NY State Senate Bill S1733

Current Bill Status - On Floor Calendar

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

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Actions

view actions (4)

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 30, 2023	advanced to third reading
Jan 25, 2023	2nd report cal.
Jan 24, 2023	1st report cal.196
Jan 13, 2023	referred to education

Votes

view votes

Jan 24, 2023 - Education committee Vote

S1733

committee

Aye

Nay

Aye with Reservations

Absent

Excused

Abstained

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Details

Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Add Art 25 §1301, Ed L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S5073
2021-2022: S912

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

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

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 
BILL NUMBER: S1733

SPONSOR: MAYER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

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

 
PURPOSE:

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
preregistration 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
oppor6nity to register to vote and to participate in the electoral proc-
ess. 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:

2021/22: S912-A (Mayer) / A5829-A (Wallace): passed Senate (2021);
passed Senate (2022)

2019/20: S5073-A (Mayer) / A8717 (Buchwald): passed Senate (2019);
passed Senate (2020)

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect the first of July next succeeding the date on
which it shall have become a law.

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1733
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 13, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  MAYER  -- 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
 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
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04510-01-3

 S. 1733                             2
 
 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 on the first of July  next  succeeding
 the  date on which it shall have become a law. Effective immediately the
 addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule  or  regulation  necessary
 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 S1733

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - On Floor Calendar

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

Jan 24, 2023 - Education committee Vote

Education Committee Vote: Jan 24, 2023

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Details

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S1733

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Sponsored By

Shelley B. Mayer

Current Bill Status - On Floor Calendar

Your Voice

Actions

Votes

Jan 24, 2023 - Education committee Vote

Education Committee Vote: Jan 24, 2023

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Details

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S1733 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments