S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10841
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 23, 2018
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. ROZIC, COLTON, GALEF, GOTTFRIED, M. G. MILLER --
   read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
 
 AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to designating  additional
   participating agencies for purposes of agency assisted voter registra-
   tion
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The opening paragraph of section 5-211 of the election law,
 as amended by chapter 265 of the laws of 2013, is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   Each  agency designated as a participating agency under the provisions
 of this section shall implement and administer a program of distribution
 of voter registration forms pursuant to the provisions of this  section.
 The  following  offices  which  provide public assistance and/or provide
 state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons
 with disabilities are hereby designated as voter registration  agencies:
 designated as the state agencies which provide public assistance are the
 office  of  children  and  family  services, the office of temporary and
 disability assistance and the department of health. Also  designated  as
 public  assistance  agencies  are  all agencies of local government that
 provide such assistance.  Designated  as  state  agencies  that  provide
 programs primarily engaged in providing services to people with disabil-
 ities  are  the  department  of labor, office for the aging, division of
 veterans' affairs, office of mental health,  office  of  vocational  and
 educational  services  for  individuals with disabilities, commission on
 quality of care for the mentally disabled, office [of mental retardation
 and] FOR PEOPLE WITH  developmental  disabilities,  commission  for  the
 blind,  office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, the office of
 the advocate for the disabled and all offices which administer  programs
 established or funded by such agencies. Additional state agencies desig-
 nated  as voter registration offices are the department of state and the
 division of workers' compensation. Such agencies shall  be  required  to
 offer  voter  registration forms to persons upon initial application for
 services, renewal or recertification for services and change of  address
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02827-01-7

 A. 10841                            2
 
 relating  to  such services. Such agencies shall also be responsible for
 providing assistance to  applicants  in  completing  voter  registration
 forms,  receiving  and  transmitting the completed application form from
 all applicants who wish to have such form transmitted to the appropriate
 board  of  elections.  The state board of elections shall, together with
 representatives of the department  of  defense,  develop  and  implement
 procedures  for including recruitment offices of the armed forces of the
 United States as voter registration offices when  such  offices  are  so
 designated  by  federal  law. The state board shall also make request of
 the United States Immigration  and  Naturalization  Service  to  include
 applications for registration by mail with any materials which are given
 to  new  citizens.  All institutions of the state university of New York
 and the city university of New York, shall,  at  the  beginning  of  the
 school  year,  and  again in January of a year in which the president of
 the United States is to be elected, provide an application for registra-
 tion to each student in  each  such  institution.  The  state  board  of
 elections  may,  by  regulation,  grant  a waiver from any or all of the
 requirements of this section to any office or program of an  agency,  if
 it  determines  that  it  is  not feasible for such office or program to
 administer such requirement.  ALSO DESIGNATED AS PARTICIPATING  AGENCIES
 ARE  ALL PUBLIC LIBRARIES, WHICH SHALL BE REQUIRED TO OFFER VOTER REGIS-
 TRATION FORMS TO PERSONS EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE  OR  OLDER  UPON  INITIAL
 APPLICATION  FOR  A LIBRARY CARD. ALSO DESIGNATED AS PARTICIPATING AGEN-
 CIES ARE ALL LOCAL HOUSING AUTHORITIES, WHICH SHALL BE REQUIRED TO OFFER
 VOTER  REGISTRATION  FORMS  TO  PERSONS  UPON  INITIAL  APPLICATION  FOR
 SERVICES OR RECERTIFICATION FOR SERVICES. ALSO DESIGNATED AS PARTICIPAT-
 ING  AGENCIES  ARE  ALL  PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS, WHICH SHALL BE REQUIRED TO
 OFFER VOTER REGISTRATION FORMS TO ALL SENIORS UPON THEIR GRADUATION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law; provided that the state board  of  elections
 is authorized to promulgate any rules necessary to implement this act on
 or before its effective date.