NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5846A
SPONSOR: Gibbs TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the election law, in relation to providing a remedy for
election disruptions
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To provide a flexible remedy for local bipartisan election officials to
extend the time for balloting at impacted polling places, where an emer-
gency or other disruption to voting lasts more than 15 minutes, subject
to a decision by the Board of Elections that such remedy would be inap-
propriate or unnecessary given the particular circumstances.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of this bill adds a new section 3-109 to the Election Law.
Subdivision one of this section creates a default statutory remedy in
the event of a poll site disruption that interrupts voting for more than
fifteen minutes. When such disruption occurs, the local board of
elections shall toll, adjust, and extend the scheduled time frame for
voting on that day by the number of minutes that were lost due to the
disruption. The "time lost for voting" will be calculated for each
impacted polling place using data and records readily within the
possession of poll site coordinators, election district chairpersons,
and the board of elections.
Where a same-day extension is administratively impracticable, perhaps
because of an especially lengthy delay, the board of elections may sche-
dule the additional voting hours for a successive election day and, as
necessary, designate an alternative nearby location as a poll site.
Paragraph (c) of subdivision 1 of section 3-109 provides that poll sites
shall use the same machines and voting systems that were in use prior to
the delay, and that original seals shall not be removed. Subdivision
two of section 3-109 provides a method by which boards of election can
override the default protocol created in subdivision one. If boards
determine that additional voting time is not needed and would constitute
inappropriate or unnecessary relief given the circumstances, they can
convene to take a public vote in a meeting which documents the cause or
nature of the delay and memorializes in writing the results of the vote
and the considerations relied upon by the board. The board must also
notify the State Board of Elections and the Civil Rights Bureau of the
NYS Attorney General of the vote, any alternative remedial action taken
by the board, and a description of all publicity efforts already made or
to be made.
Subdivision three of this section provides that, in the event that poll
hours are extended, the board shall, with the assistance of the State
Board of Elections, publicize the change. Such publication shall involve
notifying the Civil Rights Bureau of the NYS Attorney General's office,
any candidates or committees with items on the ballot, local print and
broadcast news organizations, and local nonpartisan civics organiza-
tions, including organizations that serve language-minority voters.
Boards must also use free or paid traditional, website, and social media
channels and networks, including official advisory tools used by local
governments. Boards must also email and text all registered voters
eligible to vote in the election who have not already done so. Such
publicity shall direct attention to any change in location of polling
places, if applicable.
Subdivision four of this section provides that an extension of poll site
hours pursuant to this act shall be dispositive and conclusive evidence
of the fact that an interruption has occurred. Any ballots cast by
voters in the extended timeframe shall not be segregated for heightened
scrutiny, nor may such ballots be challenged or disqualified on the sole
basis that such ballots were cast out of time. However, where the board
of elections fails to act in accordance with subdivision one in appro-
priate circumstances, or where the additional time for voting fails to
adequately compensate for the actual time lost for voting, eligible
voters or candidates or committees with interests on the ballot may seek
independent judicial relief for an order for additional remedial time to
vote, or for review of an adverse agency decision taken under subdivi-
sion two.
Section two of this bill makes conforming changes to subdivision two of
section 8-100 of the Election Law.
Section three of this bill adds a new subdivision 3 to section 8-102 of
the Election Law to mandate that a polling place coordinator, election
district chairperson, or inspector of election immediately notify the
local board of elections when a significant delay as described in this
act has occurred. Intentional failure to notify shall be considered a
violation of 17-212 of Election Law.
Section four of the bill makes a conforming change to paragraph (f) of
subdivision four of section 8-600 of Election Law, in order to permit a
board of elections to relocate an early voting location in the narrow
circumstance of a significant disruption to voting that renders a
location unsafe or unusable, in addition to the existing authorizations
to relocate an early voting location in the event of a disaster or state
of emergency.
Section five of the bill sets the effective date.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IF APPLICABLE):
Defines "delay or disruption" as 15 consecutive minutes of scheduled
voting where no voting occurs due to an obstruction or interruption of
voting
JUSTIFICATION:
New York State has made many reforms in recent years to expand access to
voting, protect voter rights, improve transparency in election adminis-
tration, and shore up confidence in democratic institutions, including
the creation of early voting, consolidation of state and federal prima-
ries, voter preregistration, improvements in the absentee balloting
process, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act, and more. Our considerable
progress in this arena is undercut, however, by the fact that we have no
rapid response solution to address natural or human-caused incidents
that interrupt voting at poll sites.
Section 3-108 of Election Law, one of few sections of state law to
contemplate this scenario, allows local or state boards of elections to
schedule an additional day of voting in the event of a "fire, earth-
quake, tornado, explosion, power failure, act of sabotage, enemy attack
or other disaster" and where less than 25% of registered voters city or
countywide have voted. Additionally, subdivision four of § 8-600 of the
Election Law mandates that polling places be open for eight hours each
day of early voting, and one could argue that a failure to adjust for a
disruption which truncates these eight hours is a violation of the law.
There are four very real problems with the existing protections of §
3-108 and 8-600, however. Firstly, there a number of modern day scenar-
ios which can feasibly impact voting which fall outside of the narrow
definition of disasters described in Election Law § 3-108: unreasonably
long lines, medical emergencies, bomb threats, inaccessibility of facil-
ities, lengthy or large-scale connectivity or equipment malfunctions,
flooding due to a superstorm or torrential downpour, acts of violence,
false fire alarms, and localized emergencies, to name a few. All of
these phenomena have become common in an era of increasingly extreme
weather events for which we are ill-prepared, as well as an era of
rising political violence and polarization. Real life examples of poll
site disruptions in recent years include: a 2022 bomb threat targeting
the Jackie Robinson Educational Complex in Manhattan's East Harlem
neighborhood, which robbed general election voters of at least two hours
of early voting while the NYPD evacuated the area; a polling place fire
in the town of Champion in Jefferson County during the 2022 primary
election; and, most recently, in October 2023, a technological malfunc-
tion affecting e-poll books that canceled voting on a Saturda y morning
at every polling station in Orange County. Notably, both Hurricane Sandy
and the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, happened on election
days.
Secondly, the provisions of Election Law § 3-108 apply only if at least
a quarter of voters city or countywide have not turned out, leaving
broad incentive for bad actors to target a few key election districts in
a close election. Thirdly, § 3-108 only permits boards to provide an
additional day of voting, failing to contemplate shorter disruptions
that do not warrant an additional day but nonetheless suppress turnout.
And finally, both § 3-108 and 8-600 require local boards of election to
proactively take action to remedy disruptions, which they have little
incentive to do when at least one party definitionally stands to benefit
from lower voter turnout. Instead, boards typically deadlock along
partisan lines - leaving enforcement of these core tenets of Election
Law to election lawyers, who rush to the courthouse seeking judicial
orders and praying they get them in time.
This bill addresses the lack of incentive that partisan boards of
elections have to extend voting hours by creating a default statutory
remedy for disruptions of more than fifteen minutes. Once notified of an
interruption affecting voting, boards would be required to toll and
extend the time of the interruption on the back end of that same day or
extend the hours for a different day if necessary. They would then be
required to publicize the new hours and any change in location, if
applicable, using broadcast and print news, social media, official local
government communication channels, and via email and text to all
affected registered voters who have not yet voted. Boards would be able
to override this default protocol, however, by convening to take a
public vote if they believe that this remedy is inappropriate or unnec-
essary. They would need to notify the State Board of Elections and Civil
Rights Bureau of the State Attorney General of the vote and would need
to publicly document the nature and cause of the disruption as well as
the reasoning that they arrived at in determining that an hours exten-
sion is unnecessary.
When the e-poll book glitch shuttered every polling site in Orange Coun-
ty, voters were issued neither emergency paper ballots nor provisional
ballots by which to "fail-safe" vote. While some 'local party officials
requested an extender, no additional time was granted by the board of
elections. Despite the fact that the local board had ample time to
advertise extended hours, they took no steps to account for the lost
time. Instead, voters were advised to wait indefinitely until the poll
site again became operative, or to come back later at an unspecified
time. It is to this date unknown how many voters simply failed to reap-
pear.
This bill fixes the political problem that prevents local boards from
extending hours at poll sites while disincentivizing bad actors who wish
to target certain segments of the electorate to suppress a vote. It
provides an objective, evenly applied yet narrowly tailored default
remedy that will automatically ensure a significant disruption at a poll
site does not wind up robbing the electorate of their ability to exer-
cise a basic civil right.
The remedy of a time extender is already familiar to election officials,
campaign counsel, and voter protection advocates across the country and
is routinely sought and granted by judges where appropriate. But rather
than squander critical additional time and resources awaiting judicial
intervention, this relief can be provided automatically, in real time,
based on information readily available to elections personnel. It is a
commonsense solution to address unanticipated incidents that, by design
or happenstance, serve to distort electoral outcomes and infringe upon
civil rights.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024 A8581 - referred to election law
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
TBD
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5846--A
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 24, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GIBBS, EPSTEIN, SIMONE, LEVENBERG, LAVINE, DAVI-
LA, REYES, R. CARROLL, SEAWRIGHT, PAULIN -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Election Law -- committee discharged, bill amended,
ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to providing a remedy for
election disruptions
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The election law is amended by adding a new section 3-109
2 to read as follows:
3 § 3-109. Disruption; additional time for voting; publicity of remedy.
4 1. (a) Except as provided in subdivision two of this section, in the
5 event that early voting or election day voting at one or more polling
6 places, or for one or more election districts, is delayed or disrupted
7 prior to the close of polls on any day of election for a duration
8 exceeding fifteen consecutive minutes, the board of elections shall
9 toll, adjust, and extend the scheduled timeframe for voting on that day
10 of election to account for and compensate the lost time for voting at
11 all such impacted polling places or election districts. For the
12 purposes of this section, "delay or disruption" and variations thereof
13 shall mean when no voting is occurring due to an obstruction or inter-
14 ruption of voting at a polling place or election district for a period
15 of time exceeding fifteen consecutive minutes during a scheduled time-
16 frame for voting.
17 (b) Pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision, in the event that
18 early voting or election day voting at one or more polling places, or
19 for one or more election districts, is delayed or disrupted, such sched-
20 uled timeframe for voting shall be tolled, beginning from the actual
21 time of commencement of the delay or disruption to voting, or, if such
22 actual time cannot be reasonably determined by the board of elections,
23 beginning at the latest from the time a report of such delay or
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07308-04-5
A. 5846--A 2
1 disruption is first electronically transmitted or telephonically commu-
2 nicated to the board of elections. Such tolling shall continue until
3 such time as the delay or disruption to voting has ended and the
4 impacted election districts and polling places have reopened for voting,
5 or the time for the scheduled close of polls on that day of election,
6 whichever occurs first. The scheduled timeframe for voting shall then be
7 adjusted, proportionately, for each such polling place or election
8 district, and extended on that day of election, or, if extending the
9 timeframe for voting at such election districts or polling places on
10 that day of election, or in that location, would be administratively
11 impracticable, such additional time for voting shall be scheduled on the
12 next day for voting or a successive day for voting scheduled for the
13 same election, but not later than election day, in the same polling
14 place or, if such polling place is unavailable, at alternative locations
15 that may be designated as polling places pursuant to the provisions of
16 section 4-104 of this chapter and is, to the extent practicable, in
17 close proximity to the delayed or disrupted polling places or election
18 districts, to account for and compensate the lost time at all such
19 impacted polling places or election districts.
20 (c) In any election district or polling place in which a voting
21 machine or voting system was used prior to a delay or disruption, such
22 machine or system shall be used for the additional time for voting
23 unless found to be inoperable, in which case the provisions of section
24 7-120 of this chapter shall apply. Except as directed by the board of
25 elections, the original seal on such machines shall not be removed nor
26 shall the machines be unlocked until the reopening of the polls and the
27 board of elections shall provide additional seals as necessary to be
28 used as soon as the polls are closed on such day. The state board of
29 elections shall promulgate rules and/or regulations to ensure the fair,
30 transparent, and uniform administration of this section.
31 2. (a) By majority vote of the commissioners, the board of elections
32 may determine that the remedy of additional time for voting to account
33 and compensate for the lost time for voting as prescribed by subdivision
34 one of this section would constitute inappropriate or unnecessary relief
35 in light of the particular circumstances of delay or disruption
36 presented at a specific polling place or election district. Such vote
37 shall be taken during a public meeting held for such purpose, shall
38 specify the cause or nature of the delay or disruption, and shall memo-
39 rialize in writing the results of any such vote and the particular
40 considerations relied upon by the board of elections in reaching a
41 determination that a proportionate extension of time to account and
42 compensate for the lost time at such impacted polling places or election
43 districts would constitute inappropriate or unnecessary relief.
44 (b) In the event that the board of elections reaches such determi-
45 nation, such board shall electronically or telephonically inform the
46 bipartisan co-executive directors of the state board of elections and
47 the civil rights bureau of the office of the attorney general regard-
48 ing the circumstances that appear to have caused delay or disruption and
49 an accounting of the polling places or election districts impacted,
50 the respective durations of such delays or disruptions, the results of
51 such vote, the particular circumstances relied upon by the board of
52 elections in reaching a determination that a proportionate extension
53 of time to account and compensate for the lost time at such impacted
54 polling places or election districts would constitute inappropriate or
55 unnecessary relief, any alternative remedial action taken by the
A. 5846--A 3
1 board of elections or other individuals or entities, and a description
2 of all related publicity efforts already undertaken or to be undertaken.
3 3. (a) In the event that the scheduled timeframe for early voting or
4 election day voting at one or more polling places, or for one or more
5 election districts, is extended pursuant to subdivision one of this
6 section, the board of elections shall, with the assistance of the state
7 board of elections, and under the coordination of the state board of
8 elections if necessary, make use of all reasonable means and channels of
9 communications to publicize, forthwith, the remedial action taken with
10 respect to the polling places and/or election districts impacted, indi-
11 cating in plain language the duration and timeframe of such remedial
12 action, as follows:
13 (i) electronically or telephonically inform the bipartisan co-execu-
14 tive directors of the state board of elections and the civil rights
15 bureau of the office of the attorney general of the circumstances that
16 appear to have caused the delay or disruption at issue, an accounting of
17 the polling places or election districts impacted and the respective
18 durations of such delays or disruptions, the remedial action taken, and
19 a description of all related publicity efforts already undertaken or to
20 be undertaken;
21 (ii) electronically or telephonically inform any candidate or commit-
22 tee with candidates or questions appearing on a ballot to be voted upon
23 in any such polling place or election district impacted, or the desig-
24 nated agent of such candidate or committee of the remedial action taken,
25 and including a description of all related publicity efforts already
26 undertaken or to be undertaken;
27 (iii) electronically or telephonically inform local print and broad-
28 cast news media organizations and local non-partisan civic organizations
29 and community-based groups situated within the municipalities impacted
30 or serving segments of the voting public or communities impacted,
31 including media and civic organizations primarily serving prevalent
32 language-minority communities, and including a description of all
33 related publicity efforts already undertaken or to be undertaken; and
34 (iv) utilize free or paid traditional, website, and social media chan-
35 nels and networks, including official advisory or public notification
36 tools or websites made available by the impacted county or munici-
37 palities, and issue electronic mail or phone or text messages directly
38 to impacted voters who have not already voted and who have provided such
39 personal contact information to the board of elections, to inform the
40 voting public residing in the communities served by the impacted polling
41 places or election districts of the remedial action taken and the
42 remaining opportunities to vote.
43 (b) Pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision, such publicity
44 shall direct attention to any change of the location of impacted polling
45 places or election districts, if applicable, and shall contain such
46 other information as the board of elections shall deem necessary and
47 proper.
48 4. Action by the board of elections to provide additional time for
49 voting pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall be dispositive
50 and conclusive of the issue of whether a delay or disruption has
51 occurred warranting such remedial action, and any ballots cast by eligi-
52 ble voters during the adjusted remedial timeframe for voting shall not
53 be segregated from other ballots cast by eligible voters or subject to
54 challenge or judicial review on the basis that such ballots were cast
55 out of time; provided, however, that this subdivision shall not preju-
56 dice the right of any registered voter eligible to vote at such a
A. 5846--A 4
1 delayed or disrupted polling place or election district, or any candi-
2 date or committee with candidates or questions appearing on a ballot to
3 be voted upon in any such polling place or election district, to seek
4 independent judicial relief for an order extending the timeframe for
5 voting pursuant to subdivision one of this section, or for review of an
6 adverse agency decision pursuant to subdivision two of this section,
7 pursuant to state or federal law.
8 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 8-100 of the election law, as separately
9 amended by chapter 6 and section 1 of part BBB of chapter 55 of the laws
10 of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
11 2. Polls shall be open for voting during the following hours: a prima-
12 ry election from six o'clock in the morning until nine o'clock in the
13 evening; the general election from six o'clock in the morning until nine
14 o'clock in the evening; a special election called by the governor pursu-
15 ant to the public officers law, and, except as otherwise provided by
16 law, every other election, from six o'clock in the morning until nine
17 o'clock in the evening; early voting hours shall be as provided in title
18 six of this article. Early voting times shall be as provided in section
19 8-600 of this article. In the event of a delay or disruption to voting,
20 the board of elections is authorized to toll, adjust, and extend the
21 timeframe for voting pursuant to section 3-109 of this chapter.
22 § 3. Section 8-102 of the election law is amended by adding a new
23 subdivision 3 to read as follows:
24 3. In the event that early voting or election day voting for one or
25 more election districts or poll sites is delayed or disrupted prior to
26 the close of polls on any day of election for a duration exceeding
27 fifteen consecutive minutes, the polling place coordinator, election
28 district chairperson, or, if such persons are unavailable, any inspector
29 of election, shall immediately notify the board of elections. There
30 shall be a presumption of a violation of subdivision one of section
31 17-212 of this chapter when any person, by commission or omission,
32 intentionally frustrates the purposes of this section.
33 § 4. Paragraph (f) of subdivision 4 of section 8-600 of the election
34 law, as added by chapter 480 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as
35 follows:
36 (f) If the location of an early voting polling place as designated
37 pursuant to paragraph (e) of this subdivision changes prior to such
38 early voting period, notice shall be provided to all affected eligible
39 voters no later than five days prior to such voting period in accordance
40 with the communication plan established pursuant to subdivision five of
41 this section or as soon as practicable if such location change occurs
42 within five days of the commencement of such early voting period;
43 provided, however, no such location change may occur within forty-eight
44 hours of such commencement unless there is any disaster within the mean-
45 ing of section 3-108 of this chapter or disruption within the meaning of
46 section 3-109 of this chapter or a declared state of emergency by the
47 governor or any court of competent jurisdiction in the county where the
48 polling place is located.
49 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
