New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday said he will extend the "look back" window outlined in the Child Victims Act by five months, giving survivors of child sex abuse more time to file lawsuits over older claims barred by statutes of limitation.

The move is expected to push the deadline for filing claims to the middle of January, instead of this August. The third-term governor said the state is giving more time for survivors to file due to the reduction in court services spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"People need access to the courts to make their claim," he said at a Friday press conference.

Survivors have been banned from filing CVA lawsuits since the state court system instituted a prohibition on new nonessential lawsuits — restrictions put in place as the coronavirus outbreak intensified in New York. Earlier this week, a court system spokesman said they would give survivors an opportunity to file their claims before time ran out on the revival period.

Lawyers and accusers have also expressed deep uncertainty over whether a tolling order from Cuomo, which paused statutes of limitation, would apply to the act's original one-year window.

Friday's announcement is a shift for Cuomo, who had given noncommittal responses on extending the CVA revival period when asked in the past few weeks.

Last week, Cuomo declined to say whether he would support a legislative bill to extend the CVA filing period for one year.

The five-month extension is likely welcomed news to advocates and child victim attorneys. They argue survivors need more time to bring lawsuits, particularly because of the outsized stress triggered by the pandemic.

"It's unreasonable to expect survivors of child sexual abuse to do the emotional and legal work necessary to file CVA lawsuits while simultaneously fighting to pay rent and put food on the table," said state Sen. Brad Hoylman, D-Manhattan, in a statement, pointing to a U.S. unemployment rate above 14%.

Hoylman, chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a sponsor of the extension legislation, said there are survivors who have not come forward and need more time. He reported that many New York counties have less than a handful or no CVA lawsuits.

Opponents argued an extension was unnecessary because the act has been highly publicized and the institutions deserve some sort of finality to the wave of litigation.

Earlier this year, state lawmakers took a pass on extending the CVA's revival window through the state budget. It remains unclear if the Legislature will green light the extension bill before session ends.