NY State Senate Bill 2023-S1148

Current 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
Jan 03, 2024	referred to elections
Jan 10, 2023	referred to elections

co-Sponsors

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §4-104, El L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S6930
2021-2022: S1039

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to designating early polling places.

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S1148

SPONSOR: KRUEGER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to designating early poll-
ing places

 
PURPOSE:.

This bill provides that public schools shall not be designated as early
voting polling sites.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends § 4-104 of the Election Law to provide that public
buildings shall be designated as polling places to the extent practica-
ble, however in no case shall a public school be designated as an early
voting polling location. If additional polling places are needed, a
building exempt from taxation or owned by an entity receiving more than
one millions dollars in annual state grant funding shall be used as a
polling place unless the owner demonstrates that the entity's function

is significantly incompatible with operating as a polling place.  This
section also repeals the prohibition of designating a polling site at a
location where there is a business licensed to sell alcoholic beverages
for on premises consumption.

Section 2: The act shall take effect immediately. EXISTING LAW:  Under
current law, there is no restriction on placing early voting polling
sites at public schools. On the contrary, the law provides that if a
board chooses a public school building for a polling place, without
distinction for whether it is for early voting or on Election Day, the
board or agency controlling the school building must make the building
available. In addition, current law prohibits polling places from being
placed where alcohol is also being sold on the premises.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In 2019, New York state lawmakers took historic steps in approving a
series of reforms intended to make New York's voting process easier,
more efficient, more transparent, and more accountable to its citizens.
Among these reforms were the scheduling of state and federal primaries
on the same day, automatic updating of voters' registrations when they
move, preregistration of those ages 16 and 17 prior to an election in
which they will be eligible to vote, and requirements that established
10 days of early voting which includes two full weekends prior to
elections.

With regard to early voting, the intent of the legislature was to
provide a flexible timeline within which voters, can cast their ballots,
taking into account the reality that voters often have busy schedules,
vacations, and family obligations that can get in the way of voting on
Election Day. Early voting provides flexibility and a longer voting
process that encourages civic involvement by New York's citizens.

Following analysis of early voting polling site locations in the 2019
election cycle, there were concerns voiced about the continued use of
schools as early voting polling places. While schools are normally.
closed during Election Day, schools are not closed during the days of
early voting. This creates logistical and security concerns and disrupts
the school day. In addition, vital areas of a public school such as
cafeterias and gymnasiums become unavailable to students during this
time, which can occur multiple times a year due to primary, general, and
special elections.

In the 2020 general election, while schools tried to hold in-person
classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, additional concerns were raised as
voters were allowed to enter public schools. Although students, teach-
ers, and school staff were required to have their temperature checked,
and additional precautions were implemented, voters were able to enter
the school without being subjected to similar requirements.

A vast majority of early voting sites were not at public schools but
rather colleges, community centers, and museums. Only one locality
outside of the City of New York used public schools as polling places,
and none of the polling places in the borough of Queens were public
schools.

The prohibition on placing polling sites on the same premises as alcohol
being sold is repealed in order to expand the types of sites available
for early voting in light of the restriction on placement at public
schools.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-22: S.1039/a.7580 - Passed Senate

2019-20: s.6930/a.9655 - Passed Senate

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1148
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 10, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  KRUEGER,  HOYLMAN-SIGAL -- 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 designating early poll-
   ing places
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 4-104 of the election  law,
 subdivision  1  as amended by chapter 5 of the laws of 2019 and subdivi-
 sion 3 as amended by chapter 694 of the laws of  1989,  are  amended  to
 read as follows:
   1.  Every  board  of  elections shall, in consultation with each city,
 town and village, designate the polling places in each election district
 in which the meetings for  the  registration  of  voters,  and  for  any
 election  may  be  held.  The board of trustees of each village in which
 general  and  special  village  elections  conducted  by  the  board  of
 elections  are  held at a time other than the time of a general election
 shall submit such a list of polling places for such village elections to
 the board of elections. A polling place may be  located  in  a  building
 owned  by  a religious organization or used by it as a place of worship.
 If such a building is designated as a polling place,  it  shall  not  be
 required  to  be  open for voter registration on any Saturday if this is
 contrary to the religious beliefs of the religious organization. In such
 a situation,  the  board  of  elections  shall  designate  an  alternate
 location  to be used for voter registration. Such polling places must be
 designated by March fifteenth, of each year, and shall be effective  for
 one  year  thereafter. Such a list required to be submitted by a village
 board of trustees must be submitted at least  four  months  before  each
 general village election and shall be effective until four months before
 the  subsequent  general village election. [No place in which a business
 licensed to sell alcoholic beverages  for  on  premises  consumption  is

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03667-01-3

 S. 1148                             2

 conducted  on  any  day  of  local registration or of voting shall be so
 designated.] If, within the discretion  of  the  board  of  elections  a
 particular  polling  place  so  designated  is  subsequently found to be
 unsuitable  or  unsafe  or should circumstances arise that make a desig-
 nated polling place unsuitable or unsafe, then the board of elections is
 empowered to select an alternative meeting place. In  the  city  of  New
 York,  the  board  of  elections shall designate such polling places and
 alternate registration places if the polling place cannot  be  used  for
 voter registration on Saturdays.
   3.  A BOARD OR BODY EMPOWERED TO DESIGNATE POLLING PLACES SHALL DESIG-
 NATE ANY PUBLIC BUILDING AS A POLLING PLACE TO THE  EXTENT  PRACTICABLE,
 PROVIDED,  HOWEVER,  THAT  IN  NO CASE SHALL A PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING BE
 DESIGNATED AS AN EARLY VOTING POLLING LOCATION.  IF  ADDITIONAL  POLLING
 PLACES  SHALL  BE NEEDED, A building exempt from taxation OR OWNED BY AN
 ENTITY RECEIVING MORE THAN ONE MILLION DOLLARS  IN  ANNUAL  STATE  GRANT
 FUNDING  shall  be  used [whenever possible] as a polling place if it is
 situated in the same or a contiguous election district, and may  contain
 as  many  distinctly  separate  polling places as public convenience may
 require, UNLESS THE OWNER OR OPERATOR OF SUCH BUILDING SHALL DEMONSTRATE
 THAT SUCH USE IS SIGNIFICANTLY INCOMPATIBLE WITH THE PRIMARY FUNCTION OF
 THE ENTITY. The expense, if any, incidental to its use,  shall  be  paid
 like  the expense of other places of registration and voting. If a board
 or body empowered to designate polling places chooses  a  public  school
 building  for  such  purpose,  the  board  or agency which controls such
 building must make available a room or rooms in such building which  are
 suitable  for registration and voting and which are as close as possible
 to a convenient entrance to such building and must  make  available  any
 such  room  or  rooms  which the board or body designating such building
 determines are accessible to physically disabled voters as  provided  in
 subdivision  one-a.  Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  any  general,
 special or local law, if a board or body empowered to designate  polling
 places  chooses a publicly owned or leased building, other than a public
 school building, for such purposes the board or body which controls such
 building must make available a room or rooms in such building which  are
 suitable  for registration and voting and which are as close as possible
 to a convenient entrance to such building, and must make  available  any
 such  room  or  rooms  which the board or body designating such building
 determines are accessible to  physically  disabled  voters  unless,  not
 later  than  thirty  days  after  notice of its designation as a polling
 place, the board or body controlling  such  building,  files  a  written
 request  for  a  cancellation of such designation with the board or body
 empowered to designate polling places on such form as shall be  provided
 by  the  board  or  body  making  such  designation.  The  board or body
 empowered to so designate shall, within twenty days after  such  request
 is  filed, determine whether the use of such building as a polling place
 would unreasonably interfere with the usual activities conducted in such
 building and upon such determination, may cancel such designation.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S1148

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

co-Sponsors

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S1148

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Liz Krueger

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

co-Sponsors

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S1148 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments