S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    656
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 9, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  BOYLE  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
 
 AN ACT to amend the town law, in relation to compensation of the  chair-
   man, election inspectors and ballot clerks

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 6 of section 175 of the town law, subdi-
 vision 1 as amended by chapter 334 of the laws of 2011 and subdivision 6
 as amended by chapter 586 of the laws of 2004, are amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   1.  An  annual  election  shall  be  held in each fire district on the
 second Tuesday in December, except that  in  the  Ocean  Bay  Park  fire
 district,  the  Lonelyville fire district, the Davis Park fire district,
 the Cherry Grove fire district, the Fair Harbor fire  district  and  the
 Fire  Island  Pines  fire district, Suffolk county, such annual election
 shall be held on the second Tuesday in July, except that in the town  of
 Salisbury,  Herkimer  county,  such annual election shall be held on the
 Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday in November from six o'clock in
 the morning until nine o'clock in the evening and  except  that  in  the
 Belfast  fire  district,  Allegany county, such annual election shall be
 held on the first Tuesday in December. The board of  fire  commissioners
 shall  give notice thereof by the publication of a notice once in one or
 more newspapers having a general circulation in the district. The  first
 publication  of such notice shall be not less than twenty-seven days and
 not more than thirty-four days prior to the date of such election.  Such
 notice  shall  specify  the  time when and the place where such election
 will be held, the officers to be elected  thereat  and  their  terms  of
 office,  and  the  hours  during  which  the  polls will be open for the
 receipt of ballots. The secretary of such fire  district  shall  prepare
 the  ballots  for  all elections of fire district officers and the polls
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04489-01-9

 S. 656                              2
 
 shall remain open for the receipt  thereof  at  all  elections  of  fire
 district  officers from six o'clock in the evening until nine o'clock in
 the evening and such additional consecutive hours prior thereto  as  the
 board  of  fire  commissioners  of such district may have determined and
 specified in the notice thereof. The board of fire  commissioners  shall
 designate  a  resident  fire district elector, who shall be a registered
 voter of the town, to act as chairman of any election of  said  district
 and  shall  designate not less than two nor more than four resident fire
 district electors, who shall be registered voters of the town to act  as
 election  inspectors  and  ballot  clerks at such elections. No elective
 officer of the fire district shall serve  as  such  chairman  or  as  an
 election  inspector or ballot clerk. The board of fire commissioners may
 adopt a resolution providing that such chairman, election inspectors and
 ballot clerks shall be paid for their respective services  at  any  such
 annual  election  or  at any special election of the fire district. Such
 resolution, if adopted, shall fix the amount of  such  compensation,  as
 follows:  if  the  hours  during  which  the  polls will be open for the
 receipt of ballots are from  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  until  nine
 o'clock  in  the  evening, a sum not to exceed [thirty-five] ONE HUNDRED
 dollars for each such official; if additional consecutive hours prior to
 six o'clock in the evening are determined and specified in the notice of
 election, a sum not to exceed [fifty] TWO HUNDRED dollars for each  such
 official.
   6.  If  in  any  fire  district the number of voters is so great as to
 render it inexpedient or impossible to conduct the election at one poll-
 ing place, the board of fire commissioners may divide the fire  district
 into  election  districts  and  provide  a  polling  place for each such
 election district,  provided,  however,  that  the  number  of  election
 districts in any fire district shall not exceed one for each six hundred
 electors  plus  one  for  a  remaining  fraction of six hundred. In such
 event, the notice specified in subdivision one  of  this  section  shall
 describe  the election districts and state where the polling places will
 be located, and the board of fire commissioners shall designate not less
 than two nor more than four resident fire district electors,  who  shall
 be  registered  voters  of  the  town, to act as election inspectors and
 ballot clerks at each such polling place. The  board  of  fire  district
 commissioners  may  adopt  a  resolution  providing  that  such election
 inspectors and ballot clerks shall be paid for their respective services
 at any such annual election or at  any  special  election  of  the  fire
 district.  Such  resolution,  if  adopted,  shall fix the amount of such
 compensation as follows: if the hours during which  the  polls  will  be
 open  for  the  receipt  of  ballots are from six o'clock in the evening
 until nine o'clock in the evening, a sum not to exceed [thirty-five] ONE
 HUNDRED dollars for each such official; if additional consecutive  hours
 prior  to six o'clock in the evening are determined and specified in the
 notice of election, a sum not to exceed [fifty] TWO HUNDRED dollars  for
 each such official. No elective officer of the fire district shall serve
 as an election inspector or ballot clerk.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.