1. Getting a Head Start on Redistricting ICIT Mid-Year Conference June 18, 2010 Cory Hines & Wayne Chizek

3. Timeline for Redistricting ► 2010 – Census is completed ► 2010 – Legislative Services Agency acquires geographic and political unit information from the Census Bureau by December 31, 2010 ► 2011 – Legislative Services Agency acquires population data from the Census Bureau as soon as possible after January 1, 2011 and prepares congressional and legislative redistricting plans

4. Timeline for Redistricting ► 1. LSA delivers a plan to the speaker of the house and the secretary of the senate by April 1 st ► 2. One legislative body (house or senate) shall act on the plan within 3 days, then the first body sends it to the second body within 3 days for a vote ► 3. If it fails to pass by a constitutional majority in either the house or the senate the plan shall be sent back to the LSA with the information which the senate or house may direct by resolution regarding why the plan was rejected.

5. Timeline for Redistricting ► 4. *However, if the information from the census bureau is not available to LSA on or before Feb. 15, all days shall be extended by 15 days. ► 5. If a second plan is prepared by LSA it shall be submitted to the legislature, it shall be submitted within 35 days of when it was defeated by the house or senate, or vetoed by the governor. ► 6.The bill shall be brought to a vote by either the house or senate within 7 days, and as expeditiously as possible to the other body of the legislature

6. Timeline for Redistricting ► 7. If that bill fails, a third and final bill will be submitted by the LSA as far in advance of September 1 to allow the general assembly to consider the plan, and this plan may be subject to amendment. ► 2011 – City councils shall complete any changes in precinct and ward boundaries not later than 60 days after the legislative districts have become law, or September 1, whichever is later. ► 2011 – County boards of supervisors or the temporary county redistricting commission shall complete any changes in precinct and supervisor district boundaries not later than 90 days after the redistrict of legislative districts or by October 15, 2011, whichever is later.

7. Timeline for Redistricting ► Different compliance dates may be set by the general assembly by joint resolution. ► Each county board or city council shall submit a map and the populations of each precinct to the state commissioner, postmarked by the dates specified above. ► Precinct boundaries effective on January 15, 2012.

8. Gerrymander ► The word gerrymander was coined by a newspaper editor in reaction to a redrawing of Massachusetts electoral boundaries under the then governor Elbridge Gerry, that included one sprawling supposedly salamander-shaped constituency. ► In 1812, Governor Gerry signed a bill into law that redistricted his state to benefit his Democratic- Republican party. One of the resulting contorted districts was said to resemble a salamander. The term first appeared in the Boston Centinel on March 26, 1812.

9. Redistricting According to the Code of Iowa Counties & Cities

10. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.3 ELECTION PRECINCTS. ► Election precincts shall be drawn by the county board of supervisors or the temporary county redistricting commission in all unincorporated portions of each county, and by the city council of each city in which it is necessary or deemed advisable to establish more than one precinct. Precincts established as provided by this chapter shall be used for all elections, except where temporary merger of established precincts is specifically permitted by law for certain elections, and no political subdivision shall concurrently maintain different sets of precincts for use in different types of elections. Election precincts shall be drawn so that:

11. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.3 ELECTION PRECINCTS. ► 1. No precinct shall have a total population in excess of three thousand five hundred, as shown by the most recent federal decennial census. ► 2. Each precinct is contained wholly within an existing legislative district, except:  a. When adherence to this requirement would force creation of a precinct which includes the places of residence of fewer than fifty registered voters.   b. When the general assembly by resolution designates a period after the federal decennial census is taken and before the next succeeding reapportionment of legislative districts required by Article III, section 35 of the Constitution of the State of Iowa as amended in 1968, during which precincts may be drawn without regard to the boundaries of existing legislative districts.

12. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.3 ELECTION PRECINCTS. ► 3. Except as provided in section 49.4, subsection 3, precincts established after July 1, 1994, shall be composed of contiguous territory within a single county. The boundaries of all precincts shall follow the boundaries of areas for which official population figures are available from the most recent federal decennial census. ► 4. All election districts, including city wards and county supervisor districts, shall be drawn according to the following standards:  a. All boundaries, except for supervisor districts for counties using supervisor representation plan "two" pursuant to section 331.209, shall follow precinct boundaries.

13. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.3 ELECTION PRECINCTS.  b. All districts shall be as nearly equal as practicable to the ideal population for the districts as determined by dividing the number of districts to be established into the population of the city or county.  c. All districts shall be composed of contiguous territory as compact as practicable.  d. Consideration shall not be given to the addresses of incumbent officeholders, political affiliations of registered voters, previous election results, or demographic information other than population head counts, except as required by the Constitution and the laws of the United States.  e. Cities shall not be divided into two or more county supervisor districts unless the population of the city is greater than the ideal size of a district. Cities shall be divided into the smallest number of county supervisor districts possible.

14. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.6 POWER TO COMBINE TOWNSHIP AND CITY PRECINCTS.  Election precincts composed partially of unincorporated territory and partially of all or any part of a city may be established within a single county in any manner which is not contrary to section 49.3. An agreement mutually satisfactory to the board of supervisors or the temporary county redistricting commission and the city council of the city involved shall be adopted and a copy of the agreement shall be submitted to the state commissioner as part of the certification of precinct boundaries required by section 49.7. ► 49.7 REPRECINCTING SCHEDULE AND FILING REQUIREMENTS.  See redistricting timeline provided by the State Legislative Service Bureau.  Changes made to precincts in years other than the year following the year in which the federal decennial census is taken shall be filed with the state commissioner as soon as possible.

15. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.8 CHANGES IN PRECINCTS. ► After any required changes in precinct boundaries have been made following each federal decennial census, at the time established by or pursuant to section 49.7, the county board or city council shall make no further changes in precinct boundaries until after the next federal decennial census, except in the following circumstances:  1. When deemed necessary by the board of supervisors of any county because of a change in the location of the boundaries, dissolution or establishment of any civil township, the boundaries of precincts actually affected may be changed as necessary to conform to the new township boundaries.  2. When territory is annexed to a city the city council may attach all or any part of the annexed territory to any established precinct or precincts which are contiguous to the annexed territory, however this subsection shall not prohibit establishment of one or more new precincts in the annexed territory.

16. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.8 CHANGES IN PRECINCTS. ► 3. A city may have one special federal census taken each decade and the population figures obtained may be used to revise precinct boundaries in accordance with the requirements of sections 49.3 and 49.5. ► 4.  a. When the boundaries of a county supervisor, city council, or school director district are changed by annexation or other means other than reprecincting, the change shall not result in the term of any officer elected from the former district being terminated before or extended beyond the expiration of the term to which the officer was last elected, except as provided under section 275.23A and section 331.209, subsection 1. If more than one incumbent officeholder resides in a district redrawn during reprecincting, their terms of office shall expire after the next election in the political subdivision.  b. When a vacancy occurs in the office of county supervisor, city council, or school director following the effective date of new district boundaries, the vacancy shall be filled using the new boundaries.

17. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.8 CHANGES IN PRECINCTS. 5. When a city is changing its form of government from one which has council members elected at large to one which has council members elected from wards, or is changing its number of council members elected from wards, the city council may redraw the precinct boundaries in accordance with sections 49.3 and 49.5 to coincide with the new ward boundaries. ► 6. Precinct boundaries established by or pursuant to section 49.4, and not changed under subsection 1 since the most recent federal decennial census, may be changed once during the period beginning January 1 of the second year following a year in which a federal decennial census is taken and ending June 30 of the year immediately following the year in which the next succeeding federal decennial census is taken, if the commissioner recommends and the board of supervisors finds that the change will effect a substantial savings in election costs. Changes made under this subsection shall be made not later than ninety-nine days before a primary election, unless the changes will not take effect until January 1 of the next even-numbered year.

18. Code of Iowa – Counties & Cities ► 49.8 CHANGES IN PRECINCTS. 7. Precinct boundaries established by a city council pursuant to section 49.5 or 49.6 and not changed under subsections 1 through 5 since the most recent federal decennial census, may be redrawn by the city council in accordance with sections 49.3 and 49.5 once during the period beginning January 1 of the second year following a year in which a federal decennial census is taken and ending June 30 of the year immediately following the year in which the next succeeding federal decennial census is taken, if the commissioner recommends that the change will effect a substantial savings in election costs. Changes made under this subsection shall be made not later than ninety-nine days before a city primary or runoff election, unless the changes will not take effect until January 1 of the next odd-numbered year. 8. Refers to Indian Settlements ► 49.11 NOTICE OF BOUNDARIES OF PRECINCTS -- MERGER OR DIVISION.

20. Redistricting According to the Code of Iowa Counties

21. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 49.4 PRECINCTS DRAWN BY COUNTY BOARD. ► Where action by the board of supervisors is necessary or deemed advisable by the board of supervisors or the temporary county redistricting commission, the boundaries of precincts shall be definitely fixed by ordinance. A public hearing shall be held before final action is taken to adopt changes in the precinct boundaries. Notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing shall be given as provided in chapter 21. In the absence of contrary action by the board of supervisors or the temporary county redistricting commission, each civil township which does not include any part of a city of over two thousand population, and the portion of each civil township containing any such city which lies outside the corporate limits of that city or those cities, shall constitute an election precinct. If no action is necessary to change the county election precincts, the board of supervisors shall certify the retained boundaries to the state commissioner, as required by section 49.7.  1. Where a civil township, or the portion of a civil township outside the corporate limits of any city of over two thousand population contained therein, is divided into two or more election precincts, the precincts shall be so drawn that their total populations shall be reasonably equal on the basis of data available from the most recent federal decennial census.

22. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 49.4 PRECINCTS DRAWN BY COUNTY BOARD.  2. Counties using alternative supervisor representation plans "two" or "three", as described in section 331.206, shall be apportioned into single- member supervisor districts on the basis of population. In counties using representation plan "three", the boundaries of supervisor districts shall follow the boundaries of election precincts.  3. Refers to Indian Settlesments

23. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 331.206 SUPERVISOR DISTRICTS.  1. One of the following supervisor district representation plans shall be used for the election of supervisors: ► a. Plan "one." Election at large without district residence requirements for the members. ► b. Plan "two." Election at large but with equal-population district residence requirements for the members. ► c. Plan "three." Election from single-member equal-population districts, in which the electors of each district shall elect one member who must reside in that district.

24. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 331.206 SUPERVISOR DISTRICTS.  2. The plan used under subsection 1 shall be selected by the board or by a special election as provided in section 331.207. A plan selected by the board shall remain in effect for at least six years unless it is changed by a special election as provided in section 331.207. A plan selected by the board shall become effective on the first day in January which is not a Sunday or holiday following the next general election, at which time the terms of the members expire and the terms of the members elected under the requirements of the new supervisor representation plan at the general election as specified in section 331.208, 331.209, or 331.210 shall commence.

25. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 331.207 SPECIAL ELECTION -- SUPERVISOR DISTRICTS. ► 331.208 PLAN "ONE" TERMS OF OFFICE. ► 331.209 PLAN "TWO" TERMS OF OFFICE. ► 331.210 PLAN "THREE."

26. Code of Iowa – Counties ► 331.210A TEMPORARY COUNTY REDISTRICTING COMMISSION.  2. ► b. After the temporary county redistricting commission has finished its preliminary proposed county supervisor districting plan and corresponding precinct plan, if applicable, the commission shall at the earliest feasible time make available to the public the following: ► (1) Copies of the legal description of the plans. ► (2) Maps illustrating the plans. ► (3) A summary of the standards prescribed by law for development of the plans. ► (4) A statement of the population of each district included in the plan, and the relative deviation of each district population from the ideal district population. ► (5) A statement of the population of each precinct, if applicable.

28. Redistricting According to the Code of Iowa Cities

29. Code of Iowa – Cities ► 49.5 CITY PRECINCTS.  The council of a city where establishment of more than one precinct is necessary or deemed advisable shall, at the time required by law, divide the city into the number of election precincts as will best serve the convenience of the voters while promoting electoral efficiency. As used in this section, the term "the convenience of the voters" refers to, but is not necessarily limited to, the use of precinct boundaries which can be readily described to and iidentified by voters and for which there is ease of access by voters to their respective precinct polling places by reasonably direct routes of travel. As used in this section, the term "promoting electoral efficiency" means reducing the cost of staffing election precincts by requiring cities to avoid creating more precincts than is reasonably necessary to provide voters access to voting.  The precinct boundaries shall conform to section 49.3 and shall be described in an ordinance adopted by the council within the time required by section 49.7. Before final adoption of any change…….

30. Code of Iowa – Cities ► 372.4 MAYOR-COUNCIL FORM. ► 372.7 COUNCIL-MANAGER-WARD FORM. ► 372.13 THE COUNCIL.  7. By ordinance, the council may divide the city into wards which shall be drawn according to the following standards:  a. All ward boundaries shall follow precinct boundaries.  b. Wards shall be as nearly equal as practicable to the ideal population determined by dividing the number of wards to be established into the population of the city.  c. Wards shall be composed of contiguous territory as compact as practicable.  d. Consideration shall not be given to the addresses of incumbent officeholders, political affiliations of registered voters, previous election results, or demographic information other than population head counts, except as required by the Constitution and the laws of the United States.

31. Redistricting According to the Code of Iowa School Districts

32. Code of Iowa – School Districts ► 275.23A REDISTRICTING FOLLOWING FEDERAL ► DECENNIAL CENSUS.  1. School districts which have directors who represent director districts as provided in section 275.12, subsection 2, paragraphs"b", "c", "d", and "e", shall be divided into director districts according to the following standards: ► a. All director district boundaries shall follow the boundaries of areas for which official population figures are available from the most recent federal decennial census and, wherever possible, shall follow precinct boundaries. ► b. To the extent possible in order to comply with paragraph a", all director districts shall be as nearly equal as practicable to the ideal population for the districts as determined by dividing the number of districts to be established into the population of the school district.

33. Code of Iowa – School Districts ► 275.23A REDISTRICTING FOLLOWING FEDERAL ► DECENNIAL CENSUS.  c. All districts shall be composed of contiguous territory as compact as practicable unless the school district is composed of marginally adjacent territory. A school district which is composed of marginally adjacent territory shall have director districts composed of contiguous territory to the extent practicable.  d. Consideration shall not be given to the addresses of incumbent officeholders, political affiliations of registered voters, previous election results, or demographic information other than population head counts, except as required by the Constitution and the laws of the United States.  e. Cities shall not be divided into two or more districts unless the population of the city is greater than the ideal size of a director district. Cities shall be divided into the smallest number of director districts possible.

34. Code of Iowa – School Districts ► 275.23A REDISTRICTING FOLLOWING FEDERAL ► DECENNIAL CENSUS.  2. Following each federal decennial census the school board shall determine whether the existing director district boundaries meet the standards in subsection 1 according to the most recent federal decennial census. In addition to the authority granted ……  3. The school board shall notify the state commissioner of elections and the county commissioner of elections of each county in which a portion of the school district is located when the boundaries of director districts are changed. The notices of changes submitted to the state commissioner shall be postmarked no later than the deadline for adoption of the resolution under subsection 2. The board shall provide the commissioners with maps showing the new boundaries and shall also certify to the state commissioner the populations of the new director districts as determined under the latest federal decennial census. If, following a federal decennial census a school district elects not to redraw director districts under this section, the school board shall so certify to the state commissioner of elections, and the school board shall also certify to the state commissioner the populations of the retained director districts as determined under the latest federal decennial census.

35. Code of Iowa – School Districts ► 275.23A REDISTRICTING FOLLOWING FEDERAL ► DECENNIAL CENSUS.  4. If more than one incumbent director resides in a redrawn director district, the terms of office of the affected directors expire at the organizational meeting of the board of directors following the next regular school election following the adoption of the redrawn districts.  5. The boundary changes under this section take effect July 1 following their adoption for the next regular school election.

36. Code of Iowa – School Districts ► 275.35 CHANGE IN NUMBER OF DIRECTORS -- CHANGE IN METHOD OF ELECTIONS.  1. A school district may change the number of directors to either five or seven and may also change its method of election of school directors to any method authorized by section 275.12 by submission  2. If the proposal adopted by the voters requires the establishment of or change in director district boundaries, the school board shall draw the necessary boundaries within forty days after the date of the election. The boundaries shall be drawn according to the requirements of section 275.23A. Following adoption by the school board, the plan shall be submitted to the state commissioner of elections for approval. ► 275.57 CHANGING DIRECTOR DISTRICT BOUNDARIES FOLLOWING DISSOLUTION.