Bill Text: NY S03505 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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

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Bill Title: Provides that certain local elections outside of New York City shall be in an even-numbered year.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-06-09 - SUBSTITUTED BY A4282B [S03505 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S03505-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3505

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 31, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens. SKOUFIS, THOMAS -- read twice and ordered printed,
          and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections

        AN ACT to amend the town law, the village law, the county  law  and  the
          election law, in relation to moving certain elections to even-numbered
          years

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

     1    Section 1. Section 80 of the town law is amended to read as follows:
     2    § 80. Biennial town elections. [Except as otherwise provided  in  this
     3  chapter,  a]  A biennial town election for the election of town officers
     4  and for the consideration of such questions as may be  proposed  by  the
     5  town board or the duly qualified electors, pursuant to the provisions of
     6  this  chapter,  shall  be  held on the Tuesday next succeeding the first
     7  Monday in November of every [odd-numbered] even-numbered year. All other
     8  town elections are special elections. A town election  or  special  town
     9  election  held pursuant to this chapter, shall be construed as a substi-
    10  tute, for a town meeting or a special town meeting  heretofore  provided
    11  to  be  held  by  law,  and  a reference in any law to a town meeting or
    12  special town meeting shall be construed as referring to a town  election
    13  or special town election.
    14    § 2. Subdivision 4 of section 17-1703-a of the village law, as amended
    15  by chapter 513 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
    16    4.  In  any  case in which the proposition provided for in subdivision
    17  one of this section shall have resulted in favor of the local government
    18  operating principally as a town, then, at the regular  village  election
    19  next ensuing, all offices to be filled thereat shall be filled for terms
    20  to  end at the conclusion of the then current calendar year. The term of
    21  office of each other elected  village  office  shall  also  end  at  the
    22  conclusion  of said then current calendar year, notwithstanding that any
    23  such term of office originally extended beyond such date. The offices of
    24  supervisor, four town council members and two  town  justices  shall  be

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06852-01-3
        S. 3505                             2

     1  filled  by  election  as  hereinafter  provided  at the November general
     2  election next following the effective date of the creation of such  town
     3  or annexation of such territory; all other town offices shall be appoin-
     4  tive. The election of the supervisor, council members and justices shall
     5  be for terms of office as follows:
     6    (a)  If such election is held in an [odd-numbered] even-numbered year,
     7  then the term of office for  supervisor  shall  be  the  term  regularly
     8  provided  by  law;  the terms of office for two council members shall be
     9  the terms regularly provided by law and the  terms  for  the  other  two
    10  council members shall be two years each; the term for each justice shall
    11  be  the  term  regularly provided by law. Upon the expiration of the two
    12  year term for council members as above  provided,  the  terms  for  such
    13  offices shall be as regularly provided by law.
    14    (b)  If such election is held in an [even-numbered] odd-numbered year,
    15  then the term of office for supervisor shall be one year; the  terms  of
    16  office for council members shall be one year for two council members and
    17  three  years  for  the other two council members and the terms of office
    18  for each justice shall be for the remainder of the then unexpired terms.
    19  Thereafter, each office shall be filled for the term regularly  provided
    20  by law.
    21    §  3. Subdivision 11 of section 7-104 of the election law, as added by
    22  chapter 411 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
    23    11. [The offices appearing on all  ballots  shall  be  listed  in  the
    24  customary order] (a) The offices appearing on all ballots shall be list-
    25  ed  in  the  order  of  precedence,  as applicable to the offices up for
    26  election in any given year, as follows: electors for president and vice-
    27  president of the United States, governor and  lieutenant  governor,  New
    28  York  state  comptroller, New York state attorney general, United States
    29  senator, member of the house of representatives, New York state senator,
    30  member of the New York state assembly. Any office which is not listed in
    31  this paragraph shall not appear on the ballot in a  position  before  or
    32  ahead of an office which is listed.
    33    (b)  Immediately following the offices in paragraph (a) of this subdi-
    34  vision, all other offices shall be placed upon the ballot in the custom-
    35  ary order; provided, further, that partisan offices  regardless  of  the
    36  size  of the constituency shall be listed before or ahead of nonpartisan
    37  offices and all candidates for judicial offices shall follow  all  other
    38  partisan offices.
    39    § 4. Section 400 of the county law is amended by adding a new subdivi-
    40  sion 8 to read as follows:
    41    8.  All  elections for any position of a county elected official shall
    42  occur on the Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday  in  November  and
    43  shall occur in an even-numbered year; provided however, this subdivision
    44  shall  not apply to an election for the office of sheriff, county clerk,
    45  district attorney, family court judge,  county  court  judge,  surrogate
    46  court  judge,  town justice, or any offices with a three-year term as of
    47  the effective date of this subdivision.
    48    § 5. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law or of any other
    49  general, special, or local law,  a  county  elected  official,  or  town
    50  elected  official  elected  and serving their term as of January 1, 2025
    51  shall complete their full term  as  established  in  local  law.    This
    52  section shall not apply to an election for the office of sheriff, county
    53  clerk, district attorney, family court judge, county court judge, surro-
    54  gate court judge, and town justice.
    55    §  6.   Any county or town official that is elected in an odd-numbered
    56  year after January 1, 2025, shall have their  term  expire  as  if  such
        S. 3505                             3

     1  official  were elected at the previous general election held in an even-
     2  numbered year; provided however in no event shall such expiration  occur
     3  later than December 31 of such following year. Such term shall be appli-
     4  cable  to  any general, special, or local law pertaining to term limits.
     5  Nothing in this section shall prohibit a county or town from enacting  a
     6  local  law  to  alter  or permit alteration of an official's term limit.
     7  This section shall not apply to an election for the office  of  sheriff,
     8  county clerk, district attorney, family court judge, county court judge,
     9  surrogate court judge, and town justice.
    10    §  7.  Severability.  If  any provision of this act is held invalid or
    11  ineffective in whole or in part or inapplicable to any person  or  situ-
    12  ation, such invalidity or holding shall not affect, impair or invalidate
    13  other  provisions  or  applications of this act that can be given effect
    14  without the invalid provision or application, and all  other  provisions
    15  thereof  shall  nevertheless  be  separately and fully effective, and to
    16  this end the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
    17    § 8. This act shall take effect  immediately;  provided  however  that
    18  sections  one, two, three and four of this act shall take effect January
    19  1, 2025.