 of the state finance law, as
2 added by chapter 83 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
3 1. Purpose. To advance special social and economic goals, selected
4 providers shall have preferred source status for the purposes of
5 procurement in accordance with the provisions of this section. Procure-
6 ment from these providers shall be exempted from the competitive
7 procurement provisions of section one hundred sixty-three of this arti-
8 cle and other competitive procurement statutes. Such exemption shall
9 apply to commodities produced, manufactured or assembled, including
10 those repackaged, assembled or fulfilled to meet the form, function and
11 utility required by state agencies, in New York state and, where so
12 designated, services provided by those sources in accordance with this
13 section.
14 § 2. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 162 of the state finance
15 law, as amended by chapter 565 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read
16 as follows:
17 d. Commodities and services produced by any qualified charitable non-
18 profit-making agency for other disabled persons and/or formerly incar-
19 cerated persons approved for such purposes by the commissioner of educa-
20 tion, or incorporated under the laws of this state and approved for such
21 purposes by the commissioner of education;
22 § 2-a. Paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 162 of the state
23 finance law, as amended by chapter 501 of the laws of 2002, is amended
24 to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13984-03-4
A. 9544--A 2
1 d. Commodities and services produced by any qualified charitable non-
2 profit-making agency for other severely disabled persons and/or formerly
3 incarcerated persons approved for such purposes by the commissioner of
4 education, or incorporated under the laws of this state and approved for
5 such purposes by the commissioner of education;
6 § 3. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph a of subdivision 4 of section 162
7 of the state finance law, as amended by chapter 565 of the laws of 2022,
8 is amended to read as follows:
9 (iii) When commodities are available, in the form, function and utili-
10 ty required by, a state agency or political subdivision or public bene-
11 fit corporation having their own purchasing agency, and such commodities
12 are not available pursuant to subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of this para-
13 graph, said commodities shall then be purchased from a qualified non-
14 profit-making agency for other disabled persons and/or formerly incar-
15 cerated persons, a qualified special employment program for mentally ill
16 persons, or a qualified veterans' entity; provided, however, the
17 preferred source shall perform fifty percent or more of the work;
18 § 3-a. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph a of subdivision 4 of section
19 162 of the state finance law, as added by chapter 83 of the laws of
20 1995, is amended to read as follows:
21 (iii) When commodities are available, in the form, function and utili-
22 ty required by, a state agency or political subdivision or public bene-
23 fit corporation having their own purchasing agency, and such commodities
24 are not available pursuant to subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of this para-
25 graph, said commodities shall then be purchased from a qualified non-
26 profit-making agency for other severely disabled persons and/or formerly
27 incarcerated persons, a qualified special employment program for mental-
28 ly ill persons, or a qualified veterans' workshop;
29 § 4. The opening paragraph of paragraph b of subdivision 4 of section
30 162 of the state finance law, as amended by chapter 565 of the laws of
31 2022, is amended to read as follows:
32 When services are available, in the form, function and utility
33 required by, a state agency or political subdivision or public benefit
34 corporation having their own purchasing agency, equal priority shall be
35 accorded the services rendered and offered for sale by qualified non-
36 profit-making agencies for the blind and those for [the] other disabled
37 persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons, by qualified special
38 employment programs for mentally ill persons and by qualified veterans'
39 entities; provided, however, the preferred source shall perform fifty
40 percent or more of the work. In the case of services:
41 § 4-a. The opening paragraph of paragraph b of subdivision 4 of
42 section 162 of the state finance law, as added by chapter 83 of the laws
43 of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
44 When services are available, in the form, function and utility
45 required by, a state agency or political subdivision or public benefit
46 corporation having their own purchasing agency, equal priority shall be
47 accorded the services rendered and offered for sale by qualified non-
48 profit-making agencies for the blind and those for [the] other severely
49 disabled persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons, by qualified
50 special employment programs for mentally ill persons and by qualified
51 veterans' workshops. In the case of services:
52 § 5. Subdivision 6 of section 162 of the state finance law, as amended
53 by chapter 565 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
54 6. Prices charged by agencies for the blind, other disabled persons
55 and/or formerly incarcerated persons and veterans' entity.
A. 9544--A 3
1 a. Except with respect to the correctional industries program of the
2 department of corrections and community supervision, it shall be the
3 duty of the commissioner to determine, and from time to time review, the
4 prices of all commodities and to approve the price of all services
5 provided by preferred sources as specified in this section offered to
6 state agencies, political subdivisions or public benefit corporations
7 having their own purchasing office. The commissioner's price review and
8 approval shall not be required for any purchases below one hundred thou-
9 sand dollars.
10 b. In determining and revising the prices of such commodities or
11 services, consideration shall be given to the reasonable costs of labor,
12 materials and overhead necessarily incurred by such preferred sources
13 under efficient methods of procurement, production, performance and
14 administration; however, the prices of such products and services shall
15 be as close to prevailing market price as practicable, but in no event
16 greater than fifteen percent above the prevailing market prices for the
17 same or equivalent commodities or services.
18 c. Such qualified charitable non-profit-making agencies for the blind
19 and other disabled persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons may make
20 purchases of materials, equipment or supplies, except printed material,
21 from centralized contracts for commodities in accordance with the condi-
22 tions set by the office of general services; provided that the qualified
23 charitable non-profit-making agency for the blind or other disabled
24 persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons shall accept sole responsi-
25 bility for any payment due the vendor.
26 d. Such qualified charitable non-profit-making agencies for the blind
27 and other disabled persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons may make
28 purchases of materials, equipment and supplies directly from the correc-
29 tional industries program administered by the commissioner of
30 corrections and community supervision, subject to such rules as may be
31 established from time to time pursuant to the correction law; provided
32 that the qualified charitable non-profit-making agency for the blind or
33 other disabled persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons shall accept
34 sole responsibility for any payment due the department of corrections
35 and community supervision.
36 e. The commissioner of the office of children and family services
37 shall appoint the New York state commission for the blind, or other
38 non-profit-making agency, other than the agency representing [the] other
39 disabled persons and/or formerly incarcerated persons, to facilitate the
40 distribution of orders among qualified non-profit-making charitable
41 agencies for the blind. The state commissioner of education shall
42 appoint a non-profit-making agency, other than the agency representing
43 the blind, to facilitate the distribution of orders among qualified
44 non-profit-making charitable agencies for [the] other disabled persons
45 and/or formerly incarcerated persons and the veterans' entities. The
46 state commissioner of mental health shall facilitate the distribution of
47 orders among qualified special employment programs operated or approved
48 by the office of mental health serving mentally ill persons.
49 f. The commissioner may request the state comptroller to conduct
50 audits and examinations to be made of all records, books and data of any
51 agency for the blind or [the] other disabled persons and/or formerly
52 incarcerated persons, any special employment program for mentally ill
53 persons or any veterans' entity qualified under this section to deter-
54 mine the costs of manufacture or the rendering of services and the
55 manner and efficiency of production and administration of such agency or
56 special employment program or veterans' entity with relation to any
A. 9544--A 4
1 product or services purchased by a state agency or political subdivision
2 or public benefit corporation and to furnish the results of such audit
3 and examination to the commissioner for such action as he or she may
4 deem appropriate under this section.
5 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that:
6 (a) the amendment to paragraph d of subdivision 2 of section 162 of
7 the state finance law made by section two of this act shall be subject
8 to the expiration and reversion of such paragraph pursuant to section 4
9 of chapter 565 of the laws of 2022, as amended, when upon such date the
10 provisions of section two-a of this act shall take effect;
11 (b) the amendment to subparagraph (iii) of paragraph a of subdivision
12 4 of section 162 of the state finance law made by section three of this
13 act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion of such subpara-
14 graph pursuant to section 4 of chapter 565 of the laws of 2022, as
15 amended, when upon such date the provisions of section three-a of this
16 act shall take effect; and
17 (c) the amendments to the opening paragraph of paragraph b of subdivi-
18 sion 4 of section 162 of the state finance law made by section four of
19 this act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion of such para-
20 graph pursuant to section 4 of chapter 565 of the laws of 2022, as
21 amended, when upon such date the provisions of section four-a of this
22 act shall take effect.
