To: Board of Supervisors
From: Clerk/Recorder
Agenda Section: Departmental
SUBJECT:
title
2021 Redistricting Process and Changes in Elections Code
end
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors:
1. Receive staff report;
2. Consider changes in Election Code that govern redistricting;
3. Implement a redistricting plan of action to complete the county's redistricting project by December 15, 2021; and
4. Direct staff to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to initiate the process of contracting with a redistricting consultant to ensure the county completes the 2021 redistricting project by the deadline.
Body
SOURCE OF FUNDING:
General Fund.
DISCUSSION:
Supervisorial districts are based on population, and state and federal law requires that district boundaries be adjusted after each federal census to ensure each district has about the same number of people and that districts are reflective and representative of the electorate. (U.S. Const. amend. XIV, Section 2; Elections Code, Section 21500 et seq.) Federal census data is collected in years ending in zero. The 2020 census data collection has been delayed due to numerous obstacles resulting in delayed data delivery to counties. Census data was originally scheduled to be released to the county on April 30, 2021. Delivery of census data has been delayed two additional times and is now expected to be received by the county in late October 2021.
California Elections Code has significantly changed how redistricting must be conducted in 2021. In 2019 and 2020, the California Legislature passed AB 849 (Fair and Inclusive Redistricting for Municipalities and Political Subdivisions (FAIR MAPS) Act of 2019) and AB 1276 consecutively, revising Elections Code, Section 21500 et seq. The legislation established new process parameters for redistricting and included changes affecting timeline and meeting requirements, decision-making authority, and process requirements. Effects are discus...
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