State Senate passes Automatic Voter Registration bill (again)

Queens State Sen. Michael Gianaris is the main sponsor of the Automatic Voter Registration bill. AP Photo/Hans Pennink.

By Victoria Merlino

After a critical typo tripped up the Automatic Voter Registration bill last legislative session in Albany, the State Senate Democrats have checked their grammar and passed it again in the first days of the new session. 

The bill would automatically register eligible residents to vote upon interaction with local government agencies, such as the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Health. The bill was initially passed in the State Senate in June before being pulled from the Assembly after lawmakers noticed a typo that would have erroneously instructed non-citizens to register to vote. 

The [New York State Senate] is making our state a more accessible and accountable democracy,” Queens State Sen. Michael Gianaris, who sponsored the bill, tweeted on Jan. 10. “First with early voting and now #AutomaticVoterRegistration - more New Yorkers than ever will be participating in our elections.”

Gianaris assured the Daily News that the typo had been corrected. 

“Not only did we fix the typo problem but we made it stronger in other ways,” he said. 

The bill will next head to the Assembly.