Senate Bill S9385

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9385
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 14, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law and the village  law,  in  relation  to
   requiring village elections on the same date as general elections take
   place on even numbered years
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 15-104 of  the  election  law,  as
 amended  by  chapter  248 of the laws of 1983, paragraph b as amended by
 chapter 565 of the laws of 1998, paragraph c as amended by  chapter  359
 of  the  laws  of 1989, and paragraph d as amended by chapter 684 of the
 laws of 2006, is amended to read as follows:
   1. a. The general village election shall be held on the third  Tuesday
 in  March  except  in  any  village which presently elects, or hereafter
 adopts a proposition to elect, its officers on a  date  other  than  the
 third  Tuesday  in March. VILLAGES THAT HAVE ELECTIONS ON THE DAY OF THE
 GENERAL ELECTION IN NOVEMBER SHALL HOLD SUCH ELECTIONS ON THE DAY OF THE
 GENERAL ELECTION IN EVEN NUMBERED YEARS.
   b. In any village in which the general village election, or a  special
 village  election for officers pursuant to this chapter, is scheduled to
 be held on the third Tuesday of March, for any year in which the  seven-
 teenth day of March shall fall on such Tuesday, the board of trustees of
 such  village shall provide, by the resolution prescribed by paragraph b
 of subdivision three of this section, that such election shall  be  held
 on  the  eighteenth  day of March. Any provision of a resolution adopted
 pursuant to this subdivision shall not  otherwise  alter  the  political
 calendar for any such election, which shall continue to be computed from
 the  third  Tuesday of March. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivi-
 sion five of this section, any provision of a resolution adopted  pursu-
 ant  to  this  subdivision  shall be effective only if such provision is
 specifically published as provided by this section.
   c. The board of trustees of a village may adopt a resolution,  subject
 to  a  permissive  referendum as provided in article nine of the village
 law, providing that village elections shall be conducted by the board of
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD13123-06-4
 S. 9385                             2
 
 elections. The board of trustees of a village which has adopted  such  a
 resolution and which is wholly in one county may also adopt a resolution
 providing  that  village elections shall occur on the day of the general
 election IN EVEN NUMBERED YEARS provided that all the election districts
 contained  within  such  village  are  wholly  within such village. Upon
 approval of such a resolution by the board of trustees and, if requested
 by petition, approval by a vote of the qualified voters of the  village,
 the  county  board  of  elections  shall  conduct  all village elections
 including in those cases in which such village elections are held on the
 day of the general election, primary elections, if any. Such  resolution
 shall  be effective for all elections in such village held more than six
 months after such resolution is adopted, provided however, that a resol-
 ution providing that village elections shall occur on  the  day  of  the
 general  election  IN  EVEN  NUMBERED YEARS, shall be effective for such
 elections in such village for which the primary election  is  held  more
 than six months after such resolution is adopted.
   d.  Except  as  otherwise  provided by law, to be elected in a village
 election, a candidate must receive more votes than any  other  candidate
 for  the  office. In the event of a tie at a village election, a run-off
 election shall be conducted pursuant to the provisions of section 15-126
 of this article; provided, however, that if all candidates receiving  an
 equal  number  of  votes agree to waive a run-off election, the election
 shall be determined according to the provisions of paragraph d of subdi-
 vision two of section 15-126 of this article.
   § 2. Paragraph a of subdivision 7 of section 3-302 of the village  law
 is amended to read as follows:
   a.  The  board  of trustees of any village which has provided that the
 terms of office of all trustees, or the terms of office of mayor and all
 trustees shall be four years, may,  subject  to  permissive  referendum,
 adopt  a separate resolution or local law providing that general village
 elections shall be held biennially in the odd numbered years or  in  the
 even  numbered  years,  as  they  shall determine, or may include in any
 resolution or local law providing that the terms of office of all  trus-
 tees,  or  the  terms  of office of mayor and all trustees shall be four
 years, a provision that general village elections shall be held  bienni-
 ally  in the odd numbered years or in the even numbered years; PROVIDED,
 HOWEVER, THAT SUCH GENERAL VILLAGE ELECTIONS HELD  ON  THE  DAY  OF  THE
 GENERAL  ELECTION  SHALL  BE HELD ON EVEN NUMBERED YEARS. No such resol-
 ution or local law, however, shall become effective within  thirty  days
 prior to a general village election.
   §  3.  Subdivision 8 of section 9-910 of the village law is amended to
 read as follows:
   8. No special election shall be held hereunder in the  [month]  MONTHS
 of March, OCTOBER, OR NOVEMBER.
   §  4.  The  third  undesignated  paragraph  of  section 16-1600 of the
 village law is amended to read as follows:
   A proposition for the reincorporation of a village under this  article
 shall not be submitted at a special election during the months of Febru-
 ary [or], March, OCTOBER, OR NOVEMBER.
   §  5. Notwithstanding   any provision of any general, special or local
 law, charter, code, ordinance, resolution, rule  or  regulation  to  the
 contrary,  a  village  elected  official, subject to the requirements of
 sections one, two, three, or four of this act, elected and serving their
 term as of the first of January next succeeding the  date  on  which  it
 shall have become a law shall complete their full term as established by
 law.  Provided,  however,  that    if   the completion of such full term
 S. 9385                             3
 
 results in the need for an election in an odd-numbered  year  after  the
 first  of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become
 a law, the village official elected at such election  shall  have  their
 term  expire  as  if  such official were elected at the previous general
 election held in an even-numbered year.
   § 6. Severability. If any provision of this act  is  held  invalid  or
 ineffective  in  whole or in part or inapplicable to any person or situ-
 ation, such invalidity or holding shall not affect, impair or invalidate
 other provisions or applications of this act that can  be  given  effect
 without  the  invalid provision or application, and all other provisions
 thereof shall nevertheless be separately and  fully  effective,  and  to
 this end the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
   §  7. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately,
 the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or  regulation  neces-
 sary  for  the  implementation  of  this  act  on its effective date are
 authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective date.