NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8918

Senate Bill S8918

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Authorizes boards of elections to establish a method of collection of absentee ballots utilizing county, town, city and village clerks

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules 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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Aug 14, 2020	referred to rules

co-Sponsors

2019-S8918 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A10975
Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Add §8-414, amd §§8-410 & 8-412, El L

2019-S8918 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Authorizes boards of elections to establish a method of collection of absentee ballots utilizing county, town, city and village clerks.

2019-S8918 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8918

SPONSOR: MAY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to authorizing boards of
elections to establish a method of collection of absentee ballots
utilizing county, town, city and village clerks

 
PURPOSE:

This bill will allow county boards of elections to establish methods to
collect absentee ballots through the offices of county, town, city, and
village clerks.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Adds a new section 8-414 to the election law. Authorizes
boards of elections to establish a system to collect absentee ballots
utilizing county, town, city, and village clerks. Directs the state
board of elections to develop rules and regulations for such process to

include location, chain of custody, pick-up times, labelling, and secu-
rity of absentee ballots collected by such clerks.

Section 2: Amends section 8-410 of the election law. Allows clerks
authorized by the county board of elections to collect absentee ballots.

Section 3: Amends subdivision 1 of section 8-412, as amended by chapter
91 of the laws of 2020, of the election law. Deems absentee ballots
received by the board of elections before the close of polls on election
day if it delivered to authorized clerks before the close of polls on
election day.

Section 4: Amends subdivision 1 of section 8-412, as amended by chapter
155 of the laws of 1994, of the election law. Deems absentee ballots
received by the board of elections before the close of polls on election
day if it delivered to authorized clerks before the close of polls on
election day.

Section 5: Sets effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The 2020 public health emergency creates serious questions about the
safety of in-person voting on November 3rd, leading to greater interest
in options like early voting and absentee ballots. The expected surge of
votes cast absentee may also create difficulty for a beleaguered postal
service. This legislation proposes one simple solution: allow county
boards of elections to work with county, city, town, and village clerks
to accept absentee ballots through election day. These local officials
are already accustomed to handling sensitive documents and have the
capacity to certify the day and time that ballots are collected. Most
importantly, they are broadly distributed throughout our communities,
making it very easy for a voter to drop their ballot off at their town
or village clerk. By doing so, New York can alleviate the threat of an
election delayed by a sabotaged postal service.

 
FISCAL IMPACT:

None to the state.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2019-S8918 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8918
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              August 14, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. MAY, HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and
   when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to authorizing  boards  of
   elections  to  establish  a  method  of collection of absentee ballots
   utilizing county, town, city and village clerks
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The election law is amended by adding a new section 8-414
 to read as follows:
   § 8-414. RECEIPT OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS BY COUNTY, TOWN, CITY AND VILLAGE
 CLERKS. 1. EACH BOARD OF ELECTIONS IS HEREBY AUTHORIZED TO  ESTABLISH  A
 METHOD  OF  COLLECTION  OF ABSENTEE BALLOTS UTILIZING COUNTY, TOWN, CITY
 AND VILLAGE CLERKS THROUGHOUT ITS  COUNTY.    SUCH  COLLECTION  WILL  BE
 DURING  NORMAL  BUSINESS  HOURS AND SHALL BEGIN NO LATER THAN TWENTY-ONE
 DAYS BEFORE ELECTION DAY.
    2. THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS IS HEREBY AUTHORIZED AND DIRECTED  TO
 PROMULGATE  RULES AND REGULATIONS  AND  MAY  PROMULGATE  EMERGENCY REGU-
 LATIONS  NECESSARY  FOR  THE  IMPLEMENTATION  OF  THE PROVISIONS OF THIS
 SECTION, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE LOCATION, CHAIN  OF CUSTODY,
 PICK-UP   TIMES,   PROPER LABELING, AND  SECURITY  OF  ABSENTEE  BALLOTS
 COLLECTED  BY  AUTHORIZED  COUNTY,  TOWN, CITY AND VILLAGE CLERKS ESTAB-
 LISHED BY BOARDS OF ELECTIONS PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
   § 2. Section 8-410 of the election law, as amended by chapter  352  of
 the laws of 1986, is amended to read as follows:
   §  8-410. Absentee voting; method of. The absentee voter shall mark an
 absentee ballot as provided for paper ballots or  ballots  prepared  for
 counting  by  ballot counting machines. He shall make no mark or writing
 whatsoever upon the ballot, except as above prescribed,  and  shall  see
 that  it bears no such mark or writing. He shall make no mark or writing
 whatsoever on the outside of the ballot. After  marking  the  ballot  or
 ballots  he shall fold each such ballot and enclose them in the envelope
 and seal the envelope.  He shall then take and subscribe the oath on the
 envelope, with blanks properly filled in. The envelope,  containing  the
 ballot  or  ballots,  shall  then be mailed or delivered to the board of
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17126-01-0

 S. 8918                             2
 
 elections of the county or city of his residence OR DELIVERED TO A COUN-
 TY, TOWN, CITY OR VILLAGE CLERK AUTHORIZED BY THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS FOR
 COLLECTION.
   § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 91 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read as follows:
   1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
 it  before  the  close  of  the  polls  on  election day and all ballots
 contained in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United  States
 postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing a dated
 endorsement  of  receipt  by another agency of the United States govern-
 ment, with a date which is ascertained to be not later than the  day  of
 the  election  and  received  by  such board of elections not later than
 seven days following the day of election to be  cast  and  counted.  FOR
 PURPOSES  OF  THIS  SECTION,  AN  ABSENTEE  BALLOT SHALL BE DEEMED TO BE
 RECEIVED BY THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS BEFORE THE  CLOSE  OF  THE  POLLS  ON
 ELECTION  DAY  IF IT IS DELIVERED TO AN AUTHORIZED COUNTY, TOWN, CITY OR
 VILLAGE CLERK BEFORE THE CLOSE OF POLLS ON ELECTION DAY.
   § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 155 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
   1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
 it before the close of  the  polls  on  election  day  and  all  ballots
 contained  in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United States
 postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing a dated
 endorsement of receipt by another agency of the  United  States  govern-
 ment,  with  a  date  which  is ascertained to be not later than the day
 before election and received by such board of elections not  later  than
 seven  days  following the day of election to be cast and counted except
 that the absentee ballot of a voter who requested such ballot by letter,
 rather than application, shall not be counted unless a valid application
 form, signed by such voter, is received by the board of  elections  with
 such  ballot.  FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, AN ABSENTEE BALLOT SHALL BE
 DEEMED TO BE RECEIVED BY THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS BEFORE THE CLOSE OF  THE
 POLLS  ON ELECTION DAY IF IT IS DELIVERED TO AN AUTHORIZED COUNTY, TOWN,
 CITY OR VILLAGE CLERK BEFORE THE CLOSE OF POLLS ON ELECTION DAY.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, that the amend-
 ments to subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of  the  election  law  made  by
 section  three of this act shall be subject to the expiration and rever-
 sion of such subdivision pursuant to section 7 of chapter 91 of the laws
 of 2020, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of section  four
 of this act shall take effect.

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Senate Bill S8918

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Rachel May