S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  4802

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             April 17, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced by Sen. ESPAILLAT -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections

AN  ACT  to amend the election law, in relation to designating the state
  and city universities of New York as participating agencies for  voter
  registration  form  distribution  and assistance, and permitting inde-
  pendent institutions of higher education to do the same upon request

  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,  THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  FAMILY  ASSISTANCE and the
department of health. Also designated as public assistance agencies  are
all  agencies  of  local government that provide such assistance. Desig-
nated 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 indi-
viduals with disabilities, commission on quality of care for the mental-
ly disabled, office of mental retardation  and  developmental  disabili-
ties, 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.  Addi-

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD01109-02-5
              

S. 4802                             2

tional  [state]  PARTICIPATING agencies designated as voter registration
offices are the department  of  state  [and],  the  [division]  DISTRICT
OFFICES  of THE workers' compensation BOARD, AND ALL INSTITUTIONS OF THE
STATE  UNIVERSITY  OF  NEW YORK AND THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK; AND
ANY DEGREE-GRANTING INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION DESCRIBED  IN  ARTI-
CLES   ONE   HUNDRED   FIFTEEN,  ONE  HUNDRED  TWENTY-ONE,  ONE  HUNDRED
TWENTY-THREE, ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SIX  AND  ONE  HUNDRED  TWENTY-NINE  OF
TITLE VII OF THE EDUCATION LAW WHICH ELECTS TO BE A PARTICIPATING AGENCY
BY  FILING  WITH THE STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS A NOTICE IN WHICH IT MAKES
SUCH AN ELECTION.  Such agencies shall be required to offer voter regis-
tration forms to persons upon  initial  application  for  services,  FOR
PARTICIPATION  IN  ACTIVITIES OR FOR USE OF FACILITIES, AND UPON renewal
or recertification for services, PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITIES OR  USE  OF
FACILITIES,  and  UPON  change  of  address  relating  to such services,
PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITIES OR USE OF FACILITIES OF THE AGENCIES.   Such
agencies  shall  also  be responsible for providing assistance to appli-
cants 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 UNITED STATES
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 OF ELECTIONS shall  also  make  request  of  the  United
States  [Immigration  and  Naturalization Service] CITIZENSHIP AND IMMI-
GRATION SERVICES 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 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.
  S  2.  Subdivision 4 of section 5-211 of the election law, as added by
chapter 659 of the laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows:
  4. Each participating agency shall provide to each applicant who  does
not  decline  to  register  to  vote  the same degree of assistance with
regard to the completion of the  registration  application  form  as  is
provided  by  the  agency  with regard to the completion of its own form
unless the applicant refuses such assistance. ALL  INSTITUTIONS  OF  THE
STATE  UNIVERSITY  OF  NEW  YORK AND ALL DEGREE-GRANTING INSTITUTIONS OF
HIGHER EDUCATION DESCRIBED IN ARTICLES ONE HUNDRED FIFTEEN, ONE  HUNDRED
TWENTY-ONE,  ONE  HUNDRED  TWENTY-THREE,  ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-SIX AND ONE
HUNDRED TWENTY-NINE OF TITLE VII OF THE EDUCATION LAW WHICH HAVE ELECTED
TO BE PARTICIPATING AGENCIES PURSUANT TO THE OPENING PARAGRAPH  OF  THIS
SECTION  SHALL  ALSO PROVIDE SUCH LEVEL OF ASSISTANCE TO EACH PERSON WHO
WISHES TO COMPLETE AN APPLICATION FOR AN ABSENTEE BALLOT.
  S 3. The opening paragraph of subdivision 8 of section  5-211  of  the
election  law, as amended by chapter 659 of the laws of 1994, is amended
to read as follows:
  Each participating agency, department, division or office  that  makes
available  voter  registration forms OR ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICATIONS, OR
BOTH, pursuant to this section shall offer with each application for the
services or assistance, PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITIES OR USE OF FACILITIES

S. 4802                             3

of such agency, department, division or office and with  each  recertif-
ication,  renewal  or change of address form relating to such service or
assistance, PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITIES OR USE OF FACILITIES,  a  regis-
tration  form  together  with  instructions  relating  to eligibility to
register and for completing the form  except  that  forms  used  by  the
department of [social services] FAMILY ASSISTANCE for the initial appli-
cation  for services, renewal or recertification for services and change
of address relating to such  services  shall  physically  incorporate  a
voter  registration  application  in  a  fashion  that permits the voter
registration portion of the agency form to be  detached  therefrom.  ALL
INSTITUTIONS OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AND ALL DEGREE-GRANTING
INSTITUTIONS  OF  HIGHER  EDUCATION  DESCRIBED  IN  ARTICLES ONE HUNDRED
FIFTEEN, ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-ONE, ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-THREE,  ONE  HUNDRED
TWENTY-SIX AND ONE HUNDRED TWENTY-NINE OF TITLE VII OF THE EDUCATION LAW
WHICH  HAVE ELECTED TO BE PARTICIPATING AGENCIES PURSUANT TO THE OPENING
PARAGRAPH OF THIS SECTION SHALL ALSO OFFER EACH SUCH APPLICANT AN APPLI-
CATION FOR AN ABSENTEE BALLOT. Such voter registration application shall
be designed so as to ensure the confidentiality of  the  source  of  the
application.  Included  on  each  participating agency's application for
services or assistance or on a separate form shall be:
  S 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
it shall have become a law, provided however, that effective  immediate-
ly,  the  addition,  amendment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations
necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective  date  are
authorized  and  directed  to  be  made  and completed on or before such
effective date.