DiNapoli rejects Cuomo's request for helicopter

ALBANY – The state’s chief fiscal watchdog has rejected the no-bid purchase of a $12.5 million helicopter intended for the State Police but also to ferry Gov. Andrew Cuomo around the state.

Cuomo administration officials, however, insisted that the purchase effort for the Sikorsky S76-D is still underway and that they are in the process of answering Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s questions.

The situation, though, can be expected to further heighten tensions between Cuomo and DiNapoli, whose office last week turned down the plan to use a non-competitive bidding process to purchase a new state helicopter. Cuomo and DiNapoli have had chilly relations for years, and the comptroller has issued several scathing audits and reports pertaining to Cuomo administration agencies.

The contract requested for a Sikorsky S76-D helicopter came from the State Police, which said it was needed to provide state-of-the-art emergency response and law enforcement missions, as well as to transport Cuomo. State Police described it as the only helicopter on the market today that meets various mission needs.

Read more: http://buffalonews.com/2016/12/06/comptroller-rejects-cuomo-request-used-12-5-million-helicopter/