Good morning,
Pardon my interruption for a second time this weekend. On Saturday night, Governor Andrew Cuomo issued Executive Order 202.12, his thirteenth Executive Order during this state of emergency. This Executive Order, like previously issued Executive Orders, modifies or suspends several New York statutes, laws, codes, rules and regulations as well as sets forth certain directives to address the COVID-19 crisis.
In addition to containing the directive that moves the New York’s Presidential Primary from April 28, 2020 to June 23, 2020 (which I noted in my last email), Executive Order 202.12 also contains two additional directives designed to assist the public during the COVID-19 crisis.
DIRECTIVES
Rescheduling Elections
- Executive Order not only moves the Presidential Primary, but any special election to be held on April 28, 2020, including the Twenty-Seventh Congressional District (Erie County region), the Twelfth Assembly District (Suffolk County), the Thirty-First Assembly District (Queens County), the One Hundred and Thirty-Sixth Assembly District (Rochester), and the Fiftieth Senate District (Syracuse area) has also been rescheduled for June 23, 2020. The ballot for those elections shall remain the same.
Health Care
- Any Article twenty-eight facility licensed by the state (i.e. a public hospital), shall, as a condition of licensure permit the attendance of one support person who does not have a fever at the time of labor/delivery to be present as a support person for a patient who is giving birth. This directive appears to be in response to some New York City public hospitals previously prohibiting spouses or partners be present during labor/delivery of a baby.
SUPENDED OR MODIFIED LAWS
As in prior executive orders, Executive Order 202.12 also suspends or modifies certain laws, codes, rules and regulations to aid in New York’s efforts to combat the COVID-19 crisis. The Executive Order, by modifying or suspending the applicable laws, codes, rules and regulations, to the extent necessary:
Election Law
- Suspends the statutory time period so that the time to mail the annual check of registrants and notice by mail shall be as directed by the New York State Board of Elections. State law requires that notice about the primary election be mailed to registered voters not less than 85 days and not more than 90 days before a primary election day. That strict time period will not be met due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Extensions, Modifications or Suspensions of Expiration Dates
- Modifies paragraph 28 of section 171 of the Tax Law, to the extent it limits the allowable period that the Tax Commissioner can disregard when a disaster emergency has been declared, to authorize the Tax Commissioner to disregard a period or more than 90 days, but not more than 100 days.