STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2599--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 24, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, JAFFEE, BUCHWALD, OTIS -- Multi-Spon-
sored by -- M. of A. COLTON, GLICK, GOTTFRIED, GUNTHER, PERRY -- read
once and referred to the Committee on Election Law -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to voter registration form
distribution and assistance
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The opening paragraph of section 5-211 of the election law,
2 as amended by section 1 of part AA of chapter 56 of the laws of 2019, is
3 amended to read as follows:
4 Each agency designated as a participating agency under the provisions
5 of this section shall implement and administer a program of distribution
6 of voter registration forms pursuant to the provisions of this section.
7 The following offices which provide public assistance and/or provide
8 state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons
9 with disabilities are hereby designated as voter registration agencies:
10 designated as the state agencies which provide public assistance are the
11 office of children and family services, the office of temporary and
12 disability assistance and the department of health. Also designated as
13 public assistance agencies are all agencies of local government that
14 provide such assistance. Designated as state agencies that provide
15 programs primarily engaged in providing services to people with disabil-
16 ities are the department of labor, office for the aging, division of
17 veterans' services, office of mental health, office of vocational and
18 educational services for individuals with disabilities, commission on
19 quality of care for the mentally disabled, office [of mental retardation
20 and] for people with developmental disabilities, commission for the
21 blind, office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, the office of
22 the advocate for the disabled and all offices which administer programs
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01179-03-9
A. 2599--A 2
1 established or funded by such agencies. Additional [state] participating
2 agencies designated as voter registration offices are the department of
3 state and the [division] district offices of the workers' compensation
4 board. Such agencies shall be required to offer voter registration forms
5 to persons upon initial application for services, renewal or recertif-
6 ication for services and upon change of address relating to such
7 services. Such agencies shall also be responsible for providing assist-
8 ance to applicants in completing voter registration forms, receiving and
9 transmitting the completed application form from all applicants who wish
10 to have such form transmitted to the appropriate board of elections. The
11 state board of elections shall, together with representatives of the
12 United States department of defense, develop and implement procedures
13 for including recruitment offices of the armed forces of the United
14 States as voter registration offices when such offices are so designated
15 by federal law. The state board of elections shall also make request of
16 the United States [Immigration and Naturalization Service] Citizenship
17 and Immigration Services to include applications for registration by
18 mail with any materials which are given to new citizens. [All insti-
19 tutions of the state university of New York and the city university of
20 New York, shall, at the beginning of the school year, and again in Janu-
21 ary of a year in which the president of the United States is to be
22 elected, provide an application for registration to each student in each
23 such institution. The state board of elections may, by regulation, grant
24 a waiver from any or all of the requirements of this section to any
25 office or program of an agency, if it determines that it is not feasible
26 for such office or program to administer such requirement.]
27 § 2. Section 5-211 of the election law is amended by adding a new
28 subdivision 18 to read as follows:
29 18. (a) On or before January first, two thousand twenty, all insti-
30 tutions of the state university of New York and the city university of
31 New York shall create and make available to all students a webpage for
32 voter education on each such institution's website, containing a link to
33 an application for voter registration, a link to an application for an
34 absentee ballot, contact information for the county board of elections,
35 and the name and contact information for the administrator responsible
36 for voter registration assistance on each campus. Each such institution
37 shall, at the beginning of the school year, and again in January of a
38 year in which the president of the United States is to be elected,
39 provide an application for voter registration to each student in each
40 such institution. Such institutions shall also offer each student an
41 application for an absentee ballot. Such institutions shall provide the
42 same degree of assistance as required of participating agencies. Each
43 institution shall be considered in compliance with these requirements
44 for each student to whom the institution electronically transmits a
45 message containing the link to the webpage for voter education and the
46 link to an application for voter registration, if such information is in
47 an electronic message devoted exclusively to voter registration.
48 (b) Each institution shall on or before January first, two thousand
49 twenty, and each subsequent year, submit a report to the state board of
50 elections that includes:
51 (i) the efforts of the institution to register voters in the preceding
52 calendar year;
53 (ii) a date-stamped screen shot of the webpage for voter education
54 that contains the required information under paragraph (a) of this
55 subdivision;
A. 2599--A 3
1 (iii) the number of students who were registered for course work in
2 the preceding twelve months at such institution and the number of
3 students who clicked on the links to online voter registration and
4 absentee ballot applications; and
5 (iv) any other efforts or recommendations the institution plans to
6 implement to improve access to voter registration and absentee ballot
7 voting for students at the institution.
8 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
