AMHERST, N.Y. — A Buffalo-area attorney has filed a legal challenge to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s use of executive powers to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, terming his actions a “disturbing and gross abuse” of authority.
Corey Hogan contends Cuomo has exceeded the powers granted a governor under state law to issue executive orders. His federal lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the Western District Court in Buffalo, further contends that Cuomo’s actions run afoul of both the state and federal constitutions.
The lawsuit takes aim at the powers used by governors across the nation to employ core strategies to address COVID-19, including orders to shelter in place and close non-essential businesses.
“This singular, authoritarian-type governance is occurring, in one form or another, throughout the United States, as governors across the country have issued similar Executive Orders limiting the operations of small businesses or shutting such businesses down completely, beyond the scope of their rightful authority,” Hogan said in a cover letter to the lawsuit.