Bill Text: NY S07229 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Clarifies valid reasons to obtain an absentee ballot for elections in school districts which do not utilize poll registration.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO EDUCATION [S07229 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S07229-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7229

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 18, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  MAYER  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Education

        AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to absentee  ballots  for
          school district elections

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

     1    Section 1. Paragraphs a and c of subdivision 2 of  section  2018-a  of
     2  the  education  law,  as amended by chapter 616 of the laws of 2019, are
     3  amended 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] occurrence of an
     6  election he or she [will] expects to be:
     7    (1) absent from the county of his or her residence; or
     8    (2) unable to appear  personally  at  the  polling  place  because  of
     9  illness or physical disability, or duties related to the primary care of
    10  one  or  more individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because
    11  he or she will be or is a patient in a hospital; or
    12    (3) [an inmate] a resident or patient of  a  veteran's  administration
    13  hospital; or
    14    (4)  absent  from  his  or  her  voting residence because he or she is
    15  detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting  trial,  or
    16  confined  in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than
    17  a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in  the  election
    18  district of his or her residence; or
    19    (5)  unable  to be present due to his or her observance of a religious
    20  commitment or following his or her  religious  teaching  or  tenet  that
    21  forbids secular activity on that day.
    22    c.  The  application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in
    23  each instance the following information:
    24    (1) Applicant's full name,  date  of  birth,  and  residence  address,
    25  including  the  street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10767-01-3
        S. 7229                             2

     1  mailing address if different from the residence address and  an  address
     2  to which the ballot shall be mailed.
     3    (2)  A  statement  that  the  applicant  is a qualified and registered
     4  voter.
     5    (3) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election  the
     6  applicant  expects  in  good faith to be in one of the following catego-
     7  ries:
     8    (a) absent from the county of his or her residence; provided, however,
     9  if the applicant expects to be absent from such county  for  a  duration
    10  covering  more  than  one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each
    11  election, he or she shall state the dates when  he  or  she  expects  to
    12  begin and end such absence; or
    13    (b) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or physical
    14  disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more individ-
    15  uals who are ill or physically disabled; or
    16    (c)  [an  inmate]  a resident or patient of a veteran's administration
    17  hospital; or
    18    (d) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial
    19  or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for  an  offense  other
    20  than  a  felony  and stating the place where he or she is so detained or
    21  confined; or
    22    (e) unable to be present due to his or her observance of  a  religious
    23  commitment  or  following  his  or  her religious teaching or tenet that
    24  forbids secular activity on that day.
    25    § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 2018-b of the education law, as  amended
    26  by  chapter 46 of the laws of 1992, paragraph c as amended by chapter 26
    27  of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
    28    2. a. An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an  appli-
    29  cation setting forth:
    30    (1) his or her full name, date of birth and residence address, includ-
    31  ing  the street and number, if any, or town and rural delivery route, if
    32  any, mailing address if different from  the  residence  address  and  an
    33  address to which the ballot shall be mailed;
    34    (2)  that  he  or she is or will be, on the day of the school district
    35  election, a qualified voter of the school district [in which he  resides
    36  in  that  he  is or will be, on such date, over eighteen years of age, a
    37  citizen of the United States  and  has  or  will  have  resided  in  the
    38  district for thirty days next preceding such date];
    39    (3)  [that he will be unable to appear to vote in person on the day of
    40  the school district election for which the absentee ballot is  requested
    41  because he is, or will be on such day] a statement, as appropriate, that
    42  on the day of such election the applicant expects in good faith to be in
    43  one of the following categories:
    44    (a)  a resident or patient in a hospital, including a veteran's admin-
    45  istration hospital, or unable to appear personally at the polling  place
    46  on such day because of illness or physical disability, or duties related
    47  to the primary care of one or more individuals who are ill or physically
    48  disabled; or
    49    (b) [because his duties, occupation, business, or studies will require
    50  him  to  be outside of the county or city of his residence on such day,]
    51  absent from the county of his or her residence;  provided,  however,  if
    52  the  applicant  expects  to  be  absent  from such county for a duration
    53  covering more than one election and seeks an absentee  ballot  for  each
    54  election,  he  or  she  shall  state the dates when he or she expects to
    55  begin and end such absence; or
        S. 7229                             3

     1    (c) [because he will be on vacation outside the county or city of  his
     2  residence on such day] unable to be present due to his or her observance
     3  of a religious commitment, or following his or her religious teaching or
     4  tenet that forbids secular activity on that day; or[,]
     5    (d)  [absent from his voting residence because he is] detained in jail
     6  awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial or  [is]  confined  in
     7  jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than a felony and
     8  stating  the  place  where  he or she is so detained or confined.  [Such
     9  application must be received by the district clerk or  designee  of  the
    10  trustees  or school board at least seven days before the election if the
    11  ballot is to be mailed to the voter, or the day before the election,  if
    12  the ballot is to be delivered personally to the voter.]
    13    b.  [(1)  Where  such  duties, occupation, business, or studies are of
    14  such a nature as ordinarily to require such absence, a brief description
    15  of such duties, occupation, business, or studies shall be set  forth  in
    16  such application.
    17    (2)  Where  such  duties,  occupation, business, or studies are not of
    18  such a nature as ordinarily to require such  absence,  such  application
    19  shall  contain  a  statement  of the special circumstances on account of
    20  which such absence is required.] Such application must  be  received  by
    21  the  district clerk or designee of the trustees or school board at least
    22  seven days before the election if the ballot is  to  be  mailed  to  the
    23  voter,  or the day before the election, if the ballot is to be delivered
    24  personally to the voter.
    25    c. [Where the applicant expects in good faith to be absent on the  day
    26  of  the  election  because he will be on vacation elsewhere on such day,
    27  such application shall also contain the dates upon which he  expects  to
    28  begin  and end such vacation, the place or places where he expects to be
    29  on such vacation, the name and address of his employer, if any,  and  if
    30  self-employed or retired, a statement to that effect.
    31    d.  Where  the absence is because of detention or confinement to jail,
    32  such application shall state whether  the  voter  is  detained  awaiting
    33  action  of the grand jury or is confined after conviction for an offense
    34  other than a felony.
    35    e. Where a person is or would be, if he were a qualified voter,  enti-
    36  tled  to  apply  for  the  right  to  vote  by absentee ballot under the
    37  provisions of this section, his spouse, parent or child, if a  qualified
    38  voter  and  a resident of the same school district, shall be entitled to
    39  vote as an absentee voter upon personally making and signing an applica-
    40  tion in accordance with the preceding provisions of this subdivision and
    41  showing that he expects to be absent from the school district on the day
    42  of the school district election by reason of accompanying or being  with
    43  the  spouse,  child or parent who is or would be, if he were a qualified
    44  voter, so entitled to apply for the right to vote  by  absentee  ballot,
    45  and,  in  the  event  no  application  is  made by such spouse, child or
    46  parent, such further information as the clerk of the school district  or
    47  designee of the trustees or school board shall require.
    48    f.]  Such  application  shall  include  the  following statement to be
    49  signed by the voter.

    50    I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
    51  my knowledge and belief, and I understand that if I  make  any  material
    52  false  statement  in the foregoing statement of application for absentee
    53  ballots, I shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

    54  Date...................   Signature of Voter ...........................
        S. 7229                             4

     1    [g.] d. The clerk of the school district or a designee of the trustees
     2  or school board shall request  registration  lists  from  the  board  of
     3  elections pursuant to subdivision three of section 5-612 of the election
     4  law  for  those voters whose registration record has been marked "perma-
     5  nently disabled". An applicant whose ability to appear personally at the
     6  polling  place  of the school district of which he or she is a qualified
     7  voter is substantially impaired by reason of permanent illness or  phys-
     8  ical  disability  and  whose registration record has been marked "perma-
     9  nently disabled" as determined by the board of elections pursuant to the
    10  provisions of this chapter and who has previously applied for an  absen-
    11  tee  ballot  shall  be  entitled  to receive subsequent absentee ballots
    12  pursuant to the provisions  of  this  section  without  making  separate
    13  application  for  such  absentee  ballot,  and  the  clerk of the school
    14  district or a designee of the trustees or school  board  shall  send  an
    15  absentee  ballot  to  such voter at his or her last known address with a
    16  request to the postal authorities not to forward same but to return same
    17  in five days in the event that it cannot be delivered to the  addressee.
    18  The clerk of the school district or a designee of the trustees or school
    19  board  shall  determine whether such ballot shall be sent by first class
    20  or by certified mail. All such ballots  shall  be  mailed  in  the  same
    21  manner as determined by the trustees or the board of education.
    22    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.