HOUSE BILL 769
49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009
INTRODUCED BY
Antonio "Moe" Maestas
AN ACT
RELATING TO ELECTIONS; CHANGING REQUIREMENTS FOR VOTER REGISTRATION ORGANIZATIONS; PROVIDING FOR PENALTIES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1. Section 1-1-16.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2005, Chapter 270, Section 3) is amended to read:
"1-1-16.1. REGISTRATION AGENT.--As used in the Election Code, "registration agent" means a state or federal employee who provides voter registration at a state agency, or a tribal registration agent office, or any other individual who assists another person in completion of a voter registration application or collects a completed voter registration form from a voter in order to return it to the county clerk or secretary of state on the voter's behalf."
Section 2. Section 1-4-49 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2005, Chapter 270, Section 17, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-4-49. [THIRD-PARTY] VOTER REGISTRATION [AGENTS] ORGANIZATIONS--REGISTRATION REQUIRED--PROCEDURES--REPORTS--PENALTY.--
A. [Registration agents who either register or assist persons to register to vote on behalf of] An organization that is not a state or federal agency and that collects more than fifty completed certificates of registration in a calendar year on the forms prescribed by the secretary of state shall register with the secretary of state and [the organization shall register and] provide the secretary of state with [(1)] the names of the officers of the organization and the name and permanent address of the organization.
[(2)] B. When an organization submits to the secretary of state or county clerk the certificates of registration as provided in Subsection A of this section, it shall also submit, for each registration agent who collected the certificates of registration being submitted:
(1) the names, permanent addresses, temporary addresses, if any, and dates of birth of each person registering persons to vote in the state on behalf of the organization; and
[(3)] (2) a sworn statement from each registration agent employed by or volunteering for the organization stating that the agent has obeyed and will continue to obey all state laws and rules regarding the registration of voters on a form that gives notice of the criminal penalties for false registration. This statement need not be notarized.
C. An individual registration agent who is not working on behalf of an organization described in Subsection A of this section and who collects more than fifty completed certificates of registration in a calendar year on the forms prescribed by the secretary of state shall also comply with the reporting requirements of Subsection B of this section.
[B.] D. Organizations [employing registration agents or using volunteer registration agents] subject to registration pursuant to Subsection A of this section and individual registration agents subject to Subsection C of this section shall deliver or mail [a] completed state-issued certificate of registration forms to the secretary of state or county clerk [within forty-eight hours of its completion by the person registering to vote or deliver it the next business day if the appropriate office is closed for that forty-eight-hour period] as follows:
(1) between one hundred eighty and thirty days before the close of registration, within thirty days of a certificate's completion by the person registering to vote;
(2) between thirty days and five days before the close of registration, within five days of a certificate's completion by the person registering to vote; and
(3) in all cases, all certificate of registration forms completed before the close of registration shall be returned to the secretary of state or county clerk before the close of registration.
[C.] E. The secretary of state may issue rules to ensure the integrity of the registration process, including rules [requiring that organizations account for all state and federal registration forms used by their registration agents. D.] to track state-issued certificate of registration forms given to voter registration organizations that collect and submit certificates of registration. The rules shall not limit the availability of blank state-issued certificate of registration forms to a voter registration organization unless the organization has clearly engaged in a pattern of not returning a significant number of forms previously received. If the secretary of state issues rules requiring or otherwise requires training of registration agents, that training shall be made reasonably available to voter registration organizations to train their registration agents. The secretary of state shall not require each individual registration agent to participate directly in a state- or county-run training session. If the secretary of state issues rules requiring or otherwise requires the disclosure of a registration agent's name, the voter registration organization's name or other identifying information on the state-issued certificate of registration form, this information shall not be released to the public.
F. The secretary of state shall ensure that information about the requirements of this section shall be widely disseminated, including on the web sites of the secretary of state and of the various county clerks.
G. A person who [intentionally] violates the provisions of this section with the intent of disenfranchising a voter is guilty of a petty misdemeanor and [the person's third-party registration agent status shall be revoked] in addition to any other sentence imposed by law, the court may revoke the person's right to act as a registration agent or collect or submit certificate of registration forms. If the person who violates a provision of this section is an employee of an organization and has decision-making authority involving the organization's voter registration activities or is an officer of the organization, that organization shall be subject to civil penalties as described in Subsection [E] H of this section.
[E.] H. If the secretary of state reasonably believes that a person committed [a] an intentional violation of the provisions of this section, the secretary of state shall refer the matter to the attorney general or a district attorney for enforcement. The attorney general or district attorney may institute a civil action in district court for a violation of the provisions of this section or to prevent a violation of the provisions of this section. An action for relief may include a permanent or temporary injunction, a restraining order or any other appropriate order, including a civil penalty of [two hundred fifty dollars ($250)] fifty dollars ($50.00) for each violation caused by gross negligence or intentional misconduct, not to exceed [five thousand dollars ($5,000)] one thousand dollars ($1,000).
I. The provisions of this section shall not apply to voter registration applications collected overseas and submitted to the secretary of state or county clerk pursuant to the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act."
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