As of April 2, members of the New York State Legislature, which includes the New York State Assembly and the New York State Senate, have passed four bills related to election administration since the beginning of the year. Of those four bills, legislators passed one during the week of March 27-April 2. A bipartisan group of legislators sponsored the bill. The bill is:
- NY A05057: Relates to the dates to file a designating petition; provides for the repeal of such provisions, click the hyperlinked bill for list of sponsors.
- As introduced, this bill requires a designating petition be filed no earlier than the Wednesday before and no later than the Monday before the primary election.
Of the four bills passed this year, four have been enacted. This is one more than this point a year ago. Democrats sponsored three bills, while a group of bipartisan legislators sponsored one. The bills are:
- NY S00852: Relates to the accessibility of congressional, senatorial, assembly and election district maps in downloadable digital file formats compatible with geographic information (GIS) software, Sen. James Skoufis (D).
- Specifies that election district maps on websites must be available in a specific downloadable digital format.
- NY S00822: Permits electronic correspondence with regard to determinations on objections to designating petitions, independent nominating petitions, certificates of nomination or ballot access documents upon the consent of the objector, Sen. Rachel May (D).
- Provides that notice regarding the sufficiency of a petition may be given electronically instead of by overnight mail, with the consent of the objector or candidate.
- Outlines how a candidate or objector may consent to electronic notice.
- NY S01327: Relates to certain deadlines for voter registration; changes the amount of time required with respect to certain deadlines for voter registration procedures, Sen. Brian Kavanagh (D).
- Changes the deadline for a registered voter changing their address from 20 days before an election to 15 days before an election.
- Clarifies that a board of elections receiving an application for someone in another district must forward the application electronically, the same day it was received.
- Changes the deadline for the county board of elections to receive registration forms from 25 days to 10 days before the election, and the deadline for mailing to 15 days before the applicant can vote.
- Changes the deadline for the board to notify a registrant of a rejected application from 10 days before an election to seven days before the election and makes associated changes.
- Click the hyperlinked bill number above for more information.
- NY A05057: Relates to the dates to file a designating petition; provides for the repeal of such provisions, click the hyperlinked bill for list of sponsors.
- As introduced, this bill requires a designating petition be filed no earlier than the Wednesday before and no later than the Monday before the primary election.
From March 27-April 2, legislators passed eight bills related to election administration nationally. As of April 2, South Dakota legislators have passed the most bills this year with 18, while legislators in 28 states have passed none. The state with the most enacted bills is South Dakota with 16, while 32 states have enacted none.
The New York State Legislature is scheduled to be in session from Jan. 4 to June 8 this year. In 2022, New York legislators passed 17 election-related bills, 10 in the state Senate and seven in the state House. Thirteen of the bills were enacted into law, eight in the state Senate and five in the state House. New York is a Democratic trifecta, meaning Democrats control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature.
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