Bill Text: NY A01732 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Makes several technical corrections to the election law in regards to absentee voting; provides that no ballot shall be declared void or partially blank if such ballot has been torn or defaced after such ballot has been mailed by the voter but prior to its reception by the board of elections.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-05-20 - held for consideration in election law [A01732 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A01732-Introduced.html

---

                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         1732
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                      (PREFILED)
                                    January 9, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by M. of A. KOLB -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. GIGLIO --
         read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
       AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to absentee voting
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Paragraph  (c)  of  subdivision 2 of section 8-400 of the
    2  election law, as amended by chapter 321 of the laws of 1988, is  amended
    3  to read as follows:
    4    (c)  All  applications  must  be  mailed to the board of elections not
    5  later than the seventh day before the election for  which  a  ballot  is
    6  first  requested or delivered IN PERSON OR BY OVERNIGHT DELIVERY SERVICE
    7  to such board not later than the day before such election.
    8    S 2. Subdivision 10 of section 8-400 of the election law,  as  amended
    9  by  chapter  373  of the laws of 1986 and as renumbered by chapter 40 of
   10  the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
   11    10. The state board of elections shall prescribe a  standard  applica-
   12  tion  form  for  use under this section. The use of any application form
   13  which substantially complies with the provisions of this  section  shall
   14  be acceptable and any application filed on such a form shall be accepted
   15  for  filing.    NOTHING  IN  THIS SECTION SHALL PROHIBIT THE PRINTING OF
   16  MATERIAL ON THE REVERSE SIDE OF THE APPLICATION BY PARTIES OR CANDIDATES
   17  ADVISING OF A PENDING ELECTION.
   18    S 3. Subdivision 1 of section 8-407 of the election law, as amended by
   19  chapter 195 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
   20    1. The board of elections of a  county  or  city  in  which  there  is
   21  located  at least one facility operated or licensed, or under the juris-
   22  diction of, the department of mental hygiene, or a facility defined as a
   23  nursing home or residential health care facility  pursuant  to  subdivi-
   24  sions  two  and  three  of section two thousand eight hundred one of the
   25  public health law or an adult care facility subject to the provisions of
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD00890-01-3
       A. 1732                             2
    1  title two of article seven of the social services law, or a hospital  or
    2  other  facility operated by the [Veteran's Administration of the] United
    3  States DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS shall provide  that  residents  of
    4  each such facility for which such board has received twenty-five or more
    5  applications  for  absentee ballots from voters who are eligible to vote
    6  by absentee ballot in such city or county at such election, may vote  by
    7  absentee  ballot  only  in  the  manner  provided for in this section OR
    8  SECTION 8-406 OF THIS TITLE. Such board may, in its discretion,  provide
    9  that  the procedure described in this subdivision shall be applicable to
   10  all such facilities in such county or city without regard to the  number
   11  of  absentee ballot applications received from the residents of any such
   12  facility.
   13    S 4. Subdivision 2 of section 9-108 of the election law is amended  to
   14  read as follows:
   15    2.  If the ballots found in any box OR ENVELOPE shall be more than the
   16  number of ballots so shown to have been deposited therein, such  ballots
   17  shall  all  be  replaced, without being unfolded, in the box OR ENVELOPE
   18  from which they were taken, and shall be thoroughly mingled therein, and
   19  one of the inspectors shall, with his  back  to  the  box  OR  ENVELOPE,
   20  publicly  draw out as many ballots as shall be equal to such excess and,
   21  without unfolding them forthwith shall enclose them in an envelope which
   22  he shall then and there seal and endorse "excess ballots  from  the  box
   23  for  ballots  for  the general election, presidential electors, or party
   24  ballots or otherwise", as the case may be, and shall sign his name ther-
   25  eto, and place such  envelope  in  the  box  for  defective  or  spoiled
   26  ballots.
   27    S 5. Subdivision 1 of section 9-112 of the election law, as amended by
   28  chapter 352 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as follows:
   29    1.  The  whole  ballot  is  void  if the voter (a) does any act INTEN-
   30  TIONALLY OR RECKLESSLY extrinsic to the ballot  such  as  enclosing  any
   31  paper  or other article in the folded ballot or (b) defaces or tears the
   32  ballot except that a ballot card which is in perforated  sections  shall
   33  not be void because it has been separated into sections or (c) makes any
   34  erasure  thereon or (d) makes any mark thereon other than a cross X mark
   35  or a check V mark in a voting square, or filling in the  voting  square,
   36  or  punching  a  hole  in  the  voting square of a ballot intended to be
   37  counted by machine or (e) writes, other than in the  space  provided,  a
   38  name  for  the purpose of voting; except that an erasure or a mark other
   39  than a valid mark made in a voting square  shall  not  make  the  ballot
   40  void,  but  shall  render  it  blank as to the office, party position or
   41  ballot proposal in connection with which it is made.  No ballot shall be
   42  declared void or partially blank because a mark thereon is irregular  in
   43  form WHERE THE INTENT OF THE VOTER IS MANIFESTLY CLEAR. The term "voting
   44  square"  shall include the voting space provided for a voter to mark his
   45  vote for a candidate or ballot proposal.   NO BALLOT SHALL  BE  DECLARED
   46  VOID  OR  PARTIALLY  BLANK IF SUCH BALLOT HAS BEEN TORN OR DEFACED AFTER
   47  SUCH BALLOT HAS BEEN MAILED BY THE VOTER BUT PRIOR TO ITS  RECEPTION  BY
   48  THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS.
   49    S 6. This act shall take effect January 1, 2014 and shall apply to all
   50  elections or primaries conducted on or after such date; provided, howev-
   51  er,  that effective immediately the addition, amendment and/or repeal of
   52  any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this  act  on
   53  its  effective  date is authorized and directed to be made and completed
   54  on or before such effective date.