Many young men and women who dedicated themselves to training with the National Guard and Reserves, based in North Carolina and South Carolina, are returning home to find their civil liberties and economic well-being trampled by Governor Cuomo.

These brave men and women - who have answered the call of service - must quarantine for 14 days upon entry into New York if they are not immediately returning to service.

After long training periods away from their families, these individuals deserve to be welcomed back to civilian and professional life - not sequestered because they trained in a certain state. At the height of New York’s crisis, which our National Guard bravely responded to, this state had three times the rate of coronavirus cases as the threshold set by the Governor for his travel quarantine.

Our military personnel deserve the same freedoms as the people who live and work in New York, not ridiculous quarantines because of the heroic line of work they chose.

Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt represents the 62nd Senate District. He enlisted in the New York Army National Guard in October 2001 in direct response to 9/11. He is a combat veteran, who served in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.