2023 New York Laws › ELN - Election › Article 5 - Registration and Enrollment of Voters › Title 9 - Automatic Voter Registration › 5-900 - Integrated Personal Voter Registration Application Required.

§  5-900. Integrated personal voter registration application required.
1. In addition to any other method of voter registration provided for by
this chapter,  state  and  local  agencies  designated  in  subdivisions
thirteen  and  fourteen of this section shall provide to the state board
of elections voter  registration  qualification  information  associated
with  each  person who submits an application for services or assistance
at such agency, including a renewal, recertification,  or  reexamination
transaction  at  such  agency,  and  each person who submits a change of
address or name form. For  the  purposes  of  the  department  of  motor
vehicles, "application for services or assistance at such agency" refers
only  to an application for a motor vehicle driver's license, a driver's
license renewal or an identification card if such card is issued by  the
department  of  motor  vehicles  in  its  normal course of business. For
purposes of  the  New  York  city  housing  authority  "application  for
services  or assistance at such agency" refers only to applications that
reach an eligibility  interview  and  reexamination  transactions.  Such
designated  agencies  shall  ensure  agency  applications  substantially
include all of the elements required by section 5-210 of  this  article,
including  the  appropriate attestation, so that persons completing such
applications shall be able to also submit an application to register  to
vote  through  the electronic voter registration transmittal system. For
purposes of this section, "agency" shall mean any state or local agency,
department, division, office, institution or other entity designated  in
subdivision  thirteen  of  this  section  or  designated by the governor
pursuant to subdivision fourteen of this section. For purposes  of  this
section,  registration  shall  also include pre-registration pursuant to
section 5-507 of this article.
2.  For  each   application   submitted   to   the   agency,   whether
electronically or on paper, the agency shall transmit to the state board
of elections through an interface with the electronic voter registration
transmittal  system  established  and  maintained  by the state board of
elections  that  portion  of  the  application   that   includes   voter
registration   information.      The  state  board  of  elections  shall
electronically forward such  application  to  the  applicable  board  of
elections  of each county or the city of New York for filing, processing
and verification consistent with this chapter.
3. An integrated voter registration form submitted  to  an  agency  in
paper  format  shall  be  transmitted  to  the  state board of elections
through  an  electronic  voter  registration   transmittal   system   by
converting the paper form to an image file or a portable document format
file  which  shall  thereafter  be  deemed  the  original form for voter
registration and  enrollment  purposes.  The  agency  shall  retain  the
complete  original  paper  application  for  no less than two years. The
transmittal of  the  converted  paper  application  may  include  or  be
accompanied  by data elements and transmittal information as required by
the rules and regulations of the state board of elections.
4. An integrated voter registration application submitted to an agency
in an electronic format shall be  transmitted  to  the  state  board  of
elections  through  the electronic voter registration transmittal system
and shall include all of the voter registration data elements, including
electronic signature, as applicable, and record of  attestation  of  the
accuracy of the voter registration information and any relevant document
images.
5. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no agency designated
under  this  section  shall transmit to the state board of elections any
application  for  registration  for  a  person  that  indicates  on  the
integrated personal voter registration application that they do not meet
one of the eligibility requirements.
6.  The voter registration related portion of each agency's integrated
application for services or assistance shall:
(a)  include  a  statement  of  the eligibility requirements for voter
registration  and  shall  require  the  applicant  to  attest   by   the
applicant's  signature that the applicant meets those requirements under
penalty of perjury and is applying to register or pre-register  to  vote
unless such applicant declines such registration;
(b)  inform  the  applicant,  in  print  identical to that used in the
attestation section of the following:
(i) voter eligibility requirements;
(ii) penalties for submission of a false registration application;
(iii) that the office where the  applicant  applies  for  registration
shall  remain  confidential and the voter registration information shall
be used only for voter registration purposes;
(iv) that if the applicant applies to register to vote electronically,
such applicant thereby consents to the use of an electronic copy of  the
individual's  manual  signature that is in the custody of the department
of motor vehicles,  the  state  board  of  elections,  or  other  agency
designated  by  this  section,  as  the  individual's voter registration
exemplar signature if the individual voter's exemplar signature  is  not
provided with the voter registration application;
(v)  if the applicant signs the application and does not check the box
declining to register to vote, such applicant thereby  consents  to  the
use  of  any  information  required  to  complete the voter registration
application;
(vi)  if  the  applicant  declines  to  register,   such   applicant's
declination  shall  remain  confidential  and  be  used  only  for voter
registration purposes; and
(vii) that applying to register or declining to register to vote  will
not  affect the amount of assistance that the applicant will be provided
by this agency;
(c) include a box for the applicant to check to indicate  whether  the
applicant  would  like  to  decline  to  register to vote along with the
following statement in prominent type, "IF YOU DO NOT  CHECK  THIS  BOX,
AND YOU PROVIDE YOUR SIGNATURE ON THE SPACE BELOW, YOU WILL HAVE APPLIED
TO  REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER TO VOTE, AND YOU WILL HAVE ATTESTED TO YOUR
ELIGIBILITY TO REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER TO VOTE."
(d) include the following warning statement in prominent type, "IF YOU
ARE NOT A CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES, YOU MUST CHECK  THE  BOX  BELOW.
NON-CITIZENS  WHO  REGISTER  OR  PRE-REGISTER  TO VOTE MAY BE SUBJECT TO
CRIMINAL PENALTIES AND SUCH VOTER REGISTRATION OR  PRE-REGISTRATION  MAY
RESULT IN DEPORTATION OR REMOVAL, EXCLUSION FROM ADMISSION TO THE UNITED
STATES, OR DENIAL OF NATURALIZATION.";
(e)  include  a  space  for  the applicant to indicate the applicant's
choice of party enrollment, with a clear alternative  provided  for  the
applicant  to  decline  to  affiliate  with  any party and the following
statement in prominent type " ONLY ENROLLED MEMBERS OF A POLITICAL PARTY
MAY VOTE IN THAT PARTY'S PRIMARIES".
(f) include a statement that if an applicant is a victim  of  domestic
violence  or  stalking,  the  applicant  may  contact the state board of
elections before or after registering  or  pre-registering  to  vote  in
order  to  receive  information  regarding  the  address confidentiality
program for victims of domestic violence under  section  5-508  of  this
article.
7.  Information from the voter relevant to both voter registration and
the agency application shall be entered by the voter only once  upon  an
electronic application.
8.  The  agency  shall  redact or remove from the completed integrated
application to be transmitted  to  the  state  board  of  elections  any
information solely applicable to the agency application.
9.  Information concerning the citizenship status of individuals, when
collected and transmitted pursuant to subdivision one of  this  section,
shall  not  be  retained, used or shared for any other purpose except as
may be required by law.
10. A voter shall be able to decline to  register  to  vote  using  an
integrated  application  by selecting a single check box, or equivalent,
which shall include the following statement: "I DECLINE USE OF THIS FORM
FOR VOTER REGISTRATION AND PRE-REGISTRATION PURPOSES. DO NOT FORWARD  MY
INFORMATION TO THE BOARD OF ELECTIONS."
11. The voter shall be able to sign the voter registration application
and  the  agency  application  by means of a single manual or electronic
signature unless the agency requires more than one signature  for  other
agency purposes.
12.  No  application  for voter registration shall be submitted if the
applicant  declines  registration  or  fails  to  sign  the   integrated
application, whether on paper or online.
13.  Beginning  January  first,  two thousand twenty-three, designated
agencies for purposes of this section shall include  the  department  of
motor  vehicles.  Beginning  January  first,  two  thousand twenty-four,
designated agencies for the purposes of this section shall also  include
the  department  of  health,  the  office  of  temporary  and disability
assistance, the department of labor, the  office  of  adult  career  and
continuing  education  services  - vocational rehabilitation, county and
city departments of social services,  and  the  New  York  city  housing
authority,  as  well  as  any  other  agency designated by the governor.
Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-five,  designated  agencies
for the purposes of this section shall also include the state university
of  New  York. Each designated agency shall enter into an agreement with
the state board of  elections  finalizing  the  format  and  content  of
electronic  transmissions  required  by this section. The state board of
elections shall prepare and distribute to  designated  agencies  written
instructions  as  to  the  implementation  of  the  program and shall be
responsible  for  establishing  training  programs  for   employees   of
designated  agencies  listed in this section. Such instructions and such
training shall ensure usability of the integrated  application  for  low
English  proficiency  voters.  Any such designated agency shall take all
actions that are necessary and proper for  the  implementation  of  this
section,  including  facilitating  technological  capabilities  to allow
transmission of data through an  interface  with  the  electronic  voter
registration transmittal system in a secure manner.
14.  Every  other  year,  the  governor shall conduct a review of each
participating agency under section 5-211 of  this  article  not  already
designated  as  an  automatic voter registration agency pursuant to this
subdivision in order to determine whether  designation  is  appropriate.
The  governor  shall  designate  each participating agency that collects
information or documents that would provide proof of eligibility to vote
unless the governor determines that there  are  compelling  reasons  why
automatic  voter  registration  is  not  feasible  at the agency. If the
governor  should  determine  that  there  are  compelling  reasons   why
automatic  voter registration is not feasible at an agency, the governor
shall prepare a report explaining those reasons to  the  legislature  by
the  end  of  the calendar year in which that determination is made. Any
agency designated by the governor pursuant  to  this  subdivision  shall
provide automatic voter registration upon the earlier occurrence of: (a)
two  years after designation by the governor, or (b) five days after the

date  of  certification  by  the  state  board  of  elections  that  the
information  technology  infrastructure  to  substantially implement the
provisions of this section at the agency is functional.
15.   The   state  board  of  elections  shall  promulgate  rules  and
regulations  for  the  creation  and  administration  of  an  integrated
electronic voter registration process as provided for by this section.
16.  Each  participating  agency  shall provide an opportunity through
rulemaking for  public  notice  and  comment  regarding  the  plans  for
implementation   in  the  agency.  Such  opportunity  must  be  provided
sufficiently in advance of implementation to  allow  for  adjustment  of
agency  plans  to  take  public  comment  into account. Agency plans for
implementation shall provide for sufficient testing of  the  process  in
the  agency prior to implementation in order to ensure the technology is
functioning properly, the  process  is  usable  and  understandable  for
applicants  and  agency  employees, and reasonable precautions have been
put in place to  minimize  error  or  the  possibility  of  discouraging
applications for services, assistance, or registration.