2023 New York Laws › STF - State Finance › Article 2 - General Fiscal Provisions › 18 - Interest and Collection Fees Assessed on Debts Owed to the State.

§  18.  Interest  and  collection  fees  assessed on debts owed to the
  state.  1. As used in this section: (a) "state agency"  shall  mean  any
  state department, board, bureau, division, commission, committee, public
  authority,   public  benefit  corporation,  council,  office,  or  other
  governmental entity performing a governmental  or  proprietary  function
  for  the  state;  (b) "debt" shall mean any liquidated sum due and owing
  any state agency which has accrued pursuant to law or through  contract,
  subrogation, tort or other cause of action, except a liability resulting
  from  taxes  or other impositions administered by the state commissioner
  of taxation and finance, regardless of whether there is  an  outstanding
  judgment for that sum; (c) "debtor" shall mean any individual, business,
  or  other  entity, which is not a state agency, municipal corporation or
  district  corporation,  having  a  debt  with  any  state  agency;   (d)
  "liquidated"  shall  mean an amount which is fixed or certain or capable
  of being readily calculated, whether or not the underlying liability  or
  amount  of  the  debt is disputed; and (e) "outstanding" debt shall mean
  the amount set forth in the billing invoice  or  notice  mailed  to  the
  debtor,  together  with  late  payment  charges  and  interest, less any
  payments made by or on behalf of the debtor.
2. For the purposes of this section, a state agency shall mail a dated
  billing invoice or notice on or about the day it is dated,  and  receipt
  by  the debtor of a billing invoice or notice is deemed to have occurred
  five days after its date.
3. Unless provided otherwise by contract,  statute  or  regulation,  a
  debtor owing a debt to any state agency shall pay such debt on or before
  the thirtieth day following such debtor's receipt of any billing invoice
  or  notice  sent by the state agency that such debt is due and owing and
  that failure to make timely payment, as stated in the billing invoice or
  notice, will result in the assessment of  interest  or  a  late  payment
  charge  and  may  result  in  a  charge to cover the cost of processing,
  handling, and collecting such debt.
4. Unless provided otherwise by contract,  statute  or  regulation,  a
  debtor  that fails to make payment of a debt within the period set forth
  in subdivision three of this section  shall  pay,  in  addition  to  the
  amount  of  debt,  interest  on  the  outstanding  balance  of the debt,
  accruing on the date on which the receipt of the first  billing  invoice
  or  first  notice  occurs, computed at the underpayment rate which is in
  effect on the date which the receipt of the  first  billing  invoice  or
  first  billing  notice  occurs.  For  the  purposes of this section, the
  underpayment rate shall be that rate set by the commissioner of taxation
  and finance and published in the state register pursuant  to  subsection
  (e)  of  section  one  thousand  ninety-six  of  the  tax law minus four
  percentage points. With respect to specific classes of debt collected by
  a state agency, the director of the budget or official of a state agency
  so designated by the director of the budget may approve  the  assessment
  of  interest  at  a  date  later  than  the thirtieth day following such
  debtor's receipt of any billing invoice or  notice  sent  by  the  state
  agency.
5.  In addition to the charges referred to in subdivision four of this
  section,  and  unless  provided  otherwise  by  contract,   statute   or
  regulation,  a  debtor  that  fails to make payment of a debt subject to
  this section within ninety days of receipt by the debtor  of  the  first
  billing  invoice  or notice may be assessed an additional collection fee
  charge to cover the cost of processing,  handling  and  collecting  such
  debt,  not  to  exceed twenty-two percent of the outstanding debt, which
  collection fee shall be added to and payable in the same manner  as  the
  outstanding  debt. The assessed collection fee charge may not exceed the

  agency's estimated cost of  processing,  handling  and  collecting  such
  debt.
5-a.  Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this section, no state
  agency shall assess the additional collection fee  charge  described  in
  subdivision  five  of  this  section on any debt subject to this section
  owed by a debtor to a  state  agency  for  a  liability  resulting  from
  tuition, fees, room and board, educational benefit overpayments, student
  loans,  or  other  such  charges incurred by a student in furtherance of
  such student's education.
6. Any interest or late payment  charges  assessed  pursuant  to  this
  section  shall  be  paid upon notice and demand and shall be treated and
  collected in the same manner as the original debt which is due and owing
  and shall be  collected  by  a  state  agency  when  such  agency  deems
  collection  to  be  administratively  practical  and cost-effective. Any
  collection fee charges assessed pursuant to this section shall  be  paid
  upon  notice  and  demand  and shall be collected by a state agency when
  such agency  deems  collection  to  be  administratively  practical  and
  cost-effective.  In any action brought by or on behalf of a state agency
  to recover an outstanding debt, a demand for collection fee charges  may
  be set forth in the statement of damages sought.
7.  The  state director of the budget shall promulgate such guidelines
  as the director deems necessary to carry  out  the  provisions  of  this
  section.
8. The provisions of this section shall not supersede any provision of
  law  or  regulation  or  contract  which  provides for the imposition of
  interest or  late  payment  or  collection  fee  charges  on  debts  not
  satisfied in a timely manner.
9.  All  contracts  entered  into  or any regulation promulgated on or
  after the effective date of this section which waives the imposition  of
  interest  or  late payment or collection fee charges or imposes interest
  or  late  payment  charges  or  collection  fee  charges  in  a   manner
  inconsistent with this section must be approved by the state division of
  the budget.
10.  Every  state  agency  to  which  this  section  is  applicable is
  authorized to enter into written agreements with any debtor under  which
  such  debtor  is  allowed  to satisfy liability for payment of any debt,
  including any interest imposed by this section on that portion  of  such
  debt as to which an extension is granted, in installment payments if the
  state  agency  determines that such agreement will facilitate collection
  of such liability.  Provided  further,  that  where  such  state  agency
  determines  that  immediate  collection of the debt would jeopardize the
  debtor's fiscal viability and thereby pose a  hardship  to  the  public,
  such agency shall offer to enter into a written agreement to temporarily
  defer  collection of the debt, collect the debt on an installment basis,
  or make other reasonable arrangements to reduce  such  hardship  on  the
  public of collecting the debt.