NYS Senator Daphne Jordan offers amendment to rescind Governor Cuomo’s expanded emergency powers

Albany, NY – New York State Senator Daphne Jordan (R,C,I-Halfmoon) offered an amendment to rescind Governor Andrew Cuomo’s expanded emergency powers during today’s Senate Session.

Senator Jordan offered the amendment on behalf of the New York State Senate Republican Conference to Senate Bill S.543, a measure advanced by the Senate Democratic Majority, which ultimately rejected the good government amendment. For over a year, Governor Cuomo has wielded unilateral, unchecked Executive power and today marked the 39th attempt to rescind the Governor’s expanded emergency powers.

“Every day, it is more apparent that the bill the Democratic Majorities in the Senate and Assembly passed nearly eight weeks ago was nothing more than window dressing and a sham rescission decision aimed at providing themselves political cover from growing discontent over Governor Cuomo and his highly unpopular mandates. While it may have been announced in a press release with great fanfare that the state Legislature ‘stripped the Governor’s emergency powers,’ today we remain in the same place we were before with one man making all of the decisions without any scientific data to back up his arbitrary edicts,” Senator Jordan said.

“Today, for the 39th time, we offered a common-sense amendment to rescind Governor Cuomo’s expanded emergency powers. Ours is a true rescission bill, not a phony, fraudulent rescission measure like the one advanced by the Senate Democratic Majority. Our amendment is a genuine effort to restore checks and balances that have been absent for well over a year as this Governor continues acting unilaterally, unchecked, unaccountable, and without oversight,” Senator Jordan said.

“It’s sadly ironic that if the Majority’s sham of a rescission bill had never passed, the Governor’s extraordinary powers would have ended April 30. Instead, with their sham bill’s passage, his vastly expanded powers end when the pandemic is officially declared at an end,” Senator Jordan stated.

“This Governor, who is engulfed in various scandals and actively being investigated on multiple fronts, is still the one who decides if we have to eat a burger with a glass of wine, at what time people can enjoy that burger, or even where people can dance at weddings. He alone decides how businesses can operate and how sports are played,” Senator Jordan said.

“Worse still, this Governor continues issuing new orders without any scientific, sound rational basis, or explanation, even though it is required under the law. The Executive has put orders in place with zero input, oversight, or consultation from the state Legislature. Our businesses are frustrated, our schools are frustrated, and New Yorkers are frustrated. They have had enough of this Governor’s one-man rule that is antithetical to democracy. Once and for all, the Legislature must stand up and perform its constitutional duties as a separate branch of government,” Senator Jordan stated.

“It’s well beyond time to do the right thing and restore the state Legislature to our rightful role as a co-equal branch of government so we can finally get our economy moving again and get New Yorkers back on their feet. It’s incredibly disappointing that, for the 39th time, the Majority failed to join us in this important effort,” Senator Jordan concluded.

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