Bill Text: NY S08367 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Relates to certain absentee ballots received by a board of elections that do not bear or display a dated postmark.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-07-22 - PRINT NUMBER 8367A [S08367 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S08367-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         8367--A

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 19, 2020
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sens. MYRIE, COMRIE, GOUNARDES, HOYLMAN, LIU, MAY -- read
          twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to  the
          Committee  on Elections -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the  election  law,  in  relation  to  certain  absentee
          ballots received by a board of elections that do not bear or display a
          dated postmark

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

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412  of  the  election  law,  as
     2  amended  by  chapter  91  of  the  laws  of  2020, is amended to read as
     3  follows:
     4    1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
     5  it before the close of  the  polls  on  election  day  and  all  ballots
     6  contained in envelopes [showing a cancellation mark of] submitted to the
     7  United  States  postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or
     8  [showing a dated endorsement of receipt by] another agency of the United
     9  States government, with a date which is ascertained to be not later than
    10  the day of the election and received by  such  board  of  elections  not
    11  later  than  seven  days  following  the  day of election to be cast and
    12  counted.  The board of elections shall affix  to  each  absentee  ballot
    13  envelope a unique bar code that permits the board of elections to ascer-
    14  tain  the  date upon which an absentee ballot is submitted to the United
    15  States postal service or a foreign country's postal service, or  another
    16  agency of the United States government.
    17    § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election law, as amended by
    18  chapter 155 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
    19    1. The board of elections shall cause all absentee ballots received by
    20  it  before  the  close  of  the  polls  on  election day and all ballots
    21  contained in envelopes [showing a cancellation mark of] submitted to the
    22  United States postal service or a foreign country's postal  service,  or
    23  [showing a dated endorsement of receipt by] another agency of the United
    24  States government, with a date which is ascertained to be not later than
    25  the day [before] of the election and received by such board of elections

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD16404-04-0
        S. 8367--A                          2

     1  not  later  than seven days following the day of election to be cast and
     2  counted except that the absentee ballot of a voter  who  requested  such
     3  ballot by letter, rather than application, shall not be counted unless a
     4  valid  application  form, signed by such voter, is received by the board
     5  of elections with such ballot.  The board of elections  shall  affix  to
     6  each  absentee  ballot envelope a unique bar code that permits the board
     7  of elections to ascertain the date upon  which  an  absentee  ballot  is
     8  submitted  to  the  United  States postal service or a foreign country's
     9  postal service, or another agency of the United States government.
    10    § 3. Subdivision 2 of section 8-412 of the election law is  renumbered
    11  subdivision 3 and a new subdivision 2 is added to read as follows:
    12    2.  An  absentee  ballot that has no cancellation mark, a cancellation
    13  mark with no date, or an  illegible  cancellation  mark,  and  no  other
    14  information  is  available  from  the  United States postal service or a
    15  foreign country's postal service, or another agency of the United States
    16  government to indicate the date on which the absentee ballot was mailed,
    17  the absentee ballot shall be timely cast and canvassed if it is received
    18  by the board of elections through the United States postal service or  a
    19  foreign  country's postal service or another agency of the United States
    20  government, no later than the seventh day after the election day and the
    21  absentee ballot affidavit envelope is signed and dated on or before  the
    22  day of election.
    23    §  4.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately  and shall apply to
    24  elections occurring on or after such effective date, provided,  however,
    25  that  the  amendments  to subdivision 1 of section 8-412 of the election
    26  law made by section one of this act shall be subject to  the  expiration
    27  and reversion of such subdivision pursuant to section 7 of chapter 91 of
    28  the  laws  of  2020  as  amended,  when upon such date the provisions of
    29  section two of this act shall take effect.