IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1365 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that an independent 

commission is the best vehicle for ensuring that Congressional redistricting conducted by a State is done in a manner that respects the 

principles of transparency, effective and diverse public participation, and 

accountability. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 22, 2008 

Mr. TANNER (for himself and Mr. WAMP) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

an independent commission is the best vehicle for ensuring that Congressional redistricting conducted by a State 

is done in a manner that respects the principles of transparency, effective and diverse public participation, and 

accountability. 

Whereas the House of Representatives was designed by the 

framers of the Constitution as the only institution of the 

Federal Government whose members are directly elected 

by the people, and the House should represent the true 

will of the public; 

Whereas under article I, section 4 of the Constitution, Congress has the power to enact laws governing the time, 


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•HRES 1365 IH 

place, and manner of elections for Members of the House 

of Representatives; 

Whereas article I, section 4 also conveys to Congress the authority to make or alter regulations with respect to the 

manner that States must follow in carrying out congressional redistricting after an apportionment of Members of 

the House of Representatives; 

Whereas redistricting is conducted in each State by either the 

State legislature or a commission, and normally occurs 

every 10 years following the regular Census; 

Whereas in the early 1960s, when many State legislative and 

congressional districts were grossly mal-apportioned, the 

Supreme Court imposed a standard of ‘‘one person, one 

vote’’ on nearly all districting, requiring that equal or 

nearly equal numbers of people receive equal numbers of 

representatives; 

Whereas gerrymandering is used both by partisans seeking to 

gain additional seats and by incumbents of all parties 

seeking to shore up their districts and minimize the risk 

of electoral defeat, and has several adverse effects on the 

democratic process, including a decline in the number of 

competitive seats throughout the nation, reducing accountability and threatening to further the ideological polarization of our elected officials by enabling the election 

of partisans who need not appeal to moderate voters, as 

well as a reduction in voter interest and turnout in noncompetitive districts; 

Whereas technical advancement has allowed for the precise 

drawing of Congressional districts for the purpose of partisan advantage or incumbent retention; 


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Whereas it is important to reduce the partisan pressures than 

are inherent in the redistricting process when conducted 

by State legislatures; 

Whereas transparency and public participation are crucial 

components in an accountable redistricting process; 

Whereas numerous good government organizations and advocates have recommended the use of independent commissions for the redistricting process to draw fair and competitive Congressional districts, which would decrease 

partisanship and increase accountability; 

Whereas 12 States presently conduct their redistricting efforts by some form of independent commission; 

Whereas conducting redistricting once each decade, following 

the census, with a strict time line for completion and appropriate flexibility to accommodate the occasional need 

for technical corrections due to late-discovered data errors or other rare exogenous events, encourages stability 

in the political system and the accountability of representatives to constituencies established for a 10-year 

period, while multiple or mid-cycle redistricting worsens 

the retributive aspects of politics and carries the potential 

for increased partisan bias; 

Whereas almost half of the states already have some provision in law to limit redistricting to once after each census; 

Whereas under the ‘‘one person, one vote’’ requirement of the 

United States Constitution, any jurisdiction electing district-based representatives effectively must redistrict after 

each decennial census; 

Whereas the legitimacy of democratic institutions rests largely on transparency and participation, and mistrust of inVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:33 Jul 23, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR1365.IH HR1365

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stitutions and government structures can taint subsequent political outcomes; 

Whereas limiting redistricting to once immediately after each 

decennial census limits any possibility of partisan opportunism after the post-census redistricting unless a court 

finds that the post-census plan is itself invalid, and ensures the stability of the electoral process and the democratic process; 

Whereas limiting redistricting to once after every decennial 

census thus makes sense especially when partisan gain is 

a threat, and could help constrain partisan opportunism 

in cases where political actors redistrict; and 

Whereas the use of an independent commission would vest 

power in a body composed of qualified individuals competent to apply the preferred redistricting standards objectively and would be particularly well-suited to follow 

the procedural principles of transparency, effective, and 

diverse public participation and accountability: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) an independent redistricting commission is 

4 the best vehicle for ensuring that Congressional re5 districting conducted by a State is done in a manner 

6 that respects the principles of transparency, effective 

7 and diverse public participation, and accountability, 

8 so long as the redistricting is conducted in accord9 ance with a plan developed by such a commission 

10 using criteria and procedures that will discourage 


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1 gerrymandering and promote competition, to the ex2 tent that such criteria and procedures are consistent 

3 with the applicable requirements of the Constitution 

4 of the United States and the Voting Rights Act of 

5 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.); and 

6 (2) a State should not be redistricted until after 

7 the next apportionment of Representatives, unless a 

8 court requires the State to conduct such subsequent 

9 redistricting to comply with the Constitution or to 

10 enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 

11 1973 et seq.). 

Æ 


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