STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 88 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. GIANARIS -- 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 providing for automatic voter registration and preregistration for persons applying for certain department of motor vehicles documentation, and for Medicaid enrollees The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1, paragraphs (c), (d) and (e) of subdivision 6 2 and subdivisions 10 and 13 of section 5-900 of the election law, as 3 amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2021, are amended to read as 4 follows: 5 1. In addition to any other method of voter registration provided for 6 by this chapter, state and local agencies designated in subdivisions 7 thirteen and fourteen of this section shall provide to the state board 8 of elections voter registration qualification information associated 9 with each person who submits an application for services or assistance 10 at such agency, including a renewal, recertification, or reexamination 11 transaction at such agency, and each person who submits a change of 12 address or name form. [For the purposes of the department of motor vehi- 13 cles, "application for services or assistance at such agency" refers 14 only to an application for a motor vehicle driver's license, a driver's 15 license renewal or an identification card if such card is issued by the 16 department of motor vehicles in its normal course of business.] For 17 purposes of the New York city housing authority "application for 18 services or assistance at such agency" refers only to applications that 19 reach an eligibility interview and reexamination transactions. Such 20 designated agencies shall ensure agency applications substantially 21 include all of the elements required by section 5-210 of this article, 22 including the appropriate attestation, so that persons completing such EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00006-01-5
S. 88 2 1 applications shall be able to also submit an application to register to 2 vote through the electronic voter registration transmittal system. For 3 purposes of this section, "agency" shall mean any state or local agency, 4 department, division, office, institution or other entity designated in 5 subdivision thirteen of this section or designated by the governor 6 pursuant to subdivision fourteen of this section. For purposes of this 7 section, registration shall also include pre-registration pursuant to 8 section 5-507 of this article. 9 (c) include a box for the applicant to check to indicate whether the 10 applicant would like to decline to register to vote along with the 11 following statement, or its substantial equivalent, in prominent type, 12 "IF YOU DO NOT CHECK THIS BOX, AND YOU PROVIDE YOUR SIGNATURE ON THE 13 SPACE BELOW, YOU WILL HAVE APPLIED TO REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER TO VOTE, 14 AND YOU WILL HAVE ATTESTED TO YOUR ELIGIBILITY TO REGISTER OR PRE-REGIS- 15 TER TO VOTE." 16 (d) include the following warning statement, or its substantial equiv- 17 alent, in prominent type, "IF YOU ARE NOT A CITIZEN OF THE UNITED 18 STATES, YOU MUST CHECK THE BOX BELOW. NON-CITIZENS WHO REGISTER OR 19 PRE-REGISTER TO VOTE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL PENALTIES AND SUCH VOTER 20 REGISTRATION OR PRE-REGISTRATION MAY RESULT IN DEPORTATION OR REMOVAL, 21 EXCLUSION FROM ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES, OR DENIAL OF NATURALIZA- 22 TION."; 23 (e) include a space for the applicant to indicate the applicant's 24 choice of party enrollment, with a clear alternative provided for the 25 applicant to decline to affiliate with any party and the following 26 statement, or its substantial equivalent, in prominent type "ONLY 27 ENROLLED MEMBERS OF A POLITICAL PARTY MAY VOTE IN THAT PARTY'S PRIMA- 28 RIES". 29 10. A voter shall be able to decline to register to vote using an 30 integrated application by selecting a single check box, or equivalent, 31 which shall include the following statement, or its substantial equiv- 32 alent: "I DECLINE USE OF THIS FORM FOR VOTER REGISTRATION AND PRE-REGIS- 33 TRATION PURPOSES. DO NOT FORWARD MY INFORMATION TO THE BOARD OF 34 ELECTIONS." 35 13. [Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-three, designated 36 agencies for purposes of this section shall include the department of 37 motor vehicles.] Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-four, 38 designated agencies for the purposes of this section shall [also] 39 include the department of health, the office of temporary and disability 40 assistance, the department of labor, the office of adult career and 41 continuing education services - vocational rehabilitation, county and 42 city departments of social services, and the New York city housing 43 authority, as well as any other agency designated by the governor. 44 Provided that, any transactions with the department of health or county 45 and city departments of social services involving Medicaid enrollment 46 shall be processed pursuant to section 5-901-a of this title, in place 47 of this section. Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-five, 48 designated agencies for the purposes of this section shall also include 49 the state university of New York. Each designated agency shall enter 50 into an agreement with the state board of elections finalizing the 51 format and content of electronic transmissions required by this section. 52 The state board of elections shall prepare and distribute to designated 53 agencies written instructions as to the implementation of the program 54 and shall be responsible for establishing training programs for employ- 55 ees of designated agencies listed in this section. Such instructions and 56 such training shall ensure usability of the integrated application for
S. 88 3 1 low English proficiency voters. Any such designated agency shall take 2 all actions that are necessary and proper for the implementation of this 3 section, including facilitating technological capabilities to allow 4 transmission of data through an interface with the electronic voter 5 registration transmittal system in a secure manner. 6 § 2. The election law is amended by adding a new section 5-901 to read 7 as follows: 8 § 5-901. Procedures specific to the department of motor vehicles. 1. 9 Beginning January first, two thousand twenty-eight, the department of 10 motor vehicles shall utilize the automatic voter registration procedures 11 established by this section for each person who conducts any of the 12 following REAL ID or Enhanced license transactions: an application for 13 a motor vehicle driver's license or an identification card, or any 14 renewal, recertification, or reexamination transaction for such docu- 15 ments, or any change of address or name form for such documents. Prior 16 to January first, two thousand twenty-eight, the department of motor 17 vehicles shall utilize the procedures required under section 5-900 of 18 this title for such transactions. Beginning January first, two thousand 19 twenty-nine, the department of motor vehicles shall utilize the automat- 20 ic voter registration procedures established by this section for each 21 person who conducts any of the following standard license transactions: 22 an application for a motor vehicle driver's license or an identification 23 card, or any renewal, recertification, or reexamination transaction for 24 such documents, or any change of address or name form for such docu- 25 ments. Prior to January first, two thousand twenty-nine, the department 26 of motor vehicles shall utilize the procedures required under section 27 5-900 of this title for such standard license transactions. 28 2. (a) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this subdivision, where 29 a person conducts a department of motor vehicles transaction pursuant to 30 subdivision one of this section and such person has provided documenta- 31 tion to the department of motor vehicles conclusively demonstrating 32 United States citizenship and is of sufficient age to register or pre- 33 register to vote, the department of motor vehicles shall promptly trans- 34 mit electronically to the state board of elections the following infor- 35 mation regarding such person: 36 (i) such person's name; 37 (ii) such person's date of birth; 38 (iii) such person's driver's license or state ID number; 39 (iv) such person's residence address, and mailing address if different 40 from such residence address; 41 (v) such person's county of residence; 42 (vi) such person's citizenship status; 43 (vii) an electronic copy of such person's manual signature that is in 44 the custody of the department of motor vehicles; 45 (viii) the date of such person's transaction with the department of 46 motor vehicles; 47 (ix) such person's gender, if available; 48 (x) such person's telephone number, if available; and 49 (xi) such person's e-mail address, if available. 50 (b) The department of motor vehicles and the state board of elections 51 shall jointly determine which documents acceptable for transactions 52 pursuant to subdivision one of this section conclusively demonstrate 53 United States citizenship. 54 (c) The department of motor vehicles shall not transmit information 55 pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision for any person who is a
S. 88 4 1 program participant in the address confidentiality program pursuant to 2 section one hundred eight of the executive law. 3 (d) Upon receiving information pursuant to paragraph (a) of this 4 subdivision for a person who is not registered to vote in New York state 5 and who is of sufficient age to register or pre-register to vote, unless 6 the state board of elections has evidence that such person is a program 7 participant in the address confidentiality program pursuant to section 8 one hundred eight of the executive law, the state board of elections 9 shall electronically forward such information to the board of elections 10 of the county or the city of the person's residence address for regis- 11 tration or pre-registration consistent with this chapter. 12 (e) (i) Upon receiving information pursuant to paragraph (d) of this 13 subdivision, a county or city board of elections shall register or pre- 14 register the person to vote pursuant to section 5-210 of this article 15 effective as of the date of such person's transaction with the depart- 16 ment of motor vehicles. The county or city board of elections shall 17 promptly send to such person's mailing address, by non-forwardable mail, 18 a notice that such person has been registered to vote, or pre-registered 19 to vote, if applicable, that contains a postage paid preaddressed return 20 form by which such person may decline to be registered or pre-regis- 21 tered. Such notice shall be combined with the notice required pursuant 22 to subdivision one of section 5-308 of this article and shall also offer 23 such person the opportunity to enroll with a party. Such notice shall 24 also include a statement that, if such person declines to register or 25 pre-register to vote, the fact that such person has declined registra- 26 tion or pre-registration will remain confidential and will be used only 27 for election administration purposes, and a statement that, if such 28 person does not decline registration or pre-registration, the office at 29 which such person was registered or pre-registered will remain confiden- 30 tial and will be used only for election administration purposes. Such 31 notice shall also provide information and procedures for anyone wishing 32 to prevent disclosure of their residence address, including information 33 regarding the address confidentiality program for victims of domestic 34 violence under section 5-508 of this article. The notice required by 35 this subparagraph may be combined with the notice provided to newly 36 registered voters pursuant to subdivision nine of section 5-210 of this 37 article. 38 (ii) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article, a person of 39 sufficient age to register to vote whose information is transmitted to a 40 county or city board pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph 41 shall be registered to vote for an election if the date of such person's 42 transaction with the department of motor vehicles pursuant to subdivi- 43 sion one of this section occurs by the twelfth day before such election 44 and such person's information is transmitted to the county or city board 45 by the tenth day before such election. A person whose transaction with 46 the department of motor vehicles occurs within thirty days of an 47 election shall be required to affirm before voting that such person has 48 resided in such person's county, city, or village for at least thirty 49 days before such election. Such affirmation shall be available at the 50 time of voting and at the time of requesting an early mail or absentee 51 ballot. A voter who signs an affirmation pursuant to this subparagraph 52 shall not be challenged or required to vote an affidavit ballot on the 53 grounds that such voter signed such affirmation. 54 (f) (i) If a person returns the notice provided under subparagraph (i) 55 of paragraph (e) of this subdivision and declines to be registered or 56 pre-registered to vote, such person's registration or pre-registration
S. 88 5 1 shall be canceled, and such person shall be deemed to have not regis- 2 tered or pre-registered. However, if such person has voted in an 3 election after the transmission of such person's information but before 4 the notice is returned, the returned form shall be of no effect and such 5 person shall remain registered as of the date of such person's trans- 6 action with the department of motor vehicles. Information relating to 7 the return of a notice form declining to be registered or pre-registered 8 shall not be used for any purpose other than election administration. 9 (ii) Notwithstanding subdivision two of section 5-304 of this article, 10 if a person returns the notice provided under subparagraph (i) of para- 11 graph (e) of this subdivision and elects to enroll in a party, such 12 enrollment shall take effect immediately. However, any pre-registrant's 13 registration shall remain classified as "pending" until the voter 14 reaches the age of eligibility. 15 (iii) If a person returns the notice provided under subparagraph (i) 16 of paragraph (e) of this subdivision but does not select any options, 17 the returned notice shall be of no force and effect, and such person 18 shall remain registered to vote, or pre-registered to vote, if applica- 19 ble. 20 3. (a) The department of motor vehicles shall not provide an opportu- 21 nity to register or pre-register to vote or transmit any information to 22 the board of elections for purposes of voter registration for any person 23 who, when conducting a department of motor vehicles transaction pursuant 24 to subdivision one of this section, provides documentation conclusively 25 demonstrating that such person is not a United States citizen. The 26 department of motor vehicles and the state board of elections shall 27 jointly determine which documents acceptable for transactions pursuant 28 to subdivision one of this section conclusively demonstrate that a 29 person is not a United States citizen. 30 (b) For any person who conducts a department of motor vehicles trans- 31 action pursuant to subdivision one of this section whose information is 32 not already subject to transmission to the state board of elections 33 pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision two of this section and who 34 does not provide documentation at the time of such person's transaction 35 conclusively demonstrating that such person is not a United States citi- 36 zen, the department of motor vehicles transaction shall provide an inte- 37 grated voter registration opportunity as part of such transaction. For 38 purposes of this paragraph, registration shall also include pre-regis- 39 tration pursuant to section 5-507 of this article. 40 (c) The department shall ensure agency applications pursuant to para- 41 graph (b) of this subdivision include all of the elements required by 42 section 5-210 of this article, including the appropriate attestation, so 43 that persons completing such applications shall be able to also submit 44 an application to register to vote through the electronic voter regis- 45 tration transmittal system. 46 (d) The integrated voter registration opportunity shall: 47 (i) include a statement of the eligibility requirements for voter 48 registration and shall require an applicant to attest that such appli- 49 cant meets such requirements under penalty of perjury; 50 (ii) inform an applicant, in print identical to that used in the 51 attestation section, of the following: 52 (A) voter eligibility requirements; 53 (B) penalties for submission of a false registration application; 54 (C) that the office where such applicant applies for registration 55 shall remain confidential and the voter registration information shall 56 be used only for voter registration purposes;
S. 88 6 1 (D) that if such applicant applies to register to vote electronically, 2 such applicant thereby consents to the use of an electronic copy of such 3 applicant's manual signature that is in the custody of the department of 4 motor vehicles, as such applicant's voter registration exemplar signa- 5 ture; 6 (E) if such applicant signs the application and affirmatively selects 7 the voter registration option, such applicant thereby consents to the 8 use of any information required to complete the voter registration 9 application; and 10 (F) if such applicant declines to register, such applicant's declina- 11 tion shall remain confidential and be used only for voter registration 12 purposes; 13 (iii) require an applicant who attests to the eligibility requirements 14 for voter registration to either affirmatively select or affirmatively 15 decline voter registration as a necessary condition to complete the 16 application pursuant to subdivision one of this section; 17 (iv) include the following warning statement, or its substantial 18 equivalent, in prominent type, "IF YOU ARE NOT A CITIZEN OF THE UNITED 19 STATES, DO NOT SELECT THE OPTION TO REGISTER TO VOTE. NON-CITIZENS WHO 20 REGISTER OR PRE-REGISTER TO VOTE MAY BE SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL PENALTIES 21 AND SUCH VOTER REGISTRATION OR PRE-REGISTRATION MAY RESULT IN DEPORTA- 22 TION OR REMOVAL, EXCLUSION FROM ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES, OR 23 DENIAL OF NATURALIZATION."; 24 (v) include a space for an applicant to indicate such applicant's 25 choice of party enrollment, with a clear alternative provided for such 26 applicant to decline to affiliate with any party and the following 27 statement, or its substantial equivalent, in prominent type "ONLY 28 ENROLLED MEMBERS OF A POLITICAL PARTY MAY VOTE IN THAT PARTY'S PRIMA- 29 RIES."; and 30 (vi) include a statement that if an applicant is a victim of domestic 31 violence or stalking, such applicant may contact the state board of 32 elections before or after registering or pre-registering to vote in 33 order to receive information regarding the address confidentiality 34 program for victims of domestic violence under section 5-508 of this 35 article. 36 (e) For each person who completes an application to register to vote 37 pursuant to paragraph (d) of this subdivision, who attests to the eligi- 38 bility requirements for voter registration, and affirmatively selects 39 voter registration pursuant to subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (d) of 40 this subdivision, the department of motor vehicles shall electronically 41 transmit to the state board of elections through an interface with the 42 electronic voter registration transmittal system established and main- 43 tained by the state board of elections such portion of the application 44 that includes voter registration information. If such person is not 45 already registered to vote in New York state, the state board of 46 elections shall electronically forward such application to the applica- 47 ble board of elections of each county or the city of New York for regis- 48 tration consistent with this chapter. The department shall not transmit 49 to the state board of elections an application for registration for a 50 person who indicates on the integrated personal voter registration 51 application that such person does not meet the eligibility requirements 52 for registration. 53 (f) An integrated voter registration application submitted to the 54 department of motor vehicles in an electronic format shall be transmit- 55 ted to the state board of elections through the electronic voter regis- 56 tration transmittal system and shall include all of the voter registra-
S. 88 7 1 tion data elements, including electronic signature, as applicable, and 2 record of attestation of the accuracy of the voter registration informa- 3 tion and any relevant document images. 4 (g) An integrated voter registration form submitted to the department 5 of motor vehicles in paper format shall be transmitted to the state 6 board of elections through the electronic voter registration transmittal 7 system by converting the paper form to an image file or a portable docu- 8 ment format file which shall thereafter be deemed the original form for 9 voter registration and enrollment purposes. The department shall retain 10 the complete original paper application for no less than two years. The 11 transmittal of the converted paper application may include or be accom- 12 panied by data elements and transmittal information as required by the 13 rules and regulations of the state board of elections. 14 (h) The department shall redact or remove from the completed inte- 15 grated application to be transmitted to the state board of elections any 16 information solely applicable to the agency application. 17 (i) Information from an applicant relevant to both voter registration 18 and the department application shall be entered by the applicant only 19 once upon an electronic application. 20 (j) Information concerning the citizenship status of individuals, when 21 collected and transmitted pursuant to this subdivision, shall not be 22 retained, used, or shared for any other purpose except as may be 23 required by law. 24 (k) For each person who attests to the eligibility requirements for 25 voter registration, but who does not affirmatively select voter regis- 26 tration pursuant to subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (d) of this subdivi- 27 sion, the department of motor vehicles shall electronically transmit to 28 the state board of elections through an interface with the electronic 29 voter registration transmittal system established and maintained by the 30 state board of elections such portion of the application that includes 31 voter registration information with a clear designation that such infor- 32 mation shall be used only for the purpose of updating existing registra- 33 tion records. 34 4. (a) If information is received by the state board of elections from 35 the department of motor vehicles pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivi- 36 sion two or paragraph (e) or (k) of subdivision three of this section 37 for a person who is already registered or pre-registered to vote in New 38 York state, the state board of elections shall determine whether the 39 information provided to the department of motor vehicles indicates a 40 different name, residence address, or mailing address from that on such 41 person's registration record. 42 (b) If information provided to the department of motor vehicles pursu- 43 ant to paragraph (a) of subdivision two or paragraph (e) or (k) of 44 subdivision three of this section indicates a different name, residence 45 address, or mailing address for a registered or pre-registered voter 46 from that on such person's registration record, the state board of 47 elections shall electronically transmit the updated name or address for 48 such person to the appropriate board of elections for such person's 49 residence. If such person has changed residence from one county to 50 another, the state board of elections shall electronically transmit such 51 information to both the board of the previous county or city of resi- 52 dence and the new county or city of residence. The board of elections in 53 such person's county or city of residence shall use the information 54 transmitted by the board to update such person's existing voter regis- 55 tration record, transfer the person's registration, if inactive, to 56 active status, and send to such person's address of record the notice
S. 88 8 1 required under subdivision five of section 5-208 of this article. The 2 board of elections in any previous county or city of residence shall 3 update such person's voter registration record to reflect that such 4 person has moved to a different county. 5 (c) If a person returns the notice required under paragraph (b) of 6 this subdivision and indicates that the change to such person's regis- 7 tration record was in error, the appropriate boards of elections, 8 including the board of the previous county or city of residence, shall 9 promptly correct such person's previously updated information in the 10 statewide voter registration list. 11 (d) Any application pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall 12 inform the applicant that if such applicant is already registered or 13 pre-registered to vote in New York state, the name, residence address, 14 and mailing address provided on the application shall be used to update 15 such person's registration record and that such person shall receive 16 notice of any update by mail, along with information on how to correct 17 such update, if needed. 18 5. The state board of elections shall prepare and distribute to the 19 department of motor vehicles written instructions as to the implementa- 20 tion of this section and shall be responsible for establishing training 21 programs for employees of the department of motor vehicles. Such 22 instructions and such training shall ensure usability of the integrated 23 application in subdivision three of this section for low-English profi- 24 ciency voters. The department of motor vehicles shall take all actions 25 that are necessary and proper for the implementation of this section, 26 including facilitating technological capabilities to allow transmission 27 of data through an interface with the electronic voter registration 28 transmittal system in a secure manner. 29 6. The state board of elections may promulgate rules and regulations 30 for the administration of this section. 31 7. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require documentary 32 proof of citizenship for voter registration. Nothing in this section 33 shall be construed to authorize or require the department of motor vehi- 34 cles to request documentation establishing an applicant's citizenship 35 solely for the purposes of voter registration. 36 8. The state board of elections shall publicly release data reports, 37 as described in this subdivision, on a monthly basis. Such data reports 38 shall not include any personally identifying information, shall be 39 subcategorized by gender and age of the individuals included, and shall 40 include all of the following information: 41 (a) The number of individuals registered to vote or pre-registered to 42 vote under the procedures in subdivision two of this section. 43 (b) The number of individuals registered to vote or pre-registered to 44 vote under the procedures in subdivision three of this section. 45 (c) The number of individuals who declined voter registration or pre- 46 registration under the procedures in subdivision two of this section. 47 (d) The number of individuals who declined voter registration or pre- 48 registration under the procedures in subdivision three of this section. 49 (e) The number of individuals whose voter registration or pre-regis- 50 tration was updated pursuant to the procedures in subdivision four of 51 this section. 52 § 3. The election law is amended by adding a new section 5-901-a to 53 read as follows: 54 § 5-901-a. Procedures specific to Medicaid enrollment. 1. Subject to 55 any modifications necessary to comply with applicable federal laws and 56 regulations including such modifications under subdivision two of this
S. 88 9 1 section, beginning January first, two thousand twenty-eight, the depart- 2 ment of health and county and city departments of social services shall 3 automatically and electronically transmit the following information to 4 the state board of elections for purposes of voter registration and 5 pre-registration for each person who applies for or re-enrolls in Medi- 6 caid, who is of sufficient age to register or pre-register to vote, and 7 who is externally verified as a United States citizen as part of an 8 application for Medicaid: 9 (a) such person's name; 10 (b) such person's date of birth; 11 (c) the last four digits of such person's social security number; 12 (d) such person's residence address, and mailing address if different 13 from the residence address; 14 (e) such person's county of residence; 15 (f) such person's citizenship status; 16 (g) an electronic copy of such person's manual signature, if avail- 17 able; 18 (h) the date of such person's application or re-enrollment trans- 19 action; 20 (i) such person's gender, if available; 21 (j) such person's telephone number, if available; and 22 (k) such person's e-mail address, if available. 23 2. If necessary to comply with federal law, before transmitting a 24 person's information to the state board of elections for purposes of 25 voter registration pursuant to subdivision one of this section, the 26 department of health and county and city departments of social services 27 or their designees shall, within fifteen days of such person's applica- 28 tion or re-enrollment transaction, notify by mail such person whose data 29 is subject to transmission pursuant to subdivision one of this section 30 and provide such person an opportunity to decline transmission. Such 31 notice shall be sent to such person's mailing address by non-forwardable 32 mail, notify such person that such person's information will be shared 33 with election officials for purposes of keeping voter registration 34 records complete and accurate, and contain a postage paid preaddressed 35 return form by which such person may decline transmission of such 36 person's data to the state board of elections. If such person returns 37 such notice within seventeen days of mailing and declines transmission 38 of such person's information, such person's information shall not be 39 transmitted to the state board of elections for purposes of voter regis- 40 tration. If such person does not return the notice provided under this 41 subdivision and declines transmission of such person's information with- 42 in seventeen days of mailing, such person's information shall be trans- 43 mitted to the state board of elections within three days for purposes of 44 voter registration. 45 3. In processing information received the department of health and 46 county and city departments of social services pursuant to subdivision 47 one of this section, the state board of elections and boards of 48 elections for each county or the city of New York shall comply with the 49 requirements established in subdivisions two and four of section 5-901 50 of this title. Provided that, a person of sufficient age to register to 51 vote whose information is transmitted to a county or city board pursuant 52 to this section shall be registered to vote for an election if the 53 information is transmitted to the county or city board by the tenth day 54 before such election. 55 4. Prior to January first, two thousand twenty-eight, the department 56 of health and county and city departments of social services shall
S. 88 10 1 utilize the procedures required under section 5-900 of this title for 2 Medicaid enrollment transactions. 3 § 4. Section 5-902 of the election law, as amended by chapter 37 of 4 the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows: 5 § 5-902. Failure to receive exemplar signature not to prevent regis- 6 tration. If a voter registration exemplar signature is not received from 7 an applicant who submits a voter registration or pre-registration appli- 8 cation or is otherwise registered or pre-registered to vote pursuant to 9 this title and such signature exemplar is not otherwise available from 10 the statewide voter registration database or a state or local agency, 11 the local board of elections shall, absent another reason to reject the 12 application, proceed to register or pre-register and, as applicable, 13 enroll the applicant. Within ten days of such action, the board of 14 elections shall send a standard form promulgated by the state board of 15 elections to the voter whose record lacks an exemplar signature, requir- 16 ing such voter to submit a signature for identification purposes. The 17 voter shall submit to the board of elections a voter registration exemp- 18 lar signature by any one of the following methods: in person, by mail 19 with return postage paid provided by the board of elections, by elec- 20 tronic mail, or by electronic upload to the board of elections through 21 the electronic voter registration transmittal system. If such voter does 22 not provide the required exemplar signature, when the voter appears to 23 vote the voter shall be entitled to vote by affidavit ballot. 24 § 5. The opening paragraphs of subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 5-904 25 of the election law, as amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2021, are 26 amended to read as follows: 27 Notwithstanding subdivision six of section 5-210 of this article or 28 any other law to the contrary, a person who is ineligible to vote who 29 fails to decline to register or pre-register to vote in accordance with 30 the provisions of this [section] title or who is otherwise registered or 31 pre-registered to vote in accordance with the provisions of this title, 32 and who did not willfully and knowingly seek to register or pre-register 33 to vote knowing that the person is not eligible to do so: 34 Notwithstanding subdivision six of section 5-210 of this article or 35 any other law to the contrary, a person who is ineligible to vote who 36 fails to decline to register or pre-register to vote in accordance with 37 the provisions of this [section] title or who is otherwise registered or 38 pre-registered to vote in accordance with the provisions of this title, 39 and who then either votes or attempts to vote in an election held after 40 the effective date of that person's registration, and who did not will- 41 fully and knowingly seek to register or pre-register to vote knowing 42 that the person is not eligible to do so, and did not subsequently vote 43 or attempt to vote knowing that the person is not eligible to do so: 44 § 6. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 5-308 of the election law, as 45 amended by chapter 37 of the laws of 2021, are amended to read as 46 follows: 47 1. The board of elections shall, promptly and not later than twenty- 48 one days after receipt of a voter registration or pre-registration 49 application submitted pursuant to title nine of this article by a voter 50 registering or pre-registering for the first time, send any such voter 51 who did not enroll in a party a notice and a form to indicate party 52 enrollment. Such notice shall offer the voter the opportunity to enroll 53 with a party or to decline to enroll with a party and contain the 54 following statement in prominent type "ONLY ENROLLED MEMBERS OF A POLI- 55 TICAL PARTY MAY VOTE IN THAT PARTY'S PRIMARIES." Such form shall provide 56 a clear alternative for the applicant to decline to affiliate with any
S. 88 11 1 party. If the board of elections has not received a response to the 2 party enrollment notice and form sent pursuant to this subdivision, or 3 to a notice sent pursuant to subparagraph (i) of paragraph (e) of subdi- 4 vision two of section 5-901 of this article within forty-five days of a 5 person's registration, the board shall mail a second party enrollment 6 notice and form to such person. 7 2. Notwithstanding subdivision two of section 5-304 of this title, if 8 a voter who registered to vote for the first time (or pre-registered) 9 pursuant to title nine of this article responds to either of the 10 [notice] notices required by subdivision one of this section and elects 11 to enroll in a party, such enrollment shall take effect immediately. 12 However, any pre-registrant's registration shall remain classified as 13 "pending" until the voter reaches the age of eligibility. 14 § 7. This act shall take effect January 1, 2028.