NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A11167
SPONSOR: Bing (MS)
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the election law, in relation to voter
registration and enrollment; and providing for the repeal of certain
provisions upon expiration thereof
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Improves voter registration among
young people and seeks to remove many barriers to registration and elec-
toral participation.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section I amends § 5-210 of the
election law to require the state board of elections to implement online
voter registration for individuals who already possess a New York state
driver's license or non-driver identification card.
Section 2 amends § 5-120 of the election law to require that printed
mail voter registration forms have prepaid postage within the United
States.
Section 3 amends § 5-210 of the election law to allow 17-year-olds to
register with the state board of elections so they will be eligible to
vote as soon as they turn 18.
Section 4 amends § 5-210 of the election law to require the state board
of elections to conduct a study and issue recommendations for improving
voter registration among citizens under 25.
Section 5 amends § 5-211 of the election law to require all colleges and
university, as well as any state agencies not designated as participat-
ing agencies to make voter registration forms available to the public.
Section 6 amends § 5-211 of the election law to require all public and
private colleges and universities to mail students a voter registration
form at the start of each school year and in January of a presidential
election year.
Section 7 provides an immediate effective date and a 3-year sunset
provision for section 4.
 
JUSTIFICATION: The Higher Education Act of 1998, as amended, requires
all colleges to provide voter registration forms to students physically
located on campus before state and federal elections. New York State
election law also requires every public college and university (SUNY &
CUNY) to provide voter registration forms to every student at the start
of each academic year and in January of Presidential election years.
Despite the state and federal mandate, a February 2008 report by Rock
the Vote (RockTheVote.com) found only 63% of young people age 18-22 are
registered to vote compared to 87% of people age 23-29. This data shows
a 10% decrease in the number of young people age 18-22 registered voters
since 2006.
This legislation would improve youth voter registration by adding
prepaid postage; expanding distribution requirements to all colleges,
universities and state agencies; implementing online registration with a
valid New York Driver's License or Identification; directing the State
Board of Elections to conduct a study and issue recommendations to
improve registration among New Yorkers under 25; and, allowing 7 year-
olds to register. Expanding the law will allow us to enroll more voters
as they interact with government such as while they are still students
in the education system and seeks to remove many barriers to registra-
tion and electoral participation.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None. This is new legislation.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately, provided that
section 4 shall expire and be deemed repealed 3 years after such date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
11167
IN ASSEMBLY
May 20, 2008
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BING, REILLY, MILLMAN, SCHROEDER, BROOK-KRASNY,
WRIGHT, JAFFEE, YOUNG, KOON, DINOWITZ, K. ZEBROWSKI, GABRYSZAK, COOK
-- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. GOTTFRIED, McENENY, PHEFFER, WEIS-
ENBERG -- read once and referred to the Committee on Election Law
AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation to voter registration and
enrollment; and providing for the repeal of certain provisions upon
expiration thereof
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 5-210 of the election law is amended by adding a
2 new subdivision 16 to read as follows:
3 16. The state board of elections is required to develop and implement
4 on-line voter registration for individuals who possess a New York state
5 driver's license or New York state issued non-driver identification
6 card. The registration shall include all other information required by
7 this section for written registration and in addition on-line applicants
8 shall be required to provide a New York state driver's license or New
9 York state non-driver identification card. The registration on-line
10 form shall be forwarded by the state board of elections to the appropri-
11 ate county board of elections for processing in the usual manner.
12 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 5-210 of the election law is amended by
13 adding a new paragraph (m) to read as follows:
14 (m) All printed mail voter registration application forms prepared
15 pursuant to this section shall be postage prepaid so that no postage is
16 necessary if mailed in the United States.
17 § 3. Paragraph (g) of subdivision 5 of section 5-210 of the election
18 law, as amended by chapter 179 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read
19 as follows:
20 (g) Notice that the applicant must be a citizen of the United States,
21 is or will be at least eighteen years old not later than December thir-
22 ty-first of the calendar year in which he or she registers and a resi-
23 dent of the county or city to which application is made. Notwithstanding
24 any other provision of law, any person at least seventeen years of age
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13544-02-8
A. 11167 2
1 may make an application for registration under this section regardless
2 of whether he or she becomes eighteen years of age by election day.
3 § 4. Section 5-210 of the election law, is amended by adding a new
4 subdivision 17 to read as follows:
5 17. The state board of elections shall conduct a study and prepare a
6 report and issue recommendations for improving voter registration among
7 citizens under the age of twenty-five years. The study should address,
8 although not be limited to, the feasibility of directly mailing voter
9 registration materials to New York state residents eighteen years of age
10 who possess a resident driver's license or a non-driver identification
11 card, resident fishing, hunting, boating or gun licenses, are in the
12 state foster care system, receive state welfare benefits or are enrolled
13 in child health plus. Such study and report shall be completed by Decem-
14 ber first, two thousand eight. Copies of such reports shall be provided
15 to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker
16 of the assembly.
17 § 5. Section 5-211 of the election law is amended by adding a new
18 subdivision 18 to read as follows:
19 18. All colleges, universities, public high schools and public
20 libraries located in this state and all state agencies, departments,
21 divisions and offices not specifically designated as participating agen-
22 cies under this section shall make voter registration forms available to
23 any persons using or visiting their premises.
24 § 6. The opening paragraph of section 5-211 of the election law, as
25 amended by chapter 200 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
26 follows:
27 Each agency designated as a participating agency under the provisions
28 of this section shall implement and administer a program of distribution
29 of voter registration forms pursuant to the provisions of this section.
30 The following offices which provide public assistance and/or provide
31 state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons
32 with disabilities are hereby designated as voter registration agencies:
33 designated as the state agencies which provide public assistance are the
34 department of social services and the department of health. Also desig-
35 nated as public assistance agencies are all agencies of local government
36 that provide such assistance. Designated as state agencies that provide
37 programs primarily engaged in providing services to people with disabil-
38 ities are the department of labor, office for the aging, division of
39 veterans' affairs, office of mental health, office of vocational and
40 educational services for individuals with disabilities, commission on
41 quality of care for the mentally disabled, office of mental retardation
42 and developmental disabilities, commission for the blind and visually
43 handicapped, office of alcoholism and substance abuse services, the
44 office of the advocate for the disabled and all offices which administer
45 programs established or funded by such agencies. Additional state agen-
46 cies designated as voter registration offices are the department of
47 state and the division of workers' compensation. Such agencies shall be
48 required to offer voter registration forms to persons upon initial
49 application for services, renewal or recertification for services and
50 change of address relating to such services. Such agencies shall also be
51 responsible for providing assistance to applicants in completing voter
52 registration forms, receiving and transmitting the completed application
53 form from all applicants who wish to have such form transmitted to the
54 appropriate board of elections. The state board of elections shall,
55 together with representatives of the department of defense, develop and
56 implement procedures for including recruitment offices of the armed
A. 11167 3
1 forces of the United States as voter registration offices when such
2 offices are so designated by federal law. The state board shall also
3 make request of the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service
4 to include applications for registration by mail with any materials
5 which are given to new citizens. All institutions of the state univer-
6 sity of New York and the city university of New York, and all private
7 colleges and universities located in the state shall, at the beginning
8 of the school year, and again in January of a year in which the presi-
9 dent of the United States is to be elected, [provide] mail an applica-
10 tion for registration to each student in each such institution at their
11 last known address at such institution. The state board of elections
12 may, by regulation, grant a waiver from any or all of the requirements
13 of this section to any office or program of an agency, if it determines
14 that it is not feasible for such office or program to administer such
15 requirement.
16 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that section
17 four of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed 3 years after such
18 date.