N.Y. Election Law § 8-400: Absentee voting; application for ballot

§ 8-400. Absentee voting; application for ballot. 1. A qualified

voter may vote as an absentee voter under this chapter if, on the

occurrence of any village election conducted by the board of elections,

primary election, special election, general election or New York city

community school board district or city of Buffalo school district

election, he or she expects to be:

(a) absent from the county of his or her residence, or, if a resident

of the city of New York absent from said city; or

(b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election

district in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or

physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more

individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she

will be or is a patient in a hospital; or

(c) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration

hospital; or

(d) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is

detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or

confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than

a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election

district of his or her residence.

2. A qualified voter desiring to vote at such election as an absentee

voter for any reason specified in subdivision one hereof must make

application for an absentee ballot on a form to be obtained and filed as

provided herein, by letter as provided in paragraph (d) of this

subdivision, or through the electronic absentee ballot application

transmittal system pursuant to section 8-408 of this title.

(a) Application forms shall be furnished by and may be obtained from

any board of elections at any time until the day before such election,

or on the electronic absentee ballot application transmittal system.

Application forms shall also be supplied by the board of inspectors of

the election district in which applicant is a qualified voter on all of

the days provided for local registration. In addition, application forms

shall be supplied upon the request of the person authorized to vote

pursuant to this section, any such person's spouse, parent or child, a

person residing with the applicant as a member of his household, or the

applicant's duly authorized agent. Application forms sent outside of the

United States to a country other than Canada or Mexico, shall be sent

airmail. Any reference to "board of elections" in the remaining

provisions of this section, except with respect to the furnishing and

obtaining of applications for absentee ballots, means only the board of

elections of the county or city in which the applicant is a qualified

voter.

(b) Applications may be filed with the board of elections, through the

electronic absentee ballot application transmittal system or in person

with the board of inspectors of the election district in which the

applicant is a qualified voter on one of the days provided for local

registration.

(c) All applications requesting an absentee ballot by mail or through

the electronic absentee ballot application transmittal system must be

received by the board of elections not later than the tenth day before

the election for which a ballot is first requested. Applications for an

absentee ballot that will be delivered in person at the board of

elections to the voter or to an agent of the voter must be received by

such board not later than the day before such election.

(d) The board of elections shall mail an absentee ballot to every

qualified voter otherwise eligible for such a ballot, who requests such

an absentee ballot from such board of elections in writing in a letter,

telefax indicating the address, phone number and the telefax number from

which the writing is sent or other written instrument, or an electronic

application submitted by the voter through the electronic absentee

ballot application transmittal system established by the state board of

elections, which is signed by the voter and received by the board of

elections not later than the tenth day before the election for which the

ballot is first requested and which states the address where the voter

is registered and the address to which the ballot is to be mailed;

provided, however, a military voter may request a military ballot or

voter registration application or an absentee ballot application in a

letter as provided in subdivision three of section 10-106 of this

chapter; and provided further, a special federal voter may request a

special federal ballot or voter registration application or an absentee

ballot application in a letter as provided in paragraph d of subdivision

one of section 11-202 of this chapter. The board of elections shall

enclose with such ballot a form of application for absentee ballot if

the applicant is registered with such board of elections.

(e) When mailing an absentee ballot application to a voter the board

of elections shall provide a domestic postage paid return envelope. When

providing an absentee ballot application to a voter in-person, the board

of elections shall offer the voter a domestic postage paid return

envelope and provide one if requested.

3. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in

each instance the following information:

(a) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,

including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,

mailing address if different from the residence address and his or her

town or city and an address to which the ballot shall be mailed.

(b) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered

voter.

(c) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the

applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following

categories:

(i) absent from the county of his or her residence, or if a resident

of the city of New York absent from said city; provided, however, if the

applicant expects to be absent from such county or city for a duration

covering more than one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each

election, he or she shall state the dates when he or she expects to

begin and end such absence; or

(ii) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or

physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more

individuals who are ill or physically disabled; or

(iii) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration

hospital; or

(iv) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting

trial or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense

other than a felony and stating the place where he or she is so detained

or confined.

(d) Such application shall permit the applicant to apply for an

absentee ballot for either a primary election or the general election in

any year and for those persons who will be continuously absent from

their county of residence during the period between the fall primary

election and the general election in any year to apply for ballots for

both such elections in such year. A voter who applies for an absentee

ballot shall be sent an absentee ballot for any special election or

winter primary that occurs during the period of absence specified in the

application.

4. A voter who claims permanent illness or physical disability may

make application for an absentee ballot and the right to receive an

absentee ballot for each election thereafter as provided herein without

further application, by filing with the board of elections an

application which shall contain a statement to be executed by the voter.

Upon filing of such application the board of elections shall cause the

registration records of the voter to be marked "Permanently Disabled"

and thereafter shall send an absentee ballot for each succeeding

primary, special or general election to such voter at his or her last

known address by first class mail with a request to the postal

authorities not to forward such ballot but to return it in five days in

the event that it cannot be delivered to the addressee. The mailing of

such ballot for each election shall continue until such voter's

registration is cancelled.

5. The application for an absentee ballot shall contain the following

language printed in bold face directly above the signature line: "I

CERTIFY THAT THE INFORMATION IN THIS APPLICATION IS TRUE AND CORRECT AND

UNDERSTAND THAT THIS APPLICATION WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR ALL PURPOSES AS

THE EQUIVALENT OF AN AFFIDAVIT AND, IF IT CONTAINS A MATERIAL FALSE

STATEMENT, SHALL SUBJECT ME TO THE SAME PENALTIES AS IF I HAD BEEN DULY

SWORN." Such application shall be accepted for all purposes as the

equivalent of an affidavit and if it contains a material false statement

shall subject the person signing it to the same penalties as if he had

been duly sworn.

6. For purposes of this section, the use of titles, initials or

customary abbreviations of given names by the signers of, or witnesses

to, an absentee ballot request letter, an absentee ballot application

form or an absentee ballot envelope, or the use of customary

abbreviations of addresses of such signers or witnesses, shall not

invalidate such voter's signature or witness's signature on an

application for an absentee ballot or upon canvass or recanvass of the

ballot pursuant to this chapter.

7. If a person entitled to an absentee ballot is unable to sign his

application because of illness, physical disability or inability to

read, he shall be excused from signing upon making a statement, in

substantially the following form, which shall be witnessed by one

person:

"I hereby state that I am unable to sign my application for an absentee

ballot without assistance because I am unable to write by reason of my

illness or physical disability or because I am unable to read. I have

made, or have received assistance in making, my mark in lieu of my

signature."

(Date)...........................

...........................(Mark)

(Name of Voter)

"I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the above named voter affixed

his mark to this application in my presence and I know him to be the

person who affixed his mark to said application and understand that this

statement will be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an

affidavit and if it contains a material false statement, shall subject

me to the same penalties as if I had been duly sworn."

...........................

(Signature of Witness)

...........................

(Address of Witness)

Such statement shall be included in the application form furnished by

the board of elections.

8. Printed forms of applications for absentee ballots in accordance

with the requirements of this section shall be provided by the board of

elections. An appropriate number shall be retained by the board of

elections for the purpose of furnishing an application form to each

qualified voter who applies therefor before the board of elections,

either in person or by mail, and an appropriate number shall be

delivered to each board of inspectors on registration days with the

election supplies, and the board of inspectors shall retain the

completed and unused applications and return them to the board of

elections with their election supplies and an appropriate number shall

be available for distribution to officers of political parties, county

clerks, city, town and village clerks, colleges, libraries, hospitals,

nursing homes, senior citizens centers and any other convenient

distribution source which is approved by the local or state board of

elections and which requests such forms.

10. The state board of elections shall prescribe a standard

application form for use under this section. The use of any application

form which substantially complies with the provisions of this section

shall be acceptable and any application filed on such a form shall be

accepted for filing.