NY State Senate Bill S912

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Introduced
In Committee
On Floor Calendar
- Passed Senate
- Passed Assembly
Delivered to Governor
Signed/Vetoed by Governor

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Actions

view actions (7)

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 22, 2021	referred to education delivered to assembly passed senate
Jan 26, 2021	advanced to third reading
Jan 25, 2021	2nd report cal.
Jan 20, 2021	1st report cal.84
Jan 06, 2021	referred to education

Votes

view votes

Feb 22, 2021 - floor Vote

S912

floor

Aye

Nay

Absent

Excused

Abstained

Jan 20, 2021 - Education committee Vote

S912

committee

Aye

Nay

Aye with Reservations

Absent

Excused

Abstained

Co-Sponsors

view additional co-sponsors

S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A5829
Current Committee:: Assembly Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Add Art 25 §1301, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2019-2020 Legislative Session:: S5073, A8717

S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a school voter registration access program to promote student voter registration and pre-registration.

S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 
BILL NUMBER: S912

SPONSOR: MAYER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to establishing a school
voter registration access program

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To implement procedures pursuant to Chapter 2 of the Laws of 2019
regarding voter registration and pre-registration for eligible high
school students in New York State.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Establishes a new Article 25 entitled the School Voter Regis-
tration Access Program in education law requiring school districts,
boards of cooperative educational services, charter schools, and nonpub-
lic schools to adopt a policy to promote student voter registration and
pre-registration pursuant to chapter 2 of the laws of 2019 for students

in grades ten, eleven and twelve. The policy shall include procedures
for acquiring and transmitting voter applications to and from the local
board of elections and dissemination among their appropriate schools,
methods of regular communication with eligible students about the avail-
ability of the applications and their right to register to vote. The
policy may include collaboration with local boards of elections and
outside organizations to assist in making voter registration and pre-re-
gistration applications available.

This section further stipulates that completion and submission of voter
registration and pre-registration forms is not a course requirement or
graded assignment for students and that local election boards must
comply with requests for applications.

Section 2 establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In recent years, there has been national alarm at our very low rates of
voter registration and participation. It is essential that we connect
citizens to the electoral process at a young age to educate and inform
them of the importance of participating in the voting process and that
we instill in them, at a young age, the notion that their voice matters
in the political process and in shaping society. Academic literature has
highlighted low voting participation rates among young citizens. We can
increase the potential for qualified voters to exercise their right to
vote and become engaged in lifelong civic responsibility; by providing
access to registering and pre-registering to vote in schools.

Schools have a responsibility to prepare students to be active citizens
and are uniquely situated to ensure that all students have the opportu-
nity to register to vote and to participate in the electoral process.
Too often these opportunities are not broad enough in scope to reach all
students.

In adopting a school voter registration and pre-registration access
program for students in grades 10, 11, and 12, we can improve the chanc-
es of greater participation in the voting process and promote long-term
engagement for civic responsibility and participation.  Chapter 2 of the
Laws of 2019 expressly authorized pre-registration of 16 and 17-year
olds as part of an effort to encourage voting at age 18. This bill
provides the framework to ensure all schools with students of those ages
provide the opportunity for students to register to vote.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.5073-A
2019: 06/19/19, PASSED SENATE
2020: 03/11/20, referred to education

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.

S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    912
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 6, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. MAYER, BIAGGI, COMRIE, GAUGHRAN, GOUNARDES, HOYLMAN,
   JACKSON,  KAPLAN,  KRUEGER,  LIU,  MAY, MYRIE, RAMOS, STAVISKY -- read
   twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to  the
   Committee on Education

 AN  ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing a school
   voter registration access program
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. The education law is amended by adding a new article 25 to
 read as follows:
                                 ARTICLE 25
                     SCHOOL VOTER REGISTRATION ACCESS
 SECTION 1301. SCHOOL VOTER REGISTRATION ACCESS.
   § 1301. SCHOOL VOTER REGISTRATION ACCESS. EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT,  BOARD
 OF  COOPERATIVE  EDUCATIONAL  SERVICES,  CHARTER  SCHOOL, AND NON-PUBLIC
 SCHOOL SHALL ADOPT A POLICY TO PROMOTE STUDENT  VOTER  REGISTRATION  AND
 PRE-REGISTRATION  PURSUANT  TO  CHAPTER  TWO OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND
 NINETEEN. SUCH POLICY SHALL, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS  OF  THIS
 ARTICLE,  REQUIRE  ALL SCHOOLS OPERATED BY SUCH SCHOOL DISTRICTS, BOARDS
 OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES,  CHARTER  SCHOOLS,  AND  NON-PUBLIC
 SCHOOLS  SERVING  ANY  OR  ALL OF GRADES TEN, ELEVEN, AND TWELVE TO MAKE
 AVAILABLE ACCESS TO VOTER REGISTRATION AND PRE-REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS
 DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR FOR THE PURPOSES OF EDUCATING STUDENTS ABOUT  THE
 VOTING  ENROLLMENT  PROCESS  AND  PROVIDING  ELIGIBLE  STUDENTS WITH THE
 OPPORTUNITY TO REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER  TO  VOTE  AS  APPLICABLE.  SUCH
 POLICY  SHALL  INCLUDE  PROCEDURES  FOR ACQUIRING AND TRANSMITTING VOTER
 REGISTRATION AND PRE-REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS TO  AND  FROM  THE  LOCAL
 BOARD  OF  ELECTIONS  AND DISSEMINATION AMONG THEIR APPROPRIATE SCHOOLS,
 METHODS OF REGULAR COMMUNICATION WITH ELIGIBLE STUDENTS  ON  THE  AVAIL-
 ABILITY OF SUCH APPLICATIONS AND THEIR RIGHT TO REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02646-02-1

 S. 912                              2
 
 TO VOTE AND MAY INCLUDE COLLABORATION WITH LOCAL BOARDS OF ELECTIONS AND
 OUTSIDE  ORGANIZATIONS  TO ASSIST IN MAKING AVAILABLE VOTER REGISTRATION
 AND PRE-REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS IN ANY SCHOOL SERVING ANY  OR  ALL  OF
 GRADES  TEN,  ELEVEN,  AND  TWELVE.  COMPLETION  AND SUBMISSION OF VOTER
 REGISTRATION OR PRE-REGISTRATION FORMS SHALL NOT BE A COURSE REQUIREMENT
 OR GRADED ASSIGNMENT FOR STUDENTS.   LOCAL  BOARDS  OF  ELECTIONS  SHALL
 COMPLY WITH REQUESTS FROM SCHOOL DISTRICTS, BOARDS OF COOPERATIVE EDUCA-
 TIONAL SERVICES, CHARTER SCHOOLS, AND NON-PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO TRANSMIT THE
 REQUESTED  NUMBER  OF  REGISTRATION AND PRE-REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS IN
 SUCH MANNER AS REQUESTED.
   § 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.   Effective  immediately
 the  addition,  amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation neces-
 sary for the implementation of  this  act  on  its  effective  date  are
 authorized to be made on or before such date.

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The New York State Senate

senate Bill S912

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

Feb 22, 2021 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: Feb 22, 2021

Jan 20, 2021 - Education committee Vote

Education Committee Vote: Jan 20, 2021

Co-Sponsors

S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S912

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Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - Passed Senate

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

Feb 22, 2021 - floor Vote

Floor Vote: Feb 22, 2021

Jan 20, 2021 - Education committee Vote

Education Committee Vote: Jan 20, 2021

Co-Sponsors

S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments