NY State Senate Bill 2023-S1501

Senate Bill S1501

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Relates to the time period during which absentee ballots shall be mailed or delivered after an application for such ballot is received by the board of elections

download bill text pdf

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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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to elections
Jan 12, 2023	referred to elections

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2023-S1501 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A1364
Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §8-406, El L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S8917
2021-2022: S516, A9376

2023-S1501 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to the time period during which absentee ballots shall be mailed or delivered after an application for such ballot is received by the board of elections.

2023-S1501 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S1501

SPONSOR: GIANARIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to the time period during
which absentee ballots shall be mailed or delivered after an application
for such ballot is received by the board of elections

 
PURPOSE:

This bill establishes a sliding scale of mandatory turnaround timeframes
for the processing of absentee ballot applications and ballot issuance
by boards of elections.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends Election Law 8-406 to establish in law
fixed timeframes for when absentee ballots must be mailed or delivered
to voters. No such requirement exists under current law.

Under the proposal, mailing or delivery of an absentee ballot must occur

no later than 46 days before the day of the election if the application
was received at least 60 days beforehand.

If the application is received by a board of elections after the sixti-
eth day before an election but no later than the forty-sixth day before
such election then such mailing or delivery of the ballot must occur no
later than the forty-second day before the day of the election.

If the application is received by a board of elections after the forty-
sixth day before an election but no later than the thirtieth day before
such election then such mailing or delivery of the ballot must occur
within four days of receipt.

If the application is received by a board of elections after the thirti-
eth day before an election but no later than the fifteenth day before
such election then mailing or delivery of the ballot must occur within
three days of receipt.

If the application is received by the board of elections after the
fifteenth day before an election then mailing or delivery of the ballot
must occur within two days of receiving the application.

If the application is received timely postmarked by mail after the
seventh day before the day of the election, the board shall make every
reasonable effort to mail or deliver at the board of elections the
ballot on the day the application is received.

If the application is delivered in person after the seventh day before
the day of the election and no later than the day before the election,
the board shall make every reasonable effort to deliver at the board of
election on the day the application is received.

Section two of the bill is the effective date.

 
EXISTING LAW:

 
JUSTIFICATION:
The legislature conducted a joint hearing to review the 2020 June prima-
ry election held during the COVID-19 pandemic and how to improve
election administration for the November general election.  One of the
issues raised in testimony was the fact that voters have no way to check
whether their absentee ballot application has been processed in a timely
manner, and as such, no way to know when to expect receiving a ballot
back in the mail. This is an especially important problem to resolve
during the COVID-19 pandemic considering the volume of voters who are
new to voting by absentee ballot. More than 1.7 million absentee ballots
were requested for the 2020 June primary in New York State and as of
July 1, nearly 1 million of those ballots had been returned. In the 2016
presidential primary, only 115,000 absentee ballots were returned. An
even higher volume of absentee ballots are expected to be requested for
a predictably higher-turnout, presidential-year election in November.

This proposal would establish clear deadlines for the processing of this
critical information so voters know how long it may take to receive a
ballot based on when they specifically applied to vote absentee.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2022: Died in Elections; Died in Elections (Assembly)

2021: Passed Senate 2020: Died in Rules

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the state.

 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Click here

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S1501 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1501
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 12, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. GIANARIS, BAILEY, BRESLIN, BROUK, COONEY, GOUNARDES,
   HINCHEY,  HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, KENNEDY, MANNION, PARKER, SANDERS --
   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 the time period during
   which absentee ballots shall be mailed or delivered after an  applica-
   tion for such ballot is received by the board of elections
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 8-406  of  the  election  law,  as
 amended  by  section  2 of part HH of chapter 55 of the laws of 2022, is
 amended to read as follows:
   1. If the board shall find that the applicant is a qualified voter  of
 the  election  district containing his OR HER residence as stated in his
 OR HER statement and that his OR HER statement is sufficient, it  shall,
 as  soon  as practicable after it shall have determined his OR HER right
 thereto, mail to him OR HER at an address designated by him OR  HER,  or
 deliver  to  him OR HER, or to any person designated for such purpose in
 writing by him OR HER, at the office of  the  board,  such  an  absentee
 voter's ballot or set of ballots and an envelope therefor.  SUCH MAILING
 OR   DELIVERY   AT   THE  BOARD  OF ELECTIONS  SHALL OCCUR NO LATER THAN
 THE FORTY-SIXTH DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE ELECTION  IF  THE  APPLICATION
 WAS RECEIVED BY THE  BOARD  AT  LEAST SIXTY  DAYS  BEFORE THE DAY OF THE
 ELECTION;  AND  IF  THE  APPLICATION WAS RECEIVED BY THE BOARD AFTER THE
 SIXTIETH  DAY  BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF  THE ELECTION,  BUT   NO LATER  THAN
 THE FORTY-SIXTH DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE ELECTION, THE BOARD SHALL MAIL
 OR  DELIVER AT THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS  THE ABSENTEE BALLOT NO LATER THAN
 THE FORTY-SECOND DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF  THE  ELECTION;    AND    IF  THE
 APPLICATION  WAS  RECEIVED BY THE BOARD AFTER THE FORTY-SIXTH DAY BEFORE
 THE DAY OF THE ELECTION, BUT NO  LATER  THAN  THE THIRTIETH  DAY  BEFORE
 THE DAY OF THE ELECTION, THE BOARD SHALL MAIL OR DELIVER AT THE BOARD OF
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03094-01-3

 S. 1501                             2
 
 ELECTIONS THE ABSENTEE BALLOT WITHIN  FOUR  DAYS OF RECEIVING THE ABSEN-
 TEE  BALLOT  APPLICATION;  AND  IF THE APPLICATION WAS RECEIVED   BY THE
 BOARD  AFTER  THE THIRTIETH DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE ELECTION,  BUT  NO
 LATER  THAN  THE FIFTEENTH DAY  BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF  THE ELECTION,  THE
 BOARD SHALL MAIL OR DELIVER AT  THE  BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS  THE  ABSENTEE
 BALLOT WITHIN THREE  DAYS  OF  RECEIVING  THE  ABSENTEE  BALLOT APPLICA-
 TION;  AND  IF  THE  APPLICATION  WAS  RECEIVED  BY  THE BOARD AFTER THE
 FIFTEENTH DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE  ELECTION  BUT  NO  LATER  THAN  THE
 SEVENTH  DAY BEFORE  THE  DAY  OF THE ELECTION, THE BOARD SHALL MAIL  OR
 DELIVER   AT THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS THE ABSENTEE BALLOT WITHIN TWO  DAYS
 OF  RECEIVING THE ABSENTEE  BALLOT APPLICATION; AND IF THE   APPLICATION
 WAS  RECEIVED TIMELY POSTMARKED BY MAIL AFTER THE SEVENTH DAY BEFORE THE
 DAY OF THE ELECTION, THE BOARD SHALL MAKE  EVERY  REASONABLE  EFFORT  TO
 MAIL   OR DELIVER  AT  THE  BOARD OF ELECTIONS THE BALLOT ON THE DAY THE
 APPLICATION IS RECEIVED; AND IF THE APPLICATION WAS DELIVERED IN  PERSON
 AFTER  THE  SEVENTH DAY BEFORE THE DAY OF THE ELECTION AND NO LATER THAN
 THE DAY BEFORE THE ELECTION,  THE  BOARD  SHALL  MAKE  EVERY  REASONABLE
 EFFORT  TO  DELIVER  THE BALLOT AT THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS ON THE DAY THE
 APPLICATION IS RECEIVED. If the ballot or ballots are to be sent outside
 of the United States to a country other  than  Canada  or  Mexico,  such
 ballot  or  ballots shall be sent by air mail.  However, if an applicant
 who is eligible for an absentee ballot is a resident of a facility oper-
 ated or licensed by, or under the jurisdiction  of,  the  department  of
 mental hygiene, or a resident of a facility defined as a nursing home or
 residential  health care facility pursuant to subdivisions two and three
 of section two thousand eight hundred one of the public health law, or a
 resident of a hospital or  other  facility  operated  by  the  Veteran's
 Administration of the United States, such absentee ballot need not be so
 mailed  or  delivered to any such applicant but, may be delivered to the
 voter in the manner prescribed by section 8-407 of this chapter if  such
 facility  is located in the county or city in which such voter is eligi-
 ble to vote.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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