Dear Friends:

I hope you and your family have weathered the recent snow storms well.

This week, as part of an Emergency Storm Response legislative package, the New York State Senate passed my bill to strengthen the Public Service Commission's (PSC) enforcement powers surrounding failures of utility providers in storm recovery efforts. The failed storm response to Tropical Storm Isaias during the summer of 2020 was a turning point for legislative colleagues and constituents. We promised we would deliver meaningful change that would lead to better outcomes for ratepayers & customers, and we have now adopted a comprehensive package of legislation to do just that. Read more about the bills included in the Emergency Storm Response legislative package in the section below.

On Monday, February 22nd, I was pleased to support a package of critical legislation to improve care for our most vulnerable and to strengthen New York’s oversight and enforcement activity over nursing homes and other adult care facilities. Included in this package are bills that ensure at least 70% of a nursing home facility’s revenue is spent on direct patient care; require the development of visitation policies that permit loved ones to visit under certain difficult circumstances; strengthen the Ombudsman program to assist families seeking answers about the care of their loved ones; and require that deaths by nursing home residents at hospitals are recorded to reflect their nursing home address, among other measures. My colleagues and I are committed to protecting our vulnerable seniors in every way possible, and I am so pleased that this package is moving towards enactment. Read more about the bills included in this legislative package in the section below.

On Wednesday, February 24th, I was glad to join Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins in co-hosting an event commemorating Black History Month regarding Reaching Health Equity in the Black community. Thank you to the fantastic panelists who shared their research and personal stories about how we can remove barriers and create opportunities to dismantle health disparities. If you were not able to join us, click here to watch this important discussion.

As always, if there is anything my office can assist you with, please don't hesitate to email me at smayer@nysenate.gov or call (914) 934-5250.

Warm regards,

As of Friday, February 26th, 2.6 million New Yorkers have received at least one vaccine dose, and 1.4 million have received both doses. Click here to track the status of the state's vaccine distribution.

A new mass vaccination site began accepting appointments this week at the National Guard Armory in downtown Yonkers. The site has the capacity to administer 1,000 doses per day. In its first week, only residents from the following Zip Codes are eligible to schedule an appointment at this location: 10705, 10701, 10550, 10553, 10704, 10703, 10552. Those who are eligible can book an appointment though the state website here or by calling the New York State COVID-19 Vaccination Hotline at 1-833-NYS-4-VAX (1-833-697-4829). Flyers in English and Spanish are available to let neighbors & friends know about the site.

The Westchester County Department of Senior Programs & Services has released an updated guide for seniors about how to find an appointment and register. Click here for the guide for seniors.

An updated list of non-state-run vaccine providers in Westchester County is available here. Supply is limited and each site has its own protocols for signing up or registering for a waitlist. Please continue to be patient and check back as often as possible for any new openings. Click here for the Westchester County COVID-19 Dashboard to track positive COVID-19 cases throughout the county. The mobile friendly version of the dashboard is available here. 

New Yorkers can use the Am I Eligible to determine if they are eligible and make an appointment at a New York State-run vaccination site. Please check back daily for new appointments. The hotline number to call is 1-833-NYS-4-VAX (1-833-697-4829). If you have made an appointment for the vaccine, please fill out the New York State COVID-19 Vaccine Form, available here, and bring it with you to your appointment.

Click here to watch Sen. Mayer's floor remarks regarding her bill to strengthen utility oversight.

Storm after storm, utility providers have failed to prepare, respond and communicate sufficiently with customers in the wake of damaging weather events. In the summer of 2020, Tropical Storm Isaias left thousands of constituents without power for well over a week. The situation was made all the more difficult with the need to stay home and social distance during the pandemic. Despite tremendous hardship endured by residents in the wake of disastrous storms, the consequences faced by utilities continue to be treated as just a 'cost of doing business,' and there is little change to enhance service for customers. In the wake of Tropical Storm Isaias, my office worked with numerous constituents to assist them with their challenges and circumstances. I promised my constituents that I would press for meaningful changes that would result in enhanced service.

On Tuesday, February 23rd, the Senate adopted my bill, S.4960, to remove restrictions on the Public Service Commission's ability to penalize utility company violations and enhance oversight of utilities to ensure improved storm planning and response.

S.4960 includes provisions to:

Click here to read about the other bills included in the Emergency Storm Response legislative package. We will continue to monitor utility storm response and look for additional areas of improvement.

Our need to improve care for our most vulnerable was brought into sharp focus during the pandemic when our loved ones were virtually defenseless against the virus's fury. This week, I was pleased to join the Senate Majority Conference in adopting a legislative package to improve care and strengthen New York's oversight & enforcement activity over nursing homes and other adult care facilities.

Patients, their families, and their caregivers, need an improved system that demands prioritizing patient care, and recognizes the need for sufficient staff ratios to address patient needs.

On Wednesday, February 24th, I was pleased to join Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins in co-hosting an event commemorating Black History Month regarding health disparities in the Black community. The conversation centered on the history of health inequalities in the Black community, the disparities faced today, and actions that we need to take to reach health equity. The panelists included Dr. Mill Etienne, Vice Chancellor for Diversity & Inclusion at New York Medical College; Dr. Chris T. Pernell, Public Health Physician, Newark, NJ; and Susan Moscou, Associate Professor of Nursing at Mercy College. If you were not able to watch the conversation live, the recording is available to watch here.

On Thursday, February 25th, I co-hosted a meeting with Assemblymember Amy Paulin, the Eastchester PTA Council, Eastchester parents, and Eastchester School District Superintendent Dr. Robert Glass. Thank you to the over 100 parents, teachers and other stakeholders who joined us for a substantive discussion of state funding, plans to ensure teachers & other school staff receive access to vaccinations, and how we can effectively move towards more in person instruction.

State University of New York (SUNY) Chancellor Jim Malatras announced this week the elimination of application fees for high school seniors from low-income households applying to SUNY campuses. To qualify for the application fee waiver, high school seniors must be eligible for free or reduced-price lunch programs; the family's household income must not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty guidelines; or the high school senior must be in foster care. Students are eligible to apply to up to seven SUNY campuses without needing to pay the application fee, saving up to $350 in application fees per student. Find out more here.

I want to remind tenants and homeowners that the stay on eviction and foreclosure proceedings put in place by the COVID-19 Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2020 expires on February 26th (for evictions) and on February 27th (for foreclosures). Tenants or homeowners facing hardship should complete the hardship declaration, and submit it to the court, or to their landlord or mortgage holder, to request a further stay of proceedings until May 1, 2021. More information on the law, and copies of the hardship declaration forms in several languages, can be found on the New York Courts website here.  

The specific rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants under the law are outlined in the Chief Administrative Judge's memorandum from December 30, 2020, linked here; the Chief Administrative Judges' guidance on foreclosure proceedings can be found here.