STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4223 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 31, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. McDONOUGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to the mailing or delivery of absentee ballots The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 8-406 of the election law, as 2 amended by section 2 of part HH of chapter 55 of the laws of 2022, is 3 amended to read as follows: 4 1. If the board shall find that the applicant is a qualified voter of 5 the election district containing [his] the applicant's residence as 6 stated in [his] their statement and that [his] the applicant's statement 7 is sufficient, it shall, as soon as practicable after it shall have 8 determined [his] their right thereto, mail to [him] the applicant at an 9 address designated by [him] them, or deliver to [him] them, or to any 10 person designated for such purpose in writing by [him] them, at the 11 office of the board, such an absentee voter's ballot or set of ballots 12 and an envelope therefor. If the ballot or ballots are to be sent 13 outside of the United States to a country other than Canada or Mexico, 14 such ballot or ballots shall be sent by air mail. However, if an appli- 15 cant who is eligible for an absentee ballot is a resident of a facility 16 operated or licensed by, or under the jurisdiction of, the department of 17 mental hygiene, or a resident of a facility defined as a nursing home or 18 residential health care facility pursuant to subdivisions two and three 19 of section two thousand eight hundred one of the public health law, or a 20 resident of a hospital or other facility operated by the [Veteran's 21 Administration of the United States] United States Department of Veter- 22 ans Affairs, such absentee ballot need not be so mailed or delivered to 23 any such applicant but, may be delivered to the voter in the manner 24 prescribed by section 8-407 of this chapter if such facility is located 25 in the county or city in which such voter is eligible to vote. No 26 absentee ballot shall be mailed or delivered to a voter unless such 27 voter specifically requests to receive an absentee ballot. 28 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD08431-01-5