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A07469 Summary:

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A07469 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          7469
 
                               2011-2012 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                       May 5, 2011
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by M. of A. SCHIMEL -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Election Law
 
        AN ACT to amend the town  law,  in  relation  to  the  types  of  voting
          machines  used  in  certain elections; and providing for the repeal of
          certain provisions upon expiration thereof
 

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  Section 212 of the town law, as amended by chapter 421 of
     2  the laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 212. Annual election and notice thereof. The district  commissioners
     4  of  such  improvement  district  shall  publish  at  the  expense of the
     5  district the notice of each election of improvement district commission-
     6  ers held pursuant to this article. Such notice  shall  be  published  at
     7  least  once  in one or more newspapers having general circulation in the
     8  district and the first publication thereof shall be at least twenty days
     9  before the day of such election. The notice  of  annual  election  shall
    10  specify  the time when and the place or places where such election shall

    11  be held and the hours during which  the  polls  will  be  open  for  the
    12  receipt  of ballots. Notice of such election shall also be posted on the
    13  websites of the district and the town in which the district is  located,
    14  if  such  websites  are  maintained,  on  the signboard of the town, and
    15  conspicuously posted in three or more designated public locations within
    16  the district, on or about the day on which  such  notice  is  published.
    17  Such  election  shall  be  held at a suitable place or places within the
    18  district designated by the district commissioners and  the  polls  shall
    19  remain  open  from  six o'clock in the evening until nine o'clock in the
    20  evening and such additional  consecutive  hours  prior  thereto  as  the
    21  district  commissioners  may determine and specify in the notice of such
    22  election.  The board of commissioners of such district  shall  designate

    23  for each district election not less than two nor more than four resident
    24  taxpayers  to  act  as  election  inspectors  and ballot clerks for each
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10730-04-1
        A. 7469                             2
 
     1  designated polling place. The  board  of  commissioners  shall  fix  the
     2  compensation  of such election inspectors and ballot clerks in an amount
     3  not to exceed ten dollars per hour each for every hour or  part  thereof
     4  of  such  service  and  such  compensation shall be a charge against the
     5  district. The board of commissioners shall  cause  to  be  prepared  the
     6  ballots  for all elections, and may authorize the use of voting machines

     7  [approved by the secretary of state], including lever  voting  machines,
     8  at  any  annual  or  special election of the district. When using voting
     9  machines as described in article seven of the election law, such  voting
    10  machines  shall  be  used in accordance with the provisions contained in
    11  article nine of the election law. Provided,  however,  that  nothing  in
    12  this  section  shall  be  construed to require the board of elections to
    13  maintain the care, custody or control of lever  voting  machines.  After
    14  the  polls  shall have been closed at any election, the election inspec-
    15  tors and ballot clerks at each polling place shall  immediately  canvass
    16  the  ballots  cast and shall publicly announce the result of the vote at

    17  that polling place. Within twenty-four hours the chairman of  the  board
    18  of  commissioners,  election  inspectors and ballot clerks shall execute
    19  and file a certificate of the result of the canvass with  the  board  of
    20  commissioners of the improvement district and with the clerk of the town
    21  in which said district is located.
    22    §  2. Subdivision 29 of section 176 of the town law, as added by chap-
    23  ter 568 of the laws of 1949, is amended to read as follows:
    24    29. May authorize the use of voting machines, including  lever  voting
    25  machines,  at  any  annual  or  special  election  held  within the fire
    26  district [and]. When using voting machines as described in article seven
    27  of the election law, such voting [machine] machines  shall  be  used  in

    28  accordance with the provisions contained in article nine of the election
    29  law.  Provided, however, that nothing in this section shall be construed
    30  to require the board of elections  to  maintain  the  care,  custody  or
    31  control of lever voting machines.
    32    §  3.  Section  212  of the town law, as amended by chapter 421 of the
    33  laws of 2008, is amended to read as follows:
    34    § 212. Annual election and notice thereof. The district  commissioners
    35  of  such  improvement  district  shall  publish  at  the  expense of the
    36  district the notice of each election of improvement district commission-
    37  ers held pursuant to this article. Such notice  shall  be  published  at
    38  least  once  in one or more newspapers having general circulation in the
    39  district and the first publication thereof shall be at least twenty days

    40  before the day of such election. The notice  of  annual  election  shall
    41  specify  the time when and the place or places where such election shall
    42  be held and the hours during which  the  polls  will  be  open  for  the
    43  receipt  of ballots. Notice of such election shall also be posted on the
    44  websites of the district and the town in which the district is  located,
    45  if  such  websites  are  maintained,  on  the signboard of the town, and
    46  conspicuously posted in three or more designated public locations within
    47  the district, on or about the day on which  such  notice  is  published.
    48  Such  election  shall  be  held at a suitable place or places within the
    49  district designated by the district commissioners and  the  polls  shall
    50  remain  open  from  six o'clock in the evening until nine o'clock in the
    51  evening and such additional  consecutive  hours  prior  thereto  as  the

    52  district  commissioners  may determine and specify in the notice of such
    53  election.  The board of commissioners of such district  shall  designate
    54  for each district election not less than two nor more than four resident
    55  taxpayers  to  act  as  election  inspectors  and ballot clerks for each
    56  designated polling place. The  board  of  commissioners  shall  fix  the
        A. 7469                             3
 
     1  compensation  of such election inspectors and ballot clerks in an amount
     2  not to exceed ten dollars per hour each for every hour or  part  thereof
     3  of  such  service  and  such  compensation shall be a charge against the
     4  district.  The  board  of  commissioners  shall cause to be prepared the
     5  ballots for all elections, and may authorize the use of voting  machines
     6  [approved  by  the secretary of state] at any annual or special election

     7  of the district in accordance with article nine  of  the  election  law.
     8  After  the  polls  shall  have been closed at any election, the election
     9  inspectors and ballot clerks at each  polling  place  shall  immediately
    10  canvass  the  ballots cast and shall publicly announce the result of the
    11  vote at that polling place. Within twenty-four hours the chairman of the
    12  board of commissioners, election  inspectors  and  ballot  clerks  shall
    13  execute  and  file  a  certificate of the result of the canvass with the
    14  board of commissioners of the improvement district and with the clerk of
    15  the town in which said district is located.
    16    § 4. Subdivisions 12 and 13 of section 213-b of the town law, as added
    17  by chapter 400 of the laws of 1985, are amended to read as follows:
    18    12. If the inspectors of election shall have received an envelope, and

    19  upon opening the same no ballot shall be found therein,  the  inspectors
    20  shall  make  a  memorandum  showing that the ballot is missing. When the
    21  casting of absentee voters'  ballots  shall  have  been  completed,  the
    22  inspectors  shall  ascertain  the number of such ballots which have been
    23  deposited in the ballot box by deducting from the  number  of  envelopes
    24  opened  the  number of missing ballots, and shall make a separate return
    25  thereof in duplicate. The number of absentee voters'  ballots  deposited
    26  in the ballot box shall be added to the number of other ballots deposit-
    27  ed  in the ballot box in order to determine the number of all ballots to
    28  be accounted for in the ballot box. Such ballots shall then  be  counted
    29  or  canvassed by the inspectors of election along with the other ballots
    30  cast at such district election, or, where voting machines are  used,  as

    31  provided  in  section two hundred twelve of this article, shall be added
    32  to the votes recorded on such machines.
    33    13. The provisions of this section shall apply to absentee ballots  at
    34  improvement  district  elections, notwithstanding any other provision of
    35  law. The provisions of any other  law  as  they  relate  to  improvement
    36  district  elections not inconsistent herewith shall apply to the conduct
    37  of such elections. Provided, however, that nothing in this section shall
    38  be construed to require the board of elections  to  maintain  the  care,
    39  custody or control of lever voting machines.
    40    §  5.    Subdivisions  4  and  12 of section 175-b of the town law, as
    41  amended by chapter 401 of the laws of  1996,  are  amended  to  read  as
    42  follows:
    43    4.  Ballots for absentee voters shall be, as nearly as practicable, in

    44  the same form as those to be voted at the district election; if the vote
    45  at  such  election shall be by ballot, the absentee ballot shall conform
    46  to that part of the regular ballot which  relates  to  the  election  of
    47  district  members;  if  the  vote  of  such  election shall be by voting
    48  machine, pursuant to subdivision  twenty-nine  of  section  one  hundred
    49  seventy-six  of  this  article,  the  absentee  ballot shall [conform as
    50  closely as possible to the manner in which the names of  the  candidates
    51  appear  on  the  voting  machines, except that the absentee ballot shall
    52  also contain a space for a write-in or write-ins] be, as nearly  practi-
    53  cable, in the same form as those to be voted in the district on election

    54  day  and shall contain a space for a write-in or write-ins.  On the back
    55  of such absentee ballots shall be printed the  words  "Official  Ballot,
    56  Absentee Voter," followed by the words "For Officers of fire district."
        A. 7469                             4
 
     1    12.  If  the  election inspectors shall have received an envelope, and
     2  upon opening the same no ballot shall be  found  therein,  the  election
     3  inspectors  shall  make a memorandum showing that the ballot is missing.
     4  When the casting of absentee voters' ballots shall have been  completed,
     5  the election inspectors shall ascertain the number of such ballots which
     6  have  been  deposited  in the ballot box by deducting from the number of
     7  envelopes opened the number of missing ballots, and shall make  a  sepa-
     8  rate return thereof in duplicate. The number of absentee voters' ballots

     9  deposited  in  the  ballot  box  shall  be  added to the number of other
    10  ballots deposited in the ballot box in order to determine the number  of
    11  all  ballots  to  be accounted for in the ballot box. Such ballots shall
    12  then be counted or canvassed by the election inspectors along  with  the
    13  other  ballots cast at such district election, or, where voting machines
    14  are used[,] pursuant to subdivision twenty-nine of section  one  hundred
    15  seventy-six  of  this  article, such ballots shall be added to the votes
    16  recorded on such machines.
    17    § 6. Subdivision 4 of section 175-b of the town  law,  as  amended  by
    18  chapter 401 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows:
    19    4.  Ballots for absentee voters shall be, as nearly as practicable, in
    20  the same form as those to be voted at the district election; if the vote

    21  at  such  election shall be by ballot, the absentee ballot shall conform
    22  to that part of the regular ballot which  relates  to  the  election  of
    23  district  members;  if  the  vote  of  such  election shall be by voting
    24  machine, the absentee ballot shall [conform as closely  as  possible  to
    25  the  manner  in  which  the names of the candidates appear on the voting
    26  machines, except that the absentee ballot shall also contain a space for
    27  a write-in or write-ins] be, as nearly practicable, in the same form  as
    28  those  to  be  voted in the district on election day and shall contain a
    29  space for a write-in or write-ins.  On the back of such absentee ballots
    30  shall be printed the words "Official Ballot, Absentee  Voter,"  followed
    31  by the words "For Officers of fire district."

    32    §  7.  This  act shall take effect immediately provided, however, that
    33  sections one, two, four and five of this act shall expire and be  deemed
    34  repealed  December  31,  2012,  when  upon  such  date the provisions of
    35  sections three and six of this act shall take effect.