Governor Andrew Cuomo is ordering all downstate non-essential state workers to stay home starting Monday, but he says the legislative session will continue as planned this week, despite two state lawmakers now sick with the coronavirus. A third New Yorker, a 79-year-old woman form New York City with underlying health conditions, has also died from the virus.
Cuomo says all non-essential state workers who live in the downstate area from Rockland County south, including New York City area and Long Island, will not have to go to work beginning Monday, to help prevent the spread of the virus
"That's about half of the workforce of the state," Cuomo said.
All upstate state workers will be expected to show up for their jobs The governor has also asked businesses to allow staff to work from home and consider closing their establishments.
Two state lawmakers who were in session as recently as March 3 said Saturday night that they have come down with the virus. But so far, no other legislators or staff have been quarantined, and Cuomo says the 213 lawmakers and their staffs will be coming to the capitol each business day for as long as the next two and a half weeks to complete the budget.
He likened their duties to those of frontline workers during the crisis, like nurses and the military.
"If we can ask nurses to put on hazmat suits and take blood, we can ask elected officials to come sit at a desk and vote on a piece of legislation," Cuomo said.
The governor says he needs the legislature close by to authorize any emergency measures that might need to be taken.
"You need soldiers to fight the war," Cuomo said. "Government must function."
The governor continues to say that he believes the budget can still include additional items, like legalizing the adult use of recreational marijuana and rolling back the state's January 1 bail reform laws, which ended many forms of cash bail in New York.
There has been talk of completing the budget early, but Cuomo says there are a lot of complex issues that still need to be talked through, and he doesn't want to rush.
A spokesman for the State Senate, Mike Murphy, says lawmakers do plan to return Monday, but can't say what their plans will be beyond that. He says there will be an effort to get the budget done early, and that any staff that can work remotely will be allowed to do so.
Cuomo says he is still not requiring that schools close down, he says it's up to the individual district. Although if anyone at the schools tests positive for the virus, they will close for 24 hours to clean and assess the next steps. Many districts have already made the decision to close schools for a time, including all of the schools in Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester Counties.
Cuomo, in a conference call with downstate county executives, says he is now in support of closing the nation's largest school system in New York City as soon as Monday.
But he says first, he's calling on the head of the New York City teachers union, the health care workers union SEIU 1199, and education officials to come up with a plan for child care for essential workers like hospital staff and who can't stay home to care for their children.
"We need to make sure that the two possible negative consequences are managed," Cuomo said.
And he says his administration will help schools that do plan to close to continue to feed the many children who are dependent on the schools for free or reduced cost meals.
The governor has already waived the requirement that schools be in session for 180 days each year or lose funding
