Senate Bill S8353

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Increases the amount of the award to a person who initiates a qui tam action where such action includes disclosure of information related to the use of government funds during a state of emergency

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 19, 2020	referred to finance

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A10461
Current Committee:: Senate Finance
Law Section:: State Finance Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §190, St Fin L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S1120, A1431

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the court to increase the amount of the award to a person who initiates a qui tam action where such action includes disclosure of information related to the use of government funds during a state of emergency.

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8353

SPONSOR: KAMINSKY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the state finance law, in relation to increasing the
amount of the award to a person who initiates a qui tam action where
such action includes disclosure of information related to the use of
government funds during a state of emergency

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation will permit courts to increase the award granted to
persons who initiate a qui tam action related to information disclosures
during a declaration of a state of emergency.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends the state finance law to increase the amount awarded
to an individual who initiates the qui tam action if the action is based
on the disclosure of specific information on the use of government funds

during a declaration of a state of emergency.

Section 2: Effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

COVID-19 is a public health crisis, which has crippled the economy,
disrupted supply chains and financial markets, and has created a short-
age of vital materials like ventilators, testing kits, and personal
protective equipment. In response to the pandemic, the state government
has taken unprecedented action to suspend normal procurement protocols
and spend billions of dollars to secure critical supplies and equipment
to prioritize the health and safety of New Yorkers. As with other states
of emergency - like superstorm Sandy or after September 11th - the need
to respond swiftly creates opportunities for perpetrators of fraud.

The Federal government has already announced it will "prioritize the
investigation and prosecution of Coronavirus-related fraud schemes" and
established a national hotline for whistleblowers to report suspected
fraud. Indeed, there are widespread media accounts of potentially frau-
dulent acts perpetrated on our state during the COVID-19 emergency and
the state has admitted that it had to cancel a number of large
contracts.

New York's False Claims Act helps combat fraud, since it allows private
citizens to file civil lawsuits on behalf of the government to help
recover defrauded money. By filing a qui tam whistleblower lawsuit,
citizens may be rewarded a percentage of the money recovered, depending
on the circumstances. This legislation will require courts to take into
consideration, when deciding the percentage of money to reward to a
private citizen, whether the information brought forward pertains to the
use of government funds during a state of emergency. If the government
prevails, the whistleblower will be able to recover five percent above
the base recovery amount. Currently, a successful whistleblower will
receive between 15 and 30 percent of the proceeds. With New York combat-
ing a pandemic, government funds are limited, and in such dire circum-
stances, we must incentivize whistleblowers to come forward with infor-
mation to assist the state recover funds and deter criminal dealings.
This legislation will change the current law to allow courts to increase
the amount of proceeds by up to 5 percent if the government intervenes,
10 percent if it does not, and the disclosure is about the use of
government funds defrauded during a state of emergency.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Legislation.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8353
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 19, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. KAMINSKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance
 
 AN ACT to amend the state finance law, in  relation  to  increasing  the
   amount  of  the award to a person who initiates a qui tam action where
   such action includes disclosure of information related to the  use  of
   government funds during a state of emergency

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 6 of section 190  of
 the state finance law, as amended by section 9-b of part A of chapter 56
 of the laws of 2013, are amended to read as follows:
   (a) If the attorney general elects to convert the qui tam civil action
 into  an  attorney  general  enforcement  action,  or  to permit a local
 government to convert the action into a civil enforcement action by such
 local government, or if the  attorney  general  or  a  local  government
 elects  to  intervene  in  the  qui tam civil action, then the person or
 persons who initiated the qui tam civil  action  collectively  shall  be
 entitled  to  receive  between  fifteen  and  twenty-five percent of the
 proceeds recovered in the action or in settlement  of  the  action.  The
 court  shall  determine the percentage of the proceeds to which a person
 commencing a qui tam civil action is entitled, by considering the extent
 to which the plaintiff substantially contributed to the  prosecution  of
 the action. Where the court finds that the action was based primarily on
 disclosures  of specific information (other than information provided by
 the person bringing the action) relating to allegations or  transactions
 in  a  criminal,  civil  or  administrative hearing, in a legislative or
 administrative report, hearing, audit or investigation, or from the news
 media, the court may award such sums as it considers appropriate, but in
 no case more than ten percent of the proceeds, taking into  account  the
 significance  of  the  information and the role of the person or persons
 bringing the action in advancing the case to litigation. WHERE THE COURT
 FINDS THAT THE ACTION WAS BASED ON DISCLOSURE  OF  SPECIFIC  INFORMATION
 RELATED  TO  THE USE OF GOVERNMENT FUNDS DURING A DECLARATION OF A STATE
 OF EMERGENCY, THE COURT SHALL INCREASE THE PERCENTAGE OF THE PROCEEDS TO
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD16306-04-0

 S. 8353                             2
 
 WHICH THE PERSON COMMENCING SUCH QUI TAM CIVIL ACTION IS ENTITLED BY  UP
 TO  FIVE  PERCENT  MORE  THAN THE MAXIMUM PERCENTAGE ALLOWED PURSUANT TO
 THIS PARAGRAPH. Any such person shall also receive an amount for reason-
 able  expenses  that  the court finds to have been necessarily incurred,
 reasonable attorneys' fees, and costs pursuant to article eighty-one  of
 the  civil  practice  law  and rules. All such expenses, fees, and costs
 shall be awarded against the defendant.
   (b) If the attorney general or a local government does  not  elect  to
 intervene  or convert the action, and the action is successful, then the
 person or persons  who  initiated  the  qui  tam  action  which  obtains
 proceeds  shall  be  entitled  to receive between twenty-five and thirty
 percent of the proceeds recovered in the action  or  settlement  of  the
 action.  The  court  shall  determine  the percentage of the proceeds to
 which a person commencing a qui tam civil action is entitled, by consid-
 ering the extent to which the plaintiff substantially contributed to the
 prosecution of the action. WHERE THE COURT FINDS  THAT  THE  ACTION  WAS
 BASED  ON  DISCLOSURE  OF  SPECIFIC  INFORMATION  RELATED  TO THE USE OF
 GOVERNMENT FUNDS DURING A DECLARATION OF A STATE OF EMERGENCY, THE COURT
 SHALL INCREASE THE PERCENTAGE  OF  THE  PROCEEDS  TO  WHICH  THE  PERSON
 COMMENCING  SUCH  QUI  TAM CIVIL ACTION IS ENTITLED BY UP TO TEN PERCENT
 MORE THAN THE MAXIMUM PERCENTAGE ALLOWED  PURSUANT  TO  THIS  PARAGRAPH.
 Such  person  shall  also receive an amount for reasonable expenses that
 the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, reasonable attorneys'
 fees, and costs pursuant to article eighty-one of the civil practice law
 and rules. All such expenses, fees, and costs shall be  awarded  against
 the defendant.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S8353

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Actions

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Todd Kaminsky

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Actions

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S8353 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments