§ 139-B — Disqualification to contract with state

§ 139-b. Disqualification to contract with state. 1. Any person who,\nwhen called before a grand jury, head of a state department, temporary\nstate commission or other state agency, or the organized crime task\nforce in the department of law, which is empowered to compel the\nattendance of witnesses and examine them under oath, to testify in an\ninvestigation, concerning any transaction or contract had with the\nstate, any political subdivision thereof, a public authority or with a\npublic department, agency or official of the state or of any political\nsubdivision thereof or of a public authority, refuses to sign a waiver\nof immunity against subsequent criminal prosecution or to answer any\nrelevant question concerning such transaction or contract, and any firm,\npartnership or corporation of which any such person is a member,\npartner, director or officer shall be disqualified from thereafter\nselling to or submitting bids to or receiving awards from or entering\ninto any contracts with the state or any public department, agency or\nofficial thereof, for goods, work or services, for a period of five\nyears after such refusal or until a disqualification shall be removed\npursuant to the provisions of section one hundred thirty-nine-c of this\narticle.\n It shall be the duty of the officer conducting the investigation\nbefore the grand jury, the head of a state department, the chair of the\ntemporary state commission or other state agency, or the organized crime\ntask force in the department of law before which the refusal occurs to\nsend notice of such refusal, together with the names of any firm,\npartnership or corporation of which the person so refusing is known to\nbe a member, partner, officer or director, to the state commissioner of\ntransportation, except in the event the investigation concerns a public\nbuilding transaction or contract said notice shall be sent to the state\ncommissioner of general services, and the appropriate departments,\nagencies and officials of the state, political subdivisions thereof or\npublic authorities with whom the person so refusing and any firm,\npartnership or corporation of which he is a member, partner, director or\nofficer, is known to have a contract. However, when such refusal occurs\nbefore a body other than a grand jury, notice of refusal shall not be\nsent for a period of ten days after such refusal occurs. Prior to the\nexpiration of this ten day period, any person, firm, partnership or\ncorporation which has become liable to the cancellation or termination\nof a contract or disqualification to contract on account of such refusal\nmay commence a special proceeding at a special term of the supreme\ncourt, held within the judicial district in which the refusal occurred,\nfor an order determining whether the questions in response to which the\nrefusal occurred were relevant and material to the inquiry. Upon the\ncommencement of such proceeding, the sending of such notice of refusal\nto answer shall be subject to order of the court in which the proceeding\nwas brought in a manner and on such terms as the court may deem just. If\na proceeding is not brought within ten days, notice of refusal shall\nthereupon be sent as provided herein.\n 2. Any person who stands convicted of a felony defined in article two\nhundred or four hundred ninety-six or section 195.20 of the penal law,\nand any firm, partnership or corporation that stands convicted of such\ncrime shall be disqualified from thereafter selling to or submitting\nbids to or receiving awards from or entering into any contracts with the\nstate or any public department, agency or official thereof, for goods,\nwork or services. In the event a person or firm, partnership or\ncorporation is so convicted, the office responsible for prosecuting such\noffense shall send notice of such conviction to the state commissioner\nof general services, and to the office of the state comptroller and such\nappropriate departments, agencies and officials of the state, political\nsubdivisions thereof or public authorities with whom the person or the\nfirm, partnership or corporation is known to have a contract.\n