Senator Rob Ortt Slams Governor Hochul’s Deployment of National Guard to Prisons Amid Statewide Corrections Officer Strikes

Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt is criticizing Governor Kathy Hochul’s decision to deploy the National Guard to state prisons as correctional officers across New York stage strikes over staffing shortages and working conditions.

“Sending the National Guard into our subways to do the job of the NYPD, and prisons to do the job of our correction officers, is not the best use of these brave New Yorkers,” Ortt said in a statement. “This is the result of the failed leadership of Governor Hochul and Senate and Assembly Democrats.”

The deployment comes as prison officers across the state protest what they call unsafe conditions, exacerbated by the HALT Act, which restricts the use of solitary confinement and mandates rehabilitative alternatives. Critics, including Ortt, argue that HALT has led to increased violence in prisons, putting officers at greater risk.

“The Governor should be focused on getting our correction officers back in prisons by ending HALT and committing to increasing staffing,” Ortt added.

As a former member of the New York National Guard, Ortt expressed concern that deploying troops without proper corrections training could escalate dangers inside prisons.

The Hochul administration has defended the move as a necessary step to maintain security amid the ongoing labor unrest. However, opposition continues to grow as lawmakers and union leaders call for immediate action to address the underlying issues in the state’s correctional system.