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

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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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--C
            Cal. No. 623

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 5, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens.  MAYER, MAY -- 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 recon-
          sidered, restored to third reading,  amended  and  ordered  reprinted,
          retaining  its  place  in the order of third reading -- recommitted to
          the Committee on Elections in accordance 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

        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-
    11  ing  companies.  No  board of elections employee shall maintain a direct
    12  financial interest in or be employed by a vendor or company  that  sells
    13  to  the  board voting machines, electronic poll books, printers or other

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02172-28-4
        S. 612--C                           2

     1  technical or electronic equipment. A violation of any of the  provisions
     2  of  this  subdivision  shall  be  cause  for  discipline by the board of
     3  elections, including removal of the board of elections employee.
     4    2.  (a)  No  board  of elections employee shall remain on the board of
     5  elections payroll while also a  candidate  for  an  office  who  has  an
     6  election  overseen  by  the  board  at  which they are employed. For the
     7  purposes of this article, a board of elections employee shall be  deemed
     8  a  candidate  for  elective  office  upon the filing of a designating or
     9  nominating petition for such  office  or,  where  nominations  for  such
    10  office are made other than by petition, upon acceptance of a nomination.
    11  Such  employee  may remain in "leave without pay" status until such time
    12  as their candidacy shall cease, or upon the day  following  the  certif-
    13  ication  of  election  results  for  such office, whichever comes first.
    14  Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, when there are no prima-
    15  ry elections for the office being sought by a candidate that is employed
    16  by the board of elections, that candidate may remain  on  the  board  of
    17  elections  payroll  for  no  more  than  ninety  days prior to a general
    18  election.
    19    (b) It shall not be a conflict of interest for  a  board  employee  to
    20  file  a designating petition for a party position, including a member of
    21  a county committee as defined in section 2-104 of this chapter, district
    22  leader as outlined in section 2-110 of this chapter, member of the state
    23  committee as described in section 2-102 of this chapter, a  delegate  or
    24  an  alternate  delegate  to  judicial district nominating conventions as
    25  described in section 6-124 of this chapter, or delegate or an  alternate
    26  delegate  to national party conventions as described in section 2-122 of
    27  this chapter. However, upon another person filing  a  valid  designating
    28  petition  creating  a  primary  for  that party position, then the board
    29  employee may remain in "leave without pay" status until their  candidacy
    30  shall cease or upon the day following the certification of the elections
    31  results whichever is first.
    32    3.  It  shall  not be considered a conflict of interest for a board of
    33  elections employee who is a member of a county committee as  defined  in
    34  section  2-104 of this chapter, a district leader as outlined in section
    35  2-110 of this chapter, a member of the state committee as  described  in
    36  section  2-102  of  this chapter, a delegate or an alternate delegate to
    37  judicial district nominating conventions as described in  section  6-124
    38  of  this  chapter,  or  a  delegate or an alternate delegate to national
    39  party conventions as described in section 2-122 of this chapter who,  as
    40  part  of  their  duties  in  said party position, endorses or supports a
    41  candidate for a party position or public office.
    42    § 2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become  a
    43  law.