Senate Bill S5172

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                 5172--A

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 27, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced by Sens. DILAN, DIAZ, HASSELL-THOMPSON, KRUEGER -- read twice
  and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee
  on  Elections  -- recommitted to the Committee on Elections in accord-
  ance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended,
  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the election law, the labor law, and the education  law,
  in  relation to authorizing persons seventeen years of age to serve as
  election inspectors and poll clerks and to repeal  section  3207-a  of
  the  education  law  relating to authorizing the board of education of
  the city of New York to reduce the length of recitation periods

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

  Section  1.  Subdivision  6  of  section 3-400 of the election law, as
amended by chapter 340 of the laws of 1995, is amended and a new  subdi-
vision 7 is added to read as follows:
  6.  No  person  shall  be certified or act as an election inspector or
poll clerk who is not a registered voter (UNLESS  SUCH  PERSON  IS  DULY
QUALIFIED UNDER SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF THIS SECTION) and a resident of the
county  in  which  he  OR SHE serves, or within the city of New York, of
such city, who holds any elective public office, or who is  a  candidate
for  any  public office to be voted for by the voters of the district in
which he OR SHE is to serve, or the spouse, parent, or child of  such  a
candidate, or who is not able to speak and read the English language and
write it legibly.
  7.    A  PERSON  SEVENTEEN  YEARS  OF  AGE WHO IS ENROLLED IN A SCHOOL
DISTRICT AND FULFILLING THE REQUIREMENTS OF SECTION  THIRTY-TWO  HUNDRED
SEVEN-A  OF  THE EDUCATION LAW SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO BE APPOINTED AS, AND
TO PERFORM THE DUTIES  OF,  AN  ELECTION  INSPECTOR  OR  POLL  CLERK  AS
PROVIDED IN THIS CHAPTER.
  S  2.  Subdivision  3  of  section  132 of the labor law is amended by
adding a new paragraph f to read as follows:

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD08212-02-0
              

S. 5172--A                          2

  F. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO PROHIBIT THE  EMPLOY-
MENT  OF A MINOR SEVENTEEN YEARS OF AGE AS AN ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL
CLERK PURSUANT TO SECTION 3-400 OF THE ELECTION LAW, OR  TO  REQUIRE  AN
EMPLOYMENT CERTIFICATE OR PERMIT THEREFOR.
  S  3. Section 143 of the labor law is amended by adding a new subdivi-
sion 6 to read as follows:
  6. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY TO THE EMPLOYMENT OF
A MINOR SEVENTEEN YEARS OF AGE AS AN ELECTION INSPECTOR  OR  POLL  CLERK
PURSUANT TO SECTION 3-400 OF THE ELECTION LAW.
  S  4.  Section  2025  of  the education law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 6 to read as follows:
  6. A PERSON SEVENTEEN YEARS  OF  AGE  WHO  IS  ENROLLED  IN  A  SCHOOL
DISTRICT  AND  FULFILLING THE REQUIREMENTS OF SECTION THIRTY-TWO HUNDRED
SEVEN-A OF THIS CHAPTER SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO BE  APPOINTED  AS,  AND  TO
PERFORM  THE  DUTIES OF, AN ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL CLERK AS PROVIDED
IN THIS PART.
  S 5. Section 2036 of the education law, as added by chapter 801 of the
laws of 1953, is amended to read as follows:
  S 2036. Effect of failure to appoint  or  elect  qualified  voters  as
district meeting or election officials.  The proceedings of no annual or
special  school  district  meeting or election shall be held illegal for
failure to appoint or elect a qualified voter (OR  A  PERSON  SATISFYING
THE  REQUIREMENTS  OF SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF SECTION 3-400 OF THE ELECTION
LAW) as an official at such district  meeting  or  election,  unless  it
shall  appear  that the acts of such official or officials were improper
or that the action of such meeting or election was prejudiced thereby.
  S 6. Section 2607 of the education law, as amended by chapter  231  of
the laws of 1958, is amended to read as follows:
  S 2607. Inspectors  of election; organization.  Not less than ten days
prior to each special or annual election, the board of  education  shall
appoint for each election district three qualified voters residing ther-
ein  to  act as inspectors of election in such election district at such
election.  The clerk of the board of education shall give written notice
of appointment to the persons so appointed.   If a person  appointed  an
inspector  of  election  refuses  to accept such appointment or fails to
serve, the board may appoint a qualified voter of  the  school  election
district  to  fill the vacancy.   Additional inspectors of elections for
each district may be appointed for one or more of such  school  election
districts[,]  when,  in  the opinion of the board, special circumstances
exist requiring the  services  of  such  additional  inspectors.    Such
inspectors  shall, before opening the polls in the election district for
which they are appointed, organize by electing one of  their  number  as
[chairman,]  CHAIRPERSON  and  one as poll clerk.  The [chairman] CHAIR-
PERSON may also appoint one of  the  inspectors  as  an  assistant  poll
clerk.    Each inspector shall receive for his OR HER services a compen-
sation to be fixed by the board of education, not to  exceed  the  basic
compensation  paid  to  inspectors  of election at the preceding general
elections, as fixed by the governing body of  the  city  in  which  such
school  district  is  wholly  or  partly  located, to be paid out of the
school funds in the same manner as other claims against the city  school
district.    NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION, A
PERSON SEVENTEEN YEARS OF AGE WHO IS ENROLLED IN A SCHOOL  DISTRICT  AND
FULFILLING  THE  REQUIREMENTS  OF  SECTION THIRTY-TWO HUNDRED SEVEN-A OF
THIS CHAPTER SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO BE APPOINTED AS, AND  TO  PERFORM  THE
DUTIES OF, AN ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL CLERK AS PROVIDED IN THIS ARTI-
CLE.

S. 5172--A                          3

  S 7. Section 3207-a of the education law is REPEALED and a new section
3207-a is added to read as follows:
  S  3207-A.  SERVICE  OF  PERSONS  SEVENTEEN  YEARS  OF AGE AS ELECTION
INSPECTORS OR POLL CLERKS. A SCHOOL  DISTRICT  MAY  PERMIT  AN  ENROLLED
STUDENT,  WITH  THE CONSENT OF SUCH STUDENT'S PARENT, GUARDIAN, OR OTHER
PERSON IN PARENTAL RELATION, TO SERVE AS AN ELECTION INSPECTOR  OR  POLL
CLERK  PURSUANT TO SECTION 3-400 OF THE ELECTION LAW (AND OTHER APPLICA-
BLE PROVISIONS OF THIS CHAPTER AND THE LABOR LAW). FOR THE  PURPOSES  OF
ATTENDANCE,  ANY  STUDENT SO SERVING WHILE SCHOOL IS IN SESSION SHALL BE
RECORDED AS IN ATTENDANCE.
  S 8. This act shall take effect immediately.