George Borrello

State Senator George Borrello has proposed legislation that would eliminate the three-member Farm Laborers Wage Board.

The Farm Laborers Wage Board was established as part of the Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act (FLFPA) passed in 2019.

The Wage Board is charged with making a recommendation on reducing the current 60-hour overtime threshold for farm workers to 40 hours. In January, after numerous public hearings on the issue that included testimony from farmers, farm workers and industry stakeholders, the board recommended lowering the threshold, despite the fact that more than 70 percent of the testimony conveyed the harm that would be caused by such a change.

Borrello, a ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, issued a statement saying, “The Wage Board has just one member with an agricultural background, making it ill-equipped to render sound, informed decisions concerning New York State’s critically-important agriculture industry. The fact that the Board ignored the vast majority of testimony, as well as data from a Cornell study that found a lower threshold would hurt both farmers and farm workers, indicates the process was more optics than anything else. Regardless, a decision of this magnitude should not rest with three unelected, unaccountable individuals, which is why this legislation is necessary.”

Senator Borrello noted that the Wage Board is set to reconvene on September 6 to present its final report regarding the overtime recommendations. With many legislators calling for a special session before the end of the summer to tackle crime and inflation, there is potential to address this issue before the board’s scheduled meeting.

Assemblyman Chris Tague, ranking member of the Assembly Agriculture Committee, is sponsoring companion legislation in the lower house.

State Senator George Borrello announcing lawsuit against Governor Hochul, NYS Department of Health

State Senator George Borrello is part of a lawsuit against Governor Kathy Hochul and the State Department of Health over a proposed regulation regarding isolation and quarantining.

The lawsuit filed in Cattaraugus County Supreme Court is in regards to an emergency regulation under the State Department of Health that establishes isolation and quarantine procedures for those suspected of having a communicable disease. The proposed regulation had been adopted as an emergency regulation on February 22, 2022 and was due to expire April 22, 2022.

However, Borrello said the the regulation was also published in the New York State Register issued December 15, 2021, for adoption as a permanent regulation through the agency rule-making process. Borrello said it should have been something that came before the State Legislature, “With a bill to be discussed and debated. And in fact, there was a bill like that – Assembly Bill 416 by Assemblyman Perry. It’s actually been around for years, long before the Pandemic. And it basically would give power to public health officials to isolate and quarantine someone without due process.”

Borrello said the sponsor recently pulled that bill due to “backlash and controversy.”

He said Hochul is taking the language of that bill and trying to make it a permanent regulation under the Health Department, which he says is a clear violation of the separation of powers, “For me, if this is something the New York State Legislature, representing the people of New York State, wants to do, then bring it forward as a bill. Have it debated and discussed. Pass it. You be the one to tell the people you report to, the people who elect you, that you voted to have someone quarantined without due process. And if that passes muster, then so be it, but not as a regulation put forth under the radar by Governor Hochul and her Department of Health.”

Other petitioners in the lawsuit include Assemblymembers Michael Lawler and Chris Tague as well as the organization, Uniting NYS.