N.Y. Village Law § 9-902

Current through 2024 NY Law Chapter 553

Section 9-902 - Referendum on petition; registration list of electors

1. An act or resolution of the board of trustees as described in the preceding section shall not take effect until thirty days after its adoption; nor until approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the qualified electors of such village voting on such proposition for its approval if within thirty days after its adoption there be filed with the village clerk a petition signed and acknowledged by electors of the village in number equal to at least twenty per centum of such electors in the village, as shown on the register of electors for the previous general village election, protesting against such act or resolution and requesting that it be submitted to the electors of the village for their approval or disapproval.

2. Unless the ownership of real property is otherwise required by law as a qualification for voting on a proposition, any person qualified to vote at a general village election may vote upon any proposition submitted at a village election.

3. Except as otherwise provided in the election law, it shall be the duty of the village clerk to make and file in his office, at least ten days before any such proposition is submitted at a special election called solely for that purpose an accurate registration list of electors, alphabetically arranged, qualified to vote on the proposition. The village clerk may use any or all of the following to obtain the information necessary to properly prepare such list:

(a) Register of electors in last preceding village election.

(b) Towns register of electors for last preceding general election covering all the area of the village.

(c) Last preceding county register of electors.

(d) Any other official record or source that will aid in producing the most accurate registration list of electors.

Such registration list of electors shall be made available and disclosed to any elector of the village upon request. Any elector of the village claiming to be qualified to vote upon such a proposition whose name is not included in the registration list of electors therefor as made by the village clerk, may apply to such clerk for a revision of such list of electors to include his or her name. The village clerk upon the presentation of proper proofs showing that the applicant is a duly qualified elector shall revise such list of electors to include the name of the applicant. The application to revise any such list of electors may be made to the village clerk on or before the date of the election at which the proposition is to be submitted.

4. The failure or refusal of the village clerk to revise any such list of electors to include the name of a qualified elector so applying may be reviewed in a proceeding under article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules. The court upon petition for such a review shall cause to be served upon the village clerk an order directing such clerk to show cause why the statement should not be revised to include the name of the petitioner. Such order must be made returnable on a date to be fixed by the court not less than twenty-four hours after the order is issued and served. If it shall appear upon the return of the order that the petitioner is qualified to vote upon the proposition, the court shall order the name of the petitioner to be included in the list of electors and the village clerk shall revise such list accordingly. The provisions of article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules, not inconsistent with this act, shall apply to the review provided by this section.

5. If such petition be so filed after the first day of the month in which the general village election is to be held and before the first day of the month two months prior to the next general village election, a proposition for the approval of such act or resolution shall be submitted at a special election of such village to be held not less than ten nor more than sixty days after the filing of such petition.

6. If such petition be so filed on or after the first day of the month two months prior to the month in which the general village election is to be held and on or before the first day of the month in which the general village election is to be held, a proposition for the approval of such act or resolution shall be submitted at the said general village election.

7. A special election hereunder shall be noticed, conducted, canvassed and otherwise held in the same manner as a general village election.

8. Petition shall be made upon white paper containing the signatures of qualified electors of the village. The sheets of such a petition shall be numbered consecutively beginning with number one at the foot of each sheet. Such petition must set forth in every instance the correct date of signing, the full name of the signer, his present residence, the ward if any and the village election district if any. A signer need not himself fill in the date, residence, ward, or election district.

Each sheet of such petition shall be signed in ink and shall be substantially in the following form:

To the Board of Trustees of this Village of .......................... County of ......................, State of New York.

We, the undersigned, duly qualified electors of the village of ............. respectfully petition that the following proposed act or resolution ..... here insert title, abstract or identifying number ..... be submitted to a vote of the qualified electors of the village for their approval or rejection as provided by law.

Ward Village Election Date Signature-Residence if any District if any ..... ................... ...... ................ ..... ................... ...... ................ ..... ................... ...... ................

Statement of Witness:

I, .................state: I am over the age of eighteen years and now reside at ................................................... (residence address, or postoffice address if not identical) in the Village of ................... in the State of New York, County of .................. . Each of the electors whose names are subscribed to this petition sheet containing .........(fill in number) signatures, subscribed his name in my presence.

I understand that this statement will be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an affidavit and, if it contains a material false statement, shall subject me to the same penalties as if I had been duly sworn. ............ .........................

Date Signature of Witness

9. If, within five days after the filing of such petition, a written objection thereto be filed with the village clerk, the supreme court or any justice thereof of the judicial district in which such village or any part thereof is located, shall determine any question arising thereunder and make such order as justice may require. Such proceeding shall be heard and determined in the manner prescribed by section 16-116 of the election law.

N.Y. Village Law § 9-902