Relates to enacting the "Esther Salas candidate privacy act" providing the option for candidates for office and petition witnesses not to put their address on designation petitions but instead file such with the county clerk for a fee.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5775--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 14, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections -- recommitted
to the Committee on Elections in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8
-- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to providing the option
for candidates for office and petition witnesses not to put their
address on designation petitions
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 the "Esther Salas candidate privacy act".
3 § 2. The election law is amended by adding a new section 6-131 to read
4 as follows:
5 § 6-131. Designating petition; candidate and witness information. 1.
6 Notwithstanding any other section of law, any candidate for local or
7 state elective office, or petition witnesses for such elective offices,
8 shall have the option to not provide their address of residence on a
9 petition to seek elective office. If this option is taken, the candidate
10 or petition witness shall provide proof of address and a sworn affida-
11 vit, on penalty of perjury, to the county clerk in the county where the
12 election is to be held.
13 2. A fee of one hundred dollars shall be assessed by the county clerk
14 to any candidate opting to not provide their address of residence on the
15 petition and a two hundred dollar fee to cover the cost for the candi-
16 date and all of their petition witnesses to not provide their address of
17 residence.
18 3. A fine of one thousand dollars shall be imposed on a candidate or
19 petition witness for knowingly providing false material information to
20 the county clerk.
21 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11739-02-0