S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7368
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 22, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COONEY -- 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 poll workers
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1. Subdivisions 3 and 7 of section 3-400 of the election law,
 subdivision 3 as renumbered by chapter 9 of the laws of 1978 and  subdi-
 vision  7  as amended by chapter 293 of the laws of 2017, are amended to
 read as follows:
   3. [Appointments to the offices of election inspector or poll clerk in
 each election district, shall be equally divided between the major poli-
 tical parties.]  THE  BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS  SHALL,  UPON  APPOINTING  AN
 ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL CLERK, ASSIGN SUCH PERSON AS A REPRESENTATIVE
 OF  ONE  OF  THE  TWO MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES OF THE STATE. THE BOARD OF
 ELECTIONS SHALL ASSIGN AN ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL CLERK WHO IS A DULY
 ENROLLED MEMBER OF EITHER MAJOR POLITICAL PARTY AS A  REPRESENTATIVE  OF
 THE PARTY IN WHICH THEY ARE ENROLLED. IF THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS APPOINTS
 AS  AN  ELECTION INSPECTOR OR POLL CLERK A PERSON WHO IS A DULY ENROLLED
 MEMBER OF ANY OTHER POLITICAL PARTY OF THE STATE, OR WHO IS NOT ENROLLED
 IN ANY PARTY, THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL PERMIT SUCH PERSON  TO  ELECT
 WHICH OF THE TWO MAJOR PARTIES THEY SHALL REPRESENT.
   7. The board of elections may employ election inspectors to work split
 shifts  with adjusted compensation, provided, however, that at least one
 inspector [from] REPRESENTING each of the two major political parties is
 present at the poll site for the entire time that the  polls  are  open.
 Each  county  board of elections shall prescribe the necessary rules and
 procedures to ensure proper poll site operation.
   § 2. Subdivisions 2 and 4 of section 3-401 of  the  election  law,  as
 added by chapter 90 of the laws of 1991, are amended to read as follows:
   2. All election coordinators shall be trained in the manner prescribed
 by  this article for election inspectors and poll clerks. Election coor-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11528-01-3
              

 S. 7368                             2
 
 dinators shall be appointed by the board of elections. [The  appointment
 of  election coordinators shall be equally divided between the two major
 political parties.] THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS  SHALL,  UPON  APPOINTING  AN
 ELECTION  COORDINATOR,  ASSIGN SUCH PERSON AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF ONE OF
 THE TWO MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES OF THE STATE.  THE  BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS
 SHALL  ASSIGN  AN  ELECTION COORDINATOR WHO IS A DULY ENROLLED MEMBER OF
 EITHER MAJOR POLITICAL PARTY AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PARTY  IN  WHICH
 THEY  ARE  ENROLLED.  IF  THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS APPOINTS AS AN ELECTION
 COORDINATOR A PERSON WHO IS A DULY ENROLLED MEMBER OF  ANY  OTHER  POLI-
 TICAL PARTY OF THE STATE, OR WHO IS NOT ENROLLED IN ANY PARTY, THE BOARD
 OF  ELECTIONS  SHALL  PERMIT SUCH PERSON TO ELECT WHICH OF THE TWO MAJOR
 PARTIES THEY SHALL REPRESENT.
   4. Any county board of elections appointing election coordinators  and
 in the city of New York, the board of elections of the city of New York,
 shall  prepare a report detailing assignments and duties to be delegated
 to election  coordinators,  INCLUDING  THE  ENROLLMENT  STATUS  OF  EACH
 APPOINTEE  AND  THE  PARTY  TO  WHICH  EACH  APPOINTEE  IS  ASSIGNED  TO
 REPRESENT.  Said report shall be filed with the state board of elections
 no later than one month prior to the election at which election  coordi-
 nators are to be assigned.
   §  3. Subdivision 1 of section 3-402 of the election law is amended to
 read as follows:
   1.  Election inspectors, in performing their duties, shall  act  as  a
 board  and a majority vote thereof shall be required to decide all ques-
 tions. If, however, any inspector or  inspectors  shall  be  temporarily
 absent  for  a portion of the meeting, the inspectors present shall have
 and may exercise any power or perform any duty conferred or imposed upon
 a board  of  inspectors,  provided  that  they  are  not  all  [members]
 APPOINTED AS REPRESENTATIVES of the same political party.
   §  4.  Subdivisions  2,  5 and 7 of section 3-404 of the election law,
 subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 263 of the laws of 1991 and subdivi-
 sion 7 as amended by chapter 234 of the laws of  1976,  are  amended  to
 read as follows:
   2.  Each  political  party [entitled to representation on any board of
 elections] OF THE STATE may, not later than the first day of May in each
 year, file with the appropriate board of elections, an original list  of
 persons  recommended  to serve.   Supplemental lists may be filed at the
 same time and at any time before the designation is made  and  certified
 or  when  a  vacancy  exists.  All designations shall be made first from
 those named in the original list filed if  those  designated  are  found
 qualified.
   5.  If a political party shall fail to submit a list or the list shall
 be exhausted, the board of elections shall request from the  appropriate
 political  party  an original or supplemental list. If after ten days no
 list is filed by that party, the board of elections may  appoint  quali-
 fied  persons[,  enrolled members of the political party in default,] to
 act as election inspectors, poll clerks or election coordinators.    THE
 BOARD  OF ELECTIONS SHALL ASSIGN SUCH PERSONS TO REPRESENT THE INTERESTS
 OF THE MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE MANNER PRESCRIBED IN SECTION 3-400
 OR 3-401 OF THIS TITLE.
   7. Election officers shall be appointed from the lists  submitted,  by
 those  members  of  the  board  who  represent the political party which
 submitted such lists. If such list is not furnished, the members of  the
 board  who represent the political party in default, shall designate the
 persons to be appointed as election officers.  A MEMBER OF  A  BOARD  OF
 ELECTION  WHO  REPRESENTS  A  POLITICAL PARTY IN DEFAULT MAY DESIGNATE A
 S. 7368                             3
 
 MEMBER OF ANOTHER POLITICAL PARTY OR AN UNENROLLED PERSON  TO  REPRESENT
 THE  DEFAULTING  PARTY'S  INTERESTS,  PROVIDED  THAT  SUCH APPOINTEE HAS
 ELECTED TO REPRESENT SUCH PARTY PURSUANT TO SECTION 3-400  OR  3-401  OF
 THIS TITLE.
   §  5. Subdivision 1 of section 3-406 of the election law is amended to
 read as follows:
   1.  Each board of elections shall establish a  list  of  persons  duly
 qualified  to serve as election inspectors, which list shall be known as
 the "Additional Inspector List", in such number of persons as the  board
 shall determine. Such a list shall be equally divided between DESIGNATED
 REPRESENTATIVES  OF the major political parties. Appointments under this
 section shall be made in the manner  provided  for  the  appointment  of
 regular election inspectors and for a like term.
   §  6. Subdivisions 1, 2, 3 and 4 of section 3-418 of the election law,
 subdivision 4 as amended by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, are amended
 to read as follows:
   1. If, at the time of a meeting of the inspectors, there  shall  be  a
 vacancy,  or if any inspector shall be absent, the inspector present who
 is [the designee] A DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVE of the same party  as  the
 absent  inspector  shall  appoint  a qualified voter of the same city or
 town to act in place of the absent inspector. If, however,  any  inspec-
 tors  shall  be  temporarily  absent  for  a portion of the meeting, the
 inspectors present, provided that they are not all [members]  DESIGNATED
 REPRESENTATIVES of the same political party, shall have and may exercise
 any  power  or  perform  any  duty  conferred or imposed upon a board of
 inspectors.
   2. If at the time of any such meeting two inspectors who are [members]
 DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVES of the same party shall be absent,  or  their
 places  shall  be vacant, the poll clerk or poll clerks present, if any,
 [of] DESIGNATED TO REPRESENT the same party shall act as inspectors  and
 shall  appoint qualified voters of the same city or town who are members
 of the same party [as] TO WHICH the absent inspectors WERE APPOINTED  TO
 REPRESENT, to act in place of such clerks.
   3.  If  at  the  time  of any such meeting two inspectors and the poll
 clerk or clerks, if any, who are [members] REPRESENTATIVES of  the  same
 party shall be absent, or their places shall be vacant, the inspector or
 inspectors  present,  or in their absence the poll clerk or clerks pres-
 ent, if any, shall appoint qualified voters of the same  city  or  town,
 who  are  members of the same party [as] TO WHICH such absent inspectors
 WERE APPOINTED TO REPRESENT, to act as such inspectors and clerks, until
 the inspectors or clerks  duly  appointed  by  the  original  appointing
 authority, shall appear.
   4. If at the time of any such meeting, there shall be a vacancy in the
 office of poll clerk, or if a poll clerk shall be absent, the inspectors
 who  are  [designees]  REPRESENTATIVES  of  the  same party, or in their
 absence, any poll clerk [of] APPOINTED TO REPRESENT the same  party  who
 is present, shall appoint a qualified voter of the same city or town who
 is a member of the same party, to act in place of the absent poll clerk.
   §  7.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
 have become a law.