NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8197

Senate Bill S8197

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Relates to permitting all qualified voters to vote as absentee voters during a state disaster emergency and providing for the automatic mailing of absentee ballots during a state disaster emergency

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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Apr 13, 2020	referred to elections

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2019-S8197 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§8-400 & 8-406, El L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S3869

2019-S8197 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Permits all qualified voters to vote as absentee voters during a state disaster emergency; provides for the automatic mailing of absentee ballots to all qualified voters during a state disaster emergency.

2019-S8197 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8197

SPONSOR: KENNEDY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to permitting all quali-
fied voters to vote as absentee voters during a state disaster emergency
and providing for the automatic mailing of absentee ballots during a
state disaster emergency

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation would amend the election law to require local boards of
elections to mail an absentee ballot to every qualified voter at the
address at which they are registered within such municipality no later
than 30 days before the scheduled election is to be held in the event of
a state disaster emergency as defined in section twenty of the executive
law.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section one amends section 8-400 of the election law to state that a
voter may vote absentee if any village, primary, special, or general
election occurs during a state disaster emergency as defined in section
twenty of the executive law.

Section two amends section 8-406 of the election law to require local
boards of election to mail an absentee ballot to every qualified voted
at the address at which they are registered, for all elections to occur
within the said municipality in the event of a state disaster emergency
as defined in section twenty of the election law.  Additionally, this
section states that an absentee ballot may be requested by any voter at
an address other than their permanent address if they will be absent
from the municipality and that in the case of a primary election absen-
tee ballots will only be sent to members of the party that the primary
election is occurring.

Section three establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill aims to provide absentee ballots to all registered voters
within municipalities when a state of emergency is declared by the Exec-
utive.

In March 2020, a national crisis began regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.
This led to mass closures across all sectors of the economy. During this
time a number of states held primary and general elections for both
local and national candidates. Unfortunately, the strict requirements of
several states surrounding absentee voting forced many people to make a
choice between public health and the civic duty of voting. These strict
requirements led to voter suppression and prevented citizens from
participating in elections.

Requiring all eligible voters to be sent an absentee ballot during a
state of emergency will protect New Yorkers from jeopardizing their own
safety in order to exercise their civic duty and right to cast their
vote in an election.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New legislation

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S8197 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8197
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 13, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. KENNEDY, ADDABBO, BENJAMIN, BRESLIN, BROOKS, HOYL-
   MAN, JACKSON, KAPLAN, KRUEGER, LIU, MAYER, MONTGOMERY, PARKER,  SERRA-
   NO,  SKOUFIS -- 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 permitting  all  quali-
   fied  voters  to vote as absentee voters during a state disaster emer-
   gency and providing for the  automatic  mailing  of  absentee  ballots
   during a state disaster emergency
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 8-400 of the election law is amended  by  adding  a
 new subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
   1-A. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY, A QUALIFIED
 VOTER  MAY  VOTE  AS AN ABSENTEE VOTER UNDER THIS CHAPTER IF ANY VILLAGE
 ELECTION CONDUCTED BY THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS, PRIMARY ELECTION,  SPECIAL
 ELECTION,  GENERAL  ELECTION  OR  NEW  YORK  CITY COMMUNITY SCHOOL BOARD
 DISTRICT OR CITY OF BUFFALO SCHOOL DISTRICT  ELECTION  OCCURS  DURING  A
 STATE  DISASTER EMERGENCY, AS DEFINED IN SECTION TWENTY OF THE EXECUTIVE
 LAW.
   § 2. Section 8-406 of the election law, as amended by chapter  296  of
 the laws of 1988, is amended to read as follows:
   §  8-406.  Absentee  ballots,  delivery of. 1. If the board shall find
 that the applicant  is  a  qualified  voter  of  the  election  district
 containing  his residence as stated in his statement and that his state-
 ment is sufficient, it shall, as soon as practicable after it shall have
 determined his right thereto, mail to him at an  address  designated  by
 him,  or deliver to him, or to any person designated for such purpose in
 writing by him, at the office of the board,  such  an  absentee  voter's
 ballot  or  set  of  ballots  and an envelope therefor. If the ballot or
 ballots are to be sent outside of the United States to a  country  other
 than Canada or Mexico, such ballot or ballots shall be sent by air mail.
 However,  if  an  applicant  who is eligible for an absentee ballot is a
 resident of a facility operated or licensed by, or under  the  jurisdic-
 tion  of,  the department of mental hygiene, or a resident of a facility
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD16159-01-0

 S. 8197                             2
 
 defined as a nursing home or residential health care  facility  pursuant
 to  subdivisions two and three of section two thousand eight hundred one
 of the public health law, or a resident of a hospital or other  facility
 operated  by  the  Veteran's  Administration  of the United States, such
 absentee ballot need not be so mailed or delivered to any such applicant
 but, may be delivered to the voter in the manner prescribed  by  section
 8-407  of this [chapter] TITLE if such facility is located in the county
 or city in which such voter is eligible to vote.
   2. (A) NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY, DURING  A
 STATE  DISASTER EMERGENCY, AS DEFINED IN SECTION TWENTY OF THE EXECUTIVE
 LAW, THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS FOR ALL COUNTIES OR  CITIES  SHALL  MAIL  AN
 ABSENTEE BALLOT TO EVERY REGISTERED AND QUALIFIED VOTER RESIDING IN SUCH
 COUNTY OR CITY. SUCH ABSENTEE BALLOT SHALL BE MAILED TO EVERY REGISTERED
 AND  QUALIFIED  VOTER  AT  THE  ADDRESS GIVEN ON HIS OR HER REGISTRATION
 RECORDS, OR AT AN ADDRESS SPECIFIED BY SUCH VOTER PURSUANT TO  PARAGRAPH
 (C)  OF THIS SUBDIVISION, NO LATER THAN THIRTY DAYS BEFORE THE SCHEDULED
 ELECTION IS TO BE HELD.
   (B) IN THE CASE OF A PRIMARY ELECTION, THE BOARD  SHALL  DELIVER  ONLY
 THE  BALLOT  OF THE PARTY IN WHICH THE RECORDS OF THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS
 SHOW THE ABSENTEE VOTER TO BE ENROLLED. IN THE EVENT A PRIMARY  ELECTION
 IS  UNCONTESTED IN THE ABSENTEE VOTERS ELECTION DISTRICT FOR ALL OFFICES
 OR POSITIONS EXCEPT THE PARTY POSITION OF MEMBER OF THE WARD, TOWN, CITY
 OR COUNTY COMMITTEE, NO BALLOT SHALL BE DELIVERED TO SUCH ABSENTEE VOTER
 FOR SUCH ELECTION; AND THE ABSENTEE VOTER SHALL BE ADVISED WHY HE OR SHE
 IS NOT BEING SENT A BALLOT.
   (C) ANY VOTER, UPON  APPLICATION,  MAY  REQUEST  THAT  THEIR  ABSENTEE
 BALLOT  BE  MAILED  TO  THEM  AT  AN  ADDRESS OTHER THAN THEIR PERMANENT
 ADDRESS, IF HE OR SHE EXPECTS TO BE ABSENT FROM THE COUNTY  OR  CITY  OF
 RESIDENCE AND UNABLE TO OBTAIN THEIR ABSENTEE BALLOT.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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