Assembly Bill A9707A

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                 9707--A

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                             March 27, 2012
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  J. MILLER  --  read once and referred to the
  Committee on Local Governments -- committee discharged, bill  amended,
  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN  ACT  to  amend  the town law, in relation to holding the election of
  fire district commissioners on the same day as the general election

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

  Section  1.  Short title.  This act shall be known and may be cited as
the "fire district community participation act".
  S 2.  Subdivision 1 of section 175 of the  town  law,  as  amended  by
chapter 334 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
  1.  An  annual  election  shall  be  held in each fire district on the
[second] Tuesday [in December, except that in the Ocean  Bay  Park  fire
district,  the  Lonelyville fire district, the Davis Park fire district,
the Cherry Grove fire district, the Fair Harbor fire  district  and  the
Fire  Island  Pines  fire district, Suffolk county, such annual election
shall be held on the second Tuesday in July, except that in the town  of
Salisbury,  Herkimer  county,  such annual election shall be held on the
Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday in November from six o'clock in
the morning until nine o'clock in the evening and  except  that  in  the
Belfast  fire  district,  Allegany county, such annual election shall be
held on the first Tuesday in December] NEXT SUCCEEDING THE FIRST  MONDAY
IN  NOVEMBER. SUCH ELECTION SHALL OCCUR AT THE SAME POLLING PLACE AS THE
GENERAL ELECTION. The board of  fire  commissioners  shall  give  notice
thereof  by  the  publication of a notice once in one or more newspapers
having a general circulation in the district. The first  publication  of
such  notice  shall be not less than twenty-seven days and not more than
thirty-four days prior to the date of such election. Such  notice  shall
specify  the  time  when and the place where such election will be held,
the officers to be elected thereat and their terms of  office,  and  the
hours  during  which  the polls will be open for the receipt of ballots.
The secretary of such fire district shall, SUBJECT TO  THE  APPROVAL  OF
THE  BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS, prepare the ballots for all elections of fire
district officers and the polls shall remain open for the receipt there-

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

                                                           LBD13457-07-2

A. 9707--A                          2

of at all elections of fire district officers from six  o'clock  in  the
[evening] MORNING until nine o'clock in the evening [and such additional
consecutive  hours  prior  thereto as the board of fire commissioners of
such  district  may have determined and specified in the notice thereof.
The board of fire commissioners shall designate a resident fire district
elector, who shall be a registered voter of the town, to act as chairman
of any election of said district and shall designate not less  than  two
nor  more than four resident fire district electors, who shall be regis-
tered voters of the town to act as election inspectors and ballot clerks
at such elections. No elective officer of the fire district shall  serve
as  such chairman or as an election inspector or ballot clerk. The board
of fire commissioners may adopt a resolution providing that such  chair-
man,  election  inspectors  and  ballot  clerks  shall be paid for their
respective services at any  such  annual  election  or  at  any  special
election  of  the  fire district. Such resolution, if adopted, shall fix
the amount of such compensation, as follows: if the hours  during  which
the  polls  will be open for the receipt of ballots are from six o'clock
in the evening until nine o'clock in the evening, a sum  not  to  exceed
thirty-five  dollars  for  each such official; if additional consecutive
hours prior to six o'clock in the evening are determined  and  specified
in  the  notice  of election, a sum not to exceed fifty dollars for each
such official]. THE METHOD AND MANNER  OF  SUBMISSION,  PREPARATION  AND
PROVISION  OF  BALLOTS AND BALLOT LABELS, USE OF VOTING MACHINES, QUALI-
FICATIONS OF VOTERS, CORRECTING REGISTERS, AND CONDUCTING THE  ELECTION,
CANVASSING  THE  RESULT AND MAKING AND FILING THE RETURNS, AND ALL OTHER
PROCEDURES WITH REFERENCE TO THE SUBMISSION OF ANY VOTE, SHALL BE IN THE
SAME METHOD AND MANNER USED FOR VOTING IN THE GENERAL  ELECTION,  OR  AS
CLOSE  AS  IS  PRACTICAL, AS DETERMINED BY THE COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS
PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT ALL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH SUCH BALLOTS  AND  ANY
ADDITIONAL  POLL  WORKERS NECESSARY FOR SUCH VOTE SHALL BE BORNE BY SUCH
FIRE DISTRICT. THE LOCAL BOARD OF  ELECTIONS  SHALL  APPOINT  SUCH  POLL
WORKERS  AS  DEEMED  NECESSARY  BY  SUCH BOARD AND SHALL PRESCRIBE THEIR
DUTIES, TITLES, RANKS AND SALARY IN ACCORDANCE WITH  THE  PROVISION  SET
FORTH IN SECTION 3-300 OF THE ELECTION LAW.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.