2016 Best of New York and Hugh Carey Awards Announced

SACRAMENTO, CA--(Marketwired - September 16, 2016) - The 2016 Best of New York Awards were announced today at Government Technology's New York Digital Government Summit. Last night the prestigious Hugh L. Carey Leadership Award was announced during a reception in Albany, New York. The awards were presented by the Center for Digital Government and Government Technology, in partnership with the state of New York.

The Best of New York Awards recognize state and local government organizations for their standout contributions, best practices and innovations in information technology that improve citizen services.

The Hugh L. Carey Leadership Award for Outstanding Public Stewardship was established by Government Technology in 2011 and is named in honor of the late Gov. Hugh L. Carey, 51^st governor of New York.

This year's Best of New York Awards include honors for:

• AnalyzeNY Financials, Workforce Analytics, a business analytics tool using financial and workforce data with digital dashboard tools to provide in-depth knowledge
• The NYS Veterans Mobile App that provides the 900,000 veterans living in New York State efficient localized access to assistance and advocacy at state and county levels with the "Near Me" geographic locator for services
• The City of Schenectady's Special Award for Building the Foundation for a Smarter City, with its city-owned wireless network, smart LED lighting system in the downtown area saving $400,000 annually, and its smart parking system using cameras to monitor open parking spots

"Ingenuity, collaboration and a lot of hard work on the part of New York government departments have yielded great innovations that are improving government interactions with citizens," said Todd Sander, executive director of the Center for Digital Government. "We are honored to present this year's Best of New York winners and recognize their exemplary dedication to enhancing services for New Yorkers."

Nonie Manion, executive deputy commissioner of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, received the 2016 Hugh L. Carey Leadership Award. Manion was honored for her expertise in using technology to advance the work of the Tax Department. One of Manion's biggest and most visible successes was her role in the implementation of the Department's data-driven case identification and selection system (CISS). The CISS system sifts through millions of tax returns, identifying the most suspicious as potentially fraudulent returns improperly seeking refunds. Last year, CISS prevented New York from paying out more than $500 million in fraudulent refunds.

In presenting the Hugh Carey Award to Ms. Manion, Robert Plattner, New York State deputy commissioner for tax policy, said, "For well over two decades, Nonie has combined her passion for technology with her other considerable skills to become a driving force behind the Department's ongoing technological success story. Thanks to Nonie and other dedicated, talented staff, the New York State Tax Department is considered both a clear leader among state revenue agencies and a world-class tax administration organization."

Manion is the sixth recipient of the Hugh L. Carey Leadership Award. Previous winners are Sheila J. Poole in 2015, Thomas H. Mattox in 2014, Fran Reiter in 2013, Nirav R. Shah in 2012, and RoAnn M. Destito in 2011.

Congratulations to the 2016 Best of New York Award Winners:

Demonstrated Excellence in Project Management
Michelle Miao, Ph.D., BTS Program Director
New York City Department of Finance

Best Application Serving an Agency's Business Needs
NYC Department of Finance Integrated Business Tax System

Best Application Serving an Agency's Business Needs
Investigator App: Improving Quality of Community
Town of Brookhaven

Most Innovative Use of Social Media/Citizen Engagement
New York State Senate Public Website -- NYSenate.gov

Most Innovative IT Workforce Initiative
Quality Management Center: Excellence in Quality Assurance
New York State ITS Human Services Cluster

Best Application Serving the Public
NYC311 Mobile App
Office of the Mayor of New York City

Best Mobile/Wireless Project
New York State Veterans Mobile App

Best IT Collaboration Among Organizations
Court Actions Portal: Unifying Government Systems for Efficiency
Suffolk County Clerk

Best IT Collaboration Among Organizations
Health Disparities and Inequalities Collaboration Platform (HDIC)
University at Albany, SUNY

Best Data Analytics/Business Intelligence Project
AnalyzeNY Financials, Workforce Analytics
New York State Information Technology Services

Special Award
Building the Foundation for a Smarter City
City of Schenectady

Additionally, 39 Outstanding IT Service and Support Awards were presented to those dedicated to New York public service. For these awardees, visit

http://www.govtech.com/cdg/best-of-new-york/Best-of-New-York-Awards-2016-Winners-Announced.html.

About Government Technology and the Center for Digital Government

Government Technology is about solving problems in state and local government through the smart use of technology.

The Center for Digital Government (CDG) is a national research and advisory institute on information technology policies and best practices in state and local government.

Government Technology and CDG are divisions of e.Republic, the nation's only media and research company focused exclusively on state and local government and education.