Requires voter registration forms be made available when applying for hunting, fishing, or trapping license.

A182

ASSEMBLY, No. 182

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires voter registration forms be made available
when applying for hunting, fishing, or trapping license.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning voter registration, amending P.L.1994,
c.182, and supplementing chapter 3 of Title 23 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 26 of P.L.1994,
c.182 (C.19:31-6.11) is amended to read as follows:

���� 26.� a.�� As used in this
section, "voter registration agency" means:

���� Any agency or office serving
as a food stamp issuer, pursuant to P.L.1988, c.79 (C.44:8-153 et seq.) and the
"Food Stamp Act of 1977," Pub.L.95-113 (7 U.S.C. s.2011 et seq.);

���� Any agency or office providing
or administering assistance under the "New Jersey Medical Assistance and
Health Services Program," pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.)
and 42 U.S.C. s.1395 et seq.;

���� Any agency or office
distributing food pursuant to the special supplemental food program for women,
infants and children (WIC), established pursuant to P.L.1987, c.261
(C.26:1A-36.1 et seq.) and Pub.L.95-267 (42 U.S.C. s.1786);

���� Any agency or office
administering assistance under the Work First New Jersey program established
pursuant to P.L.1997, c.38 (C.44:10-55 et seq.);

���� Any public office of the
Division of Developmental Disabilities, established pursuant to section 2 of
P.L.1985, c.145 (C.30:6D-24), in the Department of Human Services;

���� Any public office of the
Office of Disability Services, established pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1999,
c.91 (C.30:6E-3), in the Department of Human Services;

���� Any recruitment office of the
Armed Forces of the United States, subject to any agreement between this State
and the Secretary of Defense of the United States for the joint development and
implementation, as provided under subsection (c) of section 7 of Pub.L.103-31
(42 U.S.C. s. 1973gg-6), of procedures for applying at those offices to
register to vote;

���� Any office of the Division of
Vocational Rehabilitation Services of the New Jersey Department of Labor;

���� Any office of the Commission
for the Blind and Visually Impaired of the New Jersey Department of Human
Services;

���� Any county welfare agency or
county board of social services established pursuant to the provisions of
chapter 1 or chapter 4 of Title 44 of the Revised Statutes;

����
Any agency or office
providing hunting, fishing, or trapping licenses under the Division of Fish and
Wildlife in the Department of Environmental Protection, established pursuant to
P.L.1999, c.282 (C.23:2B-15.1);

���� The office of the commissioner
of registration in the several counties of this State; and

���� Any office of the municipal
clerk in the several municipalities of this State.

���� b.��� With each voter
registration form and instructions provided to the chief administrative officer
at each voter registration agency under subsections e. and f. of section 16 of
P.L.1974, c.30 (C.19:31-6.4), the Secretary of State shall provide at the same time
a declination form that includes:

���� (1)�� the question: "If
you are not registered to vote where you live now, would you like to apply to
register to vote here today?";

���� (2)�� the statement:
"Applying to register or declining to register to vote will not affect the
amount of assistance that you will be provided by this agency.";

���� (3)�� boxes for the applicant
to check to indicate whether the applicant would or would not like to register
to vote, together with the statement "IF YOU DO NOT CHECK EITHER BOX, YOU
WILL BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE DECIDED NOT TO REGISTER TO VOTE AT THIS TIME.";

���� (4)�� the statement: "If
you would like help in filling out the voter registration application form, we
will help you.� The decision to seek or accept help is yours.� You may fill out
the application form in private.";

���� (5)�� the statement: "If
you believe that someone has interfered with your right to register or to
decline to register to vote, your right to privacy in deciding whether to
register or in applying to register to vote, or your right to choose your own
political party or other political preference, you may file a complaint with
the Secretary of State." (insert address and current telephone number);
and

���� (6)�� the statement: IF YOU
DECLINE TO REGISTER TO VOTE AT THIS TIME, YOUR DECISION WILL REMAIN
CONFIDENTIAL AND WILL BE USED ONLY FOR VOTER REGISTRATION PURPOSES. IF YOU DO
REGISTER TO VOTE, THE WAY IN WHICH YOU DO SO WILL REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL AND WILL
BE USED ONLY FOR VOTER REGISTRATION PURPOSES.�

���� c.���� The Secretary of State
shall cause to be prepared declination forms in the form provided for by
subsection b. of this section in both the English and Spanish languages and
shall provide such forms to the chief administrative officer of each voter
registration agency which has an office in any county in which there is at
least one election district in which bilingual sample ballots must be provided
pursuant to R.S.19:14-21, R.S.19:49-4 or section 2 of P.L.1965, c.29
(C.19:23-22.4).

���� d.��� The Secretary of State
shall adopt, pursuant to consultation with the chief administrative officers at
voter registration agencies, regulations for the prompt return of the completed
voter registration forms, but in no case shall the forms be returned later than
the fifth day following the date on which the completed forms are received by
the voter registration agencies.

���� e.���� All registration forms
received by the Secretary of State in the mail or forwarded to the Secretary of
State by employees or agents of the voter registration agencies shall be
forwarded to the commissioner of registration in the county of the registrant.

���� f.���� Each completed
declination form received by a voter registration agency shall be kept
confidential for a period of at least two years.� The Secretary of State shall
determine, pursuant to consultation with the chief administrative officers at
voter registration agencies, which office or agency shall retain the
declination forms.�

(cf: P.L.1999, c.91, s.10)

���� 2.��� (New section)� The
director of the Division of Fish and Wildlife shall:

���� a.���� cause copies of the
voter registration forms and instructions provided for under subsections e. and
f. of section 16 of P.L.1974, c.30 (C.19:31‑6.4) and the declination form
provided for in subsection b. of section 26 of P.L.1994, c.182 (C.19:31‑6.11)
to be distributed at each agency or office to each person appearing in person
thereat to apply for a hunting, fishing, or trapping license.� An employee of
the agency or office shall inquire of every such person whether the person, if
not already registered to vote from the place of his or her present residence,
wishes to be so registered and shall inform the person that whether or not the
applicant chooses to register will not affect the person's eligibility for a
license.� The employee shall subsequently review the forms to determine whether
or not the person wishes to register to vote.� If the person does not wish to
register, the employee shall provide the person with any assistance necessary
to complete the declination form and then inform the person that the form shall
be forwarded by the employee to the Attorney General.� If the person wishes to
register, the employee shall provide the person with any assistance necessary
in completing the voter registration form; shall inform the applicant that the
applicant may leave the completed form with the employee or mail it personally
to the Attorney General; and if the applicant chooses to leave the form, shall
accept the completed form, stamp or otherwise mark the lower right hand corner
of the document with the date on which it was so received, and forward it to
the Attorney General.� The employee shall provide to each applicant who does
not decline to register to vote the same degree of assistance with regard to
the completion of the voter registration form as is provided by the office with
regard to the completion of applications for licenses, unless the applicant
refuses such assistance;

���� b.��� provide for the
continuous supply of the forms and instructions specified in subsection a. of
this section to every agency or office providing hunting, fishing, or trapping
licenses pursuant to P.L.� , c.�� (C.�� ) (pending before the Legislature as
this bill);

���� c.���� provide the forms and
instructions specified in subsection a. of this section in both the English and
Spanish languages to the offices which are located in any county in which
bilingual sample ballots must be provided pursuant to R.S.19:14‑21,
R.S.19:49‑4 or section 2 of P.L.1965, c.29 (C.19:23‑22.4);

���� d.��� provide for the
collection of completed voter registration forms by any employee of the office
for the transmittal of the forms to the Attorney General;

���� e.���� inform each employee of
the agency or office who assists in registering a person to vote that that
employee shall not:

���� (1)�� seek to influence an
applicant's political preference or party registration;

���� (2)�� display any such
political preference or party allegiance;

���� (3)�� make any statement to an
applicant or take any action the purpose or effect of which is to discourage
the applicant from registering to vote; or

���� (4)�� make any statement to an
applicant or take any action the purpose or effect of which is to lead the
applicant to believe that a decision to register or not to register has any
bearing on the availability of hunting, fishing, or trapping licenses; and

���� f.���� make certain that no
information relating to a declination to register to vote by an individual in
connection with any type of application for a license made by that individual
at any office is used for any purpose other than voter registration.

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

����� This bill requires that voter registration forms are
to be made available at any agency or office providing hunting, fishing, or
trapping licenses under the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife in the
Department of Environmental Protection.