Jacobson, Carroll, Buchwald, Otis, Simon, Griffin, Lupardo, Galef, Rosenthal L
MLTSPNSR
Amd 8-400, El L
Authorizes absentee voting; defines the term "illness" for the purposes of absentee voting to include instances where a voter is unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election district in which they are a qualified voter because there is a risk of contracting or spreading a disease causing illness to the voter or to other members of the public.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10833
IN ASSEMBLY
July 19, 2020
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Dinowitz) --
read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to absentee voting; and
providing for the repeal of such 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. Subdivision 1 of section 8-400 of the election law, as
2 amended by chapter 63 of the laws of 2010, paragraph (c) as amended by
3 chapter 375 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
4 1. A qualified voter may vote as an absentee voter under this chapter
5 if, on the occurrence of any village election conducted by the board of
6 elections, primary election, special election, general election or New
7 York city community school board district or city of Buffalo school
8 district election, he or she expects to be:
9 (a) absent from the county of his or her residence, or, if a resident
10 of the city of New York absent from said city; or
11 (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election
12 district in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or
13 physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more
14 individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she
15 will be or is a patient in a hospital, provided that, for purposes of
16 this paragraph, "illness" shall include, but not be limited to,
17 instances where a voter is unable to appear personally at the polling
18 place of the election district in which they are a qualified voter
19 because there is a risk of contracting or spreading a disease that may
20 cause illness to the voter or to other members of the public; or
21 (c) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration hospi-
22 tal; or
23 (d) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is
24 detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or
25 confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than
26 a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election
27 district of his or her residence.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15746-15-0
A. 10833 2
1 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
2 deemed repealed January 1, 2022.
