What's happening
This bill requires election notices to prominently display voting days and hours in bold print and clarifies notification procedures.
Why it matters
Clearer, more prominent notice of voting times. By requiring election notices to display the days and hours for voting in bold print, the bill aims to make this critical information more visible and accessible, reducing confusion and increasing the likelihood that voters know when to cast their ballots.
Enhanced communication for voters facing changes. The bill mandates that if polling locations change, notices must include a bold, conspicuous message about the change. This could help prevent voters from being disenfranchised due to last-minute location changes.
Greater awareness for voters who have moved. The legislation clarifies that information about updating one’s address or voting by paper ballot is included in the notice (though not in bold), helping ensure that voters who have moved are informed about their options to participate in elections.
Potential to improve turnout and reduce errors. By standardizing and emphasizing critical voting information, the bill could help reduce mistakes (like showing up at the wrong place or wrong time) and potentially boost voter turnout, especially among those less familiar with the process.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Election Notices in Bold
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Substituted by A1385B
- Ordered to third reading cal.790
- Reported and committed to rules
- Referred to elections
- Print number 6302a
- Amend and recommit to rules
- Referred to rules
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Election Dates in Bold
Signed by Governor · Sponsor N. Nick Perry
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
6302--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
June 3, 2019
Introduced by Sen. MYRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to the notice of the days and hours for voting in primary and general elections
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 4-117 of the election law, as separately amended by chapters 3 and 5 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
1. The board of elections, not less than sixty-five days nor more than seventy days before the primary election in each year, shall send by mail on which is endorsed such language designated by the state board of elections to ensure postal authorities do not forward such mail but return it to the board of elections with forwarding information, when it cannot be delivered as addressed and which contains a request that any such mail received for persons not residing at the address be dropped back in the mail, a communication, in a form approved by the state board of elections, to every registered voter who has been registered without a change of address since the beginning of such year, except that the board of elections shall not be required to send such communications to voters in inactive status. The communication shall notify the voter in bold print contained in such notice of the days and hours of the ensuing primary and general elections, the place where he or she appears by his or her registration records to be entitled to vote, and also in other than bold type of the fact that voters who have moved or will have moved from the address where they were last registered must either notify the board of elections of his or her new address or vote by paper ballot at the polling place for his or her new address even if such voter has not re-registered, or otherwise notified the board of elections of the
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06676-05-9
S. 6302--A 2
change of address. If the primary will not be held on the first Tuesday after the second Monday in September, the communication shall contain a conspicuous notice in all capital letters and bold font notifying the voter of the primary date. If the location of the polling place for the voter's election district has been moved, the communication shall contain the following legend in bold type: "YOUR POLLING PLACE HAS BEEN CHANGED. YOU NOW VOTE AT..........". The communication shall also indicate whether the polling place is accessible to physically disabled voters, that a voter who will be out of the city or county on the day of the primary or general election or a voter who is ill or physically disabled may obtain an absentee ballot, that a physically disabled voter whose polling place is not accessible may request that his registration record be moved to an election district which has a polling place which is accessible, the phone number to call for applications to move a registration record or for absentee ballot applications, the phone number to call for the location of registration and polling places, the phone number to call to indicate that the voter is willing to serve on election day as an election inspector, poll clerk, interpreter or in other capacities, the phone number to call to obtain an application for registration by mail, and such other information concerning the elections or registration as the board may include. In lieu of sending such communication to every registered voter, the board of elections may send a single communication to a household containing more than one registered voter, provided that the names of all such voters appear as part of the address on such communication.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of December next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the election law, in relation to the notice of the days and hours for voting in primary and general elections
Purpose
To help increase voter participation by requiring the Board of Elections to print the date and time of all upcoming Primary and General Elections in bold type on address verification notices sent out prior to elections
Summary of specific provisions
Section one of the bill amends subdivision 1 of section 4-117 of the election law requires that the notice sent by the board of elections each year notifying registered voters as to the days, hours, and voting location of the voter of upcoming primary and general elections be in bold type. This subdivision also entails that information in the notice pertaining to voters who have moved or will move is required to be in a typeset other than bold.
Section two of the bill provides the effective date.
Justification
The Board of Elections is required to mail out notices which serve the purposes of both verifying the residence of the voter and informing the voter of the dates of Primary and General Elections, and the location for voting in some cases. In urban areas, such as New York City where voter participation is low, particularly in primary elections, these notices should serve as clear and timely reminders to voters who often forget primary election dates. Moreover, mail from the Board of Elections is routinely discarded as junk mail. Since the dates of the Primary and General Elections are not usually in easily distinguishable bold type, voters who glance at the notices often miss this vital infor- mation. This bill seeks to increase the likelihood that voters will greater notice these important dates.
Prior legislative history
2018: A.2826 - Third Reading Calendar 2017: A.2826 - Referred to Election Law 2015-2016: A.6658 - Referred to Election Law 2013-2014: A.4490 - Referred to Election Law 2011-2012: A.3173 - Referred to Election Law 2009-2010: A.3549 - Referred to Election Law 2007-2008: A.4097 - Referred to Election Law 2006: A.3807 - Third Reading Calendar 2005: A.3807 - Referred to Election Law 2003-2004: A.5130 - Referred to Election Law 2001-2002: A.3590 - Referred to Election Law 1999-2000: A.1016 - Referred to Election Law 1997-1998: A.3258 - Referred to Election Law 1995-1996: A.6185-A - Referred to Election Law
Fiscal implications
None to the State.
Effective date
December first next succeeding the date on which becoming a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.