New York should use federal funding from the CARES Act to buy and distribute personal protective equipment in schools, Senator Sue Serino said Wednesday. 

The push came in the form of a letter from Serino to Governor Andrew Cuomo and as students and teachers in New York are preparing for an uncertain school year. 

 “School districts and parents are facing agonizing decisions as they work to safely get students back to school,” said Serino, a Republican who represents the Poughkeepsie area. 

“The last thing they need to worry about is how they will afford PPE or where they will safely procure it from,” said Serino. “The state must act swiftly and do everything it can to deliver the necessary PPE—and any additional health and safety resources—directly to school districts across the state, and that starts with using the funding we know the state has available through the CARES Act.”

School districts that are offering in-classroom instruction over the summer had to tackle questions like ordering masks and other equipment. Some superintendents have said the challenging is a daunting one, with hundreds of school districts seeking the same items from only a handful of distributors. 

"Despite the efforts of my colleagues and I to return power to the Legislature, the power to allocate this funding still rests solely with the governor," Serino said. "If schools are to reopen, everyone in the building must be safe, and that starts with ensuring districts have access to the critical PPE they will depend on. I am urging the governor to do what is right and order these funds be utilized immediately to help schools meet this critical need.”