Relates to votes on land acquisition and building construction propositions by BOCES districts

BILL NUMBER:S2196

Title of bill

An act to amend the education law, in relation to votes on land acquisition and building construction propositions by BOCES districts

Purpose

To provide adequate opportunity for residents within a BOCES district to vote on spending and property acquisition and sale propositions.

Summary of provisions

Section one amends Education Law section 1951 (2)(a) and (q) to provide that meetings and votes on land acquisition and building construction propositions by BOCES districts must occur in polling places, equitably distributed, within the affected board of cooperative educational services district, where the travel distance for any resident within the affected board of cooperative educational services district shall be similar or approximately the same, with a minimum of at least three polling places for board of cooperative educational services districts in a county with a population of more than 250,000 according to the latest federal census. Section one further amends Education Law section 1951 (2)(a) to provide that notice of such meeting shall also contain the location of each polling place within the affected board of cooperative educational services districts.

Section two sets forth the effective date.

Existing law

Existing law requires a meeting and vote on questions of land acquisition, the purchase or construction of buildings and the sale of real property by the qualified voters of a BOCES district, but leaves options to the BOCES board with respect to the number and location of polling places for voters to cast ballots on these questions.

Justification

A February, 2009 borrowing proposal of$30.3 million by the Dutchess County Board of Cooperative Educational Services has spotlighted a deficiency in existing law with respect to the process by which residents of BOCES districts are asked to approve certain proposals. In this particular case, the Dutchess BOCES scheduled the vote to be held at one location within the county, which serves 13 school districts with a combined population of approximately 180,000 voters. Clearly, this was neither feasible nor fair to residents who chose to cast votes on this proposition. It especially penalized voters who live far from the polling site.

Requiring at least three polling places for BOCES districts in a county with a population of more than 250,000 according to the latest federal census, on questions of this magnitude grants reasonable access to all voters choosing to vote on important, financial propositions. In the Dutchess BOCES circumstance, it would have

required only three voting booths county-wide, but clearly would have yielded a much better indicator of voter sentiment on the proposition.

Legislative history

2009-2010: S.3035A - Referred to Education

Fiscal implications

None to State.

Local fiscal implications

Possible small added cost to the BOCES district, depending on whether a district already uses multiple polling places or only one for the entire BOCES district.

Effective date

This act shall take effect on the 90th day after enactment.