Bill Text: NY A08487 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to the crimes of fraud in connection with a primary election, caucus or convention, and criminal impersonation in the first degree where a person pretends to be an elected official or candidate for an elected office and acts by impersonating such an elected official, or candidate or campaign for such an elected office, by communication by internet website or electronic means, with intent to obtain a benefit or injure or defraud another; requires social media companies to establish practical mechanisms for closing accounts within twenty-four hours of receiving notice that such account involves either such crime; and authorizes the state board of elections chief enforcement counsel to investigate allegations or claims of such crimes, including subpoena powers and to issue cease and desist orders to the relevant social media companies upon proof of such impersonation or fraudulent or wrongful act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to election law [A08487 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A08487-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8487 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY August 7, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. CUSICK -- read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law AN ACT to amend the penal law, the election law and the general business law, in relation to the crime of criminal impersonation in the first degree and fraud in connection with a primary election, caucus or convention; and to repeal certain provisions of the election law relating thereto The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 3 of section 190.26 of the penal law, as added 2 by chapter 2 of the laws of 1998, is amended to read as follows: 3 3. Pretending to be a duly licensed physician or other person author- 4 ized to issue a prescription for any drug or any instrument or device 5 used in the taking or administering of drugs for which a prescription is 6 required by law, communicates to a pharmacist an oral prescription which 7 is required to be reduced to writing pursuant to section thirty-three 8 hundred thirty-two of the public health law; or 9 4. Pretends to be an elected official or candidate for an elected 10 office and acts by impersonating such an elected official, or candidate 11 or campaign for such an elected office, by communication by internet 12 website or electronic means, with intent to obtain a benefit or injure 13 or defraud another. 14 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 17-102 of the election law is REPEALED 15 and subdivisions 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 are renumbered subdivi- 16 sions 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. 17 § 3. The election law is amended by adding a new section 17-101 to 18 read as follows: 19 § 17-101. Fraud in connection with a primary election, caucus or 20 convention. 1. Any person who fraudulently or wrongfully performs any 21 act or attempts to perform any act tending to affect the result of any EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD13341-01-9A. 8487 2 1 primary election, caucus or convention, shall be guilty of a class E 2 felony. 3 2. A person who fraudulently or wrongfully performs any act or 4 attempts to perform any act tending to affect the result of any primary 5 election, caucus or convention shall also be subject to a civil penalty 6 for each violation. The state board of elections shall have authority to 7 impose any such civil penalty for a violation of subdivision one of this 8 section. 9 § 4. The election law is amended by adding a new section 3-104-b to 10 read as follows: 11 § 3-104-b. Powers and authority; certain impersonation of elected 12 officials and other fraud. 1. The state board of elections shall have 13 the right to seek injunctive relief to require a social media company to 14 immediately cease and desist operations where there is reason to believe 15 that such social media company has failed to address a complaint by any 16 elected official or candidate for elected office alleging criminal 17 impersonation in the first degree under section 190.26 of the penal law 18 or fraud in connection with any primary election, caucus or convention 19 under section 17-101 of this chapter. 20 2. The state board of elections chief enforcement counsel shall have 21 independent authority to investigate allegations or claims of any such 22 allegation or claim, including subpoena powers and to issue cease and 23 desist orders to the relevant social media companies upon proof of such 24 impersonation or fraudulent or wrongful act. 25 § 5. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 392-k 26 to read as follows: 27 § 392-k. Closure of certain social media accounts. A social media 28 company that receives a complaint alleging criminal impersonation in the 29 first degree or claiming fraud in connection with any primary election, 30 caucus or convention in violation of section 17-101 of the election law 31 shall close any such impersonated or fraudulent account within twenty- 32 four hours of such notification. Social media companies shall establish 33 practical mechanisms for closing any such social media account within 34 such time frame. 35 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
