Bill Text: NY A04562 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Enacts the "election workers and polling places protection act" to protect poll watchers, election officials, voters and physical property being used as a polling place or by the board of elections.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 18-2)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-04 - referred to election law [A04562 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-A04562-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4562

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 4, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of A. LAVINE, BURDICK, OTIS, KELLES, SIMON, SHIMSKY,
          R. CARROLL, LEVENBERG, WEPRIN, CRUZ, DAVILA, ALVAREZ, EACHUS, LUPARDO,
          REYES, RAGA, BICHOTTE HERMELYN, McDONOUGH, CHANG -- Multi-Sponsored by
          -- M. of A.  WOERNER -- read once and referred  to  the  Committee  on
          Election Law

        AN  ACT to amend the election law, in relation to enacting the "election
          workers and polling places protection act"

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

     1    Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
     2  the "election workers and polling places protection act".
     3    § 2. The election law is amended by adding a  new  section  17-213  to
     4  read as follows:
     5    §  17-213.  Election workers and polling place protection. 1. Whoever,
     6  whether or not acting under color of law, interferes in any manner  with
     7  any  election  official in the discharge of the election official's duty
     8  or to induce any election official to violate or refuse to  comply  with
     9  the  election  official's duty or any law regulating the same, is guilty
    10  of a class A misdemeanor.
    11    2. Whoever, whether or not acting under color  of  law,  by  force  or
    12  threat of force, or violence, or threat of harm to any person or proper-
    13  ty  including  loss of employment or economic reprisal, willfully intim-
    14  idates or interferes with, or attempts to intimidate or  interfere  with
    15  the ability of any person or any class of persons to qualify or act as a
    16  poll  watcher in any primary, special, or general election, is guilty of
    17  a class A misdemeanor.
    18    3. Whoever, whether or not acting under color  of  law,  by  force  or
    19  threat of force, or violence, or threat of harm to any person or proper-
    20  ty  including  loss of employment or economic reprisal, willfully intim-
    21  idates or interferes with, or attempts to intimidate or  interfere  with
    22  the  ability  of any person or class of persons to vote or to qualify to

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04438-01-5
        A. 4562                             2

     1  vote in any primary, special, or general election is guilty of a class A
     2  misdemeanor.
     3    4.  Whoever,  whether  or  not  acting under color of law, by force or
     4  threat of force, or violence, or threat of harm to any person or proper-
     5  ty including loss of employment or economic reprisal,  willfully  intim-
     6  idates  or  attempts to intimidate any legally authorized election offi-
     7  cial, or any person who is employed by, an agent, contractor, or  vendor
     8  of a legally authorized election official, administering or assisting in
     9  the administration of any primary, special, or general election with the
    10  intent  to  (a) impede or interfere with the official while the official
    11  is engaged in the performance of the official's duties; or (b) retaliate
    12  against the official on account of the  official's  performance  of  the
    13  official's duties is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
    14    5.  Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, willfully phys-
    15  ically damages or threatens to physically damage any  physical  property
    16  being  used  as  a  polling place or tabulation center or other election
    17  infrastructure, with the intent to interfere with the administration  of
    18  an  election or the tabulation or certification of votes, is guilty of a
    19  class D felony.
    20    6. For purposes of this section, de minimus damage or  threats  of  de
    21  minimus  damage to physical property shall not be considered a violation
    22  of this section.
    23    7. Whoever, whether or not  acting  under  color  of  law,  obstructs,
    24  impedes,  or  otherwise  interferes  with access to any polling place or
    25  elections office, an election official's access to or  egress  from  any
    26  other  building  being used for election related purposes, or obstructs,
    27  impedes, or otherwise interferes with any voter in any manner that caus-
    28  es or will reasonably have the effect of causing any delay in voting  or
    29  the  voting process, including the canvassing and tabulation of ballots,
    30  is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
    31    8. The provisions of this section shall not apply  to  an  enforcement
    32  action  by the state board of elections or the attorney general, or by a
    33  county board of elections, in accordance with this section or any  other
    34  provision  of  law  against  an  election  judge  or  poll watcher for a
    35  violation of a statute or a rule  promulgated  by  the  state  board  of
    36  elections, or the election inspector's, poll clerk's or election coordi-
    37  nator's oath.
    38    9.  (a)  The attorney general, a county attorney, or an election offi-
    39  cial may bring a civil action to prevent or restrain a violation of this
    40  section if there is a reasonable basis to believe that an individual  or
    41  entity is committing or intends to commit a prohibited act.
    42    (b)  In  a  civil  action brought to prevent or restrain violations of
    43  this subdivision or to require  the  payment  of  civil  penalties,  the
    44  moving  party may show that the action or attempted action would cause a
    45  reasonable person to feel intimidated. The moving party does not need to
    46  show that the actor intended to cause the victim to feel intimidated.
    47    (c) The attorney general,  an  election  official  or  any  individual
    48  injured  by  an act prohibited by this section, may bring a civil action
    49  to recover damages, together with costs of investigation and  reasonable
    50  attorney  fees,  and receive other equitable relief as determined by the
    51  court. An action brought by an election official is in the public inter-
    52  est. In addition to all other damages, the  court  may  impose  a  civil
    53  penalty of up to three thousand dollars for each violation.
    54    (d)  Civil remedies allowable under this section are cumulative and do
    55  not restrict any other right or remedy otherwise  available.  An  action
        A. 4562                             3

     1  for  a  penalty or remedy under this section shall be brought within two
     2  years of the date the violation is alleged to have occurred.
     3    10. For purposes of this section, the term:
     4    (a)  "election  infrastructure"  means any office of an election offi-
     5  cial, staff, worker, or volunteer or any physical, mechanical, or  elec-
     6  trical device, structure, or tangible item used in the process of creat-
     7  ing,  distributing,  voting,  returning, counting, tabulating, auditing,
     8  storing, canvassing or other handling of voter  registration  or  ballot
     9  information.  Such  term  shall  also include any equipment specified in
    10  section 4-132 of this chapter.
    11    (b) "election worker" means any  election  inspector,  poll  clerk  or
    12  election coordinator.
    13    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.