Monday, March 2, 2009

1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE 2 3 4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD 5 6 7 8 9 ALBANY, NEW YORK 10 March 2, 2009 11 3:20 p.m. 12 13 14 REGULAR SESSION 15 16 17 18 SENATOR ANDREA STEWART-COUSINS, Acting President 19 ANGELO J. APONTE, Secretary 20 21 22 23 24

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(518) 371-8910 1 P R O C E E D I N G S 2 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 3 The Senate will please come to order. 4 I ask everyone present to rise and 5 recite with me the Pledge of Allegiance to our 6 Flag. 7 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited 8 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.) 9 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 10 In the absence of clergy, may we all bow our 11 heads for a moment of silence. 12 (Whereupon, the assemblage 13 respected a moment of silence.) 14 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 15 Thank you. 16 The reading of the Journal. 17 The Secretary will read. 18 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, 19 Friday, February 27, the Senate met pursuant 20 to adjournment. The Journal of Thursday, 21 February 26, was read and approved. On 22 motion, Senate adjourned. 23 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 24 Without objection, the Journal stands approved

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(518) 371-8910 1 as read. 2 Presentation of petitions. 3 Messages from the Assembly. 4 Messages from the Governor. 5 Reports of standing committees. 6 Reports of select committees. 7 Communications and reports from 8 state officers. 9 Motions and resolutions. 10 Senator Parker. 11 SENATOR PARKER: Madam President, 12 I move that the following bill be discharged 13 from its respective committee and be 14 recommitted with instructions to strike the 15 enacting clause. And that's Bill Number 1421. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 17 So ordered. 18 SENATOR PARKER: Thank you. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Senator Klein. 21 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 22 can we at this time go to the reading of the 23 noncontroversial calendar, please. 24 I'm sorry, let's back up. Senator

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(518) 371-8910 1 Seward has a resolution at the desk. I ask 2 that the title be read and move for its 3 immediate adoption. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 5 The Secretary will read. 6 THE SECRETARY: By Senator 7 Seward, Legislative Resolution Number 584, 8 mourning the untimely death of Corporal 9 Michael L. Mayne of Burlington Flats, 10 New York, and paying tribute to his courageous 11 actions as a member of the United States Army. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Senator Seward. 14 SENATOR SEWARD: Yes, thank you, 15 Madam President. And thank you, Senator 16 Klein. 17 I rise to mourn the loss of Army 18 Corporal Michael L. Mayne, 21 years old, of 19 Burlington Flats, which is a small community 20 in my district, who died a week ago on Monday, 21 February 23rd, due to injuries sustained in 22 Iraq. 23 In his all-too-short life, Michael, 24 Corporal Michael Mayne, accomplished a great

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(518) 371-8910 1 deal. He was an Eagle Scout, a high school 2 athlete, high school scholar. And after 3 graduation from high school at Edmeston 4 Central School District, he joined the United 5 States Army in July of 2006. 6 And Michael was a first-rate 7 friend. He was a natural-born leader. He 8 offered to everyone that he came in contact 9 with his unique sense of humor and compassion 10 for others. 11 For one so young, it is hard to 12 imagine the diverse depths of this young man, 13 Michael Mayne, be it his commitment to 14 scouting as an Eagle Scout, commitment to his 15 family and close friends, to God and country. 16 In short, Madam President, Michael Mayne was a 17 true hero. 18 And I appreciate the passage of 19 this resolution today. And, Madam President, 20 I would ask that you ask all members to go on 21 this resolution because I know, during this 22 very difficult time, that the expression of 23 sympathy to this family, the Mayne family, 24 will be a great comfort to them.

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(518) 371-8910 1 Thank you, Madam President. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 3 Thank you, Senator Seward. 4 Are there any other Senators who 5 wish to be heard on the resolution? 6 The question is on the resolution. 7 All those in favor please signify by saying 8 aye. 9 (Response of "Aye.") 10 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 11 Opposed, nay. 12 (No response.) 13 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 14 The resolution is adopted. 15 At the request of the sponsor, the 16 resolution is open for multisponsorship by the 17 entire house. Any member wishing not to be a 18 multisponsor of the resolution should so 19 inform the desk. 20 Senator Klein. 21 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 22 I believe there's a substitution at the desk. 23 I ask that it be taken up at this time. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS:

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(518) 371-8910 1 The Secretary will read. 2 THE SECRETARY: On page 9, 3 Senator Thompson moves to discharge, from the 4 Committee on Investigations and Government 5 Operations, Assembly Bill Number 3483 and 6 substitute it for the identical Senate Bill 7 Number 1190, Third Reading Calendar 61. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 9 Substitution ordered. 10 Senator Klein. 11 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 12 may we at this time go to the reading of the 13 noncontroversial calendar. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 15 The Secretary will read. 16 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 17 31, by Senator Savino, Senate Print 1407, an 18 act to amend Chapter 695 of the Laws of 1994 19 amending the Civil Service Law. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 21 Read the last section. 22 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 23 act shall take effect immediately. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS:

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(518) 371-8910 1 Call the roll. 2 (The Secretary called the roll.) 3 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 55. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 5 The bill is passed. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 32, by Senator Savino, Senate Print 1409, an 8 act to amend the Retirement and Social 9 Security Law, in relation to the membership of 10 police officers and firefighters. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 12 Read the last section. 13 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 14 act shall take effect immediately. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 16 Call the roll. 17 (The Secretary called the roll.) 18 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 56. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 The bill is passed. 21 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 22 37, by Senator Dilan, Senate Print 1554, an 23 act to amend the Election Law, in relation to 24 counting of affidavit ballots.

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(518) 371-8910 1 SENATOR LIBOUS: Lay it aside, 2 please. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 4 The bill is laid aside. 5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 6 42, by Senator Stavisky, Senate Print 1550, an 7 act to amend the Education Law, in relation to 8 providing a program fee option for graduate 9 students. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 11 Read the last section. 12 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 13 act shall take effect immediately. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 15 Call the roll. 16 (The Secretary called the roll.) 17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 56. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 19 The bill is passed. 20 Senator Klein, that completes the 21 noncontroversial reading of the calendar. 22 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 23 at this time can we move to the reading of the 24 controversial calendar.

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 2 If the Secretary would please ring the bells. 3 Members are asked to come to the chamber for 4 the controversial reading of the calendar. 5 The Secretary will read. 6 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number 7 37, by Senator Dilan, Senate Print 1554, an 8 act to amend the Election Law. 9 SENATOR LIBOUS: Explanation, 10 please. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 12 Senator Dilan, an explanation of Calendar 37 13 has been requested. 14 SENATOR DILAN: Madam President, 15 the purpose of this bill is to require the 16 Board of Elections -- 17 SENATOR LIBOUS: Excuse me, Madam 18 President. I can't hear Senator Dilan. It 19 seems to be quite noisy in the back of the 20 chamber. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 22 Can we have order in the chamber, please. 23 Thank you. 24 Senator Dilan.

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(518) 371-8910 1 SENATOR DILAN: Madam President, 2 the purpose of this bill is to require the 3 counting of ballots when voters appear at the 4 correct polling site but at the wrong election 5 district. 6 This bill merely codifies the 7 existing case law in Panio v. Sunderland, and 8 we're just looking to codify the law. And the 9 Court of Appeals has ruled that in cases where 10 voters are sent to the wrong election district 11 by the Board of Elections, they can assume 12 that it was a ministerial error by the Board 13 of Elections and therefore their vote should 14 be counted and not disenfranchised. 15 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President. 16 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 17 Senator Libous. 18 SENATOR LIBOUS: Would Senator 19 Dilan yield for a few questions? 20 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 21 Senator Dilan, will you yield? 22 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, Madam 23 President. 24 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, Madam

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(518) 371-8910 1 President. I went over the bill in committee 2 and certainly have some questions for Senator 3 Dilan. And I certainly appreciate, Madam 4 President, what he wants to do as far as 5 counting votes. 6 But -- Madam President, through 7 you -- Senator, would the bill allow people to 8 vote in any election district within a given 9 polling place? I mean, can someone come into 10 any polling place where there might be three 11 or four election districts and then just pick 12 one and vote? 13 SENATOR DILAN: Well, a person 14 would walk into their polling site and if for 15 some reason they're steered to the wrong 16 election district and their name does not 17 appear in the voter records, they would vote 18 on an affidavit ballot. 19 And I think that what you're asking 20 with the question is if we have two Assembly 21 districts within that same polling place and a 22 person is allowed to vote in the wrong 23 election district and they were not entitled 24 to vote, for example, in that Assembly

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(518) 371-8910 1 district, would they be allowed to vote? Yes, 2 they would be allowed to vote there. 3 However, when the Board of 4 Elections would count the votes, the Board of 5 Elections would only count those votes where 6 the voter is eligible to vote in -- for 7 example, Governor, Congressional district, 8 State Senate district, any local election. 9 But let's say if they're not eligible to vote 10 in a particular election, that vote would not 11 be counted by the Board of Elections. 12 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President, 13 would the Senator continue to yield? 14 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 15 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 16 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, Madam 17 President. 18 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 19 The Senator continues to yield. 20 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 21 Senator. 22 So you're saying that if there are 23 several polling places in one particular 24 building, that the bill that you're sponsoring

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(518) 371-8910 1 and is on the floor today would actually 2 designate the race as to where that person 3 could vote? Or does it designate -- I mean, 4 how does one know if he's voting for, say, a 5 State Assembly race and there's five different 6 polling booths there for five different 7 Assembly districts, how does one know under 8 this legislation as to where the right one is? 9 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 10 Senator Dilan. 11 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, I'd like to 12 respond to that. 13 Let's say, for example, that I walk 14 into my own polling place where I usually vote 15 and let's say for some reason -- or I just 16 moved into a new area in a polling site where 17 maybe I have never voted before, it's my first 18 time voting at that site, and I am an eligible 19 voter. I would go to one of the Board of 20 Elections employees to direct me to the 21 correct election district. 22 If they do indeed direct me to that 23 election district, when they look my name up 24 in the book, my name would be in the book and

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(518) 371-8910 1 I would sign. 2 However, if they direct me to the 3 wrong election district, my name will not be 4 in the book, but I know that I'm an eligible 5 voter and I request an affidavit ballot. The 6 Board of Elections would have to give me one. 7 I would vote in that election on a paper 8 ballot, seal it, return it. That would not be 9 counted until such time that the Board of 10 Elections is recanvassing or counting 11 affidavit ballots. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Senator Libous. 14 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 15 Senator. 16 Would the Senator, Madam President, 17 still continue to yield? 18 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 19 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 20 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, Madam 21 President. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 23 Yes, he yields. 24 SENATOR LIBOUS: So if I

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(518) 371-8910 1 understand this correctly -- and I would ask, 2 through you, Madam President, the Senator -- 3 if there's a building and there's two polling 4 places in that building and I would say that 5 Senator DeFrancisco is on one of the ballots 6 and, say, Senator Dilan, you're on the other 7 ballot, and I come in as a voter and one who 8 believes he's a registered voter and should be 9 on, as you mentioned, the book somewhere -- 10 and I come in and I don't appear on the book, 11 what happens then? 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Senator Dilan. 14 SENATOR DILAN: Well, when you 15 vote on an affidavit ballot, first of all, 16 you're signing an oath. Secondly, you're also 17 placing your address where you are eligible to 18 vote from. 19 And at that time when the Board of 20 Elections opens up the affidavit ballot, they 21 would be able to determine if you are indeed 22 eligible to vote in Senator DeFrancisco's 23 district or my own district. By voting in the 24 wrong Senatorial district, then that vote

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(518) 371-8910 1 would be invalid. 2 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, 3 Senator. 4 Madam President, could I continue 5 to ask the Senator to yield? 6 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 7 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 8 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, Madam 9 President. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 11 The Senator continues to yield. 12 SENATOR LIBOUS: So if I 13 understand this -- and, Madam President, 14 through you -- if I'm not on the books and I 15 come in to vote and under your legislation I 16 vote in the wrong election district and it 17 turns out that they fill out an affidavit 18 ballot and I vote for you but really I'm in 19 Senator DeFrancisco's district, it's your 20 interpretation that that vote should be 21 counted? 22 SENATOR DILAN: Should not be 23 counted. 24 SENATOR LIBOUS: Should not be

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(518) 371-8910 1 counted. 2 Would the Senator continue to 3 yield? 4 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 5 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 6 SENATOR DILAN: Yes, Madam 7 President. 8 SENATOR LIBOUS: Senator, I 9 understand what you said, and I'm fully -- I 10 don't disagree with your statement. But where 11 is that in your bill? I don't seem to 12 understand how that procedure follows suit in 13 the legislation that's before the floor. 14 SENATOR DILAN: It's my 15 understanding that that is already law. I 16 don't have the exact section of law right now, 17 but I'm sure we could find it and get it to 18 you. 19 But the Board of Elections knows 20 that it's law. And if they're aware that I'm 21 not in a particular district where I'm not 22 eligible to vote, they are not going to count 23 that vote, sir. 24 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President,

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(518) 371-8910 1 would the Senator please continue to yield? 2 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 3 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 4 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 6 The Senator continues to yield. 7 SENATOR LIBOUS: You've certainly 8 made it to clear to me on a situation where if 9 someone comes in and fills out an affidavit 10 ballot. But if I could -- Madam President, 11 through you -- to the Senator point out 12 another situation, and maybe the Senator can 13 clarify my mind on this issue. 14 Let's assume that I come into the 15 polling place, and again we'll keep it the 16 same, that you're on the ballot in one place, 17 and Senator DeFrancisco. And let's say that 18 the Board of Elections, the inspectors -- who 19 work tirelessly, but work an awful lot of 20 hours -- late in the day makes a mistake, 21 Madam President, and sends me to Senator 22 Dilan's district to vote, and for whatever 23 reason they accept that. 24 I mean, what happens then? Is that

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(518) 371-8910 1 vote counted? Because I'm really in Senator 2 DeFrancisco's district. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 4 Senator Dilan. 5 SENATOR DILAN: I will repeat 6 myself. That vote would not count if the 7 person is not eligible to vote in that 8 particular election. 9 SENATOR LIBOUS: I'm sorry, Madam 10 President, I'm having difficulty hearing. 11 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 12 Senator Dilan, would you repeat your answer? 13 SENATOR DILAN: If the person 14 votes in my senatorial district and they're 15 not eligible to vote in that senatorial 16 district, that vote would not count. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 18 The vote would not count, Senator. 19 SENATOR DILAN: And also I would 20 just like to indicate, on the prior question, 21 the section of the law is 9-209.2 where the 22 Board of Elections would not count a vote if a 23 person is not eligible to vote in that 24 particular contest.

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(518) 371-8910 1 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President, 2 if the Senator would continue to yield. 3 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 4 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 5 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 7 The Senator continues to yield. 8 SENATOR LIBOUS: Senator Dilan, 9 does that not hurt the integrity of our 10 system, I mean, giving an individual an 11 opportunity to vote because of a mistake made 12 by the Board of Elections, because the person 13 is indeed a registered voter but is sent to 14 the wrong room or the wrong -- as we say, he's 15 in the right church but in the wrong pew? 16 SENATOR DILAN: Madam President, 17 that's the whole point of this legislation, is 18 to codify a decision by the Court of Appeals. 19 And I'm going to read a quote of 20 that court's decision by the Court of Appeals. 21 It says: "We can reasonably infer that 22 casting an affidavit ballot at the correct 23 polling place but the wrong election district 24 is the result of ministerial error on the part

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(518) 371-8910 1 of a poll worker in failing to direct the 2 voter to the correct table, and instead 3 providing the voter with an affidavit ballot 4 without first verifying such voter's right to 5 the vote in the election district." 6 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President, 7 would the Senator continue to yield? 8 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 9 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 10 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 11 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President, 12 so I heard the Court of Appeals ruling, and 13 certainly I understand it. And I appreciate 14 the Senator reading it. 15 I guess, does your bill put the 16 onus on the Board of Elections to invalidate 17 the vote that's cast, or is it on the 18 individual? I'm a little confused as to the 19 wording in the language in the legislation. 20 SENATOR DILAN: Well, the onus to 21 determine whether the voter is eligible to 22 vote in a particular election or not should be 23 on the Board of Elections. 24 And as I previously mentioned, the

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(518) 371-8910 1 section of the law is 9-209.2. 2 SENATOR LIBOUS: Madam President, 3 would the Senator continue to yield? 4 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 5 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 6 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 8 Senator Dilan yields. 9 SENATOR LIBOUS: Senator Dilan, 10 your legislation is well-intended, and I think 11 you want to give people a right to vote, and I 12 certainly applaud you for that. 13 But again, the legislation is 14 really not worded, I think, to do that. You 15 reference in your legislation that the person 16 "was entitled to vote at such election." 17 Wouldn't it be better to word it that 18 "entitled to vote for such office"? I mean, 19 isn't this about voting for an office rather 20 than a particular election? 21 SENATOR DILAN: Madam President, 22 as I indicated before, the purpose of this 23 bill is to codify existing law. And as I 24 mentioned, there is a law already -- which

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(518) 371-8910 1 I've indicated twice -- that ensures that a 2 voter votes in the correct elections and only 3 gets to vote for those offices for which 4 they're entitled to. 5 So I actually that think this is a 6 very simple and clear bill. And I will move 7 to have this bill adopted today. 8 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 9 Senator Libous. 10 SENATOR LIBOUS: Thank you, Madam 11 President. Thank you, Senator. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Thank you, Senator. 14 Senator Little. 15 SENATOR LITTLE: Thank you, Madam 16 President. 17 Would the sponsor yield for a 18 question, please? 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Senator Dilan, do you yield? 21 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 22 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 23 The sponsor yields. 24 SENATOR LITTLE: Thank you.

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(518) 371-8910 1 Senator Dilan, I understand that 2 there is a law that if you go to the wrong 3 polling place, you can do an affidavit ballot, 4 and it may not be for the same people that you 5 could have voted for in the correct one. 6 But I'll give you a situation that 7 I have. In the Town of Ticonderoga, all six 8 of the election districts are in the same 9 location, they're at the firehouse. However, 10 there are two Congressional seats. So we have 11 Congressman A and Congressman B. Sometimes 12 one side of the street votes for one and one 13 votes for the other. 14 So you have a person coming into 15 this busy place, and they see the six election 16 districts. Because of this -- if this became 17 law, they could just step up to any one of 18 those, and they'd say, "Well, this isn't your 19 right polling place, but here's your ballot, 20 you can vote." So that person is voting for 21 the wrong Congressperson. 22 Well, you're telling me that that 23 will be thrown out. And yet I would have to 24 question who and how long do they look at

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(518) 371-8910 1 these affidavit ballots. If there's only one 2 person and one vote on the ballot, are they 3 going to be able to catch every single one? 4 And secondly, the person -- you're 5 taking away the person's right to vote for the 6 Congressman that's going to represent them. 7 SENATOR DILAN: Well, I believe 8 I've answered the question. But you did 9 modify there at the end. 10 Again, if the person votes in the 11 wrong Congressional district, they're not 12 entitled to vote in that district, so that 13 vote does not count. And here we're talking 14 about ministerial error of the Board of 15 Elections or Board of Elections employee. So 16 it was really, in a sense, the board who sent 17 the person to the wrong place. 18 That person may lose their vote in 19 the Congressional race. However, they are 20 indeed entitled to vote in all the other 21 contests that they are eligible to vote in. 22 SENATOR LITTLE: Thank you. 23 Would the sponsor yield to another 24 question, please?

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 2 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 3 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 4 SENATOR LITTLE: So supposing I 5 go into the election district, there are six 6 polling places, and I go up to Number 2. And 7 say, "I'm supposed to be able to vote here." 8 And they say, "Well, you're not listed here," 9 so then they just give me the affidavit. 10 There's nobody directing the 11 person. Isn't that person under some 12 obligation to look it up and say, "No, you 13 should be at Polling District number 5"? Is 14 there an obligation for them? 15 SENATOR DILAN: I would believe 16 that it would be the obligation of the Board 17 of Elections to indeed verify. 18 However, as Senator Libous 19 indicated earlier, in some cases Board of 20 Elections employees are working 12, 15 hours 21 in one day, and there are chances that errors 22 are made. Therefore, that voter should not be 23 disenfranchised to vote in those contests that 24 they are eligible to vote in.

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(518) 371-8910 1 SENATOR LITTLE: Well, another 2 question, may I, please? 3 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 4 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 5 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 7 Senator Little. 8 SENATOR LITTLE: I'm just saying, 9 Senator Dilan, supposing the person doesn't 10 ask which one I should go to, they just decide 11 to go to the shorter polling place because 12 they're in a hurry. And the person says, 13 "Well, you're not registered here, but go 14 ahead, you can vote." And they vote for the 15 wrong Congressional candidate, and they're out 16 of there. 17 Aren't you making it more 18 accessible for people to vote in the wrong 19 district? 20 SENATOR DILAN: You know, the 21 Court of Appeals has ruled on this matter -- 22 and I'll just read a small portion of it 23 again. It says, "We can reasonably infer that 24 casting an affidavit ballot at the correct

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(518) 371-8910 1 polling place but the wrong election district 2 is the result of ministerial error" of the 3 Board of Elections. 4 And if an inspector at the Board of 5 Elections does not find your name in the 6 election books of the election district that 7 they're working in, maybe it should be their 8 responsibility to look up in a Street Finder 9 and direct you to the correct polling site. 10 SENATOR LITTLE: One more 11 question, if I may. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Senator Dilan, do you continue to yield? 14 SENATOR DILAN: Last question. 15 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 16 Senator Dilan indicates this is his last 17 question to answer. 18 SENATOR LITTLE: So I should make 19 it good. 20 SENATOR DILAN: Make it good. 21 SENATOR LITTLE: But is it their 22 responsibility, when they see that the person 23 has stepped up to the wrong polling place, to 24 tell them the right one to go to? I just --

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(518) 371-8910 1 my fear is I don't think that happens. And I 2 don't think that everyone that walks into a 3 big polling place asks which one they should 4 go to. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 6 Senator Dilan. 7 SENATOR DILAN: The inspector is 8 an employee of the Board of Elections. That's 9 what they get paid to do. And I believe that 10 their responsibility is to ensure that the 11 enfranchisement of that individual happens. 12 And I believe it should be their 13 responsibility to direct the person to the 14 correct election district should they not find 15 the name in the book. 16 SENATOR LITTLE: Thank you, 17 Senator Dilan. 18 On the bill, Madam President. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Senator Little, on the bill. 21 SENATOR LITTLE: I just believe 22 that this type of bill is actually making it 23 easier to vote in the wrong election district. 24 And what you're doing is saying to someone

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(518) 371-8910 1 that the right to vote is so important, but 2 it's okay if you mess up and you vote for the 3 wrong candidates and it won't count. 4 So I think there should be more 5 attention paid to directing the person to the 6 right one, or at least, when they get to the 7 wrong one, having it more of a responsibility 8 of the inspector to send them to the correct 9 polling place. 10 And because of that, I will vote 11 against this bill. 12 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 13 Senator DeFrancisco. 14 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Yes, would 15 Senator Dilan yield to a question or two? 16 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 17 Senator Dilan, will you yield for a question? 18 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 The Senator yields. 21 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Senator 22 Dilan, is it true that in New York City that 23 there's optical scanning as far as the way 24 votes are counted?

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 2 Senator Dilan. 3 SENATOR DILAN: Is there optical 4 scanning? 5 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Of paper 6 ballots. 7 SENATOR DILAN: Paper ballots? 8 Yes. 9 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: And also -- 10 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 11 Are you asking the Senator to continue to 12 yield? 13 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: I'm just 14 about ready to ask you if you would yield to 15 another question. Senator Dilan, will you 16 yield to another question? 17 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 18 Senator Dilan, will you continue to yield? 19 SENATOR DILAN: Yes. Yes. 20 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 21 He yields. 22 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: So, Senator 23 Dilan, once the ballot, the affidavit ballot 24 is submitted, the initial event that will

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(518) 371-8910 1 happen is that it will be scanned as a correct 2 vote for candidates in the correct district; 3 is that not correct? 4 SENATOR DILAN: Well, my 5 understanding is that if it's scanned and it's 6 the wrong election district, it would be 7 rejected by the scanner as not valid. 8 And, you know, also I'd like to go 9 further. If we're talking about a close 10 election, I would believe that if you're 11 talking a close election of maybe under a 12 hundred votes or less, or even a little higher 13 than that, I would believe that both sides 14 would be represented at these events and both 15 sides would have a chance to object or appeal 16 any decision that's made by the board. 17 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: On the 18 bill. I may have a couple of other questions 19 in a moment, but -- 20 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 21 Senator DeFrancisco, on the bill. 22 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Right. 23 The court in this decision -- and 24 I've read the decision -- talks about how

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(518) 371-8910 1 there's a presumption that there was a 2 ministerial error. 3 And the court can interpret laws 4 however they think they should interpret them, 5 but it seems to me the more logical 6 presumption is that someone who's registered 7 to vote went someplace they weren't supposed 8 to go and they made a mistake. 9 To suggest that some Board of 10 Elections person said "No, you go to that 11 district over there, not this district over 12 here," or to assume that an affidavit is 13 prepared supposedly with an address and that 14 the address is looked at by the Board of 15 Elections person and the person still is 16 directed to the wrong election district, 17 sounds like unreasonable presumptions. 18 Secondly, and if the presumption is 19 unreasonable, it seems to me that the law 20 should reflect what reasonable presumptions 21 are; and namely, the onus should be on the 22 voter. If you're a voter and you decide that 23 you want to vote, it seems not very difficult 24 to determine what election district you're

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(518) 371-8910 1 voting in. And also it doesn't seem very 2 difficult for you to figure out, if there's 3 10 machines, to ask somebody "What machine do 4 I vote in?" 5 So what we're doing by encouraging 6 voter negligence, what we're really 7 encouraging is that votes are going to be cast 8 at the wrong election district -- sometimes 9 for wrong candidates, if there's two separate 10 Senate districts in the same building, for 11 example, if they're voting on it, or two 12 Assembly districts in the same building. And 13 we shouldn't be encouraging that. 14 And secondly, Senator Dilan, it 15 seems also to me that we shouldn't be 16 encouraging lawsuits to determine who wins an 17 election, lawsuits that result in a Senator 18 being seated two months after the start of 19 election -- or the next year that that person 20 is supposed to serve, and therefore leaving 21 his or her constituents unrepresented for two 22 months. 23 So I don't think it's too much of a 24 burden on voters to figure out where they're

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(518) 371-8910 1 supposed to vote, and if they vote at the 2 wrong election district, as the law generally 3 provides right now, before this court 4 decision, that it's not going to count. Then 5 there's no scanning of votes and a false sense 6 of who's winning an election -- or let's look 7 at election fraud. 8 Let's look at election fraud. 9 Let's suppose, for example, that someone is 10 not as pure as we would hope people are, but 11 that a candidate or a campaign decides they 12 want to bus in a bunch of people, and they're 13 going to sign whatever affidavits have to be 14 signed in order for a specific candidate to 15 win. And don't think for a moment that 16 election fraud does not take place and that 17 this doesn't take place. 18 So now the presumption is that the 19 people that are brought in claiming they're 20 living in the district and write a false 21 address down, that vote is being counted 22 unless it's either found by the Board of 23 Elections inspectors -- which is less likely 24 if it's going to be scanned in a scanning-type

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(518) 371-8910 1 account -- or the onus is on the other 2 candidate to go out and prove that someone 3 else is being fraudulent when these things 4 happen. 5 So I would suggest that the fault 6 of this bill, really the fault is that you've 7 got the presumption on the wrong, wrong party. 8 We want voters -- conscientious voters, voters 9 that are going to vote in good faith, not 10 fraudulently. And if some conscientious voter 11 decides they're going to vote and they really 12 want to vote, they'll find what booth they're 13 supposed to go to. They're going to find it. 14 And if they don't, they made a 15 mistake, and in fact they're notified that 16 they made a mistake if their name isn't the 17 voter's journal. They know they made a 18 mistake. 19 So let's figure out what we've got 20 to do about it rather than, Okay, here's an 21 affidavit ballot, fill this out, we'll worry 22 about it later. 23 With all that said, I think this 24 bill is a very bad bill and should be voted

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(518) 371-8910 1 against by -- I will vote against it, and I'm 2 urging that -- 3 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 4 Senator Onorato, why do you rise? 5 SENATOR ONORATO: Senator, would 6 you yield to a question? 7 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 8 Senator DeFrancisco, do you yield? 9 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Sure. 10 SENATOR ONORATO: Senator 11 DeFrancisco, have you ever run across the 12 situation which I have many, many times, 13 working as a district captain, when we enroll 14 voters there -- and a lot of people get 15 enrolled by mail, and they get an 16 acknowledgment from the Board of Elections, 17 including the voting card that you're now in 18 Assembly District 36, Election District Number 19 12. 20 And you go there, and you present 21 your card, and the name is not in the book 22 because the Board of Elections failed to 23 upgrade the books. They may have been at the 24 very last minute and they didn't place the

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(518) 371-8910 1 name in the book. 2 Now, they had two options. They 3 either gave them the affidavit ballot to vote 4 on, to acknowledge it, or they were allowed to 5 go down because on Election Day they have a 6 special judge hearing any kind of cases that 7 can adjudicate the situation. They bring them 8 down there, and the hearing judge listens to 9 what they are saying and gives them a slip 10 that actually allows them to go in and vote on 11 the machines. 12 Are you aware of that particular 13 situation? 14 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: Yes, I am. 15 SENATOR ONORATO: Wouldn't that 16 be almost the same thing that we're discussing 17 right now? 18 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 19 Senator, I would appreciate it if you would 20 direct the conversation through me. 21 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: My answer 22 is it would not be -- it would be nowhere near 23 the same thing, not only not almost the same 24 thing. Because you're getting a court

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(518) 371-8910 1 involved. A judge could -- you'd at least 2 have someone going before a judge swearing to 3 where they're supposed to be voting for. 4 And there's always, I assume, the 5 Board of Elections -- the Board of Elections, 6 is it open on Election Day? Does anyone have 7 phones available, either the individual who's 8 sitting at the Board of Elections at the 9 polling booth, or a computer available to find 10 out whether there's a mistake or not? 11 And if that's a serious problem, 12 then it's pretty easy to rectify it by having 13 some system at Election Day to verify where 14 this person is supposed to be voting, rather 15 than a system where we're encouraging people 16 to go to wherever they want to go and we'll 17 worry about it later in court. 18 And I think that there is 19 alternatives. And at least with a judge 20 involved, there's at least some review. And I 21 think someone who's going to act fraudulently 22 is less likely to go before a judge and swear 23 falsely than that person might be able to get 24 away with a system that's being encouraged by

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(518) 371-8910 1 this bill. 2 I was just reminded, the judge 3 holds court or sits at the Board of Elections. 4 So there's avenues available for that judge to 5 check out whether this is correct or not. 6 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 7 Senator Krueger. 8 SENATOR LIZ KRUEGER: Thank you. 9 On the bill, Madam President. 10 You know, my colleagues point out 11 an interesting point. It would be great if we 12 had a perfect Board of Elections anywhere in 13 the state or in any one of our locales. It 14 would be great if we had a computer at every 15 polling site that anyone could look up their 16 information. And I would endorse that, having 17 a computer where you could cross-check your 18 information. But we don't have that. 19 I have to take exception to the 20 concept of voter negligence. No one goes to 21 vote and then wants to not be able to vote for 22 the people that they came out to vote for. 23 What they find, and I have seen in election 24 after election, they go to their polling site.

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(518) 371-8910 1 There aren't Street Finders that can look up 2 what their ED and AD are. 3 In my city, I can have one polling 4 site with 14 or 15 EDs in it. And a line 5 lines up on the street, and they try to get to 6 the one table with the books that will be able 7 to help them figure out what their correct pew 8 in that church is. 9 And if it was November 2008, people 10 stood on the streets at 5:00 in the morning, 11 lining up to vote for President of the United 12 States. They stood outside their polling 13 sites for up to two hours. They got in, and 14 one table with books listing where their site 15 would be -- which of the many tables? There 16 was chaos. There shouldn't have been. We 17 should have an election system that would 18 ensure that people would get the right 19 information. 20 Nobody doesn't want to vote if 21 they've gone to vote for their congressman or 22 their senator or their assemblymember or the 23 judges in their area. They make a mistake and 24 they can't find out the right information.

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(518) 371-8910 1 You're right, maybe we should have a system 2 where they have a phone system where you can 3 call in. They don't have one. At least in 4 New York City, when you try to call the Board 5 of Election on Election Day, you might get to 6 them three days afterwards. 7 I stood on the streets in November 8 outside the polling sites, 5:00, 6:00, 7:00, 9 8:00, 9:00, 10:00 in the morning, just looking 10 up people's correct election district for 11 them. But they didn't have the information. 12 And if they had tried to wait when they got 13 into the polling site, they could have been 14 there all day. 15 So they were told, "We don't know 16 which one, try that table." You go to the 17 table where you believe your election district 18 is. The person says, "You're not in the 19 book." And then when they were told, "Well, 20 now what do I do?" Because each table doesn't 21 have a full listing, they just have their 22 books. And they were told, "Get back in the 23 line." Get back in the line? It took them 24 three hours to get through that line. They

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(518) 371-8910 1 weren't able to get back in the line. So they 2 would ask for an affidavit ballot. 3 If that affidavit -- if they're not 4 a correct, eligible voter, as Senator Dilan 5 said, Madam President, then their vote is not 6 going to count. If, unfortunately, they got a 7 ballot that had the right senator but the 8 wrong Assembly district or the wrong 9 congressperson, unfortunately they lost their 10 right to vote for those elections. I think 11 that's terrible. 12 So I agree that we should try to 13 improve our Board of Elections. But we have 14 to make sure our priority is letting every 15 legal eligible voter vote. So this is not a 16 perfect system. This is an attempt to fix a 17 problem with our entire system. And so it's 18 one step forward, that's all. One step 19 forward. 20 We should take any number of steps 21 that were proposed today to make sure that 22 nobody's right to vote is ever taken away from 23 them. And, in this case, make sure that their 24 right to vote for every election that day is

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(518) 371-8910 1 upheld. 2 Do you know, I even know of an 3 election, Madam President, where the street 4 guides were missing from specific polling 5 sites so there was nobody at those polling 6 sites -- I believe it was in Yonkers, as a 7 matter of fact, Madam President, where no one 8 who came to vote that day could get access to 9 the information of what the right church and 10 right pew was. How frustrating for everybody 11 that day. 12 And there's no risk of voter fraud 13 here, because in fact if you're not found to 14 be registered and eligible to vote, no one is 15 counting that affidavit ballot. That is a 16 Board of Election responsibility, and that is 17 tracked. And if that ballot is not from a 18 legitimate registered voter, that ballot is 19 not going to be counted, affidavit or no 20 affidavit. 21 So I believe it is clear the courts 22 were right when they made the decision they 23 made. And we are right to take the step today 24 of ensuring that everyone who is eligible to

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(518) 371-8910 1 vote, even if they are given bad information 2 or misinformation by the Board of Election, 3 even if the Board of Election makes a mistake, 4 that they should have the right to vote. 5 In fact, an election in an 6 overlapping area of Tom Duane and mine, there 7 was a polling site -- I think it was two 8 elections ago -- well, some of the books got 9 to the wrong polling site. So when people 10 tried to look up at the correct ED/AD, they 11 were at the right pew and the right church, 12 but guess what, they didn't have the right 13 book. 14 It was a Board of Election error. 15 But for the first three hours of that Election 16 Day, if you showed up, you were told you 17 weren't in the book because the books weren't 18 there. 19 So there are so many human errors 20 that can take place in voting, and we should 21 work to fix all of them. But right now, in 22 our flawed, imperfect system, we have to make 23 sure if you show up to vote, even if we've 24 made a mistake, even if we can't fix our

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(518) 371-8910 1 errors, we make sure you have the right to 2 vote, and we recognize that in law. 3 So I vote aye, Madam President. 4 Thank you very much. 5 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 6 Thank you, Senator Krueger. I seem to recall 7 that Yonkers vote. 8 Senator Perkins. 9 SENATOR PERKINS: Thank you, 10 Madam President. 11 Let me first -- this bill, I want 12 to commend Senator Dilan for it. I think it 13 really helps fix an occasional problem that is 14 innocently made but nevertheless tries not to 15 deny the legitimate voter the opportunity to 16 be counted. And of course if they're not 17 entitled to be counted, then their vote won't 18 count, as was pointed out. 19 Too often, you know, voters go to 20 vote and, like many of us, don't know their 21 real election district. And they may -- which 22 is that particular polling site or particular 23 voting machine where you're supposed to 24 actually vote. And when you go, the inspector

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(518) 371-8910 1 might say "What is your name," and they'll 2 look you up in the book, and you're not in the 3 book because, frankly, you shouldn't be there. 4 But they nevertheless give you the 5 opportunity to vote on an affidavit ballot, 6 under the assumption that perhaps there's a 7 mistake. And in fact, by law, you're entitled 8 to do it. So you vote on it, and later on the 9 Board of Election checks it out and determines 10 that you are or you're not entitled to vote at 11 that particular voting booth for those 12 particular candidates and only counts those 13 that you're entitled to. 14 But this is actually a mistake that 15 the voters make. This is not about any 16 conspiracy for voter fraud or any organized 17 effort to effectuate the outcome of an 18 election. This is a simple mistake that often 19 occurs with inspectors who are then required 20 to provide the voter with an affidavit 21 opportunity to have their vote considered by 22 the Board of Elections and be counted if in 23 fact they're there. 24 So I think that there should be a

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(518) 371-8910 1 concern about the kind of fraud that some 2 folks are concerned about. This is not a 3 facilitator or in any way related to that. 4 This is something that actually corrects a 5 problem that very often happens even when you 6 are entitled to vote at the particular site 7 where your name doesn't appear because the 8 books are not up-to-date for one reason or 9 another. 10 So I this is a good piece of 11 legislation. I think it's encouraging that 12 we're moving on this today. And I think that 13 of course where there is voter fraud, you 14 know, efforts should be made to weed that out 15 as well. But this is not one that in any way 16 facilitates or contributes to that; quite the 17 opposite. What it contributes to is the 18 opportunity for people to have a real vote and 19 not be counted if they're not entitled to have 20 that vote. 21 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 22 Thank you, Senator. 23 Senator Schneiderman. 24 SENATOR SCHNEIDERMAN: Thank you,

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(518) 371-8910 1 Madam President. I'll be very brief. 2 This is an excellent bill. And I 3 would caution all of my colleagues, if you 4 want to make a statement about other problems 5 or concerns about the Board of Elections, this 6 is a simply a bill that would allow the most 7 people possible who are eligible to vote to 8 cast a ballot. 9 This is a quintessentially, 10 essentially and fundamentally American bill. 11 I thank Senator Dilan for putting it on the 12 floor today. We should do everything in our 13 power to see that the American tradition of 14 everyone who is eligible to vote getting a 15 chance to vote is carried on. And by voting 16 for this bill, you are standing firmly for 17 that American tradition. 18 I urge everyone to vote yes. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Are there any other Senators wishing to be 21 heard on the bill before us? 22 Hearing none, the debate is closed. 23 The Secretary will please ring the 24 bells.

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(518) 371-8910 1 Read the last section. 2 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This 3 act shall take effect immediately. 4 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 5 Call the roll. 6 (The Secretary called the roll.) 7 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 8 Senator Adams, to explain his vote. 9 SENATOR ADAMS: Yes, thank you, 10 Madam President. 11 I think there's one dynamic that 12 people often don't understand and they ignore 13 in the process that I see time and time again. 14 The process is extremely intimidating to the 15 average public. 16 We walk into governmental 17 buildings, we walk into the polling machines, 18 and to us, we're used to it. It's common 19 ground. But the average member of the public 20 who's afraid of the process, they look to the 21 Board of Election to give them direction. 22 And I've noticed that many of the 23 voter sites, particularly when we have a large 24 number of new voters, that when they go to the

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(518) 371-8910 1 Board of Election they're looking for them to 2 guide them to the right place. And if they 3 guide them to the wrong place, it's 4 intimidating to keep moving around the 5 location. 6 We have the responsibility as 7 government, that being the Board of Election, 8 they have a responsibility to do their due 9 diligence, not to put that responsibility on 10 the public. The process itself is 11 intimidating. And I know in many communities 12 it may not seem intimidating to all of us, but 13 it is intimidating to the average person. 14 I think this bill is one of the 15 many attempts we would try to do to address 16 and to increase our voter rolls. It is 17 despicable that in this great country we have 18 such a lack of participation from the average 19 voter because those intimidating barriers are 20 in place, and this is one of those barriers I 21 believe we can remove. 22 I am voting aye, and I encourage my 23 colleagues also to do so. 24 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS:

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(518) 371-8910 1 Senator Montgomery, to explain her vote. 2 SENATOR MONTGOMERY: Yes, thank 3 you, Madam President. 4 Just briefly, I want to thank my 5 colleague for this legislation. This is 6 extremely important, especially to my 7 constituents and I think constituents and 8 New Yorkers across this state, because we 9 should not be raising any barrier to people 10 being able to walk into a polling site on 11 Election Day who are already registered at 12 that polling site and, because they went to 13 the wrong table, we take away their vote. 14 That is absolutely not what we want to be 15 about in this state. 16 So you have corrected that. 17 Because we know that people, certainly people 18 in my district have complained year after 19 year. They go to the polling site, they are 20 voting at the wrong table, and their vote is 21 not counted. That is wrong. As long as 22 you're in the right polling site, you should 23 be able to vote. 24 So I am adamantly in favor of this,

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(518) 371-8910 1 and I hope that all of my colleagues will vote 2 yes on this bill, because this is the right 3 thing to do. We are encouraging people and 4 removing barriers to people being able to 5 vote. 6 I vote aye, Madam Chair. 7 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 8 Senator DeFrancisco, to explain his vote. 9 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: First of 10 all, what Senator Montgomery just spoke about 11 is exactly what happens now if you happen to 12 be voting for the right offices. You may be 13 directed to the wrong booth or you may go to 14 the wrong booth on your own volition; you can 15 do an affidavit right now, and it counts so 16 long as you're voting for the right offices. 17 The problem here -- maybe I didn't 18 explain it -- is that if you have this bill in 19 place, what happens is you can end up with an 20 affidavit ballot in a race that you're not 21 even registered in the district for. You may 22 be voting for the wrong assemblyperson, and 23 automatically that vote is going to be 24 counted. And it's going to be counted in the

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(518) 371-8910 1 wrong race, for the wrong office. 2 So Senator Valesky may get votes 3 from me or vice versa, if that could possibly 4 happen. Or it's more prevalent in the city 5 because of the closer Senate and Assembly 6 districts. That's the problem. 7 And the question is, if that's a 8 potential problem, how do you deal with it? 9 You deal with it by making sure the Board of 10 Elections does what they're supposed to do and 11 have enough information to direct people to 12 the right polling place so they're not voting 13 for the wrong office. Or do you just count 14 them all and hope that maybe it will all sort 15 out at the end when there's a lawsuit? And 16 I'm a lawyer, but I'm not so sure you want to 17 encourage lawsuits on every contested 18 election. 19 So if this bill had said -- instead 20 of "if the Board of Elections determines that 21 a person is entitled to vote at such 22 election," it should simply say "the Board of 23 Election finds that the voter was entitled to 24 vote for such office," and then you might be

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(518) 371-8910 1 able to correct the situation. 2 As far as Senator Schneiderman 3 said, it's true, we want everybody to vote, 4 but we don't want people to vote for the wrong 5 offices if they're not entitled to. 6 And as far as Senator Onorato, his 7 example didn't even apply to what we're 8 talking about in this bill. 9 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 10 Senator DeFrancisco, how do you vote? 11 SENATOR DeFRANCISCO: I vote no. 12 But you knew that. 13 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 14 Thank you, Senator. 15 Senator Squadron, to explain his 16 vote. 17 SENATOR SQUADRON: Thank you, 18 Madam Chair. 19 You know, in my district, and I'm 20 sure in all of the 62 Senate districts in the 21 state, people are busy. They've got a lot 22 going on. And when they come out to vote -- 23 you know, a lot of them came out to vote this 24 November. But this September, many fewer of

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(518) 371-8910 1 them came out to vote; something like less 2 than 20 percent in the race I ran in. I know 3 in a lot of primaries you don't get a lot of 4 people coming out to vote. 5 In race after race across this 6 state, we don't have enough people 7 participating. And I understand why. They're 8 busy. Sometimes we don't give them any 9 reason, sometimes we don't inspire them to 10 come out. 11 And what this bill does -- and I 12 really want to commend Senator Dilan for 13 carrying it forward and expanding democracy in 14 this state, because what this bill does is it 15 says if, despite the fact that you're busy, 16 despite the fact that so often the political 17 process fails you, if you come out to vote, 18 we're going to do everything we can to count 19 your vote. 20 To me, it is perverse in the 21 extreme to say despite all of the reasons you 22 wouldn't vote, if you come out to vote, if you 23 do your best, if you get misdirected, we're 24 going to throw your vote in the garbage. We

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(518) 371-8910 1 don't want it. We don't want you to vote. 2 It seems to me the only reason to 3 oppose this bill would be because of a belief 4 that only the most rarefied class, those who 5 know their election district by heart -- and I 6 have to admit something here on the floor of 7 the State Senate, I don't know my election 8 district by heart -- only those who know their 9 election districts by heart can be guaranteed 10 that if they make the effort to go and vote, 11 their vote will be counted. I think that is 12 anti-democratic. It's perverse, as I said. 13 And the fact that we are now 14 codifying in the law a correction and 15 expansion is a great honor for me. I vote aye 16 with great pride and again commend Senator 17 Dilan for moving this forward. 18 Thank you. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Senator Dilan. 21 SENATOR DILAN: To explain my 22 vote, Madam President. 23 I rise to urge all my colleagues to 24 vote in favor of this bill, which merely just

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(518) 371-8910 1 codifies existing case law and would only 2 enfranchise eligible voters with their proper 3 right to vote. 4 I also believe that this bill would 5 not increase lawsuits or have the courts 6 deciding elections, but I would think it would 7 do the exact opposite, prevent that, and have 8 elections be decided where they should be, and 9 that is by the voters and the Board of 10 Elections. 11 However, I also just want to 12 indicate for the record the legislative 13 history of this particular bill. In the 14 2007-2008 session of this body, under a bill 15 known as S1503, where I was also the prime 16 sponsor of the bill, this same bill was 17 reported out of committee on May 22, 2007. 18 Republican Senators Griffo, Hannon, Rath, 19 Winner and Morahan all voted yes on this bill 20 at that time. In 2009, in committee this year 21 on February 10, 2009, Senator Griffo voted 22 yes. 23 So thank you very much, and I urge 24 my colleagues to vote yes.

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(518) 371-8910 1 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 2 Senator Klein. 3 SENATOR KLEIN: Thank you, Madam 4 President. 5 I too want to commend my colleague 6 Senator Dilan for what I think is a very 7 important bill. I mean, we all talk about the 8 fact that we want to encourage more and more 9 people to take part in the electoral process. 10 And I don't know what all the 11 debate and the concern is about, because this 12 is clearly a bill that has a stopgap measure. 13 If someone shows up at the polls, they're a 14 duly registered voter, they attempt to vote at 15 the election district that they feel they're 16 registered in and we find out that at the end 17 of the day they're not registered, that vote 18 is not counted. 19 On the other hand, if after they 20 have their paper ballot that they fill out and 21 they find that they were in the right polling 22 place but the wrong election district, their 23 vote is going to count if it's checked by the 24 Board of Elections.

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(518) 371-8910 1 So I don't think we're allowing 2 anyone to vote who shouldn't be voting by 3 having this legislation take place. 4 And also, by the way, we're just 5 codifying a Court of Appeals decision, the 6 Panio decision -- which Madam President knows 7 well -- which was decided in 2005. The only 8 thing that bothers me, it took us four long 9 years to finally codify this into law. That's 10 why Senator Dilan's bill is so important. 11 The only thing I can say, Madam 12 President, I'm hopeful that this bill, the 13 bill that Senator Addabbo did the other day, 14 are two of many bills that we're going to be 15 doing in this legislative session to ensure 16 that as many people who want to vote will have 17 their opportunity to do so. 18 I vote yes, Madam President. 19 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 20 Thank you, Senator Klein. 21 Will the Secretary announce the 22 results. 23 THE SECRETARY: Those recorded in 24 the negative on Calendar Number 37 are

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(518) 371-8910 1 Senators Alesi, Bonacic, DeFrancisco, Farley, 2 Fuschillo, Golden, Griffo, Hannon, O. Johnson, 3 Lanza, Larkin, Leibell, Libous, Little, 4 Maziarz, McDonald, Morahan, Nozzolio, 5 Ranzenhofer, Robach, Saland, Seward, Skelos, 6 Volker, Winner and Young. 7 Excused from voting: Senators 8 Flanagan, LaValle, Marcellino and Padavan. 9 Ayes, 32. Nays, 26. 10 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 11 The bill is passed. 12 Senator Klein, that completes the 13 controversial reading of the calendar. 14 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 15 can we please recognize Senator Ruth 16 Hassell-Thompson for an announcement. 17 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 18 Senator Hassell-Thompson. 19 SENATOR HASSELL-THOMPSON: Thank 20 you, Madam President. 21 At the close of session there will 22 be an immediate meeting of -- well, no, not so 23 immediate. At 6 o'clock there will be a 24 meeting of the Majority conference in

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(518) 371-8910 1 Room 332. Please be on time. 2 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 3 There will be a meeting of the Majority 4 conference at 6 o'clock this evening in the 5 Majority Conference Room, 332. 6 Senator Klein. 7 SENATOR KLEIN: Madam President, 8 is there any further business at the desk? 9 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 10 Senator Klein, the desk is clear. 11 SENATOR KLEIN: There being none, 12 I move that we adjourn until Tuesday, 13 March 3rd, at 3:00 p.m. 14 ACTING PRESIDENT STEWART-COUSINS: 15 There being no further business to come before 16 the Senate, on motion, the Senate stands 17 adjourned until Tuesday, March 3rd, at 18 3:00 p.m. 19 (Whereupon, at 4:23 p.m., the 20 Senate adjourned.) 21 22 23 24

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(518) 371-8910