S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
10480
I N A S S E M B L Y
April 2, 2010
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BENJAMIN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Correction
AN ACT to amend the correction law and the election law, in relation to
absentee voting by inmates convicted of non-violent felonies
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The correction law is amended by adding a new section 510
to read as follows:
S 510. ABSENTEE VOTING BY QUALIFIED INMATES; NON-VIOLENT FELONY OFFEN-
DERS. 1. THE SUPERINTENDENT OF THE CORRECTIONAL FACILITY, OR HIS OR HER
DESIGNEE, SHALL INFORM EACH INMATE CONVICTED OF A NON-VIOLENT FELONY
OFFENSE, AT SUCH FACILITY OF THEIR RIGHT TO REGISTER TO VOTE. IN ADDI-
TION, SUCH NOTICE SHALL BE POSTED IN A PROMINENT PLACE WHERE INMATES
CONGREGATE AND PRINTED IN BLOCK LETTERS. SUCH POSTED NOTICE SHALL
INCLUDE QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED TO EXERCISE THE RIGHT TO VOTE, AND OF
THE AVAILABILITY AT THE LOCAL CORRECTIONAL FACILITY OF ASSISTANCE TO
REGISTER TO VOTE, REQUEST AN ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICATION, AND TO VOTE
VIA ABSENTEE BALLOT. SUCH SUPERINTENDENT, OR HIS OR HER DESIGNEE, SHALL
ASSIST ANY OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE INMATES IN REGISTERING TO VOTE IN THE SAME
MANNER AND EXTENT AS THE AGENCIES LISTED IN SECTION 5-211 OF THE
ELECTION LAW, ASSIST ANY OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE INMATES IN REQUESTING AN
ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 8-400 OF THE ELECTION
LAW, AND ASSIST ANY OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE INMATES IN VOTING BY ABSENTEE
BALLOT PURSUANT TO SECTION 8-407 OF THE ELECTION LAW.
2. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, NON-VIOLENT FELONY OFFENSE SHALL MEAN
AND INCLUDE ANY FELONY NOT DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION 70.02
OF THE PENAL LAW.
S 2. Section 8-406 of the election law, as amended by chapter 296 of
the laws of 1988, is amended to read as follows:
S 8-406. Absentee ballots, delivery of. If the board shall find that
the applicant is a qualified voter of the election district containing
his residence as stated in his statement and that his statement is
sufficient, it shall, as soon as practicable after it shall have deter-
mined his right thereto, mail to him at an address designated by him, or
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15744-02-0
A. 10480 2
deliver to him, or to any person designated for such purpose in writing
by him, at the office of the board, such an absentee voter's ballot or
set of ballots and an envelope therefor. If the ballot or ballots are to
be sent outside of the United States to a country other than Canada or
Mexico, such ballot or ballots shall be sent by air mail. However, if an
applicant who is eligible for an absentee ballot is a resident of a
facility operated or licensed by, or under the jurisdiction of, the
department of mental hygiene, or a resident of a facility defined as a
nursing home or residential health care facility pursuant to subdivi-
sions two and three of section two thousand eight hundred one of the
public health law, or a resident of a hospital or other facility oper-
ated by the Veteran's Administration of the United States, OR A CORREC-
TIONAL FACILITY, such absentee ballot need not be so mailed or delivered
to any such applicant but, may be delivered to the voter in the manner
prescribed by section 8-407 of this [chapter] TITLE if such facility is
located in the county or city in which such voter is eligible to vote.
S 3. The section heading and subdivision 1 of section 8-407 of the
election law, the section heading as added by chapter 296 of the laws of
1988 and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 195 of the laws of 2001,
are amended to read as follows:
Voting by residents of nursing homes, residential health care facili-
ties, facilities operated or licensed, or under the jurisdiction of, the
department of mental hygiene or hospitals or facilities operated by the
Veteran's Administration of the United States, OR A CORRECTIONAL FACILI-
TY. 1. The board of elections of a county or city in which there is
located at least one facility operated or licensed, or under the juris-
diction of, the department of mental hygiene, or a facility defined as a
nursing home or residential health care facility pursuant to subdivi-
sions two and three of section two thousand eight hundred one of the
public health law or an adult care facility subject to the provisions of
title two of article seven of the social services law, or a hospital or
other facility operated by the Veteran's Administration of the United
States, OR A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION FOUR OF
SECTION TWO OF THE CORRECTION LAW shall provide that residents of each
such facility for which such board has received twenty-five or more
applications for absentee ballots from voters who are eligible to vote
by absentee ballot in such city or county at such election, may vote by
absentee ballot only in the manner provided for in this section. Such
board may, in its discretion, provide that the procedure described in
this subdivision shall be applicable to all such facilities in such
county or city without regard to the number of absentee ballot applica-
tions received from the residents of any such facility.
S 4. The opening paragraph of section 5-211 of the election law, as
amended by chapter 200 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
follows:
Each agency designated as a participating agency under the provisions
of this section shall implement and administer a program of distribution
of voter registration forms pursuant to the provisions of this section.
The following offices which provide public assistance and/or provide
state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons
with disabilities are hereby designated as voter registration agencies:
designated as the state agencies which provide public assistance are the
department of [social services] FAMILY ASSISTANCE and the department of
health. Also designated as public assistance agencies are all agencies
of local government that provide such assistance. Designated as state
agencies that provide programs primarily engaged in providing services
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to people with disabilities are the department of labor, office for the
aging, division of veterans' affairs, office of mental health, office of
vocational and educational services for individuals with disabilities,
commission on quality of care for the mentally disabled, office of
mental retardation and developmental disabilities, commission for the
blind and visually handicapped, office of alcoholism and substance abuse
services, the office of the advocate for the disabled and all offices
which administer programs established or funded by such agencies. Addi-
tional state agencies designated as voter registration offices are the
department of state [and], the division of workers' compensation, THE
DIVISION OF PROBATION AND CORRECTIONAL ALTERNATIVES, THE DEPARTMENT OF
CORRECTIONAL SERVICES AND THE DIVISION OF PAROLE. Such agencies shall be
required to offer voter registration forms to persons upon initial
application for services, renewal or recertification for services and
change of address relating to such services. Such agencies shall also be
responsible for providing assistance to applicants in completing voter
registration forms, receiving and transmitting the completed application
form from all applicants who wish to have such form transmitted to the
appropriate board of elections. The state board of elections shall,
together with representatives of the department of defense, develop and
implement procedures for including recruitment offices of the armed
forces of the United States as voter registration offices when such
offices are so designated by federal law. The state board shall also
make request of the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service
to include applications for registration by mail with any materials
which are given to new citizens. All institutions of the state univer-
sity of New York and the city university of New York, shall, at the
beginning of the school year, and again in January of a year in which
the president of the United States is to be elected, provide an applica-
tion for registration to each student in each such institution. The
state board of elections may, by regulation, grant a waiver from any or
all of the requirements of this section to any office or program of an
agency, if it determines that it is not feasible for such office or
program to administer such requirement.
S 5. Subdivisions 2, 3 and 4 of section 5-106 of the election law,
subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, are amended
to read as follows:
2. No person who has been convicted of a felony pursuant to the laws
of this state, shall have the right to register for or vote at any
election unless he shall have been pardoned or restored to the rights of
citizenship by the governor, or his maximum sentence of imprisonment has
expired, [or] he has been discharged from parole, OR HE IS CONVICTED OF
A NON-VIOLENT FELONY OFFENSE, AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION
FIVE HUNDRED TEN OF THE CORRECTION LAW. The governor, however, may
attach as a condition to any such pardon a provision that any such
person shall not have the right of suffrage until it shall have been
separately restored to him.
3. No person who has been convicted in a federal court, of a felony,
or a crime or offense which would constitute a felony under the laws of
this state, shall have the right to register for or vote at any election
unless he shall have been pardoned or restored to the rights of citizen-
ship by the president of the United States, or his maximum sentence of
imprisonment has expired, [or] he has been discharged from parole, OR HE
IS CONVICTED OF A CRIME THAT WOULD CONSTITUTE A NON-VIOLENT FELONY
OFFENSE, AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN OF
THE CORRECTION LAW.
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4. No person who has been convicted in another state for a crime or
offense which would constitute a felony under the laws of this state
shall have the right to register for or vote at any election in this
state unless he shall have been pardoned or restored to the rights of
citizenship by the governor or other appropriate authority of such other
state, or his maximum sentence has expired, [or] he has been discharged
from parole, OR HE IS CONVICTED OF A CRIME THAT WOULD CONSTITUTE A NON-
VIOLENT FELONY OFFENSE AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE
HUNDRED TEN OF THE CORRECTION LAW.
S 6. Paragraph (f) of subdivision 1 of section 8-400 of the election
law is amended and a new paragraph (g) is added to read as follows:
(f) absent from his voting residence because he is detained in jail
awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or confined in prison
after a conviction for an offense other than a felony, provided that he
is qualified to vote in the election district of his residence[.]; OR
(G) ABSENT FROM HIS VOTING RESIDENCE BECAUSE HE IS INCARCERATED IN A
CORRECTIONAL FACILITY, FOR CONVICTION OF A NON-VIOLENT FELONY, AS
DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN OF THE CORRECTION
LAW, PROVIDED HE IS QUALIFIED TO VOTE IN THE ELECTION DISTRICT OF HIS
LAST KNOWN RESIDENCE OTHER THAN THE CORRECTIONAL FACILITY.
S 7. Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subdivision 3 of section 8-400 of the
election law, subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c) as amended by chapter
234 of the laws of 1976, and subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (c) as
amended by chapter 426 of the laws of 2009, are amended to read as
follows:
(a) Applicant's full name and residence address, including the street
and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any, mailing address if
different from the residence address and his town or city and an address
to which the ballot shall be mailed, OR IN THE EVENT OF INCARCERATION IN
A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY FOR CONVICTION OF A NON-VIOLENT FELONY OFFENSE,
AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN OF THE
CORRECTION LAW, THE RESIDENCE ADDRESS SHALL BE THE APPLICANT'S LAST
KNOWN ADDRESS.
(c) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following catego-
ries:
(i) unavoidably absent from the county of his residence, or if a resi-
dent of the city of New York absent from said city, because his duties,
occupation, business or studies require him to be elsewhere on such day,
and where such duties, occupation, business or studies are not of such a
nature as ordinarily to require such absence, a statement briefly
describing the special circumstances requiring such absence and the
dates when he expects to begin and end such absence; or
(ii) absent from the county of his residence, or if a resident of the
city of New York absent from said city, because he will be on vacation
elsewhere on such day, the dates upon which he expects to begin and end
such vacation, the place or places where he expects to be on such vaca-
tion, the name and address of his employer, if any, or if self-employed
or retired a statement to such effect; or
(iii) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or phys-
ical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more
individuals who are ill or physically disabled; or
(iv) entitled to a ballot because he is a qualified voter registered
as an inmate or patient of a veteran's [administraion] ADMINISTRATION
hospital; or
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(v) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial
or confined in prison after a conviction for an offense other than a
felony and stating the place where he is so detained or confined; [or]
(vi) absent from the county of his residence, or if a resident of the
city of New York absent from said city, because of his accompanying his
spouse, parent or child who falls within one of the foregoing catego-
ries; a statement that the applicant resides in the same election
district as such spouse, parent or child, the name and address of such
spouse, parent or child, and, unless the application accompanies the
application of such spouse, parent or child, the information as to the
status of such spouse, parent or child required by the applicable cate-
gory[.]; OR
(VII) ABSENT FROM THE COUNTY OF HIS RESIDENCE, OR IF A RESIDENT OF THE
CITY OF NEW YORK ABSENT FROM SAID CITY, BECAUSE OF HIS INCARCERATION IN
A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY FOR HIS CONVICTION OF A NON-VIOLENT FELONY
OFFENSE, AS DEFINED BY SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED TEN OF
THE CORRECTION LAW.
S 8. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
it shall have become a law; provided, however, that effective immediate-
ly, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations
necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date is
authorized and directed to be made and completed on or before such
effective date.