S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7597
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 29, 2018
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  FELDER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the election  law,  in  relation  to  communications  to
   voters  by mail; to require the 2018 fall primary be held on Thursday,
   September 13, 2018 and the political calendar be adjusted accordingly;
   and providing for the repeal of  certain  provisions  upon  expiration
   thereof
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivi-
 sion 1 of section 8-100 of the election law, the 2018 fall primary shall
 be held on Thursday, September 13,  2018,  and  the  political  calendar
 shall be adjusted accordingly.
   § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 4-117 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 44 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  The  board  of elections, between August first and August fifth of
 each year, shall send by mail on which is endorsed such language  desig-
 nated  by  the  state board of elections to ensure postal authorities do
 not forward such mail but return it  to  the  board  of  elections  with
 forwarding  information,  when  it  cannot be delivered as addressed and
 which contains a request that any such mail  received  for  persons  not
 residing at the address be dropped back in the mail, a communication, in
 a  form  approved  by  the state board of elections, to every registered
 voter who has been registered without a  change  of  address  since  the
 beginning  of such year, except that the board of elections shall not be
 required to send such communications to voters in inactive  status.  The
 communication  shall notify the voter of the days and hours of the ensu-
 ing primary and general elections, the place where  he  appears  by  his
 registration  records  to  be entitled to vote, the fact that voters who
 have moved or will have moved from the  address  where  they  were  last
 registered must re-register or, that if such move was to another address
 in  the same county or city, that such voter may either notify the board
 of elections of his new address or vote by paper ballot at  the  polling
 place  for  his new address even if such voter has not re-registered, or
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD14137-03-8

 S. 7597                             2
 
 otherwise notified the board of elections of the change of  address.  IF
 THE  PRIMARY  WILL  NOT  BE  HELD  ON THE FIRST TUESDAY AFTER THE SECOND
 MONDAY IN SEPTEMBER,  THE  COMMUNICATION  SHALL  CONTAIN  A  CONSPICUOUS
 NOTICE  IN  ALL CAPITAL LETTERS AND BOLD FONT NOTIFYING THE VOTER OF THE
 PRIMARY DATE. If the location of  the  polling  place  for  the  voter's
 election  district  has  been moved, the communication shall contain the
 following legend in bold type: "YOUR POLLING PLACE HAS BEEN CHANGED. YOU
 NOW VOTE AT..........".  The communication shall also  indicate  whether
 the  polling  place  is accessible to physically disabled voters, that a
 voter who will be out of the city or county on the day of the primary or
 general election or a voter who is ill or physically disabled may obtain
 an absentee ballot, that a physically disabled voter whose polling place
 is not accessible may request that his registration record be  moved  to
 an  election district which has a polling place which is accessible, the
 phone number to call for applications to move a registration  record  or
 for  absentee  ballot  applications,  the  phone  number to call for the
 location of registration and polling places, the phone number to call to
 indicate that the voter is willing  to  serve  on  election  day  as  an
 election  inspector, poll clerk, interpreter or in other capacities, the
 phone number to call to obtain an application for registration by  mail,
 and  such  other information concerning the elections or registration as
 the board may include. In lieu of sending such  communication  to  every
 registered voter, the board of elections may send a single communication
 to  a household containing more than one registered voter, provided that
 the names of all such voters appear as  part  of  the  address  on  such
 communication.
   §  3.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
 section one of this act shall expire on December 31, 2018 when upon such
 date the provisions of such section shall be deemed repealed.