Section 163-C. Centralized procurement contract fee

1. For purposes of this
  section, the following terms shall have the specified meanings:
    a.  "Authorized  user"  means  any  person  or  entity  authorized  to
  purchase:
    (i) commodities under a centralized contract pursuant to  subparagraph
  (iv)  or  subparagraph  (viii)  of  paragraph  a of subdivision three of
  section one hundred sixty-three of this article; or
    (ii) services or technology under a centralized contract  pursuant  to
  paragraph  b or e of subdivision four of section one hundred sixty-three
  of this article.
    b.  "Centralized  contract"  means  contracts  for  the  purchase   of
  commodities,  services or technology, established by the commissioner of
  general services.
    c. "Electronic" means of or relating to technology having  electrical,
  digital,   magnetic,  wireless,  optical,  electromagnetic,  or  similar
  capabilities.
    2. The commissioner of general services shall require that contractors
  selected  to  offer  centralized  contracts  through   the   state   for
  commodities,  services  or  technology  add  to  the  price  in all such
  contracts a centralized procurement contract fee equal  to  one-half  of
  one  percent  of  the  price to be reported through sales reports to the
  office of general services. The following  types  of  contracts  may  be
  exempted from the centralized procurement contract fee:
    a.  federal,  other  public jurisdictions' or multi-state contracts or
  schedules adopted by the  state  pursuant  to  paragraphs  e  and  f  of
  subdivision ten of section one hundred sixty-three of this article,
    b.  centralized contracts where an administrative fee is included as a
  contract requirement.
    3. Each contractor collecting the fee imposed pursuant to  subdivision
  two of this section shall:
    a.  electronically  pay over to the department of taxation and finance
  all fees collected quarterly, on or before the forty-fifth day following
  the last day of each calendar quarter; provided, however,  that  if  the
  contractor  fails  to  collect  the  fee  from  the authorized user on a
  purchase under a centralized contract,  then  the  contractor  shall  be
  responsible  for electronically paying the fee over to the department of
  taxation and finance; and
    b. electronically file a return with the department  of  taxation  and
  finance  quarterly,  containing  such information as the commissioner of
  taxation and finance shall prescribe. The return  shall  be  due  on  or
  before  the  forty-fifth  day  following  the  last day of each calendar
  quarter. If  no  authorized  users  made  purchases  from  a  contractor
  selected to offer a centralized contract during the calendar quarter for
  which  the  return  is  required  to be filed, then the contractor shall
  electronically file a return indicating  that  no  purchases  were  made
  during  that  quarter.  Information  contained  in, or derived from, the
  returns required to be filed pursuant to this  paragraph  shall  not  be
  covered by the secrecy provisions of the tax law.
    A contractor shall be exempt from the mandatory electronic payment and
  electronic filing requirements prescribed by paragraph a and paragraph b
  of  this  subdivision  if  the contractor notifies the office of general
  services, in a manner to be determined by such office,  that  it  cannot
  reasonably  comply  with  such  electronic payment and electronic filing
  requirements.  In  such  case,  the  contractor  shall,   in   lieu   of
  electronically  paying over the centralized procurement contract fee and
  electronically filing a return  with  the  department  of  taxation  and
  finance, pay over such fee by paper check, and file a paper return, with
  the  office  of  general  services  on  or  before  the  forty-fifth day

  following the last day of  each  calendar  quarter.  The  department  of
  taxation  and  finance and the office of general services shall mutually
  develop a means by which the returns received by the office  of  general
  services  pursuant to this paragraph shall be electronically transmitted
  to the department of taxation and finance for  purposes  of  reconciling
  the  information  reported  on  such  returns with fee payments for each
  calendar quarter.
    The office  of  general  services  shall  cooperate  and  provide  the
  department  of  taxation  and  finance  with  such  information  as  the
  department  may  require  regarding  contractors   selected   to   offer
  centralized   contracts,   in   order  to  facilitate  the  department's
  development and implementation of the electronic payment and  electronic
  filing  applications  prescribed  by paragraph a and paragraph b of this
  subdivision.  The  office  of  general  services  shall  work  with  the
  department  of  taxation  and finance to encourage those contractors not
  able to use the electronic payment and filing applications prescribed by
  paragraph a and paragraph b of this subdivision to do so.
    4. Failure to timely and accurately collect and remit the  centralized
  procurement  contract  fee  as  required  by  subdivision  three of this
  section may be deemed to constitute a breach of such contract,  and  the
  commissioner  of  general  services has the discretion to terminate such
  centralized contract with such contractor for such breach on  notice  to
  the contractor.
    5. a. If:
    (i)  a  contractor  awarded  a  centralized  contract  has a past-due,
  legally enforceable tax debt or other debt due to a state agency,
    (ii) the debt is being offset against a contract payment received from
  an authorized  user  pursuant  to  the  state  contract  offset  program
  administered  by  the office of the state comptroller and the department
  of taxation and finance, and
    (iii) the past-due,  legally  enforceable  debt  is  larger  than  the
  contract  payment (including the fee imposed by this section), then, the
  full amount of the contract payment (including the fee imposed  by  this
  section)   shall  be  applied  to  the  contractor's  past-due,  legally
  enforceable debt, and the contractor shall remain responsible for filing
  the return and paying over the amount of the fee due  on  such  contract
  payment at the time prescribed in subdivision three of this section.
    b. If:
    (i)  a  contractor  awarded  a  centralized  contract  has a past-due,
  legally enforceable tax debt or other debt due to a state agency,
    (ii) the debt is being offset against a contract payment received from
  an authorized  user  pursuant  to  the  state  contract  offset  program
  administered  by  the office of the state comptroller and the department
  of taxation and finance, and
    (iii) the past-due, legally  enforceable  debt  is  smaller  than  the
  contract  payment (including the fee imposed by this section), then, the
  amount of the contract payment necessary to fully pay  the  debt  (which
  shall  include the fee imposed by this section), shall be applied to the
  debt, and the contractor shall remain responsible for filing the  return
  and  paying  over  the amount of the fee due on such contract payment at
  the time prescribed in subdivision three of this section.
    6. All fees received by the commissioner of taxation and  finance  and
  the  commissioner  of general services pursuant to this section, reduced
  by amounts approved by the director of the budget to be retained by  the
  commissioner  of  taxation and finance to cover administrative costs and
  the costs of refunds or reimbursements required to be made to authorized
  users under this section, shall be deposited quarterly to the credit  of
  the  general fund of the state. The commissioner of taxation and finance

  shall determine an amount  for  administrative  costs  incurred  by  the
  department  of  taxation  and  finance, which amount shall represent the
  reasonable  costs  of  the  department  of  taxation  and   finance   in
  administering  the  program prescribed by this section. The commissioner
  of taxation and finance shall also determine the  amount  necessary  for
  refunds  or reimbursements required to be made to authorized users under
  this section, and shall pay such refunds or reimbursements out  of  such
  retained  amounts.  The  commissioner  of  taxation  and  finance  shall
  maintain a system of accounts showing the amount of money collected  and
  disbursed from the fee imposed by this section.
    7.  The  provisions of article twenty-seven of the tax law shall apply
  to the provisions of this section in the same manner and with  the  same
  force   and  effect  as  if  the  language  of  such  article  had  been
  incorporated in full into this section and had expressly referred to the
  fees under this section except that the term "fee" or "fees"  when  used
  in  this  section  shall  mean  "tax"  or "taxes" for the purpose of the
  application of article twenty-seven of the tax law  as  incorporated  by
  this  subdivision,  and  except to the extent that any provision of such
  article is either inconsistent with a provision of this  section  or  is
  not relevant to this section.