STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

10541

IN ASSEMBLY

July 6, 2022 ___________

Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Kelles) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law

AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to allowing qualified voters who are primary caregivers of one or more individuals to vote by absentee ballot

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

1 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 8-400 of the 2 election law, as amended by chapter 139 of the laws of 2020, is amended 3 to read as follows: 4 (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election 5 district in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or 6 physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more 7 individuals [who are ill or physically disabled], or because he or she 8 will be or is a patient in a hospital, provided that, for purposes of 9 this paragraph, "illness" shall include, but not be limited to, 10 instances where a voter is unable to appear personally at the polling 11 place of the election district in which they are a qualified voter 12 because there is a risk of contracting or spreading a disease that may 13 cause illness to the voter or to other members of the public; or 14 § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 8-400 of the election 15 law, as amended by chapter 63 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as 16 follows: 17 (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election 18 district in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or 19 physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more 20 individuals [who are ill or physically disabled], or because he or she 21 will be or is a patient in a hospital; or 22 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 15-122 of the election law, as amended 23 by chapter 2 of the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows: 24 1. A qualified elector of a village, who, on the occurrence of any 25 general or special village election, may be within the county of [his] 26 such elector's residence but unable to appear personally at the polling 27 place in the village of [his] such elector's residence because of

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD15817-02-2

A. 10541 2

1 illness, physical disability, or duties related to the primary care of 2 one or more individuals, or confinement either at home or in a hospital 3 or institution, other than a mental institution may vote as an absentee 4 voter under this section, provided that, for purposes of this subdivi- 5 sion, "illness" shall include, but not be limited to, instances where a 6 voter is unable to appear personally at the polling place of the 7 election district in which they are a qualified voter because there is a 8 risk of contracting or spreading a disease that may cause illness to the 9 voter or to other members of the public. 10 § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 15-122 of the election law is amended to 11 read as follows: 12 1. A qualified elector of a village, who, on the occurrence of any 13 general or special village election, may be within the county of [his] 14 such elector's residence but unable to appear personally at the polling 15 place in the village of [his] such elector's residence because of 16 illness, physical disability, or duties related to the primary care of 17 one or more individuals, or confinement either at home or in a hospital 18 or institution, other than a mental institution may vote as an absentee 19 voter under this section. 20 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all 21 elections occurring on and after such date; provided, however, that the 22 amendments to paragraph (b) of subdivision 1 of section 8-400 and subdi- 23 vision 1 of section 15-122 of the election law made by sections one and 24 three of this act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion of 25 such subdivisions pursuant to chapter 139 of the laws of 2020, as 26 amended, when upon such date the provisions of sections two and four of 27 this act shall take effect.