ALBANY COUNTY — Starting Monday, restaurant curfews across New York State will be pushed back an hour from 11 p.m. to midnight, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Wednesday.

The curfew for catered events will also be moved back an hour, from midnight to 1 a.m.

The original curfew for restaurants and bars, adopted last year to stem the spread of the coronavirus, was 10 p.m.; that was pushed back to 11 p.m. in February.

Assemblyman Chris Tague, a Republican from Schoharie, joined GOP colleagues on Thursday, calling for “justifications from the governor’s office” on the need for any curfew at all.

“After a farcical show of ‘taking away the governor’s powers,’ it has become clear the governor has as much power as ever to jeopardize the livelihoods of working people and small business owners,” said Tague in a statement.

Also on Wednesday, Cuomo announced that spectators will be allowed at horse and auto races at 20 percent capacity, beginning Thursday, April 22.

Spectators will be subject to the same guidance for other sports competitions. They must show proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test or completed vaccination series prior to entry and are subject to the state's health and safety protocols on face coverings, social distancing, and health screening.

The state’s infection rate, as of Wednesday, as a seven-day rolling average, was 3.1 percent, according to the state’s dashboard.

For Albany County, also as of Wednesday, as a seven-day rolling average, the infection rate was 2.4 percent. 

Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy reported, in a press release Thursday morning, 63 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the county’s tally to 23,159.

Of the new cases,  41 did not have clear sources of infection identified, 18 had close contact with someone infected with the disease, three reported traveling out of state, and one was a health-care worker or resident of a congregate living setting.

The five-day average for new daily positives has decreased slightly to 52 from 52.2. There are still 471 active cases in the county, unchanged from Wednesday.

The number of Albany County residents under quarantine decreased to 905 from 964. So far, 74,464 residents have completed quarantine. Of those, 22,688 had tested positive and recovered. That is an increase of 62 recoveries since Wednesday.

There were three new hospitalizations overnight and 30 county residents still remain hospitalized from the virus. There are currently six patients in intensive-care units, unchanged from Wednesday.

Albany County’s COVID-19 death toll remains at 369.

“The number of active COVID cases in Albany County has now dropped down to 471, and the number of people under quarantine has plummeted from this year’s high of 3,438 on January 14, to 905 today,” said McCoy in a Thursday statement. “This is a positive sign showing the vaccine is working to keep our numbers low and the virus under control.”

As of Thursday evening, 47.3 percent of Albany County’s 307,117 residents had received at least one dose of vaccine, according to the state’s vaccine tracker.

McCoy reported on Thursday morning that 33 percent of Albany County residents were fully vaccinated.

Statewide, 39.6 percent of New Yorkers have received at least one dose while 26.4 percent have completed a vaccination series.