The new governor promises more transparency and ethical conduct in government going forward.
ALBANY, N.Y. — Kathy Hochul became the first female governor of New York on Tuesday and in her first hours on the job sought to bring a new sense of urgency to tackling immense problems that went unaddressed during Andrew Cuomo’s distracted final months in office. In an afternoon address, she said she was immediately making masks mandatory for anyone entering schools and would work to implement a requirement that all school staff either be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. She said the state would launch a back-to-school testing program to make testing for students and staff more convenient. “None of us want a rerun of last year’s horrors with COVID-19,” Hochul said. “Therefore, we will take proactive steps to prevent that from happening.” Hochul also pledged quick action to unstick an application bottleneck that has kept federal aid money from flowing to renters who suffered financially because of the pandemic. She promised to get the state ready to distribute vaccine booster shots, when they become widely available, including reopening mass inoculation sites that had previously closed. And she also said New Yorkers “can expect new vaccine requirements,” though she didn’t specify what those might be. “More on that soon,” she said. Hochul, a Democrat and former member of Congress from western New York, took the oath of office just after midnight in a brief, private event overseen by the state’s chief judge, Janet DiFiore. At a ceremonial swearing-in later Tuesday morning at the State Capitol, Hochul promised a “fresh, collaborative approach” in state government. She said she had already begun speaking with other Democratic leaders who have, for years, complained about being shut out of key decisions and of being bullied by Cuomo, including New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. “There’ll be no blindsiding; there’ll just be full cooperation,” Hochul said. Over the next few months, Hochul, who was little known as lieutenant governor, will have an opportunity to reshape Albany, where Cuomo dominated decision-making for years before being felled in a sexual harassment scandal.
