Bill Text: NY A03250 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to allowing pre-registered voters to apply for an absentee or early mail ballot.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-0)

Status: (Passed) 2024-08-06 - signed chap.214 [A03250 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A03250-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3250

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 2, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Election Law

        AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to allowing pre-registered
          voters to apply for an absentee ballot

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  The  opening  paragraph  of subdivision 1, subdivision 2,
     2  paragraph (b) of subdivision 3, and subdivision 8 of  section  8-400  of
     3  the  election  law, the opening paragraph of subdivision 1 as amended by
     4  chapter 63 of the laws of 2010, subdivision 2 as amended by chapter  746
     5  of  the  laws  of 2021, paragraphs (c) and (d) of subdivision 2 as sepa-
     6  rately amended by chapter 273 of the laws  of  2021,  paragraph  (e)  of
     7  subdivision 2 as added by section 1 of part HH of chapter 55 of the laws
     8  of  2022, paragraph (b) of subdivision 3 as amended by chapter 63 of the
     9  laws of 2010 and subdivision 8 as amended by chapter 684 of the laws  of
    10  1981 and as renumbered by chapter 40 of the laws of 2009, are amended to
    11  read as follows:
    12    A  qualified  voter,  or pre-registered voter who will be qualified on
    13  the date of the next election, may vote as an absentee voter under  this
    14  chapter  if,  on the occurrence of any village election conducted by the
    15  board of elections, primary election, special election, general election
    16  or New York city community school board  district  or  city  of  Buffalo
    17  school district election, he or she expects to be:
    18    2. A qualified voter, or pre-registered voter who will be qualified on
    19  the  date  of the next election, desiring to vote at such election as an
    20  absentee voter for any reason specified in subdivision one  hereof  must
    21  make  application  for  an  absentee ballot on a form to be obtained and
    22  filed as provided herein, by letter as provided in paragraph (d) of this
    23  subdivision, or through the electronic absentee ballot application tran-
    24  smittal system pursuant to section 8-408 of this title.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06581-01-3
        A. 3250                             2

     1    (a) Application forms shall be furnished by and may be  obtained  from
     2  any  board  of elections at any time until the day before such election,
     3  or on the electronic absentee  ballot  application  transmittal  system.
     4  Application  forms  shall also be supplied by the board of inspectors of
     5  the  election  district  in which the applicant is a qualified voter, or
     6  pre-registered voter who will be qualified  on  the  date  of  the  next
     7  election,  on  all of the days provided for local registration. In addi-
     8  tion, application forms shall be supplied upon the request of the person
     9  authorized to vote pursuant to this section, any such  person's  spouse,
    10  parent or child, a person residing with the applicant as a member of his
    11  or  her household, or the applicant's duly authorized agent. Application
    12  forms sent outside of the United States to a country other  than  Canada
    13  or  Mexico, shall be sent airmail. Any reference to "board of elections"
    14  in the remaining provisions of this section, except with respect to  the
    15  furnishing  and  obtaining  of  applications for absentee ballots, means
    16  only the board of elections of the county or city in which the applicant
    17  is a qualified voter, or pre-registered voter who will be  qualified  on
    18  the date of the next election.
    19    (b) Applications may be filed with the board of elections, through the
    20  electronic  absentee  ballot application transmittal system or in person
    21  with the board of inspectors of  the  election  district  in  which  the
    22  applicant  is  a  qualified  voter,  or pre-registered voter who will be
    23  qualified on the date of the next election, on one of the days  provided
    24  for local registration.
    25    (c)  All applications requesting an absentee ballot by mail or through
    26  the electronic absentee ballot application transmittal  system  must  be
    27  received  by  the  board  of  elections not later than the fifteenth day
    28  before the election for which a ballot is first requested.  Applications
    29  for  an absentee ballot that will be delivered in person at the board of
    30  elections to the voter or to an agent of the voter must be  received  by
    31  such board not later than the day before such election.
    32    (d)  The  board  of  elections  shall mail an absentee ballot to every
    33  qualified voter, or pre-registered voter who will be  qualified  on  the
    34  date  of the next election, who is otherwise eligible for such a ballot,
    35  who requests such an absentee ballot from such  board  of  elections  in
    36  writing  in  a  letter, telefax indicating the address, phone number and
    37  the telefax number from which the  writing  is  sent  or  other  written
    38  instrument,  or an electronic application submitted by the voter through
    39  the electronic absentee ballot  application  transmittal  system  estab-
    40  lished by the state board of elections, which is signed by the voter and
    41  received  by  the  board  of  elections not later than the fifteenth day
    42  before the election for which the ballot is first  requested  and  which
    43  states  the  address  where  the  voter is registered and the address to
    44  which the ballot is to be mailed; provided, however,  a  military  voter
    45  may  request  a  military ballot or voter registration application or an
    46  absentee ballot application in a letter as provided in subdivision three
    47  of section 10-106 of this  chapter;  and  provided  further,  a  special
    48  federal voter may request a special federal ballot or voter registration
    49  application or an absentee ballot application in a letter as provided in
    50  paragraph  d  of  subdivision one of section 11-202 of this chapter. The
    51  board of elections shall enclose with such ballot a form of  application
    52  for  absentee  ballot  if the applicant is registered with such board of
    53  elections.
    54    (e) When mailing an absentee ballot application to a voter  the  board
    55  of elections shall provide a domestic postage paid return envelope. When
    56  providing an absentee ballot application to a voter in-person, the board
        A. 3250                             3

     1  of elections shall offer the voter a domestic postage paid return envel-
     2  ope and provide one if requested.
     3    (b)  A  statement  that  the  applicant  is a qualified and registered
     4  voter, or pre-registered voter who will be qualified on the date of  the
     5  next election.
     6    8.  Printed  forms  of applications for absentee ballots in accordance
     7  with the requirements of this section shall be provided by the board  of
     8  elections.  An  appropriate  number  shall  be  retained by the board of
     9  elections for the purpose of furnishing  an  application  form  to  each
    10  qualified  voter,  or  pre-registered voter who will be qualified on the
    11  date of the next election, who applies  therefor  before  the  board  of
    12  elections,  either in person or by mail, and an appropriate number shall
    13  be delivered to each board of inspectors on registration days  with  the
    14  election  supplies,  and  the  board  of  inspectors  shall  retain  the
    15  completed and unused applications  and  return  them  to  the  board  of
    16  elections  with  their election supplies and an appropriate number shall
    17  be available for distribution to officers of political  parties,  county
    18  clerks,  city,  town and village clerks, colleges, libraries, hospitals,
    19  nursing homes, senior citizens centers and any other convenient distrib-
    20  ution source which is approved by the local or state board of  elections
    21  and which requests such forms.
    22    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.