S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
1685
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 11, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH, COLTON, GALEF, GOTTFRIED, MENG,
M. MILLER, PHEFFER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BOYLAND, MAGNAR-
ELLI -- 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 200 of the laws of 1996, 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
[department of social services] 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 disabilities 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 devel-
opmental disabilities, commission for the blind and visually hand-
icapped, 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 agen-
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04807-01-1
A. 1685 2
cies designated 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 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 univer-
sity 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 applica-
tion for registration 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 PARTICIPAT-
ING AGENCIES ARE ALL PUBLIC LIBRARIES, WHICH SHALL BE REQUIRED TO OFFER
VOTER REGISTRATION FORMS TO PERSONS EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER UPON
INITIAL APPLICATION FOR A LIBRARY CARD. ALSO DESIGNATED AS PARTICIPATING
AGENCIES 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.
S 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.