Olean Times Herald: Borrello urges Senate majority leader to resume 2020 session

May 13th, 2020

Olean Times Herald, May 13th, 2020

ALBANY — With latest unemployment figures showing that more than 1.8 million New Yorkers have filed for unemployment, state Sen. George Borrello urged the Senate leader to resume the 2020 session to address the growing economic toll of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Borrello and fellow GOP senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins insisting that there are critical pieces of legislation that must be addressed to help New Yorkers who are out of work.

“New York State has mobilized extraordinary resources and resolve towards combating the public health threat posed by COVID-19,” Borrello of Lakewood said Wednesday. “That commitment has helped us avoid some of the truly catastrophic scenarios that were advanced at the start of the pandemic.”

But Borrello said the state’s lawmakers need to show the same determination in the face of the economic disaster that has resulted from the pandemic shutdown.

The senator is one of the most vocal in calling on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to allow the economic reopening of the Southern Tier counties in his district.

Borrello noted that New York’s National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) has cited that small businesses have been hurt by the shutdown even more sharply than the broader economy, with approximately 75% applying for federal Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.

He said that the state’s “difficult tax and regulatory environment” are difficult to operate under at any time, but such obstacles can prove to be insurmountable in a downturn.

Borrello noted that most of the measures Republicans are advancing would not involve an outlay of state funds, but are generally more aimed at preserving cash flow. The legislation includes the following bills:

• S8179 — Small Business Relief Bill: The measure includes provisions that would give businesses a 90-day extension on monthly sales and payroll taxes; eliminate penalties for late payment of business and property taxes; offer no interest loans and lines of credit from the NY Mortgage Corp.; and extend the cure period for various violations.

• S8172 — Paid Family Leave: This legislation would support both employees and employers by ensuring employees subject to mandatory or precautionary quarantine are eligible for compensation through the paid family leave program after the utilization of any available paid sick leave. This measure would alleviate the burden on small and seasonal employers of providing paid sick leave for periods of quarantine.