Senate Bill S4469

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4469
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 5, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MAYER  -- 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 due to a religious commitment
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraphs a and c of subdivision 2 of  section  2018-a  of
 the  education  law,  paragraph a as amended and paragraph c as added by
 chapter 616 of the laws of 2019, are 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] SUCH VOTER EXPECTS TO be:
   (1) absent from [the] THEIR 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]
 SUCH VOTER will be or is a patient in a hospital; or
   (3)  an  [inmate]  INCARCERATED  INDIVIDUAL  or patient of a veteran's
 administration hospital; or
   (4) absent from [his or her] SUCH VOTER'S voting residence because [he
 or she] SUCH VOTER 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] SUCH VOTER  is
 qualified  to vote in the election district of [his or her] SUCH VOTER'S
 residence[.]; OR
   (5) UNABLE TO BE PRESENT DUE TO SUCH VOTER'S OBSERVANCE OF A RELIGIOUS
 COMMITMENT OR FOLLOWING SUCH VOTER'S RELIGIOUS TEACHING  OR  TENET  THAT
 FORBIDS SECULAR ACTIVITY ON THAT DAY.
   c.  The  application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in
 each instance the following information:
   (1) Applicant's full name,  date  of  birth,  and  residence  address,
 including  the  street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,
 mailing address if different from the residence address and  an  address
 to which the ballot shall be mailed.
 
              

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08446-01-5
 S. 4469                             2
 
   (2)  A  statement  that  the  applicant  is a qualified and registered
 voter.
   (3)  A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
 applicant expects in good faith to be in one of  the  following  catego-
 ries:
   (a)  absent  from  [the]  THEIR  county  of  [his  or  her] residence;
 provided, however, if the applicant expects to be absent from such coun-
 ty for a duration covering more than one election and seeks an  absentee
 ballot  for  each  election,  [he or she] SUCH APPLICANT shall state the
 dates when [he or she  expects]  THEY  EXPECT  to  begin  and  end  such
 absence; or
   (b) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or physical
 disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more individ-
 uals who are ill or physically disabled; or
   (c)  an  [inmate]  INCARCERATED  INDIVIDUAL  or patient of a veteran's
 administration hospital; or
   (d) 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 and stating the place where [he or she] SUCH APPLICANT is
 so detained or confined[.]; OR
   (E) UNABLE TO BE PRESENT DUE TO SUCH VOTER'S OBSERVANCE OF A RELIGIOUS
 COMMITMENT OR FOLLOWING SUCH VOTER'S RELIGIOUS TEACHING  OR  TENET  THAT
 FORBIDS SECULAR ACTIVITY ON THAT DAY.
   §  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]  SUCH  APPLICANT'S  name  and residence
 address, including the street and number, if  any,  or  town  and  rural
 delivery  route,  if any; (2) that [he] SUCH APPLICANT is or will be, on
 the day of the school district election, a qualified voter of the school
 district in which [he resides] THEY RESIDE in that [he]  SUCH  APPLICANT
 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 thir-
 ty days next preceding such date; (3) that [he] SUCH APPLICANT  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]  SUCH
 APPLICANT  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 (b) because [his] SUCH APPLICANT'S
 duties, occupation, business, or studies will require [him] THEM  to  be
 outside  of the county or city of [his] THEIR residence on such day, (c)
 because [he] SUCH APPLICANT will be on vacation outside  the  county  or
 city  of  [his] THEIR residence on such day; [or,] (d) absent from [his]
 SUCH  APPLICANT'S  voting  residence  because  [he]  SUCH  APPLICANT  is
 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial or is
 confined  in prison after conviction for an offense other than a felony;
 OR (E) UNABLE TO BE PRESENT DUE TO  SUCH  APPLICANT'S  OBSERVANCE  OF  A
 RELIGIOUS  COMMITMENT,  OR FOLLOWING SUCH APPLICANT'S RELIGIOUS TEACHING
 OR TENET THAT FORBIDS SECULAR ACTIVITY ON THAT DAY.    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. This act shall take effect immediately.