S1688-2013 - NY Senate Open Legislation - Relates to the removal of a voter from voting rolls due to death

Relates to the removal of a voter from voting rolls due to death.

Sponsor: ZELDIN / Co-sponsor(s): MARCHIONE, MAZIARZ, SAVINO
Law Section: Election Law / Law: Add S5-714, El L

S1688-2013 Actions

Apr 24, 2013: ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
Apr 23, 2013: 2ND REPORT CAL.
Apr 22, 2013: 1ST REPORT CAL.366
Jan 9, 2013: REFERRED TO ELECTIONS

S1688-2013 Meetings

Elections: Apr 22, 2013

S1688-2013 Calendars

Floor Calendar: Apr 23, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Apr 24, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Apr 29, 2013 , Floor Calendar: Apr 30, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 1, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 6, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 7, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 8, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 20, 2013 , Floor Calendar: May 21, 2013

S1688-2013 Votes

VOTE: COMMITTEE VOTE: - Elections - Apr 22, 2013

Ayes (9): O'Mara, Ball, Gallivan, Marchione, Nozzolio, Savino, Tkaczyk, Dilan, Krueger

S1688-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S1688

TITLE  OF  BILL:    An  act  to amend the election law, in relation to
removal of a voter from voting rolls due to death

PURPOSE OF BILL: The purpose of this bill is to ensure that  the  name
of a deceased person is removed from the voting roll upon their death.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Section One amends article five of the election
law  as  it  pertains  to the registration and enrollment of voters by
adding a new section 5-714. The Board of Elections for each county and
in the City of New York would  be  required  to  annually  review  the
social  security administration death master file and remove the names
of any and all  deceased  voters.  A  safeguard  exists  to  allow  an
individual  to  vote via affidavit ballot in the event that their name
is erroneously removed from the voting roll.

Section Two contains the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION: The Election Law currently provides that the name of  a
voter  must  be  removed  from the registration roll upon their death.
However, no mechanism exists to ensure that  their  name  is  in  fact
removed.

A  new report by the Pew Center on the States finds that more than 1.8
million dead people are registered to  vote  throughout  the  country.
This  raises the concern that our election system may be vulnerable to
fraud. It is  imperative  that  our  voters  have  confidence  in  our
election system.

A  study  conducted by the Poughkeepsie Journal in October 2006 of the
New York State voting database found that the list contained the names
of as many as 77,000 deceased individuals, and that as many  as  2,600
of  them  had cast votes from the grave. The analysis consisted of the
matching of names, dates of birth, and zip codes of registered  voters
against  the  same  information  in the Social Security Administration
"Death Master File".

This bill also protects voters who may be erroneously removed from the
voter registration roll by allowing them  to  vote  via  an  affidavit
ballot in the same manner that an inactive voter would be permitted to
vote.

While  it  is true that the New York City Department of Health and the
New York State Department of  Health  currently  transmit  a  list  of
deceased persons to the state board of elections, for removal from the
list  of  eligible voters, this list is not compiled in real time, nor
does it consist of the names of individuals who have died out  of  the
state.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to the State.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2012 -- Rules

EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately.

S1688-2013 Text

 S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 
                                          1688
 2013-2014 Regular Sessions
 I N  SENATE
 (PREFILED)
 January 9, 2013
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. ZELDIN, MAZIARZ -- read twice and ordered printed,
 and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections
 

AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to removal of a voter from
 voting rolls due to death
 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

Section  1.  The election law is amended by adding a new section 5-714
 to read as follows:

 

S 5-714. DEATH OF A REGISTERED VOTER. 1. PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (E)  OF
 SUBDIVISION  ONE OF SECTION 5-400 OF THIS ARTICLE, DEATH SHALL RESULT IN
 THE CANCELLATION OF A VOTER'S REGISTRATION. IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT  THE
 NAME  OF  A  VOTER IS REMOVED FROM THE REGISTRATION ROLL UPON DEATH, THE
 NEW YORK STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS, OR THE BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS  IN  EACH
 COUNTY  AND  IN NEW YORK CITY, SHALL REVIEW THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINIS
 TRATION DEATH MASTER FILE ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, PRIOR TO AUGUST  FIRST  OF
 EACH CALENDAR YEAR, AND REMOVE THE NAMES OF ALL DECEASED VOTERS FROM THE
 REGISTRATION ROLL.
 2.  IN  THE  EVENT THAT AN INDIVIDUAL CLAIMS THAT THEIR NAME WAS ERRO
 NEOUSLY REMOVED FROM THE ROLL, THEY SHALL BE ENTITLED  TO  CAST  A  VOTE
 THROUGH  AN AFFIDAVIT BALLOT IN THE SAME MANNER AS A VOTER WHO IS DEEMED
 TO BE INACTIVE.  UPON THIS EVENT, THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS SHALL  COMMENCE
 AN  INQUIRY  TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE NAME OF THE VOTER HAS IN FACT BEEN
 REMOVED FROM THE REGISTRATION ROLL DUE TO AN ERROR. IN THE EVENT THAT AN
 ERROR IS FOUND, THE AFFIDAVIT BALLOT SHALL BE COUNTED AND  THE  INDIVID
 UAL'S NAME SHALL BE REINSTATED ON THE REGISTRATION ROLL.
 

S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD01053-01-3

S1688-2013: Relates to the removal of a voter from voting rolls due to death