STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3047
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 19, 2017
___________
Introduced by Sen. LITTLE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the town law, in relation to absentee ballots for fire
district elections and improvement district elections
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 175-b of the town law, as amended
2 by chapter 401 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows:
3 2. a. [An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an appli-
4 cation setting forth (1) his or her name and residence address, includ-
5 ing the street and number, if any, or town and rural delivery route, if
6 any; (2) that he or she is or will be, on the day of the election, a
7 qualified voter of the district in which he or she resides in that he or
8 she is or will be, on such date, over eighteen years of age, a citizen
9 of the United States and has or will have resided in the district for
10 thirty days next preceding such date; (3) that he or she is registered
11 in the town; (4) that he or she will be unable to appear to vote in
12 person on the day of the election for which the absentee ballot is
13 requested because he or she is, or will be on such day (a) a patient in
14 a hospital, or unable to appear personally at the polling place on such
15 day because of illness or physical disability or (b) because of his or
16 her duties, occupation or business will require him or her to be outside
17 of the county of his or her residence on such day, (c) because he or she
18 will be on vacation outside the county of his or her residence on such
19 day; or, (d) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she
20 is detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial or
21 is confined in prison after conviction for an offense other than a felo-
22 ny. Such application must be received by the district secretary at
23 least seven days before the election if the ballot is to be mailed to
24 the voter, or the day before the election, if the ballot is to be deliv-
25 ered personally to the voter or his or her agent.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00664-01-7
S. 3047 2
1 b. (1) Where such duties, occupation or business are of such a
2 nature as ordinarily to require such absence, a brief description of
3 such duties, occupation or business shall be set forth in such affida-
4 vit. (2) Where such duties, occupation or business are not of such a
5 nature as ordinarily to require such absence, such application shall
6 contain a statement of the special circumstances on account of which
7 such absence is required.
8 c. Where the applicant expects in good faith to be absent on the day
9 of the election because he or she will be on vacation elsewhere on such
10 day, such application shall also contain the dates upon which he or she
11 expects to begin and end such vacation, the place or places where he or
12 she expects to be on such vacation, the name and address of his or her
13 employer, if any, and if self-employed, a statement to that effect.
14 d. Where the absence is because of detention or confinement to jail,
15 such affidavit shall state whether the voter is detained awaiting action
16 of the grand jury or is confined after conviction for an offense other
17 than a felony.
18 e. Where a person is or would be, if he or she were a qualified
19 voter, entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot under
20 the provisions of this section, his or her spouse, parent or child, if a
21 qualified voter and a resident of the same district, shall be entitled
22 to vote as an absentee voter upon personally making and signing an
23 application in accordance with the preceding provisions of this subdivi-
24 sion and showing that he or she expects to be absent from the district
25 on the day of the district election by reason of accompanying or being
26 with the spouse, child or parent who is or would be, if he or she were a
27 qualified voter, so entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee
28 ballot, and, in the event no application is made by such spouse, child
29 or parent, such further information as the fire district shall require.
30 f.] A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this section
31 if during all the hours of voting on the day of a fire district election
32 he or she expects to be:
33 (1) absent from the county of his or her residence; or
34 (2) unable to appear at the polling place because of illness or phys-
35 ical disability, or duties related to the primary care of one or more
36 individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she
37 will be or is a patient in a hospital; or
38 (3) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
39 (4) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is
40 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or
41 confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than
42 a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election
43 district of his or her residence.
44 b. Each person entitled to vote as an absentee voter pursuant to this
45 section and desirous of obtaining an absentee ballot shall make written
46 application therefor to the district secretary. Application forms for
47 use pursuant to this section shall be in a form prescribed by the state
48 board of elections. The use of any application which is on a form
49 prescribed by the state board of elections shall be acceptable. Such
50 application shall include the following statement to be signed by the
51 voter.
52 I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
53 my knowledge and belief, and I understand that if I make any material
54 false statement in the foregoing statement of application for absentee
55 ballots, I shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
56 Date.....................Signature of Voter.............
S. 3047 3
1 [g.] c. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain
2 in each instance the following information:
3 (1) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,
4 including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,
5 mailing address if different from the residence address and an address
6 to which the ballot shall be mailed.
7 (2) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered
8 voter.
9 (3) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
10 applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following catego-
11 ries:
12 (a) absent from the county of his or her residence; provided, however,
13 if the applicant expects to be absent from such county for a duration
14 covering more than one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each
15 election, he or she shall state the dates when he or she expects to
16 begin and end such absence; or
17 (b) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or physical
18 disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more individ-
19 uals who are ill or physically disabled; or
20 (c) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
21 (d) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial
22 or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other
23 than a felony and stating the place where he or she is so detained or
24 confined.
25 (4) Such application shall permit the applicant to apply for an absen-
26 tee ballot in any year. A voter who applies for an absentee ballot
27 shall be sent an absentee ballot for any fire district election that
28 occurs during the period of absence specified in the application.
29 d. An applicant whose ability to appear personally at the polling
30 place of the district of which he or she is a qualified voter is
31 substantially impaired by reason of permanent illness or physical disa-
32 bility and whose registration record has been marked "permanently disa-
33 bled" by the board of elections pursuant to the provisions of the
34 election law shall be entitled to receive an absentee ballot pursuant to
35 the provisions of this section without making separate application for
36 such absentee ballot, and the secretary of the fire district, upon being
37 advised by the board of elections on or with the list of registered
38 voters that the registration record of a voter is marked "permanently
39 disabled", shall send an absentee ballot to such voter at his or her
40 last known address by first class mail with a request to the postal
41 authorities not to forward same but to return same in five days in the
42 event that it cannot be delivered to the addressee. The election
43 inspectors of the fire district shall make an appropriate entry on the
44 registration record indicating the fact that an absentee ballot has been
45 sent and the date of mailing.
46 e. An application must be received by the district secretary no earli-
47 er than the thirtieth day before the election for which an absentee
48 ballot is sought. If the application requests that the absentee ballot
49 be mailed, such application must be received not later than seven days
50 before the election. If the applicant or his or her agent delivers the
51 application to the district secretary in person, such application must
52 be received not later than the day before the election. The district
53 secretary shall examine each application and shall determine from the
54 information contained therein whether the applicant is qualified under
55 this section to receive an absentee ballot.
S. 3047 4
1 f. No later than six days before the election for which an application
2 has been received and for which the district secretary has determined
3 the applicant to be qualified to vote by absentee ballot the district
4 secretary shall mail, by regular mail, an absentee ballot to each quali-
5 fied applicant who has applied before such day and who has requested
6 that such absentee ballot be mailed to him or her at the address set
7 forth in his or her application. If the applicant or his or her agent
8 delivers the application to the district secretary in person after the
9 seventh day before the election and not later than the day before the
10 election, the district secretary shall forthwith deliver such absentee
11 ballots for those applicants whom he or she determines are qualified to
12 make such applications and to receive such ballots to such applicants or
13 the agents named in the applications when such applicants or agents
14 appear in the district secretary's office.
15 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 213-b of the town law, as added by chap-
16 ter 400 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
17 2. a. [An applicant for such an absentee ballot shall submit an appli-
18 cation setting forth (1) his name and residence address, including the
19 street and number, if any, or town and rural delivery route, if any; (2)
20 that he is or will be, on the day of the election, a qualified voter of
21 the district in which he resides in that he is or will be, on such date,
22 over eighteen years of age, a citizen of the United States and has or
23 will have resided in the district for thirty days next preceding such
24 date; (3) that he is registered in the town; (4) that he will be unable
25 to appear to vote in person on the day of the election for which the
26 absentee ballot is requested because he is, or will be on such day (a) a
27 patient in a hospital, or unable to appear personally at the polling
28 place on such day because of illness or physical disability or (b)
29 because his duties, occupation or business will require him to be
30 outside of the county or city of his residence on such day, (c) because
31 he will be on vacation outside the county or city of his residence on
32 such day; or, (d) absent from his voting residence because he is
33 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial or is
34 confined in prison after conviction for an offense other than a felony.
35 Such application must be received by the district secretary at least
36 seven days before the election if the ballot is to be mailed to the
37 voter, or the day before the election, if the ballot is to be delivered
38 personally to the voter or his agent.
39 b. (1) Where such duties, occupation or business are of such a nature
40 as ordinarily to require such absence, a brief description of such
41 duties, occupation or business shall be set forth in such affidavit. (2)
42 Where such duties, occupation or business are not of such a nature as
43 ordinarily to require such absence, such application shall contain a
44 statement of the special circumstances on account of which such absence
45 is required.
46 c. Where the applicant expects in good faith to be absent on the day
47 of the election because he will be on vacation elsewhere on such day,
48 such application shall also contain the dates upon which he expects to
49 begin and end such vacation, the place or places where he expects to be
50 on such vacation, the name and address of his employer, if any, and if
51 self-employed, a statement to that effect.
52 d. Where the absence is because of detention or confinement to jail,
53 such affidavit shall state whether the voter is detained awaiting action
54 of the grand jury or is confined after conviction for an offense other
55 than a felony.
S. 3047 5
1 e. Where a person is or would be, if he were a qualified voter, enti-
2 tled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot under the
3 provisions of this section, his spouse, parent or child, if a qualified
4 voter and a resident of the same district, shall be entitled to vote as
5 an absentee voter upon personally making and signing an application in
6 accordance with the preceding provisions of this subdivision and showing
7 that he expects to be absent from the district on the day of the
8 district election by reason of accompanying or being with the spouse,
9 child or parent who is or would be, if he were a qualified voter, so
10 entitled to apply for the right to vote by absentee ballot, and, in the
11 event no application is made by such spouse, child or parent, such
12 further information as the improvement district shall require.
13 f.] A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this section
14 if during all the hours of voting on the day of an improvement district
15 election he or she expects to be:
16 (1) absent from the county of his or her residence; or
17 (2) unable to appear at the polling place because of illness or phys-
18 ical disability, or duties related to the primary care of one or more
19 individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she
20 will be or is a patient in a hospital; or
21 (3) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
22 (4) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is
23 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or
24 confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than
25 a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election
26 district of his or her residence.
27 b. Each person entitled to vote as an absentee voter pursuant to this
28 section and desirous of obtaining an absentee ballot shall make written
29 application therefor to the district secretary. Application forms for
30 use pursuant to this section shall be in a form prescribed by the state
31 board of elections. The use of any application which is on a form
32 prescribed by the state board of elections shall be acceptable. Such
33 application shall include the following statement to be signed by the
34 voter.
35 I hereby declare that the foregoing is a true statement to the best of
36 my knowledge and belief, and I understand that if I make any material
37 false statement in the foregoing statement of application for absentee
38 ballots, I shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
39 Date ................... Signature of Voter .......................
40 [g.] c. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must
41 contain in each instance the following information:
42 (1) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,
43 including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,
44 mailing address if different from the residence address and an address
45 to which the ballot shall be mailed.
46 (2) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered
47 voter.
48 (3) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
49 applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following catego-
50 ries:
51 (a) absent from the county of his or her residence; provided, however,
52 if the applicant expects to be absent from such county for a duration
53 covering more than one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each
54 election, he or she shall state the dates when he or she expects to
55 begin and end such absence; or
S. 3047 6
1 (b) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or physical
2 disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more individ-
3 uals who are ill or physically disabled; or
4 (c) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
5 (d) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial
6 or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other
7 than a felony and stating the place where he or she is so detained or
8 confined.
9 (4) Such application shall permit the applicant to apply for an absen-
10 tee ballot in any year. A voter who applies for an absentee ballot
11 shall be sent an absentee ballot for any improvement district election.
12 d. An applicant whose ability to appear personally at the polling
13 place of the district of which he is a qualified voter is substantially
14 impaired by reason of permanent illness or physical disability and whose
15 registration record has been marked "permanently disabled" by the board
16 of elections pursuant to the provisions of the election law shall be
17 entitled to receive an absentee ballot pursuant to the provisions of
18 this section without making separate application for such absentee
19 ballot, and the secretary of the improvement district, upon being
20 advised by the board of elections on or with the list of registered
21 voters that the registration record of a voter is marked "permanently
22 disabled", shall send an absentee ballot to such voter at his last known
23 address by first class mail with a request to the postal authorities not
24 to forward same but to return same in five days in the event that it
25 cannot be delivered to the addressee. The board of inspectors of the
26 improvement district shall make an appropriate entry on the registration
27 record indicating the fact that an absentee ballot has been sent and the
28 date of mailing.
29 e. An application must be received by the district secretary no earli-
30 er than the thirtieth day before the election for which an absentee
31 ballot is sought. If the application requests that the absentee ballot
32 be mailed, such application must be received not later than seven days
33 before the election. If the applicant or his or her agent delivers the
34 application to the district secretary in person, such application must
35 be received not later than the day before the election. The district
36 secretary shall examine each application and shall determine from the
37 information contained therein whether the applicant is qualified under
38 this section to receive an absentee ballot.
39 f. No later than six days before the election for which an application
40 has been received and for which the district secretary has determined
41 the applicant to be qualified to vote by absentee ballot the district
42 secretary shall mail, by regular mail, an absentee ballot to each quali-
43 fied applicant who has applied before such day and who has requested
44 that such absentee ballot be mailed to him or her at the address set
45 forth in his or her application. If the applicant or his or her agent
46 delivers the application to the district secretary in person after the
47 seventh day before the election and not later than the day before the
48 election, the district secretary shall forthwith deliver such absentee
49 ballots for those applicants whom he or she determines are qualified to
50 make such applications and to receive such ballots to such applicants or
51 the agents named in the applications when such applicants or agents
52 appear in the district secretary's office.
53 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
54 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.