Westchester Reopening Update: 6-17-2020
June 17, 2020
Dear Friends:
Thank you to each of you for the sacrifices you have made to ensure that our region and New York State would flatten the curve and slow the spread of the coronavirus. The Mid-Hudson Region & Westchester County continue to stay in control of the spread of the virus because of your sacrifices and vigilance. The Mid-Hudson Region entered Phase Two of reopening on Tuesday, June 9th, and if the metrics continue on trend, Westchester County will enter Phase Three of reopening on Tuesday, June 23rd. Please see below for more details on the industries and guidance for Phase Three of reopening.
NEW YORK FORWARD:
- 3.6 mile shared pedestrian and bicycle path on the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge opened to the public on Monday, June 15th. The path features public art, food vendors, and audio tours, and it will be open daily from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM.
- Gatherings of up to 25 people will be allowed in Phase Three of reopening.
- Low-risk youth sports, including baseball & softball, will be permitted beginning on July 6th for regions in Phase Three of reopening with up to two spectators allowed per child.
- Hospitals and group homes are allowed to accept visitors at their discretion beginning on Friday, June 19th. Facilities that choose to allow visitors must follow state guidelines including symptom and temperature checks for visitors and requiring visitors to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
REOPENING WESTCHESTER COUNTY
County Executive George Latimer, Chambers of Commerce, and Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) throughout Westchester County are working together to provide free PPE for small businesses. Click here to apply for free PPE for your small business and your employees. To be eligible, businesses must have 20 or fewer full-time equivalent employees. Deadline to apply is June 26, 2020.
PANDEMIC EFFECTS ON NYS REVENUE
This week, New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released state tax revenue reports for May 2020. State tax receipts are down $766.9 million, or 19.7%, from May 2019. These reports underscore our call to Washington for additional federal aid for education as well as local and state governments apportioned to reflect the pandemic's inordinate impact on New York State.
NYS OF HEALTH ENROLLMENT DEADLINE EXTENDED
Governor Cuomo announced that the deadline to enroll in the state's health exchange system through the NYS of Health Marketplace has been extended to July 15th. If you lost your job, or health coverage, and now need health insurance, visit the NYS of Health Marketplace to enroll: nystateofhealth.ny.gov.
NYS SENATE CITIZENSHIP AWARD
On Sunday, June 14th, with Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, I had the pleasure of hosting a Virtual Award Ceremony & Celebration with over 50 5th, 8th, 11th, and 12th grade recipients of the NYS Senate Citizenship Award. Students were chosen for having made a significant impact on their school, community, or another area of civic life. Young people throughout our nation are organizing for change, and I was heartened and inspired by their ideas and insight about how to improve our communities, policing, and education. One of the award recipients, Khloe Cruz from School 17 in Yonkers, forwarded me a video she produced with her class to raise awareness about bullying. You can watch the video here. Thank you to all of the students for their contributions to the community. I look forward to working alongside them to repair our world.
As always, feel free to contact my office at (914) 934-5250 or smayer@nysenate.gov if there is an issue with which we can offer assistance or if you have questions about reopening for yourself or your business.
Kind regards,
Shelley B. Mayer