Bill Text: NY S00612 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Prohibits conflicts of interest among board of elections employees; prevents a board of elections employee from remaining on the board of elections payroll while also a candidate for an office who has an election overseen by the board at which they are employed; allows for a member to remain on the board until 90 days before the general election if there is no primary for such office.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Passed) 2024-12-23 - approval memo.100 [S00612 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S00612-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         612--D
            Cal. No. 623

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 5, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sens. MAYER, JACKSON, MAY, WEBB -- read twice and ordered
          printed, and  when  printed  to  be  committed  to  the  Committee  on
          Elections  --  reported favorably from said committee and committed to
          the Committee on Rules --  reported  favorably  from  said  committee,
          ordered  to  a  third  reading,  passed by Senate and delivered to the
          Assembly, recalled, vote  reconsidered,  restored  to  third  reading,
          amended  and  ordered  reprinted,  retaining its place in the order of
          third reading -- recommitted to the Committee on Elections in  accord-
          ance  with  Senate  Rule  6,  sec.  8  -- reported favorably from said
          committee, ordered to first report, amended on first  report,  ordered
          to  a  second report and ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the
          order of second report --  reported  favorably  from  said  committee,
          amended  on  second  report,  ordered  to a third reading, amended and
          ordered reprinted, retaining its place in the order of  third  reading
          --  passed  by  Senate  and  delivered to the Assembly, recalled, vote
          reconsidered,  restored  to  third  reading,   amended   and   ordered
          reprinted, retaining its place in the order of third reading

        AN  ACT  to amend the election law, in relation to prohibiting conflicts
          of interest among board of elections employees

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

     1    Section  1.  The election law is amended by adding a new section 3-304
     2  to read as follows:
     3    § 3-304. Board employees;  conflicts  of  interest.  1.  No  board  of
     4  elections  employee shall engage in or participate in any trade or busi-
     5  ness which creates, or may  tend  to  create,  an  actual  or  potential
     6  conflict  of interest.   No board of elections employee shall maintain a
     7  direct financial interest in or be employed by a  vendor  or  a  company
     8  providing  services  to a candidate who has an election overseen by such
     9  employee's office, including but not  limited  to,  printing  companies,
    10  election consulting companies, direct mail companies and digital market-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02172-30-4
        S. 612--D                           2

     1  ing  companies.  No  board of elections employee shall maintain a direct
     2  financial interest in or be employed by a vendor or company  that  sells
     3  to  the  board voting machines, electronic poll books, printers or other
     4  technical  or electronic equipment. A violation of any of the provisions
     5  of this subdivision shall be  cause  for  discipline  by  the  board  of
     6  elections, including removal of the board of elections employee.
     7    2.  No  board  of  elections  employee  shall  remain  on the board of
     8  elections payroll while also a  candidate  for  an  office  who  has  an
     9  election  overseen  by  the  board  at  which they are employed. For the
    10  purposes of this article, a board of elections employee shall be  deemed
    11  a  candidate  for  elective  office  upon the filing of a designating or
    12  nominating petition for such  office  or,  where  nominations  for  such
    13  office are made other than by petition, upon acceptance of a nomination.
    14  Such  employee  may remain in "leave without pay" status until such time
    15  as their candidacy shall cease, or upon the day  following  the  certif-
    16  ication  of  election  results  for  such office, whichever comes first.
    17  Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, when there are no prima-
    18  ry elections for the office being sought by a candidate that is employed
    19  by the board of elections, that candidate may remain  on  the  board  of
    20  elections  payroll  for  no  more  than  ninety  days prior to a general
    21  election. The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply  to  unpaid
    22  party positions.
    23    3.  It  shall  not be considered a conflict of interest for a board of
    24  elections employee who is a member of a county committee as  defined  in
    25  section  2-104 of this chapter, a district leader as outlined in section
    26  2-110 of this chapter, a member of the state committee as  described  in
    27  section  2-102  of  this chapter, a delegate or an alternate delegate to
    28  judicial district nominating conventions as described in  section  6-124
    29  of  this  chapter,  or  a  delegate or an alternate delegate to national
    30  party conventions as described in section 2-122 of this chapter who,  as
    31  part  of  their  duties  in  said party position, endorses or supports a
    32  candidate for a party position or public office.
    33    § 2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become  a
    34  law.