S644A

The New York State Senate passed S644A, an amendment to the Election Law, on a 41-20 roll call vote. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Mannion, faced opposition from Republican senators who argued it would impose unfair mandates on small counties. Sen. Stec, voting against the measure, highlighted Hamilton County as an example, noting the rural county with a population of 4,400 currently operates with two full-time elections commissioners and would be forced to expand to six commissioners within four years under the bill's requirements. Stec contended that the uniform statewide mandate fails to account for the different needs and fiscal constraints of small versus large counties, and argued counties should be permitted to determine their own staffing levels. The bill had been debated in the previous legislative session. Twenty senators voted against the measure, all voting in the negative, while 41 voted in favor of passage.