A. The secretary of state shall adopt and publish in accordance with the State Rules Act [Chapter 14, Article 4 NMSA 1978] rules for the administration of a state-agency-based voter registration program. The rules shall provide for distribution of voter registration forms, provisions for the acceptance of voter registration forms and procedures for reporting voter registration activity in accordance with the federal National Voter Registration Act of 1993.

B. Voter registration shall be made available at all state agencies providing public assistance or services to people with disabilities. The secretary of state may, with the agreement of those offices, designate other state and local public offices to provide voter registration services.

C. Each state agency participating in the voter registration program shall maintain sufficient records for the secretary of state to comply with federal voter registration reporting requirements and the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002. Any records maintained by a state agency regarding voter registration activities in that agency are confidential and shall not be released as public records.

D. Any voter registration made or accepted at a state agency pursuant to this section shall be transmitted to the appropriate registration officer within ten calendar days.

E. A state agency employee or agency contractor who participates in the voter registration process may not intentionally influence the prospective registrant in the selection of political party, or independent status, by word or act. A state agency employee or agency contractor who participates in the voter registration process may not reveal the existence of or the nature of the voter registration to anyone other than a registration officer.

History: 1978 Comp., § 1-4-48, enacted by Laws 1995, ch. 198, § 13; 2003, ch. 356, § 14.

Cross references. — For the federal National Voter Registration Act of 1993, see 42 U.S.C. § 1973gg et seq.

For the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002, see 42 U.S.C. § 15301 et seq.

The 2003 amendment, effective July 1, 2003, substituted "rules" for "regulations" in two places in Subsection A; inserted "of state" following "secretary" in the second sentence of Subsection B; and inserted "and the federal Help America Vote Act of 2002" in the first sentence of Subsection C.