19:3-4.1 Database containing contact, other information about elected public officials.

1. a. There shall be established in the Division of Elections in the Department of State a database containing the contact information for every elected public official in this State, including the gender identity or expression and race of the elected public official.

b. No later than the 21st day after an individual has been certified as elected to an elective public office in this State, including an individual selected to fill a vacancy in an elective public office for the remainder of a term, the officer responsible for issuing the certificate to each successful candidate as provided by R.S.19:20-5, R.S.19:20-9, and R.S.19:22-6 shall transmit to the individual a form, developed by the Secretary of State, for completion that records: 1) the individual's contact information, including full name, and the mailing address, telephone number, and e-mail address of the individual's elective public office, if any; 2) gender identity or expression; and 3) race, using the same racial categories as required on the federal decennial census of the United States by the federal Bureau of the Census.

The division shall coordinate with the clerks of each county and municipality to ensure that the form is transmitted to individuals elected to public offices in those counties and municipalities, respectively.

Each completed form shall be transmitted to the officer responsible for issuing the certificate to each successful candidate as provided by R.S.19:20-5, R.S.19:20-9, and R.S.19:22-6 by the elected individual by mail or electronic means no later than the 10th day following the receipt thereof.

c. The division shall use the information from the forms received pursuant to subsection b. of this section, to establish separate databases of information on elected individuals, with at least one database sorted by gender identity or expression and at least one sorted by race.

The information in each database shall be: 1) reviewed and updated by the officer responsible for issuing the certificate to each successful candidate as provided by the provisions in R.S.19:20-5, R.S.19:20-9, and R.S.19:22-6 on a regular basis, but not less than annually; and 2) available to the public at a convenient location on the website of the division.

d. The provisions of this section shall not apply to an individual elected to a position in a special district, on a board of education, or on a board of fire commissioners.

L.2019, c.377, s.1.