ALBANY (WCBS 880) — The New York State Senate and Assembly have voted to repeal some executive orders made by Gov. Andrew Cuomo at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to a press release from state Sen. Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the state Senate voted to repeal three executive orders on Tuesday, including a directive that required restaurants to serve food with the purchase of an alcoholic beverage.
“New Yorkers have stepped up to take the appropriate safety precautions to curb the spread of COVID-19,” Stewart-Cousins said. “As more New Yorkers continue to get vaccinated, and our infection rates continue to decline, it is time to begin removing certain restrictions and regulations that are no longer necessary, so we can safely reopen and rebuild our state’s economy.
We ask New Yorkers to continue to heed public health guidance as it relates to mask wearing, observe social distancing precautions and get vaccinated so that we don't lose ground in our recovery.”
The Senate also voted to repeal an order that treated individuals who volunteered to take on significant government work related to the pandemic as "public officials." They also repealed an “outdated” compliance rule for vaccine suppliers.
The vote by the Senate marked the first time that the state Legislature has acted to end any of Cuomo's pandemic-related executive orders.
On Wednesday, the state Assembly also voted to repeal the executive orders, according to a press release from Speaker Carl Heastie.
"These executive orders were issued in order to respond to the constantly evolving health crisis," Heastie said in a statement. "Now, as New Yorkers continue to get vaccinated, and our infection rate continues to go down, there are executive orders that are no longer applicable or necessary."
Gov. Cuomo has yet to respond to the repeals. However, senior advisor Rich Azzopardi took to Twitter Tuesday night, saying the governor had plans to address the same directives in an upcoming executive order that will allow state-run vaccination sites to accept walk-ins.
“Half those regulations were already repealed as supply increased. The rest are going to be in the EO allowing open walk-ups at state sites starting Thursday,” Azzopardi wrote.
Senate Democrats say they will continue to review the governor's coronavirus-related orders that could be removed during the current legislative session.
Stay informed, stay connected — follow WCBS 880 on Facebook and Twitter. Listen live to WCBS 880 Newsradio.