Senate Bill S5545

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5545
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 10, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. MAYER, KAPLAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and
   when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the education law, in relation to absentee ballots for
   school district elections during a declared  disaster  emergency;  and
   providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision  2  of  section  2018-a  of  the
 education law, as amended by chapter 616 of the laws of 2019, is amended
 to read as follows:
   a.  A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this section
 if during all the hours of voting on the day of an election  he  or  she
 will be:
   (1) absent from the county of his or her residence; or
   (2)  unable to appear at the polling place because of illness or phys-
 ical disability, or duties related to the primary care of  one  or  more
 individuals  who  are  ill  or physically disabled, or because he or she
 will be or is a patient in a hospital, PROVIDED THAT,  FOR  PURPOSES  OF
 THIS  SUBPARAGRAPH,  "ILLNESS"  SHALL  INCLUDE,  BUT  NOT BE LIMITED TO,
 INSTANCES WHERE A VOTER IS UNABLE TO APPEAR PERSONALLY  AT  THE  POLLING
 PLACE OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN WHICH THEY ARE A QUALIFIED VOTER BECAUSE
 THERE  IS  A  RISK  OF CONTRACTING OR SPREADING A DISEASE THAT MAY CAUSE
 ILLNESS TO THE VOTER OR TO OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC; or
   (3) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
   (4) absent from his or her voting  residence  because  he  or  she  is
 detained  in  jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or
 confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other  than
 a  felony,  provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election
 district of his or her residence.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10337-02-1

              

 S. 5545                             2
 
   § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 2018-b of  the  education
 law, as amended by chapter 46 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read as
 follows:
   a.  An  applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an applica-
 tion setting forth (1) his name and  residence  address,  including  the
 street and number, if any, or town and rural delivery route, if any; (2)
 that  he  is  or  will be, on the day of the school district election, a
 qualified voter of the school district in which he resides in that he is
 or will be, on such date, over eighteen years of age, a citizen  of  the
 United  States  and  has or will have resided in the district for thirty
 days next preceding such date; (3) that he will be unable to  appear  to
 vote  in person on the day of the school district election for which the
 absentee ballot is requested because he is, or will be on such day (a) a
 patient in a hospital, or unable to appear  personally  at  the  polling
 place  on  such  day  because  of  illness  or physical disability [or],
 PROVIDED THAT, FOR PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH, "ILLNESS" SHALL  INCLUDE,
 BUT  NOT  BE  LIMITED  TO,  INSTANCES  WHERE A VOTER IS UNABLE TO APPEAR
 PERSONALLY AT THE POLLING PLACE OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN WHICH THEY ARE
 A QUALIFIED VOTER BECAUSE THERE IS A RISK OF CONTRACTING OR SPREADING  A
 DISEASE  THAT  MAY CAUSE ILLNESS TO THE VOTER OR TO OTHER MEMBERS OF THE
 PUBLIC, (b) because his duties, occupation, business,  or  studies  will
 require him to be outside of the county or city of his residence on such
 day,  (c)  because  he will be on vacation outside the county or city of
 his residence on such day; or, (d)  absent  from  his  voting  residence
 because he is detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or await-
 ing trial or is confined in prison after conviction for an offense other
 than  a  felony. Such application must be received by the district clerk
 or designee of the trustees or school board at least seven  days  before
 the  election  if  the  ballot  is to be mailed to the voter, or the day
 before the election, if the ballot is to be delivered personally to  the
 voter.
   §  3.  Paragraph  s  of subdivision 2 of section 1951 of the education
 law, as added by chapter 722 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read  as
 follows:
   s.  The board of cooperative educational services shall provide absen-
 tee ballots to qualified voters.  The  commissioner  shall  adopt  regu-
 lations  for  the  purposes of implementing the provisions of this para-
 graph which shall include, but not be limited to, creating the procedure
 for which such absentee ballots shall be submitted; providing that  such
 absentee ballots shall be, as nearly as practicable, in the same form as
 those voted at the district election; requiring that any absentee ballot
 applicant  is  or  will be, on the day of the vote, a qualified voter of
 the board of cooperative educational services and that he or she will be
 on such date over eighteen years of age, a citizen of the United  States
 and  has  or  will  have  resided  in said district for thirty days next
 preceding such date; and providing instructions as to the proper marking
 thereof.  FOR PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH, QUALIFIED VOTERS OF A BOARD OF
 COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES MAY REQUEST AN ABSENTEE BALLOT  SUBJECT
 TO THE CONDITIONS SET FORTH IN PARAGRAPH A OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION
 TWO THOUSAND EIGHTEEN-B OF THIS TITLE.
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
 deemed repealed January 1, 2022.