NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9991
SPONSOR: Otis TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the village law, in relation to conducting referenda in
villages with November elections
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To ensure that referenda are conducted in accordance with the political
calendar prescribed by the election law.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends § 9-900 of the village law, by adding a new
subdivision 4. This subdivision specifies how referenda are to be
conducted in villages with November elections.
§ 2 provides the effective date.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IF APPLICABLE):
n/a
JUSTIFICATION:
Pursuant to election law § 4-108(1)(b), in order for a proposition to be
submitted to voters at the general village election in November, the
village clerk must submit the question to the County Board of Elections
at least three months prior to General Election Day. This requirement
was implemented in 2019 in order to ensure compliance with the Federal
Military Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act. The MOVE Act ensures
that military voters receive absentee ballots far enough in advance of
an election to ensure that such absentee ballots cast by military voters
may be returned in time to be properly canvassed.
In making this change, the Legislature did not adjust the timing of
village law Article 9. Consequently, it is impossible for a village to
comply with both the timing requirements of village law Article 9 and
election law § 4-108 and have a proposition appear on a November ballot.
This bill would correct the conflict and require villages with November
elections to conduct referenda in accordance with the procedures set
forth in municipal home rule law §§ 23 and 24.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately:
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9991
IN ASSEMBLY
May 1, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. OTIS, THIELE -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Local Governments
AN ACT to amend the village law, in relation to conducting referenda in
villages with November elections
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 9-900 of the village law is amended by adding a new
2 subdivision 4 to read as follows:
3 4. Whenever a village has provided that village elections shall occur
4 on the day of the general election pursuant to section 15-104 of the
5 election law, and:
6 a. whenever this chapter or any state statute shall provide that any
7 local law or resolution of the board of trustees is subject to a manda-
8 tory referendum and if no other procedure is otherwise provided for,
9 such referendum shall be conducted as provided in section twenty-three
10 of the municipal home rule law; or
11 b. whenever this chapter or any state statute shall provide that an
12 act of resolution of the board of trustees is subject to a permissive
13 referendum, such act or resolution shall be subject to a referendum on
14 petition as set forth in paragraph a of subdivision one of section twen-
15 ty-four of the municipal home rule law.
16 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15272-01-4
