New York Consolidated Laws, General Business Law - GBS § 756. Definitions

As used in this article:  1. “Construction contract” means a written or oral agreement for the construction, reconstruction, alteration, maintenance, moving or demolition of any building, structure or improvement, or relating to the excavation of or other development or improvement to land, and where the aggregate cost of the construction project including all labor, services, materials and equipment to be furnished, equals or exceeds one hundred fifty thousand dollars.  For the purposes of this article a construction contract shall not include any such contract made and awarded by the state, any public department, any public benefit corporation, any public corporation or official thereof, or a municipal corporation or official thereof for construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, maintenance, moving or demolition of any public works project nor any contract with a contractor or subcontractor which is part of such project;  or any such contract the purpose of which is the construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, maintenance, moving or demolition of an individual one, two or three family residential dwelling or a residential tract development of one hundred or less one or two family dwellings, or any residential construction project where the aggregate size of such project is four thousand five hundred square feet or less, or any residential project of fewer than seventy-five units which receives financial assistance from the federal government, the state or a municipal entity designed for households earning an average of one hundred twenty-five percent of the housing and urban development agency area median income.

2. “Contractor” means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, association, company, organization or other entity, including a construction manager, or any combination thereof, which enters into a construction contract with an owner.

3. “Owner” means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association or other organization or other entity, or a combination of any thereof, (with an ownership interest, whether the interest or estate is in fee, as vendee under a contract to purchase, as lessee or another interest or estate less than fee) that causes a building, structure or improvement, new or existing, to be constructed, altered, repaired, maintained, moved or demolished or that causes land to be excavated or otherwise developed or improved.

4. “Subcontractor” means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, organization or other entity, or any combination thereof, which is a party to a contract with a contractor or another subcontractor to perform a portion of work pursuant to a construction contract.

5. “Material supplier” means any person, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, or other organization or entity, or any combination thereof, which is party to a contract with an owner, contractor or subcontractor, for the provision of construction materials and/or equipment necessary to the completion of a construction contract.

6. “Notice.”  Any notice by the owner, contractor or subcontractor under this article shall be sent by facsimile and reputable overnight courier and shall be deemed effective on the date sent.