Progress made combating Covid-19 in New York, plans to beat down the virus in the future and sharp criticism of the Trump Administration were dominant themes in Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo”™s 2021 State of the State address delivered virtually Jan. 11 from the statehouse in Albany.
Cuomo said that in some ways the state of New York is like the state of the U.S. and the world.
“We are hurt. We are frustrated. We are in mourning. We are anxious. We are shocked that an invisible enemy could reap such death and destruction, especially in this, the wealthiest and most powerful nation on earth,” Cuomo said.
“There are moments in life that can change a person fundamentally, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse,” Cuomo said. “Likewise, there are episodes in history that transform society and Covid is one of those moments. We see the risk and peril, but we also see the promise and potential of this moment. This next year we will see economies realign and reset around the world and New York will lead the way.”
Cuomo said that New York was blindsided by the virus early last year because the federal government failed to monitor what was happening and alert the country.
“When they finally took notice, the federal government was solely focused on China such that they allowed three million travelers from Europe, where the virus was rapidly spreading, to enter New York City-area airports and others. This was an act of gross negligence by the federal government,” Cuomo said.
Cuomo called on the incoming Biden administration to increase the supply of vaccines to states and announced that he will launch a new public health corps in New York under which 1,000 people will work to help increase vaccination activity. They would include students in public health, nursing and medical training, recent graduates, retired medical professionals and lay people who will receive an intensive public health training curriculum developed by Cornell University. Bloomberg Philanthropies, Northwell, and the state”™s Department of Health will manage and coordinate the corps.
Cuomo proposed creating a Covid testing program to help reopen the economy under which a person would receive the results of a test for the virus within 15 minutes and, if negative, could be cleared to dine in a restaurant, go to a movie or partake in any number of activities that have been curtailed.
In his speech, Cuomo called for the legislature to pass the Medical Supplies Act that would prioritize buying American-made personal protective equipment and medical supplies.
He proposed action to expand the use of telemedicine in the state, saying that reforms will address key issues like adjusting reimbursement incentives to encourage telehealth, eliminating outdated regulatory prohibitions on the delivery of telehealth, removing outdated location requirements, providing training for both providers and patients and establishing other programs to incentivize innovative uses of telehealth.
As the Business Journal previously reported he would, Cuomo proposed legalizing the use of marijuana by adults. He also proposed legalizing online sports betting.
He forecast the marijuana economy would create more than 60,000 jobs, spurring $3.5 billion in economic activity and generating more than $300 million in tax revenue when fully implemented.
Cuomo proposed that the value of the New York state Employer-Provided Child Care Credit should be expanded so that a business can claim qualified child care expenditures of to up to $500,000 per year.
He also said he”™ll establish a new Excelsior Child Care Investment Tax Credit available to recipients of the Excelsior Tax Credit as a bonus incentive to create and provide child care services for employees and their families.
He said that he”™ll expand the existing moratorium on residential evictions until May 1 for tenants who have endured Covid-related hardship by banning fees for late and missed rent payments during the pandemic and allowing tenants to use their security deposit as immediate payment and repay the deposit over time.
Cuomo will also codify his executive order to establish a statewide moratorium on commercial evictions until May 1 for commercial tenants who have endured Covid-related hardships.
Cuomo noted that the reduced demand for office and hotel space due to the pandemic has created an opportunity to repurpose formerly commercial space as housing. He plans to propose legislation to create a five-year period during which property owners may convert office buildings and hotels in the Manhattan central business district to residential use.
Cuomo said that stimulating housing conversion will create thousands of good-paying jobs, increase housing affordability, and support long-term economic growth by helping New York’s employers attract and retain talent.
