Section 21-2-222. Designated voter registration agencies and offices; definitions; duties of agencies and offices

   (a) As used in this Code section, the term:

   (1) "Persons with disabilities" means persons who have physical disabilities, including, but not limited to, any physical or neurological impairment which severely restricts a person's mobility or manual dexterity; substantial loss of speech, sight, or hearing; or loss of one or more limbs or use thereof; but such term shall not include nonphysical disabilities, mental or emotional disabilities, or disabilities based upon substance abuse.

   (2) "Public assistance" means the food stamp program; the Medicaid program; the Women, Infants, and Children program; and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.

   (3) "Recruitment office of the armed forces of the United States" includes both regular and reserve forces recruitment offices and national guard recruitment offices.

(b) Each office in this state:

   (1) Which provides public assistance;

   (2) Which provides state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities; and

   (3) Which is a recruitment office of the armed forces of the United States located within this state

shall be designated voter registration agencies.

(c) In addition to the offices listed in subsection (b) of this Code section, the Secretary of State shall designate other offices within the state as designated voter registration offices. Such offices may include, but not be limited to:

   (1) State or local governmental offices such as public libraries, public schools, offices of county and municipal clerks, and government revenue offices; and

   (2) Federal and nongovernmental offices, with the agreement of such offices.

(d) At each designated voter registration agency, the following services shall be made available:

   (1) Distribution of the mail voter registration application provided for in Code Section 21-2-223 in accordance with subsection (f) of this Code section;

   (2) Assistance to applicants in completing voter registration application forms, unless the applicant refuses such assistance; and

   (3) Acceptance of completed voter registration application forms for submission to the Secretary of State.

(e) If a designated voter registration agency under paragraph (2) of subsection (b) of this Code section provides services to a person with a disability at the person's home, the agency shall provide the services described in subsection (d) of this Code section at such person's home.

(f) A designated voter registration agency that provides service or assistance in addition to conducting voter registration shall:

   (1) Distribute with each application for such service or assistance and with each recertification, renewal, or change of address form relating to such service or assistance, when such application, recertification, renewal, or change of address is made in person, the mail voter registration application form provided for in Code Section 21-2-223 unless the applicant declines in writing to register to vote;

   (2) Distribute a form provided by the Secretary of State to accompany the voter registration application form which includes:

      (A) The question "If you are not registered to vote where you live now, would you like to apply to register to vote here today?";

      (B) If the agency provides public assistance, 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.";

      (C) Boxes for the applicant to check to indicate whether the applicant is presently registered, would like to register, or declines to register to vote with the statement "IF YOU DO NOT CHECK ANY BOX, YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE DECIDED NOT TO REGISTER TO VOTE AT THIS TIME." in close proximity to the boxes and in prominent type;

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

      (E) The statement "If you believe that someone has interfered with your right to register or to decline to register to vote or your right to privacy in deciding whether to register or in applying to register to vote, you may file a complaint with the Secretary of State at (insert address and telephone number)."; and

   (3) Provide to each applicant who does not decline to apply to register to vote the same degree of assistance with regard to the completion of the voter registration application form as is provided by the office with regard to the completion of its own forms, unless the applicant refuses such assistance.

(g) If an applicant fails to check any box on the form required by subparagraph (f)(2)(C) of this Code section, the applicant shall be deemed to have declined to apply to register to vote.

(h) No information relating to a declination to apply to register to vote in connection with an application made at an office described in subsection (f) of this Code section may be used for any purpose other than voter registration and shall not be subject to public inspection.

(i) Each office shall transmit the completed voter registration application forms to the Secretary of State at least once per week, except that, during the 15 days leading up to a registration deadline for a primary or election, such applications shall be transmitted to the Secretary of State at the conclusion of each business day. The Secretary of State shall forward the applications to the appropriate county board of registrars to determine the eligibility of the applicant and, if found eligible, to add the applicant's name to the list of electors and to place the applicant in the correct precinct and voting districts.

(j) Each office shall maintain such statistical records on the number of registrations and declinations as requested by the Secretary of State.

(k) Persons providing the services described in subsection (d) of this Code section shall not:

   (1) Seek to influence an applicant's political preference;

   (2) Display any such political preference or political party or body allegiance;

   (3) Make any statement to an applicant or take any action the purpose or effect of which is to discourage the applicant from applying to register 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 apply to register or not to apply to register to vote has any bearing on the availability of services or benefits.

(l) The Secretary of State shall have the authority to promulgate rules and regulations to provide for the transmission of voter registration applications and signatures electronically from public assistance offices, offices which provide state funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities, and recruitment offices of the armed forces of the United States located within this state. Such electronically transmitted signatures shall be valid as signatures on the voter registration application and shall be treated in all respects as a manually written original signature and shall be recognized as such in any matter concerning the voter registration application.

Code 1981, § 21-2-222, enacted by Ga. L. 1994, p. 1443, § 3; Ga. L. 1995, p. 8, § 1; Ga. L. 1997, p. 1021, § 7; Ga. L. 1998, p. 295, § 1; Ga. L. 2001, p. 240, § 17; Ga. L. 2003, p. 517, § 19.