A 5036: Requires elections and terms of certain officials occur on even-numbered years except in the city of New York - New York

A5036B → A5036C · 4 edits

MODERATE

This bill version updates the procedural history of the legislation and significantly revises the proposed constitutional amendments regarding election timing. The most critical change is the shift in the proposed amendment's language to allow the legislature to schedule elections for state and local offices to occur in odd-numbered years, provided the resulting term expires in an even-numbered year. This modification aims to align election cycles with the current political calendar while maintaining the standard four-year term length.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding election scheduling was expanded to explicitly permit odd-numbered year elections for state and local offices, whereas the previous version only described the standard even-numbered year cycle.

TIMELINE

The proposed constitutional amendment was changed to allow the legislature to schedule elections for state and local offices in odd-numbered years, as long as the term ends in an even-numbered year.

REQUIREMENT

The text was updated to clarify that the new election timing rules do not apply to judicial offices, which remain subject to existing vacancy procedures.

The proposed amendment now includes a specific cutoff date (November 2034) for when these new election timing rules can be applied to fill unexpired terms.

TECHNICAL

Minor wording adjustments were made to clarify that the term of a judicial officer expires at the end of an even-numbered year and to define when an office is considered vacant.

A5036A → A5036B · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to clarify that judicial vacancy procedures differ based on location within New York State. Specifically, it separates rules for vacancies occurring inside New York City from those occurring outside the city, ensuring the correct election cycles and appointment terms apply to each jurisdiction. This change also renumbered the constitutional sections being amended to maintain proper legislative structure.

Scope change

The bill's scope was refined to explicitly distinguish between judicial vacancies in New York City and those in the rest of the state, rather than applying a single set of rules to all locations.

REQUIREMENT

Vacancy filling rules for judges are now split into two distinct categories: one for vacancies within New York City and another for vacancies outside the city, specifying different election timing and appointment durations for each.

Constitutional sections regarding judicial elections were renumbered and text was updated to specify that the new election rules apply to judicial officers outside New York City, while city-specific rules are handled separately.

The text clarifying the scope of city versus county judicial elections was updated to remove ambiguous language and explicitly exclude judicial officers from the general city election provisions.

A5036 → A5036A · 3 edits

MINOR

This bill amends the New York State Constitution to standardize judicial election cycles to even-numbered years and clarifies vacancy procedures. It also adds a transition rule for judges whose current terms end in odd-numbered years, ensuring they are treated as vacant to align with the new schedule. Additionally, it updates the text regarding when appointed officials must step down to the start of the next even-numbered political year.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of judicial elections to include all judicial officers (except village judges) in even-numbered years, whereas previous versions had mixed cycles or specific exceptions for certain courts.

TIMELINE

Changed the election cycle for Supreme Court, County Court, Surrogate's Court, and Family Court judges outside New York City to occur in even-numbered years instead of odd-numbered years.

Added a new provision stating that judicial officers whose current terms expire in an odd-numbered year will be treated as vacant immediately upon expiration to align with the new even-year election schedule.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the rule for appointed officials to ensure they must vacate their office by the start of the political year following the first annual election in an even-numbered year.

Requires elections and terms of certain officials occur on even-numbered years except in the city of New York

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