§ 5-210. Registration and enrollment and change of enrollment upon
application. 1. In addition to local registration and veterans' absentee
registration as provided in this chapter, any qualified person may apply
personally for registration and enrollment, change of enrollment by mail
or by appearing at the board of elections on any day, except a day of
election, during the hours that such board of elections is open for
business.

2. (a) Application forms for use pursuant to this section shall be
furnished by a county board of elections to any person requesting such
form. Application forms sent outside of the United States to a country
other than Canada or Mexico, shall be sent airmail. Each county board of
elections shall also cause such application forms to be as widely and
freely distributed as possible.

(b) The board of elections shall mail an application for registration
by mail and information on how the person may re-register to each person
for whom it receives notice pursuant to the provisions of subdivision
four of section 5-402 of this article that such person has moved into
such city or county unless such person is already registered from the
address listed in such notice.

3. Completed application forms, when received by any board of
elections and, with respect to application forms promulgated by the
federal election commission, when received by the state board of
elections, or showing a dated cancellation mark of the United States
Postal Service or contained in an envelope showing such a dated
cancellation mark which is not later than the fifteenth day before the
next ensuing primary, general or special election, and received no later
than the tenth day before such election, or delivered in person to such
board of elections not later than the tenth day before such election,
shall entitle the applicant to vote in such election and to have the
applicant's vote canvassed in accordance with this chapter, if the
applicant is otherwise qualified, provided, however, such applicant
shall not vote on a voting machine until their identity is verified. Any
board of elections receiving an application form from a person who does
not reside in its jurisdiction but who does reside elsewhere in the
state of New York, shall electronically forward such application form to
the proper board of elections on the same day it is received. Each board
of elections shall make an entry on each such form of the date it is
received by such board.

4. Any qualified person who has been honorably discharged from the
military after the twenty-fifth day before a general election, or who
has a qualifying condition, as defined in section one of the veterans'
services law, and has received a discharge other than bad conduct or
dishonorable from the military after the twenty-fifth day before a
general election, or who is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in
section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a discharge
other than bad conduct or dishonorable from the military after the
twenty-fifth day before a general election, or who has become a
naturalized citizen after the twenty-fifth day before a general election
may personally register at the board of elections in the county of their
residence and vote in the general election held at least ten days after
such registration.

5. Statewide application forms shall be designed by the state board of
elections, which shall conform to the requirements for the national
voter registration form in the rules and regulations promulgated by the
federal election commission and the federal Help America Vote Act, and
shall elicit the information required for the registration poll record.
The form shall include such other information as the state board of
elections may reasonably require to enable the board of elections to
assess the eligibility of the applicant and to administer voter
registration and other parts of the election process and shall also
include the following information:

(a) Notice that those voters currently registered do not need to
reregister unless they have moved outside of the city or county in which
they were registered.

(b) Instructions on how to fill out and submit the form and that the
form must be received by any county board of elections at least ten days
prior to the election at which the applicant may vote, and if mailed,
must be postmarked at least fifteen days prior to the election at which
the applicant may vote.

(c) Notice that registration and enrollment is not complete until the
form is received by the appropriate county board of elections.

(d) Notice of a voter's right to register locally.

(e) A warning that it is a crime to procure a false registration or to
furnish false information to the board of elections.

(f) Notice that political party enrollment is optional but that, in
order to vote in a primary election of a political party, a voter must
enroll in that political party, unless state party rules allow
otherwise.

(g) Notice that the applicant must be a citizen of the United States,
is at least sixteen years old when they submit an application to
register to vote which will be effective for elections occurring on or
after the applicant turns eighteen years of age and a resident of the
county or city to which application is made.

(h) Notice that a voter notification form will be mailed to each
applicant whose completed form is received.

(i) The telephone number of the county board of elections and a toll
free number at the state board of elections that can be called for
answers to registration questions.

(j) A space for the applicant to indicate whether or not the voter is
willing to serve on election day for a board of elections as an election
inspector, poll clerk, interpreter or in other capacities.

(k) The form shall also include space for the following information,
which must be contained on the inside of the form after it is folded for
mailing:

(i) A space for the applicant to indicate whether or not they have
ever voted or registered to vote before and, if so, the approximate year
in which such applicant last voted or registered and their name and
address at the time.

(ii) The name and residence address of the applicant including the zip
code and apartment number, if any.

(iii) A space for the furnishing of an e-mail address, the furnishing
of which shall be optional, together with a notice stating that if an
e-mail address is furnished, all notices and communications otherwise
required to be sent by the state board of elections to the voter by
postal mail shall be sent by e-mail in addition to postal mail. County
boards of elections and the board of elections of the city of New York
shall have the option of sending notices and communications otherwise
required to be sent to the voter by postal mail by e-mail in addition to
postal mail if the voter furnishes an email address.

(iv) The date of birth of the applicant.

(v) A space for the applicant to indicate their driver's license or
department of motor vehicles non-driver photo ID number or the last four
digits of their social security number or, if the applicant does not
have either such number, a space for the applicant to indicate they do
not have either.

(vi) A space for the applicant to indicate whether or not they are a
citizen of the United States and the statement "If you checked "no" in
response to this question, do not complete this form."

(vii) A space for the applicant to answer the question "Will you be 18
years of age on or before election day?" and the statement "If you
checked "no" in response to this question, do not complete this form
unless you will be 18 by the end of the year."

(viii) A statement informing the applicant that if the form is
submitted by mail and the applicant is registering for the first time,
certain information or documents must be submitted with the mail-in
registration form in order to avoid additional identification
requirements upon voting for the first time. Such information and
documents are:

(A) a driver's license or department of motor vehicles non-driver
photo ID number; or

(B) the last four digits of the individual's social security number;
or

(C) a copy of a current and valid photo identification; or

(D) a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement, government
check, paycheck or other government document that shows the name and
address of the voter.

(ix) The gender of the applicant (optional).

(x) A space for the applicant to indicate their choice of party
enrollment, with a clear alternative provided for the applicant to
decline to affiliate with any party.

(xi) The telephone number of the applicant (optional).

(xii) A place for the applicant to execute the form on a line which is
clearly labeled "signature of applicant" preceded by the following
specific form of affirmation:

AFFIDAVIT: I swear or affirm that:

* I am a citizen of the United States.

* I will have lived in the county, city, or village for at least 30

days before the election.

* I meet all the requirements to register to vote in New York

State.

* This is my signature or mark on the line below.

* All the information contained on this application is true. I

understand that if it is not true I can be convicted and fined up

to $5,000 and/or jailed for up to four years.
which form of affirmation shall be followed by a space for the date and
the aforementioned line for the applicant's signature.

(xiii) A space for the applicant to register in the New York state
donate life registry for organ and tissue donations established pursuant
to section forty-three hundred ten of the public health law.

(l) The mail voter registration application form developed by the
federal election commission pursuant to the provisions of section nine
of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 42 USC 1973gg-7 shall be
deemed to meet the requirements of this section. Any application for
registration received on such an application form shall be accepted if
the applicant is otherwise eligible to register to vote pursuant to the
provisions of this article. A voter whose registration is accepted
pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph shall be permitted to
furnish an e-mail address to the board of elections, which furnishing
shall carry the same notice and have the same effect as provided by
subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (k) of this subdivision.

(m) The form of affidavit prescribed by the state board of elections
for requests for affidavit ballot pursuant to subdivision three of
section 8-302 of this chapter shall be deemed to meet the requirements
of this section. Any application for registration received on the form
of affidavit shall be accepted if the applicant is otherwise eligible to
register to vote pursuant to the provisions of this article, however the
failure to complete the voter registration application appearing on such
affidavit envelope shall not otherwise invalidate the affidavit ballot.

6. A person who willfully makes a material false statement in any
application for registration and enrollment and/or transfer of
registration and enrollment or special enrollment by mail, or who
knowingly makes a false affirmation, or who offers or attempts to offer
any application for registration and enrollment or transfer of
registration and enrollment or special enrollment knowing that the
applicant is not qualified to register or enroll, or transfer their
registration and enrollment or to specially enroll, shall be guilty of a
class E felony.

7. Each county board of elections shall deliver a sufficient number of
such uniform statewide application forms to each local post office
within its county and keep such post office so supplied, with the
request that the postmaster thereof make them available to the public
for its use in participating in the electoral process.

8. Upon its receipt by the county board of elections, each application
form shall be reviewed and examined by such board. If the application
shall contain substantially all the required information indicating that
the applicant is legally qualified to register and/or enroll as stated
in their application, the county board of elections shall transfer all
information on such application to the appropriate registration records.
If requested by any member of the board, the application form of any
voter, or group of voters, must be reviewed and examined by two such
board members or two employees of the board representing different
political parties. Such members or employees shall place their initials
or other identifying information on the registration poll record of such
voter or on a computer generated list of such registrations. Such lists
shall be preserved in the same manner, and for the same time, as such
registration poll records. If the application indicates that the voter
does not have a driver's license or department of motor vehicles
non-driver photo ID number or a social security number, the state board
of elections shall, upon the transmission of voter information to the
statewide voter registration list as required by section 5-614 of this
article, assign such voter a unique identifier.

9. The county board of elections shall, as soon as practicable and in
any event, not later than seven days after receipt by it of the
application, verify the identity of the applicant. In order to do so,
the county board of elections shall utilize the information provided in
the application and shall attempt to verify such information with the
information provided by the department of motor vehicles, social
security administration and any other lawful available information
source. If the county board of elections is unable to verify the
identity of the applicant within seven days of the receipt of the
application, it shall immediately take steps to confirm that the
information provided by the applicant was accurately utilized by such
county board of elections, was accurately verified with other
information sources and that no data entry error, or other similar type
of error, occurred. Following completion of the preceding steps, the
county board of elections shall mail (a) a notice of its approval, (b) a
notice of its approval which includes an indication that such board has
not yet been able to verify the identity of the applicant and a request
for more information so that such verification may be completed, or (c)
a notice of its rejection of the application to the applicant in a form
approved by the state board of elections. Notices of approval, notices
of approval with requests for more information or notices of rejection
shall be sent by nonforwardable first class or return postage guaranteed
mail on which is endorsed such language designated by the state board of
elections to ensure postal authorities do not forward such mail but
return it to the board of elections with forwarding information, when it
cannot be delivered as addressed and which contains a request that any
such mail received for persons not residing at the address be dropped
back in the mail. The voter's registration and enrollment shall be
complete upon receipt of the application by the appropriate county board
of elections. The failure of a county board of elections to verify an
applicant's identity shall not be the basis for the rejection of a
voter's application, provided, however, that such verification failure
shall be the basis for requiring county board of elections to take the
additional verification steps provided by this chapter. The notice shall
also advise the registrant of the date when their registration and
enrollment is effective, of the date and the hours of the next regularly
scheduled primary or general election in which such registrant will be
eligible to vote, of the location of the polling place of the election
district in which such registrant is or will be a qualified voter,
whether such polling place is accessible to physically handicapped
voters, an indication that any registered voter may vote early by mail
and information on how to obtain an early mail ballot, that physically
handicapped voters or voters who are ill or voters who will be out of
the city or county on the day of the primary or general election, may
obtain an absentee ballot and the phone number to call for absentee
ballot applications, the phone numbers to call for location of polling
places, to obtain registration forms and the phone number to call to
indicate that the voter is willing to serve on election day as an
inspector, poll clerk or interpreter. The notice of approval, notice of
approval with request for more information or notice of rejection shall
also advise the applicant to notify the board of elections if there is
any inaccuracy. The form of such mail notification shall be prescribed
by the state board of elections and shall contain such other information
and instructions as it may reasonably require to carry out the purposes
of this section. The request for more information shall inform the voter
that "THE FAILURE TO CONTACT THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS AND CORRECT ANY
INACCURACIES IN THE APPLICATION OR PROVIDE REQUESTED ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION MAY RESULT IN A REQUEST FOR IDENTIFICATION AT THE POLLS IN
ORDER TO CAST A VOTE ON A VOTING MACHINE." If such notice is returned
undelivered without a new address, the board shall forthwith send such
applicant a confirmation notice pursuant to the provisions of section
5-712 of this article and place such applicant in inactive status. The
state board of elections shall prepare uniform notices by this section
as provided for in subdivision eight of section 3-102 of this chapter.

10. If the board of elections has been unable to verify the identity
of the applicant within forty-five days of the application, the board
shall mail a second request for more information to the applicant. This
notice shall inform the voter that "THE FAILURE TO CONTACT THE BOARD OF
ELECTIONS AND CORRECT ANY INACCURACIES IN THE APPLICATION OR PROVIDE
REQUESTED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION MAY RESULT IN A REQUEST FOR
IDENTIFICATION AT THE POLLS IN ORDER TO CAST A VOTE ON A VOTING
MACHINE." If the board of elections remains unable to verify the
identity of the voter it shall so indicate with a notation next to the
voter's name in the registration list. Such a voter may provide
information to assist the county board to verify their identity at any
time and such notation shall be removed by the board of elections upon
such verification.

11. If the county board of elections suspects or believes that for any
reason the applicant is not entitled to registration and enrollment, it
shall make inquiry in reference thereto. If the board of elections shall
find that the applicant is not qualified to register and enroll, the
application shall be rejected and the applicant notified of such
rejection and the reason therefor, no later than seven days before the
day of the first primary or general election occurring at least ten days
after the filing of the application.

12. Whenever the county board of elections is not satisfied from an
examination of an application for registration and enrollment, or after
its initial inquiry, that the applicant is entitled to such registration
or enrollment, it may order an investigation through any officer or
employee of the state or county board of elections, police officer,
sheriff or deputy sheriff.

13. An affidavit or a signed statement by any officer or employee of
the state or county board of elections or any police officer, sheriff or
deputy sheriff, that such person visited the premises claimed by the
applicant as their residence and interrogated an incarcerated
individual, house-dweller, keeper, caretaker, owner, proprietor or
landlord thereof or therein as to such applicant's residence therein or
thereat, and that they were informed by one or more such persons, naming
them, that they knew the persons residing upon such premises and that
the applicant did not reside upon such premises as set forth in their
application, shall be sufficient authority for a determination by the
board that the applicant is not entitled to registration or enrollment;
but this provision shall not preclude the board from making such other
determination, as the result of other inquiry, as it may deem
appropriate.

14. Notwithstanding the entry by the county board of elections on the
registration poll record of the information contained on an application
form prescribed by this section, such entry shall not preclude the
county board of elections from subsequently rejecting the application if
it is not satisfied that the applicant is entitled to register and
enroll as provided by this section, provided that the applicant is
notified of such rejection and reasons therefor no later than seven days
before the day of the first primary or general election occurring at
least ten days after the filing of such application form.

15. a. The county board of elections shall keep a record of
applications for registration as they are received and at least once
each month, shall, upon request of the chairman of a political party in
the county, give such chairman a complete list of the persons whose
applications were approved together with their addresses and telephone
numbers, and their election and assembly districts or wards, if any.

b. Not more than four times a year, on dates determined by the state
board of elections, the county board of elections shall send to the
chairman of each political party in the county a complete list of the
persons whose applications were approved together with their addresses,
their election and assembly districts or wards, if any, their party
enrollments and an indication of whether such persons are eligible to
vote in the primary elections to be held in that calendar year. Not more
than twice a year, in even numbered years, on dates determined by the
state board of elections, the county board of elections shall send a
copy of such list to the state board of elections. In counties of over
one hundred thousand population, each such list shall be, and in other
counties each such list may be, cumulative and include the names of all
such persons whose names do not appear in the annual enrollment lists
last published by such board of elections, together with an indication
of which such names did not appear on the previous list. Such lists may
also include the names of those persons whose names do appear in the
annual enrollment lists. Such lists shall be arranged in the same manner
as the annual enrollment lists. Additional copies of such lists shall be
available to the public at a charge not exceeding the cost of
publication or reproduction.