In the 2026 State of the State, Governor Hochul reaffirmed her commitment to improving contracting for not-for-profits (NFPs) in New York State. To respond to the needs of our service providers across the State, the Office of Customer Experience (CXO) has brought together a group of state agencies to move the needle on contracting reform.
Late last year, the CXO kicked off a multi-agency initiative to improve grant contract processes for New York’s providers, convening representatives from seven agencies. Among the agencies in the room were the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the Department of Health (DOH), the Department of Labor (DOL), the New York State Council of the Arts (NYSCA), the Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS), Office of Mental Health (OMH), and the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA).
A range of leaders from within these agencies have put themselves forward to lead the initiative, including non-profit unit directors, contracting leadership, and quality assurance experts, among others. Together, these representatives have contributed their insights and expertise to further discussions on how to meaningfully improve the contracting process for grantees and agency employees alike. From these meetings, opportunities have become clear, and the workgroup members stand poised and committed to tackle the issues at the root of the challenge.
Over the course of several months, the Office of Customer Experience met regularly with agency leaders to understand the current state of the contracting process, identifying common challenges, best practices, and, most importantly, immediate and measurable solutions.
Building on their learnings, CXO and the partnering agencies kicked off a series of cross-agency working groups to push forward change in a number of high-priority areas. Each chaired by a representative from one of our seven agencies, three workgroups were formed: claims innovation, standardization, and legislative grants. Through the working groups, our agency leads have put their heads together to reimagine the contracting experience.
The claims innovation gathered to discuss their claiming methods with the goal of developing a shared model to pilot within the participating agencies. In partnership with the Statewide Financial System (SFS) team, the legislative grant workgroup has met regularly to map out the contracting process, review existing resources, and introduce new training in the hopes of improving the user experience for the hundreds of agency and NFP staff across the State who rely on the platform. The standardization workgroup members have worked together to deliver on their name, setting their eyes on creating simpler and more efficient policies for common contracting practices, from budget modifications to indirect cost rates.
By identifying key friction points and outdated procedures, and administrative burden, agency leaders aim to reduce administrative burden and work closely with their teams to develop solutions that improve efficiency for both staff and providers. To maintain momentum around this work, agency members have also committed to a Community of Practice, a safe space to coordinate efforts, exchange knowledge, and drive continuous improvement in contracting practices for New York State. The Office of Customer Experience has routinely shared updates with the Not-for-Profit Contracting Advisory Committee (NFPCAC) on these initiatives as well.
Last month, the CXO and agencies gathered together in the Capitol’s Blue Room for their first convening. Attendees passed the mic to share their updates, as well as excitement for the next phase of work. Looking ahead, they are determined to invite others to the table. By broadening the circle, these solutions will expand throughout our human services agencies to create a standard experience that reaches and serves all.
Agency leaders left the Community of Practice with a renewed vision to deliver on change for not-for-profit providers, one that relies on their collaboration. In the coming weeks, the workgroup members are engaging a network of not-for-profit providers across the State to gather feedback and recommendations to guide this transformation.