Six New Election Related Chapter Laws Signed by Governor Cuomo

Six new chapter laws were signed recently by Governor Cuomo:

• Chapter 173 (8/21/2017); in relation to determining how party position candidates are placed on a ballot for separate elections of males and females.  It was effective immediately.
• Chapter 176 (8/21/2017); relates to requirements for designating and nominating petitions to include a district number, if applicable on each page of the petition.  It was effective immediately.
• Chapter 210 (8/21/2017); repeals section 2-126 of the election law, relating to party funds and restrictions on expenditures.  It was effective immediately.  This proposal was program bill SBOE 17-22.
• Chapter 293 (9/12/2017); permits boards of elections to allow election inspectors to work split shifts.  This is a change from half-day shifts.   It is effective March 11, 2018.  This proposal was program bill SBOE 17-08. 
• Chapter 307 (9/13/2017); requires the State Board of Elections to publish the campaign website addresses of candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state comptroller, member of the state senate and member of assembly; when information is provided by candidates to the NYSBOE.  It is effective December 1, 2017.  This proposal was program bill SBOE 17-09. 
• Chapter 310 (9/13/2017); removes the requirement of publishing a candidate’s residence prior to an election.  It was effective immediately.  This proposal was program bill SBOE 17-04. 

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Lawmaker To City Board of Elections: Follow The Law

WNYC radio reporter Brigid Bergin reports on City Council Member Dan Garodnick’s  letter to the City Board of Elections “demanding action a week after the city’s Board of Elections ignored a law requiring it to post notices at old poll sites when it moves them to new locations. WNYC reported the board changed hundreds of poll sites in the months before last week’s primary, affecting more than 200,000 eligible voters.”

A Reminder: Turn Over The Ballot This November

Matt Hamilton reminds readers in the Times Union that “(S)tate Board of Elections commissioners agreed at their meeting last week to recommend that the counties put text and a graphic, such as an arrow, on both sides of the the general election ballot this November to draw attention to material on both sides. 

The November ballots will feature not only candidates for office, but also three questions — one on whether to hold a constitutional convention and two on constitutional amendments.”

How Party Bosses, Not Voters, Pick Candidates In New York

In the New York Times,  Shane Goldmacher looks at how party leaders are often able to select new candidates after long time incumbents leave office by using election law replacement provisions: “Election laws here grant politicians and local party bosses and county committees vast sway in picking candidates when legislators leave office in the middle of their term — whether they retire early, pass away, depart for another job or are carted away in handcuffs.”

NYC Voter Assistance Advisory Committee Meets Tomorrow

Press release:  The next public meeting of the New York City Voter Assistance Advisory Committee (VAAC) will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, September 18, in the Joseph A. O’Hare, S.J. Board Room of the CFB’s office in Lower Manhattan, at 100 Church Street, on the 12th Floor.

If you plan to attend, please RSVP by email to Stewart Armstrong at sarmstrong@nyccfb.info or by phone at 212-409-1841. Please be advised that building security requires all visitors to provide photo identification before entering.

Sign language interpretation is available. Please email access@nyccfb.info by Monday, September 15th, at 12 p.m. if you plan to attend the meeting and require sign language interpretation.

NYC Votes is the nonpartisan voter engagement initiative of the New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB) and its Voter Assistance Advisory Committee (VAAC). In addition to promoting voter registration, participation, and civic engagement in New York City through its many programs and partnerships, NYC Votes sponsors the city’s official Debate Program and produces the citywide Voter Guide.

Con Con Forum in Colonie

Matthew Hamilton reports on a Con Con forum in Colonie on Tuesday, October 4:

Coming soon: CapCon talks con-con at Oct. 4 event by Matthew Hamilton

“When New York State voters head to the polls in November, they will decide whether the state should hold a constitutional convention.

The Times Union’s Capitol Confidential team and expert panelists will convene for “Capitol Confidential Breakfast Forum: A Constitutional Choice” at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4, to explore the potential risks and benefits of the state holding its first ConCon since 1967.

Sponsored by New Yorkers Against Corruption and Effective NY, the forum will be moderated by Casey Seiler, the Times Union’s Senior Editor for News. Panelists will include: Gerry Benjamin, associate vice president for regional engagement and director of the Benjamin Center at SUNY New Paltz; Arthur “Jerry” Kremer, founder and Chairman of Empire Government Strategies and former Assembly Ways and Means Committee chairman; Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union; and Bill Samuels, founder and chairman of Effective NY.

The discussion will be held at the Hearst Media Center in Colonie. Tickets are $15 per person; $5 for students. Coffee and light breakfast snacks will be served. To register, visit http://capitolconfidential.eventbrite.com. Questions? Contact Shannon Fromma at (518) 454-5479 or sfromma@timesunion.com.”

Loophole Allows Public Officials To Shield Legal Expenses

In the Times Union, Chris Bragg reports  how “(t)he public often learns a state lawmaker is under investigation when the official uses campaign funds to pay for a criminal defense attorney.

Veteran Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind, however, may have found a way around that problem.”