(a)
Except as provided in subdivision (c), any person who receives money or other valuable consideration to assist another to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration from the elector, and fails to comply with Section 2159, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months or when the failure to comply is found to be willful, not exceeding one year, or both.
(b)
Any person who receives money or other valuable consideration to assist another to register to vote by receiving the completed affidavit of registration from the elector, upon a third or subsequent conviction, on charges
brought and separately tried, for failure to comply with Section 2159 shall be punished by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed one year, or both.
(c)
This section shall not apply to any public agency or its employees that is designated as a voter registration agency pursuant to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (52 U.S.C. Sec. 20501 et seq.), when an elector asks for assistance to register to vote during the course and scope of the agency’s normal business.