OLEAN, N.Y. — Sen. George Borrello has joined a gaggle of Southern Tier and Western New York lawmakers in urging Gov. Andrew Cuomo to supply an exemption for employees who dwell in Pennsylvania however work in New York from probably being included within the governor’s COVID-19 journey advisory that now covers greater than 30 states.
Cuomo’s journey advisory applies to any individual touring to New York from states with a big group unfold of COVID-19 and requires them to quarantine for 14 days.
Borrello famous that “our regional economies are nonetheless fragile and dealing to get well within the wake of our months-long, necessary shutdown. If Pennsylvania had been to be added to the listing of states underneath quarantine, it will be a horrible hit to our struggling restoration. There are literally thousands of Pennsylvania residents who work in communities within the Southern Tier and Western New York whose employers can be negatively impacted at a time once they can least afford it.”
Along with Borrello, the state lawmakers who signed the letter embrace Sen. Tom O’Mara, Sen. Fred Akshar, Assemblywoman Marjorie Byrnes, Assemblyman Chris Good friend, Assemblyman Joe Giglio and Assemblyman Phil Palmesano. Collectively, they despatched a letter to Cuomo warning that the inclusion of neighboring state employees within the required journey advisory quarantine can be devastating to native economies throughout the Southern Tier area.
Of their Aug. three letter to Cuomo, the regional legislators wrote, “At present, the journey advisory is one in every of your administration’s main efforts to comprise the pandemic and defend the optimistic trajectory that New York State and our native areas have achieved in controlling its unfold. Whereas we perceive the necessity for warning behind the advisory and its accompanying quarantine requirement, we additionally strongly urge you to take into full consideration the possibly extreme financial penalties for areas like ours that border one other state, on this case Pennsylvania, the place there’s a each day inflow of out-of-state employees important to our native economies.”
The letter outlines a worst-case situation the place, for instance, Pennsylvania is added to the Cuomo journey advisory largely due to coronavirus spikes in massive cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, whereas border counties stay steady.
“Consequently, we recognize this chance to induce you to be pro-active on this consideration and, anticipating a worst-case situation, instantly work to make clear this concern for employers and employees and, particularly, devise protocols that can proceed to accommodate across-the-border employment. In truth, we have now learn the latest reviews that you’ve got supplied an exemption from the journey advisory/quarantine for New Jersey residents and imagine that residents and employees from New York’s different border states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Vermont needs to be supplied the same exemption,” the legislators wrote to Cuomo.
