Bill Text: NY A05731 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires voters voting by affidavit ballot to produce an identification document to verify residency in the election district; requires absentee ballots to be received by election day, or be post-marked by the first day of early voting.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to election law [A05731 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A05731-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5731

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                     March 23, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. DiPIETRO -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Election Law

        AN  ACT to amend the election law, in relation to requirements for affi-
          davit ballots and absentee ballots

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Paragraph  (c) of subdivision 2-b of section 8-302 of the
     2  election law, as amended by section 8 of part XX of chapter  55  of  the
     3  laws  of  2019  and such subdivision as renumbered by chapter 763 of the
     4  laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
     5    (c) [If the voter does not produce an identification  document  listed
     6  in  paragraph  (a) of this subdivision, the voter shall only be entitled
     7  to vote by affidavit ballot unless a court order provides  otherwise]  A
     8  voter  voting  by affidavit ballot shall be required to produce an iden-
     9  tification document listed in paragraph (a) of this subdivision. If such
    10  identification document  is  an  identification  document  listed  under
    11  subparagraph  (ii)  of  paragraph (a) of this subdivision, such document
    12  shall have been issued or created not more than one hundred twenty  days
    13  prior  to  the election. If such identification document exists in elec-
    14  tronic form, such voter shall produce a printed copy of such identifica-
    15  tion document.
    16    § 2. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (e) of subdivision  3  of  section
    17  8-302 of the election law, as amended by section 8 of part XX of chapter
    18  55 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
    19    (ii) He or she may swear to and subscribe an affidavit stating that he
    20  or  she  has  duly  registered  to  vote,  the  address in such election
    21  district from which he or she registered, that he or she remains a  duly
    22  qualified  voter in such election district, that his or her registration
    23  poll record appears to be lost or misplaced or  that  his  or  her  name
    24  and/or  his  or  her  signature  was omitted from the computer generated
    25  registration list or such record indicates the voter already voted  when

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09229-01-3
        A. 5731                             2

     1  he  or  she  did  not  do so or that he or she has moved within New York
     2  state since he or she last registered, the address from which he or  she
     3  was  previously  registered and the address at which he or she currently
     4  resides,  and  at  a  primary  election, the party in which he or she is
     5  enrolled. The inspectors of election shall offer such  an  affidavit  to
     6  each  such  voter  whose residence address is in such election district,
     7  after such voter has produced an  identification  document  pursuant  to
     8  paragraph  (c) of subdivision two-a of this section. Each such affidavit
     9  shall be in a form prescribed by the state board of elections, shall  be
    10  printed  on  an  envelope  of  the size and quality used for an absentee
    11  ballot envelope, and shall contain an acknowledgment  that  the  affiant
    12  understands  that any false statement made therein is perjury punishable
    13  according to law. Such form prescribed by the state board  of  elections
    14  shall  request  information  required  to register such voter should the
    15  county board determine that such  voter  is  not  registered  and  shall
    16  constitute  an application to register to vote. The voter's name and the
    17  entries required shall then be entered without delay and without further
    18  inquiry in the fourth section of the challenge report or  in  the  place
    19  provided  in the computer generated registration list, with the notation
    20  that the voter has executed the affidavit hereinabove prescribed, or, if
    21  such person's name appears in  such  registration  list,  the  board  of
    22  elections may provide a place to make such entry next to his or her name
    23  in  such list. The voter shall then, without further inquiry, be permit-
    24  ted to vote an affidavit ballot  provided  for  by  this  chapter.  Such
    25  ballot  shall  thereupon be placed in the envelope containing his or her
    26  affidavit, and  the  envelope  sealed  and  returned  to  the  board  of
    27  elections  in the manner provided by this chapter for protested official
    28  ballots, including a statement of the number of such ballots.
    29    § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election law, as amended by
    30  chapter 140 of the laws of 2020, is amended to read as follows:
    31    1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
    32  it before the close of  the  polls  on  election  day  and  all  ballots
    33  contained  in envelopes showing a cancellation mark of the United States
    34  postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or showing a dated
    35  endorsement of receipt by another agency of the  United  States  govern-
    36  ment,  with  a  date which is ascertained to be not later than the first
    37  day of early voting for the election  and  received  by  such  board  of
    38  elections  not later than seven days following the day of election to be
    39  cast and counted  except  that  the  absentee  ballot  of  a  voter  who
    40  requested  such  ballot by letter, rather than application, shall not be
    41  counted unless a valid  application  form,  signed  by  such  voter,  is
    42  received  by  the  board  of elections with such ballot. For purposes of
    43  this section, any absentee ballot received by the board of elections  by
    44  mail that does not bear or display a dated postmark shall be presumed to
    45  have  been  timely mailed or delivered if such ballot bears a time stamp
    46  of the receiving board of elections indicating receipt by such board  on
    47  the day [after] of the election.
    48    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.