SENATE VOTING PANEL ISSUES PROPOSALS TO SMOOTH STATE ELECTIONS

Members of the Special Task Force have crisscrossed the state and listened to the concerns and ideas of citizens, elected officials, elections experts and others to define potential problems in New York’s voting systems.

Special Task Force Seeking Ways to Improve Elections in Wake of Florida Voting Debacle

Tuesday, May 15, 2001

New Yorkers could gain college credit, fulfill professional education requirements or swap their jury duty obligation in exchange for serving as Election Day poll watchers under proposals contained in a comprehensive report released today by the Special Majority Task Force on Voter Participation.

The report also called for directing up to $25 million in state funds included in the Senate�s budget resolution to create a system of statewide voter registration to ensure accuracy of voter rolls and prevent fraud, improved accessibility for disabled voters, more training and better working conditions for poll watchers, better maintenance of voting machines and uniform standards for voting machines and paper ballots.

The panel, comprising all Majority Senators and chaired by Senator Nicholas A. Spano (R-C, Westchester), was formed in the wake of last Fall�s Florida elections mess to examine New York�s system of voting and make recommendations to improve and simplify voting, make elections more fair and enhance public confidence in voting results.

"The right and privilege of voting to select our public leaders and voice our opinions on important and timely issues is central to our ideals of freedom, democracy and representative government," said Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno. "Making sure that our vote counts is a fundamental responsibility of government. I commend the Special Task Force on its work in bringing forward these recommendations that will further those goals, improve the process of voting and help maintain the public�s confidence in its leaders and its system of government."

"For more than five months, members of the Special Task Force have crisscrossed the state and listened to the concerns and ideas of citizens, elected officials, elections experts and others to define potential problems in New York�s voting systems and devise solutions to make voting easier, more accurate and more fair," said Senator Spano. "Now, I look forward to continuing our public discussion of these and other ideas so that we can adopt improvements to our voting system, avoid problems like those seen in Florida and help assure New Yorkers that their votes truly count."

The Special Task Force recommendations -- based on interviews with election officials in six counties personally visited by the Special Task Force members, as well as testimony gleaned at three public forums held across the state -- will be forwarded to the New York State Task Force on Election Modernization, formed in March by Governor Pataki, for further consideration and discussion. Senator Bruno appointed Senator Spano and Senate Elections Committee Chairman Serphin Maltese to represent the Senate Majority on the Governor�s Task Force.

Among the Special Task Force recommendations is the proposal to provide education credit to college students and professionals, including attorneys and others, in exchange for service as Election Day poll watchers.

Another recommendation would allow citizens who are selected for jury duty instead to serve as poll watchers and fulfill their civic obligation.

"Poll watchers serve a critical role in ensuring that polling places are open and accessible, and that elections run smoothly and are free from fraud," Senator Spano said. "But many communities have difficulty in attracting sufficient numbers of poll watchers, in part due to the low pay and long hours that currently go along with the job. These proposals are designed to help stem that shortage of poll watchers and protect the integrity of the polling place."

The Special Task Force also recommended higher pay levels for poll watchers, who often earn less than minimum wage for workdays that can be 16 hours or more, increased training requirements, and allowing "split shifts" to divide the work day among several inspectors.

Other Special Task Force recommendations are designed to improve voter access, reform the use of paper ballots and ensure the integrity of voting machines.

Many of the recommendations contained in the report could be implemented with the help of $25 million in state matching funds to localities that the Senate Majority has included in its budget resolution and will seek to include in the final state budget.

DISABLED VOTERS
Disabled New Yorkers tend to vote in far fewer numbers due to physical obstacles at polling places. The Special Task Force recommends:

* Requiring all new voting machines be handicap-accessible for voters who use wheelchairs;
* Requiring Braille and large-print paper and machine ballots be made available at every polling place for the visually impaired.

VOTING MACHINES
Early public debate following last November�s election focused on whether states like New York should replace their older, mechanically operated machines with newer, electronic technology. The Special Task Force examined various new technology and made several proposals to make it easier to test and purchase new technology, as well as ensure that existing machines are kept in good working order:

* Require counties to own and service all voting machines within their boundaries to improve maintenance;
* Allow for "mock" elections at the same time and place as real elections to test new technology side-by-side with existing machines;
* Create uniform standards for voting machine maintenance statewide.

BALLOT LAYOUT
The Special Task Force recognized that Election Boards will never be able to completely eliminate paper ballots, such as for absentee voters, and made the following recommendations to avoid "Florida-like" paper ballot fiascoes:

* Eliminate punch cards, currently used in five counties in New York State;
* Create statewide standards for absentee ballots;
* Eliminate unnecessary and intrusive questions for personal information on absentee ballot applications to protect voters� privacy;
* Extend the time period for accepting overseas military ballots from seven to 10 days, and expand the requirements for accepting a military ballot to include a dated witness statement on the ballot envelope;
* Create uniform standards for scannable ballots.

REGISTRATION REFORM
The Special Task Force found that elections boards across the state continue to experience difficulty in maintaining accurate and up-to-date voter registration files. The Special Task Force recommends:

* Creation of a computerized, statewide voter registration database to routinely screen for duplicate or fraudulent registrations;
* Require the state Health Department to more timely forward death certificates to local elections boards to allow the names of deceased voters to be purged;
* Increase the time for new registrants to file with their local Elections Board from up to 25 days prior to an election to 20 days;
* Provide county boards additional time to verify registrants� information.

[BIOGRAPHY] [DISTRICT MAP] [PHOTO GALLERY] [LEGISLATION] [CONSTITUENT SERVICES] [YOUR OPINION COUNTS] [GUESTBOOK] [PRIVACY POLICY] [SENATE INSIDER] [CONTACT INFO] [HOME/NEWS]