2023 New York Laws › ELN - Election › Article 3 - Election Officials › Title 2 - Board of Elections › 3-222 - Preservation of Ballots and Records of Voting Machines.

§  3-222.  Preservation of ballots and records of voting machines.  1.
  Except as hereinafter provided, removable memory cards or other  similar
  electronic  media  shall  remain sealed against reuse until such time as
  the information stored on such media has  been  preserved  in  a  manner
  consistent  with procedures developed and distributed by the state board
  of elections. Provided, however, that the  information  stored  on  such
  electronic  media  and  all the data and figures therein may be examined
  upon the order of any court or judge of competent jurisdiction or may be
  examined at the direction of a committee of the senate  or  assembly  to
  investigate  and  report  upon  contested  elections  of  members of the
  legislature voted for by the  use  of  voting  machines  utilizing  such
  electronic  media  and  such  data  and  such  figures  examined by such
  committee in the presence of the officer having the  custody  of  voting
  machines and electronic media.
2.  Voted ballots shall be preserved for two years after such election
  and the packages thereof may be opened and the  contents  examined  only
  upon  order  of  a  court  or  judge  of  competent  jurisdiction, or by
  direction of such committee of the senate and assembly  if  the  ballots
  relate to the election under investigation by such committee, and at the
  expiration  of  such  time,  such  ballots  may  be  disposed  of at the
  discretion of the officer or board having charge of them.
3. Except as hereinafter provided, packages  of  protested,  void  and
  wholly  blank  ballots,  open  packages  of unused ballots and all early
  mail, absentee and military, special federal, special  presidential  and
  emergency  ballots  and  ballot  envelopes,  if any, opened or unopened,
  shall be preserved for two years after the election. Sealed packages  of
  unused  ballots  shall  be  retained  for  four  months, and may then be
  destroyed, provided a certificate  articulating  the  election  district
  identifying  data  and numbers of such ballots is filed with the balance
  of ballots described in this section, for the balance of  the  two  year
  retention period. Except as hereinafter provided, boxes containing voted
  paper ballots, if any shall be preserved inviolate for four months after
  the  election,  or  until  one  month before the next election occurring
  within five months after a preceding election if such boxes  are  needed
  for  use  at such next election and if the officer or board in charge of
  such voted paper ballots is required by  law  to  furnish  ballot  boxes
  therefor.  Provided,  however,  that such ballot boxes and such packages
  may be opened, and their contents  and  the  early  mail,  absentee  and
  military,  special  federal,  special presidential and emergency ballots
  and ballot envelopes may be examined, upon the order  of  any  court  or
  justice  of competent jurisdiction. Boxes and envelopes containing early
  mail, absentee, military and emergency ballots voted  at  a  general  or
  special  election,  for  the office of member of the senate or assembly,
  packages of void, protested and wholly  blank  ballots,  unopened  early
  mail,  absentee and military ballot envelopes and the packages of unused
  ballots, in connection with such election, also may be opened, and their
  contents and such envelopes also may be  examined,  by  direction  of  a
  committee  of  the  senate  or  assembly  to  investigate  and report on
  contested elections of members  of  the  legislature.  Unless  otherwise
  ordered  or  directed  by such a court, justice or committee, such boxes
  shall be opened and their contents and such packages and  the  envelopes
  containing voted ballots and ballot envelopes shall be destroyed, at the
  expiration  of  the  period  during  which  they  are  required  by  the
  provisions of this section to be preserved, except that instead of being
  destroyed, they may be sold and the proceeds paid  over  in  the  manner
  provided  with  respect  to  the  sale  of  books,  records  and  papers
  pertaining to an election.
4. All records and documents pertaining to  ballot  label  programming
  and  ballot  label  programming  data  for  any  election for any voting
  machine of a type  approved  after  September  first,  nineteen  hundred
  eighty-six  and  all  records  pertaining  to  the  periodic maintenance
  testing  of  any such programming and programming data or the testing of
  any such machine in connection with any such election shall be preserved
  for two years after such election.