Research

The earliest predecessor to this department was the Dutch colonial office of schout-fiscal, which combined the functions of auditor, sheriff, and attorney general. Later, British colonial authorities appointed an attorney general as chief law enforcement officer of New York.

The office of secretary of state was inherited from the colonial period during which the secretary of the Province of New Netherland and the secretary of the Colony of New York acted as clerks to the governor's council and maintained the records of the colonial governments. Although neither the first State constitution of 1777 nor any statute specifically created the office within State government, the Council of Appointment appointed a secretary of state in 1778.

In the colonial and early statehood periods, public health issues were handled by localities, if addressed at all. On a few occasions, the legislature was involved in establishing quarantine regulations, particularly for New York City. In 1832, the legislature required all port cities, villages, and villages along the canal to appoint health officers and establish health boards. A more general public health law was passed in 1850, requiring all towns, villages, and cities (except the cities of New York and Brooklyn) to set up health boards and designate public health officers.

The office of the State Engineer and Surveyor was established by the State Constitution of 1846. The office replaced the office of the Surveyor General, assuming its duties as well as responsibility for surveying and engineering work not required by the former officer but which became increasingly important in ensuing years. Under the terms of the Constitution, the State Engineer and Surveyor was to be elected (at a general election) for a term of two years.

State administration of higher education began in 1784 (Chapter 51) with the creation of the Board of Regents of The University of the State of New York to act as the governing body of Columbia College, which had been founded in 1754 as King's College. Three years later the Regents were relieved of direct operating responsibility for Columbia College and were authorized instead to charter and supervise it along with any new colleges and academies.

The New York State Thruway was built to accommodate the huge post-war increase in motor vehicle traffic, particularly trucking; to encourage recreational travel; and to anticipate defense needs. Planning began in 1942. Groundbreaking at five sites along the route took place in 1946. Initially the Department of Public Works, drawing on state general capital construction funds, was responsible for the project. This arrangement proved to be a tremendous drain on state funds.

The State University Construction Fund was established as a public benefit corporation in 1962 (Chapter 251) to reduce the time between inception and completion of new facilities for SUNY campuses. The fund was to be guided by the assumption that SUNY's enrollment would more than double in the next ten years. Before the fund was created, construction of SUNY facilities was chiefly the responsibility of the Department of Public Works with the Division of the Budget closely monitoring expenditures.

The Workmen's Compensation Commission was established under the Workmen's Compensation Act of 1913 (Chapter 816), requiring employers to compensate employees disabled by industrial accidents or occupational diseases. Employers subject to the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Act were required to establish a self-insurance program, to provide disability insurance through a commercial carrier, or to contribute to the State Insurance Fund, which was also established in 1913.

During the first half of the twentieth century, public-employee organizations were established to seek job security and other benefits for government employees. Although strikes by public employees were proscribed by common law, a series of municipal employee strikes after World War II led to enactment of the Condon-Wadlin Act in 1947 (Chapter 391), establishing penalties for striking public employees. Three years later an executive order was issued that guaranteed State employees the right to join employee organizations and created a grievance procedure.

The Office of Medicaid Inspector General (OMIG) was initially established in 2005 by Executive order 140.1 and then established by statute (L. 2006 Ch. 442) as an independent entity within the New York State Department of Health to create a more efficient and accountable structure, dramatically reorganize and streamline the state's process of detecting and combating Medicaid fraud and abuse, and maximize the recoupment of improper Medicaid payments.