S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1824
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 11, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. KENNEDY -- 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 email notification of a
   change in location of a polling place
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  2  of  section  4-104 of the election law is
 amended to read as follows:
   2. If the board of elections, after designating a polling  place,  and
 after  sending  written  notice of such polling place to each registered
 voter, designates an alternative polling place, it must, at  least  five
 days  before the next election or day for registration, send by mail AND
 EMAIL a written notice to each registered voter notifying him OR HER  of
 the changed location of such polling place. If such notice is not possi-
 ble  the  board  of  elections  must  provide for an alternative form of
 notice to be given to voters at the location  of  the  previous  polling
 place.
   §  2.  Paragraph (a) of subdivision 5 of section 4-104 of the election
 law, as amended by chapter 95 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as
 follows:
   (a) Whenever the number of voters eligible to vote in an  election  in
 any election district is less than one hundred, the polling place desig-
 nated  for  such district may be the polling place of any other district
 which could properly be designated as the polling  place  of  the  first
 mentioned  district  pursuant  to the provisions of this chapter, except
 that the polling place designated for any such district may be the poll-
 ing place of any other district in such city or town provided  that  the
 distance  from  such  first  mentioned district to the polling place for
 such other district is not unreasonable pursuant to rules or regulations
 prescribed by the state board of elections and provided that  the  total
 number  of  persons  eligible  to  vote  in  such other district in such

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

                                                            LBD00890-01-7

 S. 1824                             2
 
 election, including the persons eligible to vote in such first mentioned
 districts, is not more than five hundred. The inspectors of election and
 poll clerks, if any, of such other election district shall also  act  in
 all respects as the election officers for such first mentioned districts
 and no other inspectors shall be appointed to serve in or for such first
 mentioned districts. A separate poll ledger or computer generated regis-
 tration list, separate voting machine or ballots and separate canvass of
 results  shall  be  provided  for such first mentioned districts, except
 that if the candidates and ballot proposals to be voted on by the voters
 of such districts are the same, the election districts shall be combined
 and shall constitute a single election district for  that  election.  If
 the  polling  place for any election district is moved for any election,
 pursuant to the provisions of this subdivision, the board  of  elections
 shall,  not  later  than  ten  nor  more  than  fifteen days before such
 election, mail, by first class mail, to each voter eligible to  vote  in
 such  election  district  at  such  election, a notice setting forth the
 location of the polling place for such election and specifying that such
 location is for such election only, AND EMAIL THE SAME  NOTIFICATION  TO
 ANY VOTER THAT HAS SUPPLIED THE BOARD WITH A VALID EMAIL ADDRESS.
   §  3.  Paragraph (k) of subdivision 5 of section 5-210 of the election
 law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (xiii) to read as follows:
   (XIII) A SPACE FOR THE APPLICANT TO PROVIDE AN EMAIL ADDRESS TO  WHICH
 OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS MAY BE SENT.
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law.