“On behalf of the constituents who have been pleading for answers regarding the health and well-being of their loved ones in nursing homes over the past 11 months, I am outraged by the results of the attorney general’s report which confirmed our worst fears — that Gov. Cuomo’s administration has been hiding as many as 50 percent of nursing home deaths.

“It is beyond shameful. The state Legislature should immediately, as I have been calling for time and time again since July 1, 2020, strip the governor of any and all emergency powers he has exercised for way too long during this pandemic. We should restore our legislative authority and begin to do our jobs in representing the people. New York state’s government was set up with a division of power for this very purpose — with checks and balances. Attorney General James has at last done her job by issuing this report. The downstate driven, one-party controlled state Legislature must do their jobs now before another life is lost or more facts are hidden from the public.

“Taxpayers deserve open and transparent government. Where is the accountability from the administration here? For example, I have been asking the Health Department for months for a basic breakdown of how coronavirus deaths are being recorded and have yet to receive a response to my repeated inquiries. Taxpayers and lawmakers deserve responses to these questions.I hope that my legislative colleagues take action now to remove these Governor’s extraordinary powers and schedule appropriate hearings immediately using subpoena power, if necessary, to get answers that have been dodged for so many months.

“Seniors are so frustrated by the vaccine roll out, small businesses have been crippled by over burdensome restrictions, and nursing deaths were hidden. Action to restore constitutional balance by the one party, downstate driven majorities in the Legislature is way overdue. Let’s get back to the real work that New Yorkers demand.”