S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                 4316--A
                                                        Cal. No. 325

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            February 3, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. GALEF, ENGLEBRIGHT, MAGEE, KOLB, ALFANO, ERRIGO,
  PAULIN -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M.  of  A.  BARRA,  BOYLAND,  CALHOUN,
  COOK,  CROUCH,  DUPREY,  FINCH,  GIGLIO,  JORDAN,  LUPARDO,  McKEVITT,
  J. MILLER,  MOLINARO,  ORTIZ,  REILLY,  ROBINSON,  SAYWARD,   SWEENEY,
  THIELE,  TOWNSEND  -- read once and referred to the Committee on Local
  Governments -- reported from committee, advanced to a  third  reading,
  amended  and  ordered  reprinted,  retaining its place on the order of
  third reading

AN ACT to amend the town law, in relation to absentee ballots  for  fire
  district elections

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 175-b of the town  law,  as
amended  by  chapter  401  of  the  laws of 1996, are amended to read as
follows:
  1. The board of fire commissioners of any fire district in which offi-
cers are elected[, may,  by  resolution,]  SHALL  provide  for  absentee
ballots  for  fire district elections, in accordance with the provisions
of this section.  [Such resolution shall take effect at the  first  such
election held more than sixty days after its adoption and shall continue
in effect for all such elections until a subsequent resolution providing
otherwise shall, in like manner, have taken effect.]
  2.  a. An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an appli-
cation setting forth (1) his or her FULL name, DATE OF BIRTH  and  resi-
dence  address,  including  the  street  and number, if any, or town and
rural delivery route, if any MAILING ADDRESS IF DIFFERENT FROM THE RESI-
DENCE ADDRESS AND HIS OR HER TOWN OR CITY AND AN ADDRESS  TO  WHICH  THE
BALLOT  SHALL BE MAILED; (2) that he or she is or will be, on the day of
the election, a qualified voter of the  district  in  which  he  or  she
resides  in  that  he  or she is or will be, on such date, over eighteen
years of age, a citizen of the  United  States  and  has  or  will  have

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD01660-04-0

A. 4316--A                          2

resided  in  the  district for thirty days next preceding such date; (3)
that he or she is registered in the town; (4) that he  or  she  will  be
unable  to appear to vote in person on the day of the election for which
the  absentee  ballot  is  requested because he or she is, or will be on
such day (a) a patient in a hospital, or unable to appear personally  at
the  polling place on such day because of illness or physical disability
or (b) [because his or her duties, occupation or business  will  require
him  or  her to be outside of the county of his or her residence on such
day, (c) because he or she will be on vacation outside the county of his
or her residence on such day; or, (d)] absent from  his  or  her  voting
residence  because  he  or  she is detained in jail awaiting action by a
grand jury or awaiting trial or is confined  in  JAIL  OR  prison  after
conviction for an offense other than a felony.  Such application must be
received  by  the  district  secretary  at  least  seven days before the
election if the ballot is to be mailed to the voter, or the  day  before
the  election,  if the ballot is to be delivered personally to the voter
or his or her agent.
  b.  [(1)  Where such duties, occupation or  business  are  of  such  a
nature  as  ordinarily  to  require such absence, a brief description of
such duties, occupation or business shall be set forth in  such  affida-
vit.    (2)  Where such duties, occupation or business are not of such a
nature as ordinarily to require such  absence,  such  application  shall
contain  a  statement  of  the special circumstances on account of which
such absence is required.
  c.  Where the applicant expects in good faith to be absent on the  day
of  the election because he or she will be on vacation elsewhere on such
day, such application shall also contain the dates upon which he or  she
expects  to begin and end such vacation, the place or places where he or
she expects to be on such vacation, the name and address of his  or  her
employer, if any, and if self-employed, a statement to that effect.
  d.  Where  the absence is because of detention or confinement to jail,
such affidavit shall state whether the voter is detained awaiting action
of the grand jury or is confined after conviction for an  offense  other
than a felony.
  e.    Where  a  person  is  or would be, if he or she were a qualified
voter, entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot  under
the provisions of this section, his or her spouse, parent or child, if a
qualified  voter  and a resident of the same district, shall be entitled
to vote as an absentee voter  upon  personally  making  and  signing  an
application in accordance with the preceding provisions of this subdivi-
sion  and  showing that he or she expects to be absent from the district
on the day of the district election by reason of accompanying  or  being
with the spouse, child or parent who is or would be, if he or she were a
qualified  voter, so entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee
ballot, and, in the event no application is made by such  spouse,  child
or parent, such further information as the fire district shall require.
  f.]  Such  application  shall  include  the  following statement to be
signed by the voter.
  I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
my knowledge and belief, and I understand that if I  make  any  material
false  statement  in the foregoing statement of application for absentee
ballots, I shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
Date.....................Signature of Voter.............
  [g.] C. An applicant whose ability to appear personally at the polling
place of the district of which  he  or  she  is  a  qualified  voter  is
substantially  impaired by reason of permanent illness or physical disa-

A. 4316--A                          3

bility and whose registration record has been marked "permanently  disa-
bled"  by  the  board  of  elections  pursuant  to the provisions of the
election law shall be entitled to receive an absentee ballot pursuant to
the  provisions  of this section without making separate application for
such absentee ballot, and the secretary of the fire district, upon being
advised by the board of elections on or  with  the  list  of  registered
voters  that  the  registration record of a voter is marked "permanently
disabled", shall send an absentee ballot to such voter  at  his  or  her
last  known  address  by  first  class mail with a request to the postal
authorities not to forward same but to return same in five days  in  the
event  that  it  cannot  be  delivered  to the addressee.   The election
inspectors of the fire district shall make an appropriate entry  on  the
registration record indicating the fact that an absentee ballot has been
sent and the date of mailing.
  S  2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
ing the date on which it shall have become a law.