WEST virginia Legislature

2016 regular session

Introduced

House Joint Resolution 28

By Delegate Deem

[Judiciary]

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia, repealing sections four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten, article six thereof; and amending said Constitution by adding thereto a new article, designated article fifteen, all relating to the creation of a Citizens Redistricting Commission to redistrict Senate, House Of Delegates, and congressional districts; numbering and designating the proposed amendment; and providing a summarized statement of the purpose of the proposed amendment.

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia, two thirds of the members elected to each house agreeing thereto:

That the question of ratification or rejection of an amendment to the Constitution of the State of West Virginia be submitted to the voters of the state at the next general election to be held in 2016, which proposed amendment is that sections four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten, article six thereof be repealed; and that said Constitution be amended by adding thereto a new article, designated article fifteen, all to read as follows:

ARTICLE XV.  REDISTRICTING OF SENATE, HOUSE OF DELEGATES, AND CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS.

§1.  Citizens Redistricting Commission to redistrict West Virginia.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Constitution, in the year following the year in which the national census is taken under the direction of Congress at the beginning of each decade, the Citizens Redistricting Commission described in section two of this article shall adjust the boundary lines of the congressional, State Senate and House of Delegates districts in conformance with the standards and process set forth in this article.

§2.  Citizens Redistricting Commission creation; responsibilities; membership; district requirements; maps.

(a) The Citizens Redistricting Commission shall be created no later than December 31 in 2020, and in each year ending in the number zero after that.

(b) The commission shall:

(1) Conduct an open and transparent process enabling full public consideration of and comment on the drawing of district lines;

(2) Draw district lines according to the redistricting criteria specified in this article; and

(3) Conduct themselves with integrity and fairness.

(c) (1) The selection process is designed to produce a commission that is independent from legislative influence and reasonably representative of West Virginia’s diversity.

(2) The commission shall consist of fourteen members appointed by the Governor. The commission may not contain more than five members who are registered with the largest political party in West Virginia based on registration and five members who are registered with the second largest political party with in West Virginia based on registration.  The other four members may not be registered with either of the two largest political parties in West Virginia based on registration.

(3) Each commission member shall be a voter who has been continuously registered in West Virginia with the same political party or unaffiliated with a political party and who has not changed political party affiliation for five or more years immediately preceding the date of his or her appointment. Each commission member shall have voted in two of the last three statewide general elections immediately preceding his or her application.

(4) The term of office of each member of the commission expires upon the appointment of the first member of the succeeding commission.

(5) Nine members of the commission is a quorum. Nine or more affirmative votes is required for any official action.  The four final redistricting maps must be approved by at least nine affirmative votes which must include at least three votes of members registered from each of the two largest political parties in West Virginia based on registration and three votes from members who are not registered with either of these two political parties.

(6) Each commission member shall apply this article in a manner that is impartial and that reinforces public confidence in the integrity of the redistricting process. A commission member is ineligible for a period of ten years beginning from the date of appointment to hold elective public office at the federal, state, county, or municipal level in West Virginia. A member of the commission is ineligible for a period of five years beginning from the date of appointment to hold appointive federal, state, or local public office, to serve as paid staff for, or as a paid consultant to, Congress, the Legislature, or any individual legislator, or to register as a federal, state or local lobbyist in West Virginia.

(d) The commission shall establish single-member districts for the Senate, House of Delegates and Congress pursuant to a mapping process using the criteria included in this subsection as set forth in the following order of priority:

(1) Districts shall comply with the United States Constitution. Congressional districts shall achieve population equality as nearly as is practicable, and Senatorial, and House of Delegates districts shall have reasonably equal population with other districts for the same office, except where deviation is required to comply with the federal Voting Rights Act or allowable by law.

(2) Districts shall comply with the federal Voting Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. §1971, as amended.

(3) Districts shall be geographically contiguous.

(4) The geographic integrity of any municipality, county, local neighborhood, or local community of interest shall be respected in a manner that minimizes their division to the extent possible without violating the requirements of any of subdivisions (1) through (3) of this subsection. A community of interest is a contiguous population which shares common social and economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation. Examples of these shared interests are those common to an urban area, a rural area, an industrial area, or an agricultural area, and those common to areas in which the people share similar living standards, use the same transportation facilities, have similar work opportunities, or have access to the same media of communication relevant to the election process. Communities of interest do not include relationships with political parties, incumbents, or political candidates.

(5) To the extent practicable, and where this does not conflict with the criteria above, districts shall be drawn to encourage geographical compactness so that nearby areas of population are not bypassed for more distant population.

(e) The place of residence of any incumbent or political candidate may not be considered in the creation of a map. Districts may not be drawn for the purpose of favoring or discriminating against an incumbent, political candidate, or political party.

(f) Districts for the Congress, Senate, and House of Delegates shall be numbered consecutively commencing at the northern boundary of the state and ending at the southern boundary.

(g) By August 15, 2021, and in each year ending in the number one after that, the commission shall approve three final maps that separately set forth the district boundary lines for the congressional, senatorial, and House of Delegates districts. Upon approval, the commission shall certify the three final maps to the Secretary of State.

(h) The commission shall issue, with each of the three final maps, a report that explains the basis on which the commission made its decisions in achieving compliance with the criteria listed in subsection (d) of this section and shall include definitions of the terms and standards used in drawing each final map.

(i) If the commission does not approve a final map by at least the requisite votes, the Secretary of State shall immediately petition the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals for an order directing the appointment of special masters to adjust the boundary lines of that map in accordance with the redistricting criteria and requirements set forth in subsections (d), (e) and (f) of this section.  Upon its approval of the masters' map, the court shall certify the resulting map to the Secretary of State, which map shall constitute the certified final map for the subject type of district.

§3.  Standing to defend action regarding final map.

(a) The commission has the sole legal standing to defend any action regarding a certified final map, and shall inform the Legislature if it determines that funds or other resources provided for the operation of the commission are not adequate. The Legislature shall provide adequate funding to defend any action regarding a certified map. The commission has sole authority to determine whether the Attorney General or other legal counsel retained by the commission shall assist in the defense of a certified final map.

(b) (1) The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals has original and exclusive jurisdiction in all proceedings in which a certified final map is challenged or is claimed not to have taken timely effect.

(2) Any registered voter in this state may file a petition for a writ of mandamus, within forty-five days after the commission has certified a final map to the Secretary of State, to bar the Secretary of State from implementing the plan on the grounds that the filed plan violates this Constitution, the United States Constitution, or any federal or state statute. Any registered voter in this state may also file a petition for a writ of mandamus to seek relief where a certified final map is subject to a referendum measure that is likely to qualify and stay the timely implementation of the map.

(3) The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals shall give priority to ruling on a petition for a writ of mandamus filed pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection. If the court determines that a final certified map violates this Constitution, the United States Constitution, or any federal or state statute, the court shall fashion the relief that it considers appropriate, including, but not limited to, the relief set forth in subsection (j), section two of this article.

Resolved further, That in accordance with the provisions of article eleven, chapter three of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, such amendment is hereby numbered “Amendment No. 1” and designated as the “Citizens Redistricting Commission Amendment” and the purpose of the proposed amendment is summarized as follows: “The purpose of this amendment is to require the creation of a Citizens Redistricting Commission to redistrict Senate, House Of Delegates, and congressional districts.”

NOTE: The purpose of this joint resolution is to propose an amendment to the West Virginia Constitution that would require the creation of a Citizens Redistricting Commission to redistrict Senate, House of Delegates, and congressional districts.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present Constitution and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.