NY State Senate Bill 2023-S4604

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
Feb 13, 2023	referred to elections

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Elections
Law Section:: Election Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§8-600 & 4-104, El L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S6895
2021-2022: S5572

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Exempts public school buildings from being designated as early polling locations.

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4604

SPONSOR: LANZA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the election law, in relation to exempting public school
buildings from being designated as early polling locations

 
PURPOSE:

Relates to exempting public school buildings from being designated as
early polling locations.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one amends subdivision 2 of section 8-600 of the election law by
adding a new paragraph (e).

Section two amends subdivision 3 of section 4-104 of the election law as
amended by chapter 694 of the laws of 1989.

Section three is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This legislation would prohibit public schools from being used as early
voting sites. Early voting in public schools disrupts students from
learning and creates an ongoing security concern. In larger voting
districts polling areas are often located in school gymnasiums, lunch-
rooms, or auditoriums, which disrupts the school day. With the introduc-
tion of early voting during the 2019-2020 school year, these school
spaces will be unavailable to students for at least 20 school days which
amounts to more than 10% of the school year.

During these 201 school days, there may not be alternate locations for
the school activities that would take place in these spaces, especially
when the weather is colder in late October and early November. Further-
more, the 2020 Presidential Primary will take place during the NYSED
testing window for mathematics in grades 3-8. School principals have
highlighted that these spaces are needed during the testing period.
These areas are also used for after-school programs.  Eliminating access
to primary school facilities for more than 10% of the school year
creates a scheduling nightmare due to lost instruction and a security
concern by allowing the public to have access to buildings including in
stairwells, restrooms, and school hallways - during school hours. With
these issues in mind, this legislation would prohibit public schools
from being designated as early voting locations.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2022: S.5572 - Referred to Elections

2021: S.5572 - Referred to Elections

2020: S.6895 - Referred to Elections

2019: S.6895 - Referred to Rules

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4604
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 13, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- 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 exempting public school
   buildings from being designated as early polling locations
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  2  of  section  8-600 of the election law is
 amended by adding a new paragraph (i) to read as follows:
   (I) NO PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING SHALL BE DESIGNATED AS AN EARLY  POLLING
 LOCATION.
   § 2. Subdivision 3 of section 4-104 of the election law, as amended by
 chapter 694 of the laws of 1989, is amended to read as follows:
   3.  A building exempt from taxation shall be used whenever possible as
 a polling place if it is situated in the same or a  contiguous  election
 district,  and may contain as many distinctly separate polling places as
 public convenience may require. The expense, if any, incidental  to  its
 use,  shall be paid like the expense of other places of registration and
 voting. If a board or body empowered to designate polling places chooses
 a public school building for such purpose, the  board  or  agency  which
 controls  such  building  must  make  available  a room or rooms in such
 building which are suitable for registration and voting and which are as
 close as possible to a convenient entrance to  such  building  and  must
 make  available any such room or rooms which the board or body designat-
 ing such building  determines  are  accessible  to  physically  disabled
 voters  as provided in subdivision one-a OF THIS SECTION.  NOTWITHSTAND-
 ING THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION, NO BOARD OR  BODY  EMPOWERED  TO
 DESIGNATE  POLLING PLACES SHALL DESIGNATE A PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING AS AN
 EARLY POLLING LOCATION. Notwithstanding the provisions of  any  general,
 special  or local law, if a board or body empowered to designate polling
 places chooses a publicly owned or leased building, other than a  public
 school building, for such purposes the board or body which controls such
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08650-01-3

 S. 4604                             2
 
 building  must make available a room or rooms in such building which are
 suitable for registration and voting and which are as close as  possible
 to  a  convenient entrance to such building, and must make available any
 such  room  or  rooms  which the board or body designating such building
 determines are accessible to  physically  disabled  voters  unless,  not
 later  than  thirty  days  after  notice of its designation as a polling
 place, the board or body controlling  such  building,  files  a  written
 request  for  a  cancellation of such designation with the board or body
 empowered to designate polling places on such form as shall be  provided
 by  the  board  or  body  making  such  designation.  The  board or body
 empowered to so designate shall, within twenty days after  such  request
 is  filed, determine whether the use of such building as a polling place
 would unreasonably interfere with the usual activities conducted in such
 building and upon such determination, may cancel such designation.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S4604

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S4604

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Sponsored By

Andrew J. Lanza

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Elections Committee

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S4604 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments