§ 8-400 — Absentee voting; application for ballot

§ 8-400. Absentee voting; application for ballot. 1. A qualified\nvoter may vote as an absentee voter under this chapter if, on the\noccurrence of any village election conducted by the board of elections,\nprimary election, special election, general election or New York city\ncommunity school board district or city of Buffalo school district\nelection, he or she expects to be:\n (a) absent from the county of his or her residence, or, if a resident\nof the city of New York absent from said city; or\n (b) unable to appear personally at the polling place of the election\ndistrict in which he or she is a qualified voter because of illness or\nphysical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more\nindividuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or she\nwill be or is a patient in a hospital; or\n (c) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration\nhospital; or\n (d) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is\ndetained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or\nconfined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than\na felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election\ndistrict of his or her residence.\n 2. A qualified voter desiring to vote at such election as an absentee\nvoter for any reason specified in subdivision one hereof must make\napplication for an absentee ballot on a form to be obtained and filed as\nprovided herein, by letter as provided in paragraph (d) of this\nsubdivision, or through the electronic absentee ballot application\ntransmittal system pursuant to section 8-408 of this title.\n (a) Application forms shall be furnished by and may be obtained from\nany board of elections at any time until the day before such election,\nor on the electronic absentee ballot application transmittal system.\nApplication forms shall also be supplied by the board of inspectors of\nthe election district in which applicant is a qualified voter on all of\nthe days provided for local registration. In addition, application forms\nshall be supplied upon the request of the person authorized to vote\npursuant to this section, any such person's spouse, parent or child, a\nperson residing with the applicant as a member of his household, or the\napplicant's duly authorized agent. Application forms sent outside of the\nUnited States to a country other than Canada or Mexico, shall be sent\nairmail. Any reference to "board of elections" in the remaining\nprovisions of this section, except with respect to the furnishing and\nobtaining of applications for absentee ballots, means only the board of\nelections of the county or city in which the applicant is a qualified\nvoter.\n (b) Applications may be filed with the board of elections, through the\nelectronic absentee ballot application transmittal system or in person\nwith the board of inspectors of the election district in which the\napplicant is a qualified voter on one of the days provided for local\nregistration.\n (c) All applications requesting an absentee ballot by mail or through\nthe electronic absentee ballot application transmittal system must be\nreceived by the board of elections not later than the tenth day before\nthe election for which a ballot is first requested. Applications for an\nabsentee ballot that will be delivered in person at the board of\nelections to the voter or to an agent of the voter must be received by\nsuch board not later than the day before such election.\n (d) The board of elections shall mail an absentee ballot to every\nqualified voter otherwise eligible for such a ballot, who requests such\nan absentee ballot from such board of elections in writing in a letter,\ntelefax indicating the address, phone number and the telefax number from\nwhich the writing is sent or other written instrument, or an electronic\napplication submitted by the voter through the electronic absentee\nballot application transmittal system established by the state board of\nelections, which is signed by the voter and received by the board of\nelections not later than the tenth day before the election for which the\nballot is first requested and which states the address where the voter\nis registered and the address to which the ballot is to be mailed;\nprovided, however, a military voter may request a military ballot or\nvoter registration application or an absentee ballot application in a\nletter as provided in subdivision three of section 10-106 of this\nchapter; and provided further, a special federal voter may request a\nspecial federal ballot or voter registration application or an absentee\nballot application in a letter as provided in paragraph d of subdivision\none of section 11-202 of this chapter. The board of elections shall\nenclose with such ballot a form of application for absentee ballot if\nthe applicant is registered with such board of elections.\n (e) When mailing an absentee ballot application to a voter the board\nof elections shall provide a domestic postage paid return envelope. When\nproviding an absentee ballot application to a voter in-person, the board\nof elections shall offer the voter a domestic postage paid return\nenvelope and provide one if requested.\n 3. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in\neach instance the following information:\n (a) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,\nincluding the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,\nmailing address if different from the residence address and his or her\ntown or city and an address to which the ballot shall be mailed.\n (b) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered\nvoter.\n (c) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the\napplicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following\ncategories:\n (i) absent from the county of his or her residence, or if a resident\nof the city of New York absent from said city; provided, however, if the\napplicant expects to be absent from such county or city for a duration\ncovering more than one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each\nelection, he or she shall state the dates when he or she expects to\nbegin and end such absence; or\n (ii) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or\nphysical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more\nindividuals who are ill or physically disabled; or\n (iii) a resident or patient of a veterans health administration\nhospital; or\n (iv) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting\ntrial or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense\nother than a felony and stating the place where he or she is so detained\nor confined.\n (d) Such application shall permit the applicant to apply for an\nabsentee ballot for either a primary election or the general election in\nany year and for those persons who will be continuously absent from\ntheir county of residence during the period between the fall primary\nelection and the general election in any year to apply for ballots for\nboth such elections in such year. A voter who applies for an absentee\nballot shall be sent an absentee ballot for any special election or\nwinter primary that occurs during the period of absence specified in the\napplication.\n 4. A voter who claims permanent illness or physical disability may\nmake application for an absentee ballot and the right to receive an\nabsentee ballot for each election thereafter as provided herein without\nfurther application, by filing with the board of elections an\napplication which shall contain a statement to be executed by the voter.\nUpon filing of such application the board of elections shall cause the\nregistration records of the voter to be marked "Permanently Disabled"\nand thereafter shall send an absentee ballot for each succeeding\nprimary, special or general election to such voter at his or her last\nknown address by first class mail with a request to the postal\nauthorities not to forward such ballot but to return it in five days in\nthe event that it cannot be delivered to the addressee. The mailing of\nsuch ballot for each election shall continue until such voter's\nregistration is cancelled.\n 5. The application for an absentee ballot shall contain the following\nlanguage printed in bold face directly above the signature line: "I\nCERTIFY THAT THE INFORMATION IN THIS APPLICATION IS TRUE AND CORRECT AND\nUNDERSTAND THAT THIS APPLICATION WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR ALL PURPOSES AS\nTHE EQUIVALENT OF AN AFFIDAVIT AND, IF IT CONTAINS A MATERIAL FALSE\nSTATEMENT, SHALL SUBJECT ME TO THE SAME PENALTIES AS IF I HAD BEEN DULY\nSWORN." Such application shall be accepted for all purposes as the\nequivalent of an affidavit and if it contains a material false statement\nshall subject the person signing it to the same penalties as if he had\nbeen duly sworn.\n 6. For purposes of this section, the use of titles, initials or\ncustomary abbreviations of given names by the signers of, or witnesses\nto, an absentee ballot request letter, an absentee ballot application\nform or an absentee ballot envelope, or the use of customary\nabbreviations of addresses of such signers or witnesses, shall not\ninvalidate such voter's signature or witness's signature on an\napplication for an absentee ballot or upon canvass or recanvass of the\nballot pursuant to this chapter.\n 7. If a person entitled to an absentee ballot is unable to sign his\napplication because of illness, physical disability or inability to\nread, he shall be excused from signing upon making a statement, in\nsubstantially the following form, which shall be witnessed by one\nperson:\n"I hereby state that I am unable to sign my application for an absentee\nballot without assistance because I am unable to write by reason of my\nillness or physical disability or because I am unable to read. I have\nmade, or have received assistance in making, my mark in lieu of my\nsignature."\n(Date)...........................\n ...........................(Mark)\n (Name of Voter)\n"I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the above named voter affixed\nhis mark to this application in my presence and I know him to be the\nperson who affixed his mark to said application and understand that this\nstatement will be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an\naffidavit and if it contains a material false statement, shall subject\nme to the same penalties as if I had been duly sworn."\n ...........................\n (Signature of Witness)\n ...........................\n (Address of Witness)\nSuch statement shall be included in the application form furnished by\nthe board of elections.\n 8. Printed forms of applications for absentee ballots in accordance\nwith the requirements of this section shall be provided by the board of\nelections. An appropriate number shall be retained by the board of\nelections for the purpose of furnishing an application form to each\nqualified voter who applies therefor before the board of elections,\neither in person or by mail, and an appropriate number shall be\ndelivered to each board of inspectors on registration days with the\nelection supplies, and the board of inspectors shall retain the\ncompleted and unused applications and return them to the board of\nelections with their election supplies and an appropriate number shall\nbe available for distribution to officers of political parties, county\nclerks, city, town and village clerks, colleges, libraries, hospitals,\nnursing homes, senior citizens centers and any other convenient\ndistribution source which is approved by the local or state board of\nelections and which requests such forms.\n 10. The state board of elections shall prescribe a standard\napplication form for use under this section. The use of any application\nform which substantially complies with the provisions of this section\nshall be acceptable and any application filed on such a form shall be\naccepted for filing.\n