NY State Senate Bill 2019-S2329A

Senate Bill S2329A

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Requires the board of elections or a bipartisan committee to conduct a risk-limiting audit of voter verifiable audit records

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to elections
Jun 14, 2019	print number 2329a
Jun 14, 2019	amend (t) and recommit to finance
May 21, 2019	reported and committed to finance
Jan 24, 2019	referred to elections

Votes

- May 21, 2019 - Elections Committee Vote
  S2329A
  
  5
  
  Aye
  
  2
  
  Nay
  
  0
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Elections Committee Vote: May 21, 2019
      
      aye (5)
      
      Kavanagh
      
      May
      
      Mayer
      
      Myrie
      
      Salazar
      
      nay (2)
      
      Akshar
      
      Ritchie

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

co-Sponsors

2019-S2329 - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §9-211, El L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: S7144
2021-2022: S2853
2023-2024: S2961

2019-S2329 - Summary

Requires the board of elections or a bipartisan committee appointed by such board to conduct a risk-limiting audit of voter verifiable audit records from voting machines or systems within the jurisdiction of such board.

2019-S2329 - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S2329

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the election law, in relation to
requiring the board of elections or a bipartisan committee to conduct a
risk-limiting audit of voter verifiable audit records

 
PURPOSE:

To require the State Board of Elections to improve the reliability of
postelection audits to limit the risk of certifying an incorrect
outcome.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Election Law 59-211 is amended by requiring the New York State Board of
Elections or a bipartisan committee to conduct a risk-limiting audit of
voter verifiable audit records after elections. The Board of Elections
shall promulgate regulations for the use of risk-limiting audits and
such regulations shall make use of statistical methods and be designed
to limit the risk of certifying an incorrect outcome.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Post-election audits are intended to ensure the accuracy of results by
checking a portion of the paper ballots against electronic vote tallies.
Under current law, three percent of voting machines are audited in every
race. However, this minimal standard is widely recognized to be too lax
to verify results in close elections. The only other method for verify-
ing results in close elections in current law is a full recount.

This bill does away with the three percent standard and replaces it with
new regulations that would verify the outcome of elections with a high
degree of reliability and limited cost. In place of the three percent
standard, the number of voting records selected to be audited would be
based on a formula determined by the bipartisan State Board of Elections
before the election. In elections in which a small margin separated the
apparent winner from the other candidates, more ballots would be audit-
ed; in elections with a wide margin fewer ballots would be audited.

This method, known as a "risk-limiting audit," has several major bene-
fits. First, it decreases the chances of a candidate being declared the
winner improperly. This both increases voters' confidence in election
results and minimizes the probability of a candidate who should have
lost an election assuming office due to voting machines being hacked, or
otherwise tampered with, or malfunctioning. In addition to increasing
accuracy, risk-limiting audits also improve efficiency by allocating
resources where they are needed to ensure the integrity of the results
and reducing wasteful spending on audits that have little or no chance
of altering the result. Lastly, risk-limiting audits reduce post-elec-
tion partisan fighting by ensuring that the vote tallies are thoroughly
vetted automatically in races where the losing candidate might otherwise
question the results or call for a recount.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2018: S7144/A10241 - REFERRED TO ELECTIONS/ referred to election law

 
FISCAL IMPACT ON THE STATE:
Some costs associated with the development and implementation of the
regulations required by this legislation.

 
FISCAL IMPACT ON LOCALITIES:

Some increases in costs associated with performing more thorough audits
in close races, offset by a reduction in costs in elections with a wider
margin of victory where fewer ballots will be audited.

 
IMPACT ON REGULATION OF BUSINESSES AND INDIVIDUALS:

None

 
IMPACT ON FINES, IMPRISONMENT, FORFEITURE OF RIGHTS, OR OTHER PENAL
SANCTIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become law and shall apply to any election held 180 days or more after
it shall have taken effect; provided that the state board of elections
is authorized to immediately adopt, amend and promulgate such rules and
regulations as may be necessary and desirable to effectuate the purposes
of this act.

2019-S2329 - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2329
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 24, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. KAVANAGH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to requiring the board  of
   elections  or  a bipartisan committee to conduct a risk-limiting audit
   of voter verifiable audit records

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  1  of  section 9-211 of the election law, as
 amended by section 515 of the laws  of  2015,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   1. (A) Within fifteen days after each general or special election, and
 within  seven  days after every primary or village election conducted by
 the board of elections, the board of elections or a bipartisan committee
 appointed by such board shall CONDUCT A RISK-LIMITING audit OF the voter
 verifiable audit records from [three percent of] THE voting machines  or
 systems  within  the  jurisdiction  of such board IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE
 REGULATIONS PROMULGATED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SECTION.  Such
 audits  may  be  performed manually or via the use of any automated tool
 authorized for such use by the state board of elections which  is  inde-
 pendent  from  the  voting  system  it  is  being  used to audit. Voting
 machines or systems shall be selected for audit through a random, manual
 process. At least five days prior to the time fixed for  such  selection
 process, the board of elections shall send notice by first class mail to
 each  candidate,  political  party and independent body entitled to have
 had watchers present at the polls  in  any  election  district  in  such
 board's  jurisdiction.  Such notice shall state the time and place fixed
 for such random selection process. The audit shall be conducted  in  the
 same  manner,  to  the extent applicable, as a canvass of paper ballots.
 Each candidate, political party or independent body entitled to  appoint
 watchers  to attend at a polling place shall be entitled to appoint such
 number of watchers to observe the audit.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD02485-01-9

 S. 2329                             2
 
   (B) THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL PROMULGATE REGULATIONS FOR  THE
 USE  OF  RISK-LIMITING AUDITS REQUIRED BY PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SECTION.
 THE NUMBER OF VOTER VERIFIABLE AUDIT RECORDS SELECTED  FOR  SUCH  AUDITS
 SHALL  BE  DETERMINED  PURSUANT  TO  SUCH  REGULATIONS  THAT MAKE USE OF
 STATISTICAL  METHODS AND ARE DESIGNED TO LIMIT THE RISK OF CERTIFYING AN
 INCORRECT OUTCOME.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have  become a law and shall apply to any election held 180 days or more
 after it shall have taken effect;  provided  that  the  state  board  of
 elections  is authorized to immediately adopt, amend and promulgate such
 rules and regulations as may be necessary and  desirable  to  effectuate
 the purposes of this act.

co-Sponsors

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §9-211, El L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: S7144
2021-2022: S2853
2023-2024: S2961

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S2329A

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the election law, in relation to
conducting risk-limiting audits

 
PURPOSE::

To require the State Board of Elections (BOE) to improve the reliability
of postelection audits to limit the risk of certifying an incorrect
outcome.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS::

Election Law 59-211 is amended by requiring the New York State Board of
Elections or a bipartisan committee to conduct a risk-limiting audit of
at least three percent of voter verifiable audit records after
elections. The BOE shall promulgate regulations for the use of risk-lim-
iting audits and such regulations shall make use of statistical methods
and be designed to limit the risk of certifying an incorrect outcome.

 
JUSTIFICATION::

Post-election audits are intended to ensure the accuracy of results by
checking a portion of the paper ballots against electronic vote tallies.
Under current law, three percent of voting machines are audited in every
race. However, this minimal standard is widely recognized to be too lax
to verify results in close elections. The only other method for verify-
ing results in close elections in current law is a full recount.

This bill provides flexibility to the the BOE or a committee appointed
by such board to audit at least three percent to permit the BOE to veri-
fy the outcome of elections with a high degree of reliability and limit-
ed cost. Along with three percent standard, the number of voting records
selected to be audited would be based on a formula determined by the
bipartisan BOE before the election. In elections in which a small margin
separated the apparent winner from the other candidates, more ballots
would be audited; in elections with a wide margin fewer ballots would be
audited.

This method, known as a "risk-limiting audit," has several major bene-
fits. First, it decreases the chances of a candidate being declared the
winner improperly. This both increases voters' confidence in election
results and minimizes the probability of a candidate who should have
lost an election assuming office due to voting machines being hacked, or
otherwise tampered with, or malfunctioning. In addition to increasing
accuracy, risk-limiting audits also improve efficiency by allocating
resources where they are needed to ensure the integrity of the results
and reducing wasteful spending on audits that have little or no chance
of altering the result. Lastly, risk-limiting audits reduce post-elec-
tion partisan fighting by ensuring that the vote tallies are thoroughly
vetted automatically in races where the losing candidate might otherwise
question the results or call for a recount.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY::

2018: 57144 (Kavanagh)/A10241 (Galef) - Elections/ Election Law

 
FISCAL IMPACT ON THE STATE:
Some costs associated with the development and implementation of the
regulations required by this legislation.

 
FISCAL IMPACT ON LOCALITIES:

Some increases in costs associated with performing more thorough audits
in close races, offset by a reduction in costs in elections with a wider
margin of victory where fewer ballots will be audited.

 
IMPACT ON REGULATION OF BUSINESSES AND INDIVIDUALS:

None

 
IMPACT ON FINES, IMPRISONMENT, FORFEITURE OF RIGHTS, OR OTHER PENAL
SANCTIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE::

This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that section
one of this act shall take effect on January 1, 2022.

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  2329--A
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 24, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. KAVANAGH, MAYER -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to  the  Committee  on  Elections  --
   reported  favorably from said committee and committed to the Committee
   on Finance -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
   amended and recommitted to said committee

 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to conducting  risk-limit-
   ing audits
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 9-211  of  the  election  law,  as
 amended by chapter 5 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  (A)  Within  fifteen  days after each general or special election,
 within thirteen days after every primary election, and within seven days
 after every village election conducted by the board  of  elections,  the
 board  of  elections  or  a bipartisan committee appointed by such board
 shall CONDUCT A RISK-LIMITING audit, WHICH WILL  INCLUDE  A  HAND-TO-EYE
 REVIEW  OF  AT LEAST THREE PERCENT OF the voter verifiable [audit] PAPER
 records [from three percent of voting machines  or  systems  within  the
 jurisdiction of such board. Such audits may be performed manually or via
 the use of any automated tool authorized for such use by the state board
 of  elections  which  is  independent from the voting system it is being
 used to audit. Voting machines or systems shall be  selected  for  audit
 through  a  random,  manual  process] IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REGULATIONS
 PROMULGATED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.  IN  ADDITION
 TO  SUCH  AUDIT  AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE SAME PROCEDURES THE BOARD OF
 ELECTIONS SHALL  AUDIT THE VOTER VERIFIABLE  AUDIT  RECORDS  FROM  THREE
 PERCENT  OF  VOTING  MACHINES OR SYSTEMS WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF SUCH
 BOARD. At least five days prior to the time fixed for  such  [selection]
 RISK-LIMITING AUDIT process, the board of elections shall send notice by
 first class mail to each candidate, political party and independent body
 entitled  to  have  had  watchers  present  at the polls in any election
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD02485-07-9

 S. 2329--A                          2
 
 district in such board's jurisdiction. Such notice shall state the  time
 and place fixed for such [random selection process] RISK-LIMITING AUDIT.
 The  audit shall be conducted in the same manner, to the extent applica-
 ble,  as  a canvass of paper ballots. Each candidate, political party or
 independent body entitled to appoint watchers to  attend  at  a  polling
 place  shall  be  entitled to appoint such number of watchers to observe
 the audit.
   (B) THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL PROMULGATE REGULATIONS FOR  THE
 IMPLEMENTATION OF RISK-LIMITING AUDITS REQUIRED BY PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS
 SUBDIVISION.  THE  NUMBER OF VOTER VERIFIABLE AUDIT RECORDS SELECTED FOR
 SUCH AUDITS SHALL BE DETERMINED PURSUANT TO SUCH REGULATIONS  THAT  MAKE
 USE  OF STATISTICAL METHODS AND ARE DESIGNED TO LIMIT THE RISK OF CERTI-
 FYING AN INCORRECT OUTCOME, BUT SHALL BE AT LEAST THREE PERCENT  OF  ALL
 BALLOTS CAST.
   (C) AS USED IN THIS SECTION: (I) "RISK-LIMITING AUDIT" MEANS A POST-E-
 LECTION  PROCESS  SUCH  THAT,  IF THE REPORTED OUTCOME OF THE CONTEST IS
 INCORRECT, THERE IS AT LEAST A NINETY   PERCENT CHANCE  THAT  THE  AUDIT
 WILL  REPLACE  THE  INCORRECT OUTCOME WITH THE CORRECT OUTCOME AS DETER-
 MINED BY A FULL, HAND-TO-EYE TABULATION OF ALL  VOTES  VALIDLY  CAST  IN
 THAT ELECTION CONTEST THAT ASCERTAINS VOTER INTENT MANUALLY AND DIRECTLY
 FROM VOTER-VERIFIABLE PAPER RECORDS.
   (II) "REPORTED OUTCOME" MEANS THE OUTCOME OF AN ELECTION CONTEST WHICH
 IS  DETERMINED  ACCORDING TO THE CANVASS AND WHICH WILL BECOME THE OFFI-
 CIAL, CERTIFIED OUTCOME UNLESS IT IS REVISED BY AN  AUDIT,  RECOUNT,  OR
 OTHER LEGAL PROCESS.
   (III)  "INCORRECT  OUTCOME"  MEANS  AN  OUTCOME  THAT DIFFERS FROM THE
 OUTCOME THAT WOULD BE DETERMINED BY  A  FULL  TABULATION  OF  ALL  VOTES
 VALIDLY  CAST IN THAT ELECTION CONTEST, DETERMINING VOTER INTENT MANUAL-
 LY, DIRECTLY FROM VOTER-VERIFIABLE PAPER RECORDS.
   (IV) "OUTCOME" MEANS THE WINNER OR  SET  OF  WINNERS  OF  AN  ELECTION
 CONTEST, WHICH MIGHT BE CANDIDATES OR POSITIONS.
   §  2. County boards of elections are authorized to conduct risk-limit-
 ing audit pilots. Any board conducting a pilot audit  shall  notify  the
 New York state board of elections. The New York state board of elections
 must provide a report to the state legislature on June 30, 2021 with the
 findings from the risk-limiting audits conducted through March 31, 2021.
   §  3.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
 section one of this act shall take effect on January 1, 2022.

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Senate Bill S2329A

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Sponsored By

Brian Kavanagh

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

Bill Amendments

co-Sponsors

Shelley B. Mayer

2019-S2329 - Details

2019-S2329 - Summary

2019-S2329 - Sponsor Memo

2019-S2329 - Bill Text download pdf

co-Sponsors

Shelley B. Mayer

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S2329A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments