S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1342
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 15, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. QUART -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Election Law
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to requiring  each  county
   board of elections to provide pens at polling sites
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature hereby declares that in
 order to have a well-functioning democracy, it is necessary that  boards
 of  elections  successfully supply every poll site in the state with the
 required materials to conduct an election. Voters whose poll sites  lack
 these  basic necessities are, in practice, disenfranchised because their
 poll site in unprepared.
   The legislature further finds that many poll sites  in  counties  that
 use  electronic voting systems require a ballot to be marked using a pen
 before being scanned and counted. However, each election  day,  legisla-
 tors  hear  complaints  from constituents about poll sites without pens.
 When voters arrive at these poll sites to discover  that  the  board  of
 elections  has  not provided enough working pens, many are deterred from
 voting at all. A lack of the most basic of supplies  at  poll  sites  is
 unacceptable.
   Clearly, boards of elections are either unable or unwilling to predict
 and  provide an adequate supply of working pens for poll sites. Thus, it
 falls to the legislature to ensure that boards  of  elections  implement
 procedures to ensure that every eligible voter who goes to the polls has
 access to the tools needed to cast a ballot.
   §  2.  The  election  law is amended by adding a  new section 8-108 to
 read as follows:
   § 8-108. SUPPLIES REQUIREMENT. 1. AS USED IN THIS  SECTION,  THE  TERM
 "PEN"  SHALL  MEAN  AN INSTRUMENT USED TO APPLY INK TO A SURFACE FOR THE
 PURPOSE OF WRITING. TO QUALIFY  AS  A  PEN  FOR  THE  PURPOSES  OF  THIS
 SECTION, SUCH INSTRUMENT MUST BE FILLED WITH INK.

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

                                                            LBD01356-01-9

 A. 1342                             2
 
   2.  EACH COUNTY BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL SUPPLY EACH POLLING SITE WITH
 A MINIMUM OF ONE PEN FOR EVERY TEN REGISTERED VOTERS  ASSIGNED  TO  THAT
 POLLING SITE.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.