§ 175 — Election of fire district officers

New York § 175

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law TWN: Town
• Art. 11: Fire, Fire Alarm and Fire Protection Districts

Text

§ 175. Election of fire district officers. 1. An annual election shall\nbe held in each fire district on the second Tuesday in December, except\nthat in the Ocean Bay Park fire district, the Lonelyville fire district,\nthe Davis Park fire district, the Cherry Grove fire district, the Fair\nHarbor fire district and the Fire Island Pines fire district, Suffolk\ncounty, such annual election shall be held on the second Tuesday in\nJuly, except that in the town of Salisbury, Herkimer county, such annual\nelection shall be held on the Tuesday next succeeding the first Monday\nin November from six o'clock in the morning until nine o'clock in the\nevening and except that in the Belfast fire district, Allegany county,\nsuch annual election shall be held on the first Tuesday in December. The\nboard of fire commissioners shall give notice thereof by the publication\nof a notice once in one or more newspapers having a general circulation\nin the district. The first publication of such notice shall be not less\nthan twenty-seven days and not more than thirty-four days prior to the\ndate of such election. Such notice shall specify the time when and the\nplace where such election will be held, the officers to be elected\nthereat and their terms of office, and the hours during which the polls\nwill be open for the receipt of ballots. The secretary of such fire\ndistrict shall prepare the ballots for all elections of fire district\nofficers and the polls shall remain open for the receipt thereof at all\nelections of fire district officers from six o'clock in the evening\nuntil nine o'clock in the evening and such additional consecutive hours\nprior thereto as the board of fire commissioners of such district may\nhave determined and specified in the notice thereof. The board of fire\ncommissioners shall designate a resident fire district elector, who\nshall be a registered voter of the town, to act as chairman of any\nelection of said district and shall designate not less than two nor more\nthan four resident fire district electors, who shall be registered\nvoters of the town to act as election inspectors and ballot clerks at\nsuch elections. No elective officer of the fire district shall serve as\nsuch chairman or as an election inspector or ballot clerk. The board of\nfire commissioners may adopt a resolution providing that such chairman,\nelection inspectors and ballot clerks shall be paid for their respective\nservices at any such annual election or at any special election of the\nfire district. Such resolution, if adopted, shall fix the amount of such\ncompensation, as follows: if the hours during which the polls will be\nopen for the receipt of ballots are from six o'clock in the evening\nuntil nine o'clock in the evening, a sum not to exceed seventy dollars\nfor each such official; if additional consecutive hours prior to six\no'clock in the evening are determined and specified in the notice of\nelection, a sum not to exceed one hundred dollars for each such\nofficial.\n 2. Every elector of the town who shall be a registered voter and who\nshall have resided in the district for the period of thirty days next\npreceding any election of fire district officers shall be qualified to\nvote for such officers. Every elector of the town who shall be a\nregistered voter and who shall have resided in the fire district for the\nperiod of thirty days next preceding any election at which a proposition\nshall be submitted, shall be qualified to vote upon such proposition.\n 3. Every fire district commissioner, treasurer and secretary must at\nthe time of his election or appointment and throughout his term of\noffice be a resident of such fire district. Membership in a volunteer\nfire company shall not disqualify any such fire district commissioner,\ntreasurer or secretary. A person who has been convicted of arson in any\ndegree shall not be eligible for election or appointment to the office\nof fire district commissioner, treasurer or secretary. Any fire district\ncommissioner, treasurer or secretary who is convicted of arson in any\ndegree during his term of office shall be disqualified from completing\nsuch term of office.\n 4. There shall be conspicuously placed, by the resident fire elector,\ndistance markers at a distance of one hundred feet from the polling\nplace. Such distance markers shall be so placed at least one-half hour\nbefore the opening of the polls and shall remain until such polls are\nclosed. The one hundred foot distance shall be deemed to include a one\nhundred foot radial measured from the entrances, designated by the\nresident fire elector, to a building where such election is being held.\nWhile the polls are open no person shall do any electioneering within\nthe polling place, or in any public street within the one hundred foot\nradial, or within such distance in any place in a public manner. No\nelectioneering banner, button, poster or placard on behalf of or in\nopposition to any candidate or issue to be voted upon shall be allowed\nin or upon the polling place or within such one hundred feet therefrom\nduring the election. Any person who willfully violates the provisions of\nthis subdivision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.\n 5. All official ballots shall remain in the custody of election\ninspectors within the polling place from the opening of the polls until\nthe announcement of the result of the canvass and the signing of the\ninspectors' returns thereof. After the polls shall have been closed at\nany election held for the election of fire district officers or to vote\nupon a proposition, the election inspectors and ballot clerks shall\nimmediately canvass publicly the ballots cast and the chairman of the\nelection shall publicly announce the result. Within seventy-two hours\nthereafter, the chairman, election inspectors and ballot clerks shall\nexecute and file a certificate of the result of the canvass with the\nboard of fire commissioners and with the town clerk of each town in\nwhich said district or any part thereof may be located.\n 6. If in any fire district the number of voters is so great as to\nrender it inexpedient or impossible to conduct the election at one\npolling place, the board of fire commissioners may divide the fire\ndistrict into election districts and provide a polling place for each\nsuch election district, provided, however, that the number of election\ndistricts in any fire district shall not exceed one for each six hundred\nelectors plus one for a remaining fraction of six hundred. In such\nevent, the notice specified in subdivision one of this section shall\ndescribe the election districts and state where the polling places will\nbe located, and the board of fire commissioners shall designate not less\nthan two nor more than four resident fire district electors, who shall\nbe registered voters of the town, to act as election inspectors and\nballot clerks at each such polling place. The board of fire district\ncommissioners may adopt a resolution providing that such election\ninspectors and ballot clerks shall be paid for their respective services\nat any such annual election or at any special election of the fire\ndistrict. Such resolution, if adopted, shall fix the amount of such\ncompensation as follows: if the hours during which the polls will be\nopen for the receipt of ballots are from six o'clock in the evening\nuntil nine o'clock in the evening, a sum not to exceed seventy dollars\nfor each such official; if additional consecutive hours prior to six\no'clock in the evening are determined and specified in the notice of\nelection, a sum not to exceed one hundred dollars for each such\nofficial. No elective officer of the fire district shall serve as an\nelection inspector or ballot clerk.\n