S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
7229--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
May 18, 2023
___________
Introduced by Sens. MAYER, CHU -- read twice and ordered printed, and
when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education -- recom-
mitted to the Committee on Education in accordance with Senate Rule 6,
sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to absentee ballots for
school district elections
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraphs a and c of subdivision 2 of section 2018-a of
the education law, paragraph a as amended and paragraph c as added by
chapter 616 of the laws of 2019, are amended to read as follows:
a. A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this section
if [during all the hours of voting] on the [day] OCCURRENCE of an
election [he or she will] SUCH VOTER EXPECTS TO be:
(1) absent from [the] THEIR county of [his or her] residence; or
(2) unable to appear PERSONALLY at the polling place because of
illness or physical disability, or duties related to the primary care of
one or more individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because
[he or she] SUCH VOTER will be or is a patient in a hospital; or
(3) [an inmate] A RESIDENT or patient of a veteran's administration
hospital; or
(4) absent from [his or her] SUCH VOTER'S voting residence because [he
or she] SUCH VOTER is detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury
or awaiting trial, or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for
an offense other than a felony, provided that [he or she] SUCH VOTER is
qualified to vote in the election district of [his or her] SUCH VOTER'S
residence.
c. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in
each instance the following information:
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10767-02-4
S. 7229--A 2
(1) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,
including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,
mailing address if different from the residence address and an address
to which the ballot shall be mailed.
(2) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered
voter.
(3) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following catego-
ries:
(a) absent from [the] THEIR county of [his or her] residence;
provided, however, if the applicant expects to be absent from such coun-
ty for a duration covering more than one election and seeks an absentee
ballot for each election, [he or she] SUCH APPLICANT shall state the
dates when [he or she expects] THEY EXPECT to begin and end such
absence; or
(b) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or physical
disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more individ-
uals who are ill or physically disabled; or
(c) [an inmate] A RESIDENT or patient of a veteran's administration
hospital; or
(d) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial
or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other
than a felony and stating the place where [he or she] SUCH APPLICANT is
so detained or confined.
§ 2. Subdivision 2 of section 2018-b of the education law, as amended
by chapter 46 of the laws of 1992, paragraph c as amended by chapter 26
of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
2. a. An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an appli-
cation setting forth:
(1) [his] SUCH APPLICANT'S FULL name, DATE OF BIRTH and residence
address, including the street and number, if any, or town and rural
delivery route, if any, MAILING ADDRESS IF DIFFERENT FROM THE RESIDENCE
ADDRESS AND AN ADDRESS TO WHICH THE BALLOT SHALL BE MAILED;
(2) that [he] SUCH APPLICANT is or will be, on the day of the school
district election, a qualified voter of the school district [in which he
resides in that he is or will be, on such date, over eighteen years of
age, a citizen of the United States and has or will have resided in the
district for thirty days next preceding such date];
(3) [that he will be unable to appear to vote in person on the day of
the school district election for which the absentee ballot is requested
because he is, or will be on such day] A STATEMENT, AS APPROPRIATE, THAT
ON THE DAY OF SUCH ELECTION THE APPLICANT EXPECTS IN GOOD FAITH TO BE IN
ONE OF THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES:
(a) a RESIDENT OR patient in a hospital, INCLUDING A VETERAN'S ADMIN-
ISTRATION HOSPITAL, or unable to appear personally at the polling place
on such day because of illness or physical disability, or DUTIES RELATED
TO THE PRIMARY CARE OF ONE OR MORE INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ILL OR PHYSICALLY
DISABLED; OR
(b) [because his duties, occupation, business, or studies will require
him to be outside of the county or city of his residence on such day,]
ABSENT FROM THE COUNTY OF SUCH APPLICANT'S RESIDENCE; PROVIDED, HOWEVER,
IF THE APPLICANT EXPECTS TO BE ABSENT FROM SUCH COUNTY FOR A DURATION
COVERING MORE THAN ONE ELECTION AND SEEKS AN ABSENTEE BALLOT FOR EACH
ELECTION, SUCH APPLICANT SHALL STATE THE DATES WHEN THEY EXPECT TO BEGIN
AND END SUCH ABSENCE; OR
S. 7229--A 3
(c) [because he will be on vacation outside the county or city of his
residence on such day; or,
(d) absent from his voting residence because he is] detained in jail
awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial or [is] confined in
JAIL OR prison after A conviction for an offense other than a felony AND
STATING THE PLACE WHERE SUCH APPLICANT IS SO DETAINED OR CONFINED.
[Such application must be received by the district clerk or designee of
the trustees or school board at least seven days before the election if
the ballot is to be mailed to the voter, or the day before the election,
if the ballot is to be delivered personally to the voter.]
b. [(1) Where such duties, occupation, business, or studies are of
such a nature as ordinarily to require such absence, a brief description
of such duties, occupation, business, or studies shall be set forth in
such application.
(2) Where such duties, occupation, business, or studies are not of
such a nature as ordinarily to require such absence, such application
shall contain a statement of the special circumstances on account of
which such absence is required.] SUCH APPLICATION MUST BE RECEIVED BY
THE DISTRICT CLERK OR DESIGNEE OF THE TRUSTEES OR SCHOOL BOARD AT LEAST
SEVEN DAYS BEFORE THE ELECTION IF THE BALLOT IS TO BE MAILED TO THE
VOTER, OR THE DAY BEFORE THE ELECTION, IF THE BALLOT IS TO BE DELIVERED
PERSONALLY TO THE VOTER.
c. [Where the applicant expects in good faith to be absent on the day
of the election because he will be on vacation elsewhere on such day,
such application shall also contain the dates upon which he expects to
begin and end such vacation, the place or places where he expects to be
on such vacation, the name and address of his employer, if any, and if
self-employed or retired, a statement to that effect.
d. Where the absence is because of detention or confinement to jail,
such application shall state whether the voter is detained awaiting
action of the grand jury or is confined after conviction for an offense
other than a felony.
e. Where a person is or would be, if he were a qualified voter, enti-
tled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot under the
provisions of this section, his spouse, parent or child, if a qualified
voter and a resident of the same school district, shall be entitled to
vote as an absentee voter upon personally making and signing an applica-
tion in accordance with the preceding provisions of this subdivision and
showing that he expects to be absent from the school district on the day
of the school district election by reason of accompanying or being with
the spouse, child or parent who is or would be, if he were a qualified
voter, so entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot,
and, in the event no application is made by such spouse, child or
parent, such further information as the clerk of the school district or
designee of the trustees or school board shall require.
f.] Such application shall include the following statement to be
signed by the voter.
I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
my knowledge and belief, and I understand that if I make any material
false statement in the foregoing statement of application for absentee
ballots, I shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
Date................... Signature of Voter ...........................
S. 7229--A 4
[g.] D. The clerk of the school district or a designee of the trustees
or school board shall request registration lists from the board of
elections pursuant to subdivision three of section 5-612 of the election
law for those voters whose registration record has been marked "perma-
nently disabled". An applicant whose ability to appear personally at the
polling place of the school district of which [he] SUCH APPLICANT is a
qualified voter is substantially impaired by reason of permanent illness
or physical disability and whose registration record has been marked
"permanently disabled" as determined by the board of elections pursuant
to the provisions of this chapter and who has previously applied for an
absentee ballot shall be entitled to receive subsequent absentee ballots
pursuant to the provisions of this section without making separate
application for such absentee ballot, and the clerk of the school
district or a designee of the trustees or school board shall send an
absentee ballot to such voter at [his] SUCH VOTER'S last known address
with a request to the postal authorities not to forward same but to
return same in five days in the event that it cannot be delivered to the
addressee. The clerk of the school district or a designee of the trus-
tees or school board shall determine whether such ballot shall be sent
by first class or by certified mail. All such ballots shall be mailed in
the same manner as determined by the trustees or the board of education.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
