Assemblyman Christopher S. Friend (R,C,I-Big Flats) is calling out Assembly Majority for misleading the public on their supposed deal to “strip” the governor of his extraordinary powers when in fact it essentially extends them. Majority announced on March 2 that they cut a deal to end the governor’s emergency powers, however, upon closer examination of their bill (A.5967), it would allow the governor to retain powers over existing executive orders and merely inform the Legislature of any new directives. Worse still, the deal removes the April 30, 2021 sunset provision included in the law passed in 2020, which gives the governor discretion to wield the extended powers until he deems the pandemic over.

“Assembly Majority has been taking victory laps all over social media and issued a press release on March 2 saying they were going to strip the governor of his extended powers, but as with everything, the devil is always in the details. The bill they crafted lets the governor keep his extraordinary powers for as long as he says there is a pandemic – he only needs to merely notify the Legislature of new directives,” said Friend. “The proposal is a joke, and the Assembly Majority Leadership should be ashamed in light of how the governor habitually missuses his power.”

The bill is expected to be voted on as soon as Friday, March 5.