Bill Text: NY A06475 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to absentee ballots for school district elections during a declared disaster emergency; a voter can apply for an absentee ballot when they are unable to appear personally at the polling place of the school district in which they are a qualified voter because there is a risk of contracting or spreading a disease that may cause illness to the voter or to other members of the public.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-31 - substituted by s5545 [A06475 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A06475-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6475 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 18, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BRONSON -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to absentee ballots for school district elections during a declared disaster emergency; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 2018-a of the 2 education law, as amended by chapter 616 of the laws of 2019, is amended 3 to read as follows: 4 a. A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this section 5 if during all the hours of voting on the day of an election he or she 6 will be: 7 (1) absent from the county of his or her residence; or 8 (2) unable to appear at the polling place because of illness or phys- 9 ical disability, or duties related to the primary care of one or more 10 individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she 11 will be or is a patient in a hospital, provided that, for purposes of 12 this subparagraph, "illness" shall include, but not be limited to, 13 instances where a voter is unable to appear personally at the polling 14 place of the school district in which they are a qualified voter because 15 there is a risk of contracting or spreading a disease that may cause 16 illness to the voter or to other members of the public; or 17 (3) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or 18 (4) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is 19 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or 20 confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than 21 a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election 22 district of his or her residence. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10337-02-1A. 6475 2 1 § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 2018-b of the education 2 law, as amended by chapter 46 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 a. An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an applica- 5 tion setting forth (1) his name and residence address, including the 6 street and number, if any, or town and rural delivery route, if any; (2) 7 that he is or will be, on the day of the school district election, a 8 qualified voter of the school district in which he resides in that he is 9 or will be, on such date, over eighteen years of age, a citizen of the 10 United States and has or will have resided in the district for thirty 11 days next preceding such date; (3) that he will be unable to appear to 12 vote in person on the day of the school district election for which the 13 absentee ballot is requested because he is, or will be on such day (a) a 14 patient in a hospital, or unable to appear personally at the polling 15 place on such day because of illness or physical disability [or], 16 provided that, for purposes of this paragraph, "illness" shall include, 17 but not be limited to, instances where a voter is unable to appear 18 personally at the polling place of the school district in which they are 19 a qualified voter because there is a risk of contracting or spreading a 20 disease that may cause illness to the voter or to other members of the 21 public, (b) because his duties, occupation, business, or studies will 22 require him to be outside of the county or city of his residence on such 23 day, (c) because he will be on vacation outside the county or city of 24 his residence on such day; or, (d) absent from his voting residence 25 because he is detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or await- 26 ing trial or is confined in prison after conviction for an offense other 27 than a felony. Such application must be received by the district clerk 28 or designee of the trustees or school board at least seven days before 29 the election if the ballot is to be mailed to the voter, or the day 30 before the election, if the ballot is to be delivered personally to the 31 voter. 32 § 3. Paragraph s of subdivision 2 of section 1951 of the education 33 law, as added by chapter 722 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as 34 follows: 35 s. The board of cooperative educational services shall provide absen- 36 tee ballots to qualified voters. The commissioner shall adopt regu- 37 lations for the purposes of implementing the provisions of this para- 38 graph which shall include, but not be limited to, creating the procedure 39 for which such absentee ballots shall be submitted; providing that such 40 absentee ballots shall be, as nearly as practicable, in the same form as 41 those voted at the district election; requiring that any absentee ballot 42 applicant is or will be, on the day of the vote, a qualified voter of 43 the board of cooperative educational services and that he or she will be 44 on such date over eighteen years of age, a citizen of the United States 45 and has or will have resided in said district for thirty days next 46 preceding such date; and providing instructions as to the proper marking 47 thereof. For purposes of this paragraph, qualified voters of a board of 48 cooperative educational services may request an absentee ballot subject 49 to the conditions set forth in paragraph a of subdivision two of section 50 two thousand eighteen-b of this title. 51 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be 52 deemed repealed January 1, 2022.
