By Jimmy Vielkind 

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Members of the state Assembly and Senate passed more than a dozen bills on Wednesday, including a measure giving victims of childhood sexual abuse more time to sue the responsible parties.

Most of the legislation dealt with the new coronavirus crisis, and several bills codified parts of executive orders that Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued in response to the pandemic. Legislators haven't convened for a session since April 3, when they approved the last pieces of the $178 billion state budget.

On Wednesday, most wore masks while in their chambers and some opted to vote via videoconference from their homes and offices.

The Senate unanimously voted to extend, until August 2021, the look-back window that is part of the state's Child Victims Act. Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against the Boy Scouts of America and Roman Catholic Dioceses in the state since the law took effect in August 2019. Advocates said the extension was necessary because the pandemic has limited access to some state courts.

"Justice for survivors and access to the court is paramount," said Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, a Democrat from Manhattan. Lawmakers in that chamber approved the bill in the evening.

But the Democratic-controlled Senate balked at a measure requested by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio that would allow the city to borrow as much as $7 billion, payable over the next 30 years. The Democratic mayor said Wednesday that he and his aides were putting together a city budget due June 30 and that borrowing would be "a fallback" if federal aid wasn't approved.

"Right now, we're getting to the point where if we have to sustain further cuts, it's going to start to affect all agencies," Mr. de Blasio said. "But a strong recovery correlates to having those basic services in place and keeping our public workforce strong."

Andrew Rein, president of the Citizens Budget Commission, a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog, said his group opposes the bill. Mr. Rein said in an interview that New York City officials should take steps to constrain spending before turning to borrowing. And Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday that "borrowing for operating expenses is fiscally questionable."

Senate Deputy Majority Leader Mike Gianaris, a Democrat from Queens, said the bill was being amended to add unspecified safeguards. It wasn't taken up in the Senate on Wednesday, but lawmakers planned to continue their session on Thursday, he said.

One measure expected on Thursday would draw on as much as $100 million in federal funds to give grants to some tenants who are unable to pay their rent. State Sen. Brian Kavanagh, a Democrat from Manhattan, said it was a step toward giving relief to people hurt by the pandemic.

Cea Weaver, campaign coordinator for the Upstate-Downstate Housing Alliance, has instead called on lawmakers to cancel the requirements for people to pay rent if they have lost their jobs. She called Mr. Kavanagh's bill "just so small given the scope of the problem."

Mr. Kavanagh said during a committee meeting on Tuesday that the legislation was a significant step and that he expected a continuing conversation about tenant protection.

Progressive activists also denounced a bill that would have given more authority to the commissioner of the state's Department of Corrections and Community Supervision to release certain nonviolent offenders from prison in response to the pandemic.

Activists said the bill didn't require the release of any inmates. Assemblyman David Weprin, a Queens Democrat who sponsored the bill, said Tuesday that its fate was up in the air.

A spokeswoman for the governor said he would review the housing bill as well as the extension of the Child Victims Act. Mr. Cuomo, using an executive order, already extended the deadline to file lawsuits from August to January.

Write to Jimmy Vielkind at Jimmy.Vielkind@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 27, 2020 18:40 ET (22:40 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.