BILL NUMBER: S10639
SPONSOR: GIANARIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the election law, in relation to the form of submission
and abstract for proposed amendments to the constitution
 
PURPOSE:
To authorize the legislature to determine the form in which a statewide
proposed a endment, proposition or question shall be submitted to the
people.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill amends section 4-108 of the election law by
adding a new subdivision 8, to authorize the legislature to determine
the form in which a proposed amendment to the constitution shall be
submitted to the people, as well as the abstract thereof. The legisla-
ture, in determining the form of submission and abstract, would be
required to use best efforts to comply with plain language requirements
and score at an eighth grade reading level or below. Such form of
submission and abstract shall be transmitted by the state board of
elections without amendment or alteration.
Section two of the bill provides the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Statewide ballot measures, such as proposed amendments to the state
constitution, offer a unique opportunity for New York voters to directly
shape the future of their state. Given the importance of such proposals,
it is in the state's interest to present voters with the clearest and
most accurate description of such proposals. Although the legislature
is tasked with drafting the legal text of the proposed amendment, propo-
sition or question itself and is, thus, best suited to explain the mean-
ing of such text - the legislature does not currently have the authority
to offer its own plain language description to the voters. This bill
would authorize the legislature to determine the form in which a state-
wide proposed amendment, proposition or question shall be submitted to
the people.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all concur-
rent resolutions proposing amendments to the constitution that achieve
first passage by both houses of the legislature during the 2025-2026
legislative session and any agreed to by the legislature thereafter;
provided, however, that this act shall not apply to any concurrent
resolution proposing amendments to the constitution that achieved first
passage by both houses of the legislature during the 2023-2024 legisla-
tive session.

Statutes affected:
S10639: 4-108 election law