NY State Senate Bill 2025-S8647

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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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 07, 2026	referred to elections

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§7-200, 7-201, 7-202 & 7-206, El L

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires voting machines or systems to comply with the voluntary voting system guidelines adopted by the United States election assistance commission on December 13, 2005.

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8647

SPONSOR: GONZALEZ
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to voting machines and
systems

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

To codify the 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) as the
required standard for voting machines in New York State to ensure the
continued validity of existing voting equipment.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends Election Law Section 7.-200 to require that the State
Board of Elections approve voting systems based on compliance with the
2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG). This section explicitly
exempts electronic poll books and accessible ballot marking systems from
this specific standard (as they are not core features of the voting
systems, and including these technologies could invalidate their use,

since they did not exist in 2005 when the standards were established).

Section 2 amends Election Law Section 7-201 to require that examination
reports for voting machines confirm compliance with the 2005 guidelines.

Section 3 adds a new subdivision to Election Law Section 7-202 to
mandate that no voting machine or system shall be approved unless it
complies with the 2005 guidelines, while retaining the exemption for
electronic poll books and accessible ballot marking devices.

Section 4 amends Election Law Section 7-206 to require that all testing
of voting machines ensures compliance with the 2005 guidelines.

Section 5 provides the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Recent federal executive actions have created uncertainty regarding
voting machine standards. Specifically, the March 2025 Executive Order
issued by the Trump Administration could potentially invalidate the
certification of voting machines currently used across New York State if
the requirements for such machines are indexed to the new standards.
This federal directive imposes new, untested restrictions that clash
with the proven and thus far reliable equipment that local boards of
elections rely upon.

This bill codifies the 2005 Voluntary Voting System Guidelines (VVSG) as
the statutory standard for New York. By locking in the 2005 standards
(which are already in effect by regulation), this bill will ensure that
existing, functional voting machines remain valid for use. This preempts
the federal Executive Order's attempt to force an unnecessary, costly,
and potentially chaotic transition.

Without this legislation, local governments could face a fiscal crisis.
Boards of elections would be forced to retire millions of dollars in
perfectly functional equipment to meet arbitrary new federal rules. This
bill protects local taxpayers from that burden, maintains the current
use of proven/reliable machines for the time being, and ensures continu-
ity in our election administration.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None to the State. This bill prevents significant unanticipated costs
for local boards of elections by avoiding the mandatory replacement of
valid voting systems.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8647
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 7, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GONZALEZ -- 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  voting  machines  and
   systems
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 7-200  of  the  election  law,  as
 amended  by  chapter  181  of  the  laws  of 2005, is amended to read as
 follows:
   1. The board of elections of the city of New  York  and  other  county
 boards  of  elections  may  adopt  any  kind of voting machine or system
 approved by the state board of elections, or the use of which  has  been
 specifically  authorized  by  law;  and thereupon such voting machine or
 system may be used at any or all elections and  shall  be  used  at  all
 general  or  special elections held by such boards in such city, town or
 village and in every contested primary election in the city of New  York
 and  in every contested primary election outside the city of New York in
 which there are one thousand or more enrolled voters qualified to  vote.
 NO  VOTING  MACHINE  OR  SYSTEM  SHALL BE APPROVED BY THE STATE BOARD OF
 ELECTIONS UNLESS SUCH  MACHINE  OR  SYSTEM  MEETS  THE  REQUIREMENTS  OF
 SECTION  7-202  OF  THIS  TITLE  AND HAS BEEN TESTED PURSUANT TO SECTION
 7-206 OF THIS TITLE AGAINST THE STANDARDS SET  FORTH  IN  THE  VOLUNTARY
 VOTING  SYSTEM  GUIDELINES ADOPTED BY THE UNITED STATES ELECTION ASSIST-
 ANCE COMMISSION ON DECEMBER THIRTEENTH,  TWO  THOUSAND  FIVE;  PROVIDED,
 HOWEVER,  THAT  THE  PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION REQUIRING COMPLIANCE
 WITH SUCH GUIDELINES SHALL APPLY SOLELY TO THOSE COMPONENTS OF A  VOTING
 SYSTEM  THAT  FUNCTION TO RECORD, CAST, OR TABULATE VOTES, AND SHALL NOT
 APPLY TO ELECTRONIC POLL  BOOKS  OR  SYSTEMS  UTILIZED  SOLELY  FOR  THE
 PURPOSE OF MARKING ACCESSIBLE ABSENTEE BALLOTS PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (C)
 OF  SUBDIVISION  TWO  OF SECTION 8-400 OF THIS CHAPTER. No more than two
 types of voting machines or systems may be used by any  local  board  of
 elections  at a single election. Notwithstanding the other provisions of
 this subdivision, any local board of elections may borrow or  lease  for
 use  on  an  experimental  basis  for a period of not more than one year
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD14365-01-6
 S. 8647                             2
 
 each, voting machines or systems of any type approved by the state board
 of elections.
   § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 7-201 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 181 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  Any person or corporation owning or being interested in any voting
 machine or system may apply to have the state board of elections examine
 such machine or system. Such applicant shall pay to the board before the
 examination a fee equal to the cost of such examination. The state board
 of elections shall cause the  machine  or  system  to  be  examined  FOR
 COMPLIANCE  WITH  THE  REQUIREMENTS OF SECTION 7-202 OF THIS TITLE and a
 report of the examination to be made and filed  in  the  office  of  the
 state board. Such examination shall include a determination as to wheth-
 er the machine or system meets the requirements of section 7-202 of this
 title  and  a thorough review and testing of any electronic or computer-
 ized features of the machine or system. Such report shall state an opin-
 ion as to whether the kind of machine or system so examined  can  safely
 and  properly  be  used  by  voters  and  local  boards  of elections at
 elections, under the conditions  prescribed  in  this  article  and  the
 requirements  of the federal Help America Vote Act. If the report states
 that the machine or system can be so used, and the board after  its  own
 examination  so  determines,  in  accordance  with  subdivision  four of
 section 3-100 of this chapter, the machine or  system  shall  be  deemed
 approved,  and machines or systems of its kind may be adopted for use at
 elections as herein provided. The voting  machine  or  system  shall  be
 examined  by  examiners  or testing laboratories to be selected for such
 purpose by the state board.  Each examiner or laboratory  shall  receive
 compensation  and  expenses  for  making an examination and report as to
 each voting machine or system examined by [him] SUCH  EXAMINER  or  [it]
 SUCH LABORATORY.  Neither any member of the state board of elections nor
 any  examiner or owner or employee of any testing laboratory, shall have
 any pecuniary interest in any voting machine  or  system.  Any  form  of
 voting  machine  or  system  not  so  approved,  cannot  be  used at any
 election.
   § 3. Section 7-202 of the election law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
 subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
   1-A.  IN  ADDITION TO THE REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF
 THIS SECTION, NO VOTING MACHINE OR SYSTEM SHALL BE APPROVED BY THE STATE
 BOARD OF ELECTIONS UNLESS SUCH  MACHINE  OR  SYSTEM  COMPLIES  WITH  THE
 VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM GUIDELINES ADOPTED BY THE UNITED STATES ELECTION
 ASSISTANCE   COMMISSION  ON  DECEMBER  THIRTEENTH,  TWO  THOUSAND  FIVE;
 PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT THE PROVISIONS  OF  THIS  SUBDIVISION  REQUIRING
 COMPLIANCE  WITH  SUCH GUIDELINES SHALL APPLY SOLELY TO THOSE COMPONENTS
 OF A VOTING SYSTEM THAT FUNCTION TO RECORD, CAST, OR TABULATE VOTES, AND
 SHALL NOT APPLY TO ELECTRONIC POLL BOOKS OR SYSTEMS UTILIZED SOLELY  FOR
 THE PURPOSE OF MARKING ACCESSIBLE ABSENTEE BALLOTS PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH
 (C) OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION 8-400 OF THIS CHAPTER.
   §  4.  Section  7-206  of  the election law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 5 to read as follows:
   5. THE EXAMINATION AND TESTING OF ANY VOTING MACHINE OR SYSTEM BY  THE
 STATE  BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS,  OR  BY  ANY EXAMINER OR TESTING LABORATORY
 SELECTED BY SUCH BOARD, SHALL BE CONDUCTED TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH THE
 VOLUNTARY VOTING SYSTEM GUIDELINES ADOPTED BY THE UNITED STATES ELECTION
 ASSISTANCE COMMISSION ON DECEMBER THIRTEENTH, TWO THOUSAND FIVE.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S8647

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

Actions

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Kristen Gonzalez

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

Actions

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S8647 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments