NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7289
SPONSOR: Pretlow TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the election law, in relation to the terms of office of
election commissioners
PURPOSE OF BILL:
Relates to the terms of office of commissioners of election.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
This act shall amend Subdivision 1 of section 3-202 of the election law.
It will extend the term of office of an election commissioner to a four
year period statewide beginning January 1st of each odd numbered year.
JUSTIFICATION:
The term of office of an election commissioner is two years, by amending
this section it would extend the term to a four-year period to conform
the rest of the State to the same term as the commissioners in New York
City and the Counties of Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua,
Erie, Franklin, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer, Livingston,
Madison, Monroe, Ontario, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, St. Lawrence, Sara-
toga, Schenectady, Seneca, Suffolk, Sullivan, Tioga, Warren, Washington,
and Wyoming.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-2024 A4777A referred to Election Law
2021-2022 A1791 referred to Election Law
2019-2020 A3042 referred to election law
2017/2018 A1555 referred to 01/07/15 referred to election law 01/06/16
referred to election law
2014/2013 A4342 referred to election law New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all 13
elections occurring On and after November 1, 2026.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7289
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 25, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to the terms of office of
election commissioners
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 3-202 of the election law is
2 amended to read as follows:
3 1. The term of office of an election commissioner shall be [two] four
4 years beginning January first of each odd numbered year [except that in
5 the city of New York and the county of Schenectady the term shall be
6 four years beginning on January first of each alternate odd numbered
7 year. The county legislative body of any other county may determine that
8 the commissioners of elections thereafter appointed shall serve for a
9 term of four years. Such determination may be rescinded by a subsequent
10 action of the county legislative body which shall take effect at the
11 expiration of the terms of the commissioners then in office].
12 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all
13 elections occurring on and after November 1, 2026.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01875-01-5
