The FY 2014-2015 Budget included the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business Act (the Act) in an effort to provide economic opportunities to the honorable men and women who have served our country, by creating greater opportunities for their participation on New York State contracts. The Act created a new Division of Service-Disabled Veterans' Business Development (the Division) within the Office of General Services (OGS) to implement this initiative. The Division is responsible to certify service-disabled veteran owned business enterprises. The Act also establishes a goal of six-percent of the State's procurement contracts be awarded to certified businesses owned by service-disabled veterans, requires monitoring and annual reporting, and implements a results-driven review process to record and identify processes and procedures of the Division that are working or are in need of improvement. This hearing will examine the initial implementation of the program.

Testimony at the hearing is by invitation only. However, persons wishing to submit written testimony to the Committees are encouraged to submit their comments on or before the scheduled hearing date. All those planning to attend the hearing should complete and return the enclosed reply form as soon as possible. It is important that the reply form be fully completed and returned so that persons may be notified in the event of emergency postponement or cancellation.

Oral testimony will be limited to ten minutes' duration. In preparing the order of witnesses, the Committees will attempt to accommodate individual requests to speak at particular times in view of special circumstances. These requests should be made on the attached reply form or communicated to Committee staff as early as possible.

Twenty copies of any prepared testimony should be submitted at the hearing registration desk. The Committees would appreciate advance receipt of prepared statements.

In order to further publicize these hearings, please inform interested parties and organizations of the Committees' interest in hearing testimony from all sources.

In order to meet the needs of those who may have a disability, the Assembly, in accordance with its policy of non-discrimination on the basis of disability, as well as the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), has made its facilities and services available to all individuals with disabilities. For individuals with disabilities, accommodations will be provided, upon reasonable request, to afford such individuals access and admission to Assembly facilities and activities.

Steve Englebright
Member of Assembly
Chair
Committee on Governmental Operations

Michael Benedetto
Member of Assembly
Chair
Committee on Veterans' Affairs

William Scarborough
Member of Assembly
Chair
Committee on Small Business

Addie Russell
Member of Assembly
Chair
Subcommittee on Women Veterans

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Persons invited to present testimony at the joint public hearing on Implementation of the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business Act are requested to complete this reply form as soon as possible and mail, email or fax it to: