S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8571
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
July 10, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH, 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
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02827-01-7
A. 8571 2
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 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.