All New Yorkers, including you, are invited to comment on the precise wording of the upcoming NYS Equal Rights Constitutional Amendment proposal (Proposal Number One) before it is finalized for the ballot in this November’s pivotal election. The NYS Board of Elections (BOE) has proposed the following language for the November ballot:
“This proposal amends Article 1, Section 11 of the New York State Constitution. It prohibits any person, business, or organization, as well as state and local governments from discrimination pursuant to law. The current protections in the Constitution cover race, color, creed, and religion.
The proposal will add ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.” (For more information see: elections.ny.gov/2024-statewide-ballot-proposal.)
WHY SEND YOUR COMMENTS? Because clear and accessible wording is essential. The BOE is required to write statewide ballot measures in “plain language” meaning at an 8th grade reading level or below. However, the current proposed ballot language scores at a Readability Index of college reading level.
On Monday, July 29, the NYS Board of Election commissioners will meet to consider comments submitted by New Yorkers such as you before determining the final revision of the ballot language. Please submit your comments by the deadline on Friday, July 26, 2024:
- via email to comments@elections.ny.gov
- or via regular mail to: The New York State Board of Elections, 40 North Pearl Street, Suite 5, Albany, NY 12207
SUGGESTED IMPROVED LANGUAGE
The following specific suggestions would lower this readability level and make the ballot language more accessible:
1. Use the term “abortion”: The amendment was passed by the Legislature in a special session as a direct response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision. Abortion is being banned and criminalized nationwide. Voters want the opportunity to protect it in their state constitutions.
The fact that this ballot measure protects abortion should be explicit. As noted in the Equal Rights Amendment’s legislative sponsor’s memo, “abortion is a fundamental right that is integral to a person’s reproductive autonomy.”
2. Use the term “LGBT” rather than “sexual orientation and gender identity,” because “LGBT” is more understandable to New Yorkers than “sexual orientation” or “gender identity.”
SAMPLE COMMENT LETTER
Use these words or adapt them for a more personal version of your comments on the ballot language, and then submit by email or regular mail for receipt by the July 26,2024 deadline.
Commissioners of the New York State Board of Elections,
My name is [NAME] and I am a voter in [TOWN], New York.
I want to submit feedback on the ballot language for Proposal 1:
● The language is confusing, and I don’t understand what it means. I learned that the legislature passed a law requiring ballot measures be written in simple English. It is my understanding that you did not meet the goal of proposing language at an eighth grade reading level. There are more accessible words that you should use to explain the impact of the amendment so that all voters understand what they are voting on.
● The language “reproductive healthcare and autonomy” is unclear to me. It is important to understand if abortion is included in the amendment, and I am not sure if it is. The language says the amendment protects pregnancy, reproductive healthcare and autonomy. This confusing text doesn’t clearly describe what the amendment protects. It does not make clear whether this includes protections for abortion — does it? Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, it is really important to me that this covers abortion. I want to be certain that I am voting for an amendment that protects abortion.
● Rather than “sexual orientation and gender identity,” use “LGBT”: “Sexual orientation and “gender identity” are not well-known terms for me and many New Yorkers. Simply using the acronym “LGBT” is much clearer. As a New York voter, the term “LGBT” helps me understand exactly what ERA would do – protect communities who face ongoing discrimination in our state.
Thank you,
[SIGN YOUR NAME]_____
If you have any questions, please contact
Chapter NYS ERA Amendment Task Force member Terry Toll at Simplegifts18@gmail.com or (914) 834 3158