Small Town News

State Senate approves open redistricting

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Resolution calls for public participation

The state Senate unanimously passed a resolution calling for an open redistricting process. Senate Resolution 9 was introduced March 23. Senators voted 20-0 to pass the legislation just before 5 p.m. the same day.

Effective immediately in the Senate, SR 9, sponsored by Sen. Michael'Katz, D-Centerville, calls for open meetings during the redistricting process and opportunities for public participation. "I think it's the right thing to do," Katz said.

According to the resolution, the redrawing of Senate districts must be discussed and explained in a public forum. The public will be notified of the forum at least eight days in advance; the Senate must provide information about where the public can obtain census information and the computer program being used to reapportion the state.

Following the 2010 U.S. Census, all local, state and federal electoral districts must be remapped to account for changes in population. All districts are required to have about the same number of residents. The party that holds the majority in the House and Senate, the Democrats, will control how district lines are redrawn.

Frank Sims, who serves on the board of directors for Civic League of New Castle County, wrote the original proposal for open redistricting. Sims emailed the proposal to legislators Jan. 1, in hopes of finding a sponsor.

Sims said legislators on both sides of the aisle pledged sup-port, but no one volunteered to sponsor it until Katz, who agreed just days before introducing the resolution in the Senate. "If it wasn't for Katz, nothing would've happened," Sims said.

Katz said he had already been working on legislation to open the redistricting process when he was approached with Sims' resolution. "I was happy to take care of it," Katz said.

Sims, former chairman of Delaware's Independent Party, filed a 2002 lawsuit against the Legislature in Superior Court, when the General Assembly failed to redraw district lines. Ultimately, electoral lines had to be redrawn, but Sims said it was done behind closed doors.

Sims said a bill to create an in-dependent redistricting commission, sponsored by Sen. Patricia Blevins, D-Elsmere, was not likely to move forward because Blevins intended to halt the bill. Sen. Karen Peterson, D-Stanton, was the bill's original sponsor. Sims said she gave sponsorship to Blevins because Peterson had other legislation to concentrate on. Sims said Senate Majority Leader Blevins was purposely not moving the bill forward. "We had to do something to make it more visible," Sims said.

Katz said it was important to expedite the message of open re-districting to public. "The issue's been percolating, but up to this point, there's been no action," Katz said.

In an email, Blevins said no one else has ever introduced a bill to create an independent commission to reapportion the state. "This bill came out of a conversation with John Flaherty, who was then with Common Cause," Blevins wrote. Common Cause is a watchdog group founded to promote open government.

Blevins said she has attempted to introduce the bill, but it was never put on the agenda. "Finally, I spoke to the Senate Democratic Caucus last year and asked them if they would agree to let a bill creating a redistricting commission come to the floor if I agreed to wait until the current redistricting was finished," Blevins wrote. She said she plans to reintroduce the bill next session.

Professor Joseph Pika, who specializes in Delaware politics at University of Delaware, said in an email, though it cannot create a law, a resolution still has binding provisions. "Therefore, if provisions are made for opening up the process, you can expect real change to occur," Pika wrote.

According to Delaware code, the General Assembly has until June 30, to approve a plan to reapportion and redistrict the state in time for the 2012 general election. According to the latest census figures for Delaware, released March 2, the population in Sussex County has grown by 26 percent, or 40,500 people in the last 10 years. The increase could mean more local representation in Dover in 2012.





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