S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
635
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
(PREFILED)
January 6, 2021
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CARROLL, NIOU, COLTON, PHEFFER AMATO, BICHOTTE,
SEAWRIGHT, GOTTFRIED, HYNDMAN, RICHARDSON, J. RIVERA, STIRPE,
DE LA ROSA, DINOWITZ, WALKER, SIMON, BARRON, HEVESI, THIELE, RODRI-
GUEZ, PICHARDO, PEOPLES-STOKES, TAYLOR, EPSTEIN, KIM -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to the qualifications of
voters; and to amend the education law, in relation to civic education
and student voter registration
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 5-102 of the election law is
amended to read as follows:
1. No person shall be qualified to register for and vote at any
election unless [he] SUCH PERSON is a citizen of the United States and
is or will be, on the day of such election, [eighteen] SIXTEEN years of
age or over, and a resident of this state and of the county, city or
village for a minimum of thirty days next preceding such election.
§ 2. Paragraph (g) of subdivision 5 of section 5-210 of the election
law, as amended by chapter 2 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as
follows:
(g) Notice that the applicant must be a citizen of the United States,
is OR WILL BE at least sixteen years old [when he or she submits an
application to register to vote which will be effective for elections
occurring on or after the applicant turns eighteen years of age] NOT
LATER THAN DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST OF THE CALENDAR YEAR IN WHICH HE OR SHE
REGISTERS and a resident of the county or city to which application is
made.
§ 3. Subdivision 3 of section 8-504 of the election law, as renumbered
by chapter 373 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02814-01-1
A. 635 2
3. After receiving the answers as above specified, of any applicant,
the board shall, if it believes the applicant to be qualified or the
challenge is withdrawn, permit him OR HER to vote. Otherwise, the board
shall point out to him OR HER the qualifications, if any, in respect of
which he OR SHE shall appear deficient. If, after such deficiencies have
been so indicated, the applicant shall persist in his OR HER claim to
vote, an inspector shall administer to him OR HER the following oath,
which shall be known as "The Qualification Oath": "You do swear (or
affirm) that you are [eighteen] SIXTEEN years of age, that you are a
citizen of the United States and that you have been a resident of this
state, and of this county (of the city of New York) (village) for thirty
days next preceding this election, that you still reside at the same
address from which you have been duly registered in this election
district, that you have not voted at this election, and that you do not
know of any reason why you are not qualified to vote at this election.
You do further declare that you are aware that it is a crime to make any
false statement. That all the statements you have made to the board have
been true and that you understand that a false statement is perjury and
you will be guilty of a misdemeanor."
§ 4. Subdivision 1 of section 801 of the education law, as amended by
section 27 of part A of chapter 56 of the laws of 2020, is amended and a
new subdivision 6 is added to read as follows:
1. In order to promote a spirit of patriotic and civic service and
obligation and to foster in the children of the state moral and intel-
lectual qualities which are essential in preparing to meet the obli-
gations of citizenship in peace or in war, the regents of The University
of the State of New York shall prescribe courses of instruction in
patriotism, citizenship, civic education and values, our shared history
of diversity, the role of religious tolerance in this country, and human
rights issues, with particular attention to the study of the inhumanity
of genocide, slavery (including the freedom trail and underground rail-
road), the Holocaust, and the mass starvation in Ireland from 1845 to
1850, to be maintained and followed in all the schools of the state. The
boards of education and trustees of the several cities and school
districts of the state shall require instruction to be given in such
courses, by the teachers employed in the schools therein. All pupils
attending such schools, over the age of eight years, shall attend upon
such instruction. ALL PUPILS IN THE NINTH AND HIGHER GRADES SHALL
RECEIVE CIVIC EDUCATION FOR AT LEAST EIGHT FULL CLASS PERIODS, IN
ACCORDANCE WITH THE DEPARTMENT'S 9-12 SOCIAL STUDIES FRAMEWORK.
Similar courses of instruction shall be prescribed and maintained in
private schools in the state, and all pupils in such schools over eight
years of age shall attend upon such courses. If such courses are not so
established and maintained in a private school, attendance upon instruc-
tion in such school shall not be deemed substantially equivalent to
instruction given to pupils of like age in the public schools of the
city or district in which such pupils reside.
6. A. THE REGENTS, IN COLLABORATION WITH THE STATE BOARD OF
ELECTIONS, SHALL MAKE AVAILABLE TO EACH HIGH SCHOOL TWO FORMS TO BE
DISTRIBUTED TO ALL PUPILS WHO SHALL BE SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE ON OR BEFORE
DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST OF EACH YEAR. SUCH FORMS SHALL BE DISTRIBUTED ON
ONE DATE BETWEEN THE SECOND AND FIFTH SCHOOL DAY IN THE MONTH OF JANUARY
OF EACH YEAR.
B. THE FIRST FORM TO BE DISTRIBUTED PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL
BE A STANDARD VOTER REGISTRATION FORM AS PRESCRIBED BY SECTION 5-210 OF
THE ELECTION LAW. SUCH FORM SHALL BE COMPLETED FOR EACH ELIGIBLE PUPIL,
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BY SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS WHO SHALL COMPLETE EACH FIELD OF THE REGISTRA-
TION FORM EXCEPT THE FIELDS PERTAINING TO CITIZENSHIP STATUS, PARTY
AFFILIATION, SIGNATURE AND DATE. THE CONTENT OF THE REGISTRATION FORM
SHALL BE EXPLAINED TO ALL PUPILS TO WHOM FORMS ARE DISTRIBUTED AND
PUPILS SHALL BE DIRECTED TO CORRECT ANY INCORRECT INFORMATION PREVIOUSLY
COMPLETED BY SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS.
C. THE SECOND FORM TO BE DISTRIBUTED PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION
SHALL BE ENTITLED "VOTER REGISTRATION OPT-OUT FORM" AND SHALL CONTAIN
THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT: "I, THE UNDERSIGNED, DECLINE TO REGISTER AS A
VOTER IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK AT THIS TIME, AND DEFER MY CHOICE OF
REGISTRATION IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK TO A FUTURE DATE OF MY CHOOSING."
SUCH FORM SHALL BE CREATED BY THE REGENTS IN COLLABORATION WITH THE
STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS.
D. PUPILS SHALL BE GIVEN CLASSROOM TIME TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO
COMPLETE EITHER THE STANDARD VOTER REGISTRATION FORM OR THE VOTER REGIS-
TRATION OPT-OUT FORM. AFTER PUPILS HAVE HAD TIME TO COMPLETE BOTH FORMS,
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS SHALL COLLECT BOTH FORMS FROM ALL PUPILS TO WHOM
THE FORMS WERE DISTRIBUTED. SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS SHALL BE REQUIRED TO
DISPOSE OF ALL VOTER REGISTRATION FORMS FOR PUPILS WHO ELECT TO NOT
REGISTER TO VOTE.
§ 5. This act shall take effect on the same date as a concurrent
resolution amending the constitution, entitled "CONCURRENT RESOLUTION OF
THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY proposing amendments to section 1 of article 2
of the constitution, in relation to the voting age"; provided, however,
that the amendments made to paragraph (g) of subdivision 5 of section
5-210 of the election law made by section two of this act, shall take
effect immediately.