NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5581A
SPONSOR: Cusick TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the election law, in relation to run-
off elections in the city of New York
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
New York State Election Law §6-162 requires the city of New York to
conduct a run-off election in the event that any candidate for Mayor,
Public Advocate or Comptroller receives 40% or more of the primary
vote,. The bill extends to three weeks, up from two weeks, the timeframe
in which the City must conduct such a runoff.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends § 4-114(1) of the election law to require
that the Board of Elections of the city of New York shall determine the
candidates duly nominated for public office and the questions that shall
appear on the ballot within the jurisdiction of such board of elections
not later than the twenty-eighth day preceding a general election.
Section 2 of the bill amends §8-100(1)(b) of the election law to specify
that in the event of a run-off election, pursuant to § 6-162 of the
election law, in the city of New York, that such run-off shall be held
on the third Tuesday next succeeding the date on which the primary
election was held.
Section 3 of the bill amends § 8-412(1) of the election law to allow for
absentee ballots cast in the general election (in a year in which there
is a run-off) in the city of New York to be returned up to 14 days after
such election.
Section 4 of the bill amends § 9-214 of the election law to extend to
not later than 30 days after the general election the time in which the
board of elections in the City of New York of shall transmit to the
secretary of state a list of the names and residences of all persons
determined to have been elected to any county office. Such provision
shall only apply to offices in the city of New York and only in a year
in which there has been a run-off election.
Section 5 of the bill amends §10-108(1)(a) of the election law to state
that in any year in which there has been a run-off election in the city
of New York that ballots for military voters shall be transmitted to
such voters as soon as practicable, but in any event not later than 25
days before a general election in that year. 1 of 2
Section 6 of the bill amends §10-114(1) of the election law to allow for
military ballots cast in the general election (in a year in which there
is a run-off) in the city of New York to be returned up to 20 days after
such election.
Section 7 of the bill is the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Pursuant to the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), New York. State adopted
optical scanning voting machines for use in all elections. This policy
was fully realized beginning with the elections in 2010. The board of
elections of the city of New York, along with other county boards of
elections, has been diligent in training staff and poll workers in the
operation, use and maintenance of these optical scanning machines. While
these machines have thoroughly modernized the way elections are adminis-
tered in New York the legal and technical requirements associated with
their use far outweigh their lever-controlled predecessors. As such, the
time and effort associated with testing and calibrating these optical
scanning machines is Significant. Due to these obstacles the city of New
York has stated that they are simply unable to calibrate and test their
voting machines after a primary in time for a run-off election two weeks
later. This bill affords an additional week for the board of elections
in the city of New York to prepare, test and calibrate their optical
scanning machines in time for any possible run-off election.
As the election law contains a carefully drawn political calendar,
adjusting the time for the holding of a run-off election in the city of
New York necessarily resulted in the pushing back of certain deadlines.
Such changes are also reflected in this bill.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None
FISCAL IMPLICATION: None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5581--A
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 1, 2013
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CUSICK, CLARK, DINOWITZ, GOTTFRIED, HEASTIE,
LENTOL, KAVANAGH, ROSENTHAL, MILLMAN, WEPRIN, WRIGHT -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Election Law -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to run-off elections in
the city of New York
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 4-114 of the election law, as amended by chapter 4
2 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 4-114. Determination of candidates and questions; county board of
4 elections. The county board of elections, not later than the thirty-
5 fifth day before the day of a primary or general election, or the
6 fifty-third day before a special election, shall determine the candi-
7 dates duly nominated for public office and the questions that shall
8 appear on the ballot within the jurisdiction of that board of elections.
9 Provided, however, in any year in which there has been a run-off
10 election in the city of New York, the board of elections of such city
11 shall, not later than the twenty-eighth day before the general election
12 in that year, determine the candidates duly nominated for public office
13 and the questions that shall appear on the ballot within the jurisdic-
14 tion of the board of elections of the city of New York.
15 § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 8-100 of the election
16 law, as added by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as
17 follows:
18 (b) In the event a run-off primary election is required in the city of
19 New York, it shall be held on the [second] third Tuesday next succeeding
20 the date on which the initial primary election was held.
21 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election law, as amended by
22 chapter 155 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09555-02-3
A. 5581--A 2
1 1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
2 it before the close of the polls on election day and all ballots
3 contained in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United States
4 postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing a dated
5 endorsement of receipt by another agency of the United States govern-
6 ment, with a date which is ascertained to be not later than the day
7 before election and received by such board of elections not later than
8 seven days following the day of election, or fourteen days following the
9 day of the general election in the city of New York in any year in which
10 there has been a run-off election, to be cast and counted except that
11 the absentee ballot of a voter who requested such ballot by letter,
12 rather than application, shall not be counted unless a valid application
13 form, signed by such voter, is received by the board of elections with
14 such ballot.
15 § 4. Section 9-214 of the election law, the section heading and first
16 undesignated paragraph as amended by chapter 286 of the laws of 1983,
17 and the second undesignated paragraph as amended by chapter 4 of the
18 laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
19 § 9-214. Transmission of statements of canvassing boards to state
20 board of elections and secretary of state. The board of elections shall
21 transmit by mail or cause to be delivered personally to the state board
22 of elections, a certified copy of the statement of the canvassing board
23 relating to the offices of electors of president and vice-president of
24 the United States, United States senator, representatives in congress
25 and state offices, including members of the state senate and assembly,
26 and to the votes cast on any ballot proposal submitted to all the voters
27 of the state, within twenty-five days after the election. If any certi-
28 fied copy shall not be received by the state board on or before the
29 twenty-fifth day following a general election, or a special election, it
30 shall dispatch a special messenger to obtain such certified copy, and
31 the board of elections, immediately upon demand of such messenger at its
32 office, shall make and deliver a certified copy to such messenger who
33 shall deliver it forthwith to the state board.
34 The board of elections shall transmit to the secretary of state within
35 twenty-five days after a general election, and within twenty days after
36 a special election, a list of the names and residences of all persons
37 determined by the canvassing board to be elected to any county office.
38 Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, in any year in
39 which there has been a run-off election in the city of New York, the
40 board of elections of the city of New York shall transmit to the secre-
41 tary of state not later than thirty days after the general election in
42 that year a list of the names and residences of all persons determined
43 by the canvassing board to be elected to any county office.
44 The board of elections shall transmit to the state board, on or before
45 the tenth day of December following an election for governor, a certi-
46 fied tabulated statement, by election districts, of the official canvass
47 of the votes cast for candidates for governor, to include, in the case
48 of a candidate who was nominated by two or more parties or independent
49 bodies, a separate statement of the number of votes cast for him as the
50 candidate of each party or independent body by which he was nominated
51 and if the county contains more than one assembly district or parts of
52 more than one assembly district, a statement of the number of votes cast
53 for governor by assembly district.
54 § 5. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 10-108 of the election
55 law, as amended by chapter 4 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as
56 follows:
A. 5581--A 3
1 (a) Ballots for military voters shall be mailed or otherwise distrib-
2 uted by the board of elections, in accordance with the preferred method
3 of transmission designated by the voter pursuant to section 10-107 of
4 this article, as soon as practicable but in any event not later than
5 thirty-two days before a primary or general election; twenty-five days
6 before a New York city community school board district or city of
7 Buffalo school district election; fourteen days before a village
8 election conducted by the board of elections; and forty-five days before
9 a special election. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this
10 section, in any year in which there has been a run-off election in the
11 city of New York, ballots for military voters shall be mailed or other-
12 wise distributed by the board of elections of such city in accordance
13 with the preferred method of transmission designated by the voter pursu-
14 ant to section 10-107 of this article, as soon as practicable but in any
15 event not later than twenty-five days before a general election in that
16 year. A voter who submits a military ballot application shall be enti-
17 tled to a military ballot thereafter for each subsequent election
18 through and including the next two regularly scheduled general elections
19 held in even numbered years, including any run-offs which may occur;
20 provided, however, such application shall not be valid for any election
21 held within seven days after its receipt. Ballots shall also be mailed
22 to any qualified military voter who is already registered and who
23 requests such military ballot from such board of elections in a letter,
24 which is signed by the voter and received by the board of elections not
25 later than the seventh day before the election for which the ballot is
26 requested and which states the address where the voter is registered and
27 the address to which the ballot is to be mailed. The board of elections
28 shall enclose with such ballot a form of application for military
29 ballot. In the case of a primary election, the board shall deliver only
30 the ballot of the party with which the military voter is enrolled
31 according to the military voter's registration records. In the event a
32 primary election is uncontested in the military voter's election
33 district for all offices or positions except the party position of
34 member of the ward, town, city or county committee, no ballot shall be
35 delivered to such military voter for such election; and the military
36 voter shall be advised of the reason why he or she will not receive a
37 ballot.
38 § 6. Subdivision 1 of section 10-114 of the election law, as amended
39 by chapter 165 of the laws of 2009, is amended to read as follows:
40 1. The board of elections shall cause all military ballots received by
41 it before the close of the polls on election day and all ballots
42 contained in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United States
43 postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing a dated
44 endorsement of receipt by another agency of the United States government
45 or are signed and dated by the voter and one witness thereto, with a
46 date which is ascertained to be not later than the day before election
47 and received by such board of elections not later than seven days
48 following the day of a primary election and not later than thirteen days
49 following the day of a general or special election to be cast and count-
50 ed. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, in any
51 year in which there has been a run-off election in the city of New York,
52 the board of elections of such city shall cause all military ballots
53 received by it before the close of the polls on election day and all
54 ballots contained in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United
55 States postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing
56 a dated endorsement of receipt by another agency of the United States
A. 5581--A 4
1 government or are signed and dated by the voter and one witness thereto,
2 with a date which is ascertained to be not later than the day before
3 election and received by such board of elections not later than twenty
4 days following the day of a general election in that year to be cast and
5 counted.
6 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.
