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

                                  2428

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            January 23, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  GIANARIS,  HOYLMAN, KRUEGER, SERRANO, STAVISKY --
  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 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-

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03171-01-5
              

S. 2428                             2

nated as voter registration offices are the department of state and  the
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.
  S 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.