STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2331
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2013
___________
Introduced by M. of A. QUART -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to removing certain
requirements for absentee voting; and to repeal certain provisions of
such law relating thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 8-400 of the election law,
2 subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 63 of the laws of 2010, the opening
3 paragraph of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 216 of the laws of
4 1988, paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 263 of the
5 laws of 1991, paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 as amended by chapter 321
6 of the laws of 1988 and paragraph (d) of subdivision 2 as separately
7 amended by chapters 97 and 104 of the laws of 2010, are amended to read
8 as follows:
9 1. A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this chapter
10 if[, on the occurrence of any village election conducted by the board of
11 elections, primary election, special election, general election or New
12 York city community school board district or city of Buffalo school
13 district election, he or she expects to be:
14 (a) absent from the county of his or her residence, or, if a resident
15 of the city of New York absent from said city; or
16 (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election
17 district in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or
18 physical 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 (c) an inmate or patient of a veteran's administration hospital; or
22 (d) 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] he or she requests an application for
27 an absentee ballot on a form to be obtained and filed as provided herein
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04933-01-3
A. 2331 2
1 or by letter as provided in paragraph (d) of subdivision two of this
2 section.
3 2. A qualified voter desiring to vote at such election as an absentee
4 voter [for any reason specified in subdivision one hereof] must make
5 application for an absentee ballot on a form to be obtained and filed as
6 provided herein or by letter as provided in paragraph (d) of this subdi-
7 vision.
8 (a) Application forms shall be furnished by and may be obtained from
9 any board of elections at any time until and including the day before
10 such election. Application forms shall also be supplied by the board of
11 inspectors of the election district in which applicant is a qualified
12 voter on all of the days provided for local registration. In addition,
13 application forms shall be supplied upon the request of the person
14 authorized to vote pursuant to this section, any such person's spouse,
15 parent or child, a person residing with the applicant as a member of his
16 household, or the applicant's duly authorized agent. Application forms
17 sent outside of the United States to a country other than Canada or
18 Mexico, shall be sent airmail. Any reference to "board of elections" in
19 the remaining provisions of this section, except with respect to the
20 furnishing and obtaining of applications for absentee ballots, means
21 only the board of elections of the county or city in which the applicant
22 is a qualified voter.
23 (b) Applications may be filed [either] with or delivered in person to
24 the board of elections or [in person with] the board of inspectors of
25 the election district in which the applicant is a qualified voter[, on
26 one of the days provided for local registration] at any time until and
27 including the day before such election.
28 (c) All applications must be mailed to the board of elections not
29 later than the seventh day before the election for which a ballot is
30 first requested or delivered to such board not later than the day before
31 such election.
32 (d) The board of elections shall mail an absentee ballot to every
33 qualified voter otherwise eligible for such a ballot, who requests such
34 an absentee ballot from such board of elections in writing in a letter,
35 telefax indicating the address, phone number and the telefax number from
36 which the writing is sent or other written instrument, which is signed
37 by the voter and received by the board of elections not earlier than the
38 thirtieth day nor later than the seventh day before the election for
39 which the ballot is first requested and which states the address where
40 the voter is registered and the address to which the ballot is to be
41 mailed; provided, however, a military voter may request a military
42 ballot or voter registration application or an absentee ballot applica-
43 tion in a letter as provided in subdivision three of section 10-106 of
44 this chapter; and provided further, a special federal voter may request
45 a special federal ballot or voter registration application or an absen-
46 tee ballot application in a letter as provided in paragraph d of subdi-
47 vision one of section 11-202 of this chapter. The board of elections
48 shall enclose with such ballot a form of application for absentee ballot
49 if the applicant is registered with such board of elections.
50 (e) The board of elections shall make the mailing address and email
51 address to which a qualified voter may submit an application for an
52 absentee ballot publicly available to all qualified voters.
53 § 2. Paragraphs (c) and (d) of subdivision 3 and subdivision 4 of
54 section 8-400 of the election law are REPEALED.
55 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
