Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, is pictured debating election reforms bills on the state Senate floor earlier this week.

Add election reform legislation to the list of items in a holding pattern as the state legislative session nears a close.

The state Senate recently approved several election bills, though it is uncertain if the legislation will be taken up by the Assembly before the end of the session in early June. Bills passed include:

¯ S.424, which allows split shifts for election inspectors or poll clerks;

¯ S.823, which Increases compensation of election inspectors to $300 and coordinators to $350 in New York City;

¯ S.4542, which prohibits conflicts of interest among board of elections employees;

¯ S.5800, which requires mandatory training curriculum for poll workers;

¯ S.6684, which establishes minimum staffing levels for local board of elections;

¯ S.7382, which would allow the passing out of refreshments to increase attendance at polls;

¯ S.8289, which requires a public hearing prior to the appointment of election commissioners;

¯ S.8292, which requires election commissioners to meet certain qualification;

¯ S.8311, which makes commissioners full time employees of the board; and

¯ S.8337, which creates a way to remove an election commissioner.

“So much of what we’re seeing here is under the guise of professionalizing our local boards of elections,” Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, said on the Senate floor.

“But a lot of this is unfunded mandates and again, as a 10-year veteran of county government, I can tell you there is already a huge burden, particularly on our boards of elections. We have small numbers of people. Now if we want to provide funding that’s a different story. I’m still a no on a lot of these regardless of funding, but the bottom line is so much of what we’re seeing today is an unfunded burden on our local governments and their ability to carry out elections. So I’ll be a no.”

Rep. Rachel May referenced a hotly contested 2020 race for the U.S. House of Representatives between Rep. Claudia Tenney and Anthony Brindisi that was officially undecided for roughly four months. A state judge ruled Tenney won the race by 109 votes and ordered the results to be certified. The legal battle included a judicial ruling on 1,100 affidavit ballots that were challenged and led to criticisms by the judge overseeing the case of county elections boards in the House district for a series of issues that led to confusion over whether some contested ballots were officially thrown out or not.

“I rise in support of this whole package of bills to improve election administration in New York state,” said May, a Democrat from Syracuse. “My district was the site of an election debacle in 2020. We will never know the true will of the voters in a Congressional election that came down to just a few votes. After a lengthy court case that found an astonishing number of irregularities and missteps by elections commissioners in multiple counties. I thank my colleagues for taking this action today to make sure election commissioners are qualified, appropriately vetted and trained and that they have the personnel they need and that they can be removed when there is cause to do so.”

Specifically, Borrello also singled out S.7382 for opposition. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Zellnor Myrie, D-Brooklyn, repeals in its entirety Election Law section 17-140, commonly

referred to as the “line warming ban.” Such provisions have come under fire since legislation enacted in Georgia included a prohibition on giving away water or food within a certain distance of voters or polling places. New York law states it is prohibited to provide “meat, drink, tobacco, refreshment or provision” to a voter at a polling place, except if the retail value is less that $1, and the person or entity providing it is not identified.”

Critics of the Georgia legislation said the ban on giving out water while in line to vote is a form of voter suppression. Borrello said the law hasn’t decreased voter turnout in Georgia, which has seen markedly higher voter turnout since the prohibition on giving away water or food near polling places.

“While I certainly understand the impetus that is behind the idea of passing out refreshments in what could be long lines, this bill is very troubling to me for a number of reasons,” Borrello said. “First and foremost it is very vague. Secondly, I don’t truly believe we are going to stop people from illegally canvassing as they are passing out refreshments. The reality is that we are looking at these types of special interest groups coming in and we’re never really going to be able to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt as they’re passing out a bottle of water they’re not discussing who they should be voting for while they’re in line.”

Anyone prosecuted under the New York law can be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail or three years’ probation and a fine of up to $1,000 if found guilty. Myrie wrote in his legislative justification that New York can have long lines to vote and the prohibition on food and drink places an additional burden on voters.

“The statute is antiquated, burdensome, vague, and potentially unconstitutional. Simply put, it does not serve a legitimate purpose in the administration of elections in our state, and as such should be repealed,” Myrie wrote in his legislative justification. He did not speak on behalf of the bill on the Senate floor.

Borrello said it is ironic that water can be passed out in plastic bottles at polling sites but may not be available in plastic bottles in state parks under legislation being considered by the state Legislature.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you cannot buy a water bottle in our state parks thanks to a bill that we passed here,” Borrello said. “If you walk into a New York state park, some of them are very vast in my district, and you forget to bring a bottle of water you can’t buy one there.”