I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1102 
To require States to conduct Congressional redistricting through independent 
commissions, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 16, 2017 
Ms. LOFGREN (for herself, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. 
BROWNLEY of California, Mr. CLAY, Mr. COHEN, Mrs. DAVIS of Cali-
fornia, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. ESHOO, Ms. 
ESTY, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. HOYER, Mr. 
HUFFMAN, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. JOHNSON of 
Georgia, Ms. KAPTUR, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. LEE, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. 
MATSUI, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. O’ROURKE, Ms. PELOSI, Ms. 
PINGREE, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. RYAN of 
Ohio, Mr. SARBANES, Mr. SCHIFF, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Ms. SLAUGHTER, 
Mr. SUOZZI, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. THOMPSON 
of California, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. WELCH, Mr. DELANEY, Mr. YARMUTH, 
Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, 
Mr. RASKIN, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, and Mr. NOLAN) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require States to conduct Congressional redistricting 
through independent commissions, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Redistricting Reform Act of 2017’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Finding of constitutional authority. 
TITLE I—REQUIREMENTS FOR CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING 
Sec. 101. Limit on Congressional redistricting after an apportionment. 
Sec. 102. Requiring Congressional redistricting to be conducted through plan of 
independent State commission. 
TITLE II—INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSIONS 
Sec. 201. Independent redistricting commission. 
Sec. 202. Establishment of selection pool of individuals eligible to serve as 
members of commission. 
Sec. 203. Criteria for redistricting plan by independent commission; public no-
tice and input. 
Sec. 204. Establishment of related entities. 
TITLE III—ROLE OF COURTS IN DEVELOPMENT OF 
REDISTRICTING PLANS 
Sec. 301. Enactment of plan developed by 3-judge court. 
Sec. 302. Special rule for redistricting conducted under order of Federal court. 
TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATIVE AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
Sec. 401. Payments to States for carrying out redistricting. 
Sec. 402. Civil enforcement. 
Sec. 403. State apportionment notice defined. 
Sec. 404. No effect on elections for State and local office. 
Sec. 405. Effective date. 
SEC. 2. FINDING OF CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY. 
Congress finds that it has the authority to establish 
the terms and conditions States must follow in carrying 
out Congressional redistricting after an apportionment of 
Members of the House of Representatives because— 
(1) the authority granted to Congress under ar-
ticle I, section 4 of the Constitution of the United 
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States gives Congress the power to enact laws gov-
erning the time, place, and manner of elections for 
Members of the House of Representatives; and 
(2) the authority granted to Congress under 
section 5 of the fourteenth amendment to the Con-
stitution gives Congress the power to enact laws to 
enforce section 2 of such amendment, which requires 
Representatives to be apportioned among the several 
States according to their number. 
TITLE 
I—REQUIREMENTS 
FOR 
CONGRESSIONAL 
REDIS-
TRICTING 
SEC. 101. LIMIT ON CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING 
AFTER AN APPORTIONMENT. 
The Act entitled ‘‘An Act for the relief of Doctor Ri-
cardo Vallejo Samala and to provide for congressional re-
districting’’, approved December 14, 1967 (2 U.S.C. 2c), 
is amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A State 
which has been redistricted in the manner provided by law 
after an apportionment under section 22(a) of the Act en-
titled ‘An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent 
decennial censuses and to provide for an apportionment 
of Representatives in Congress’, approved June 18, 1929 
(2 U.S.C. 2a), may not be redistricted again until after 
the next apportionment of Representatives under such sec-
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tion, unless a court requires the State to conduct such 
subsequent redistricting to comply with the Constitution 
or to enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 
10301 et seq.).’’. 
SEC. 102. REQUIRING CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING TO 
BE CONDUCTED THROUGH PLAN OF INDE-
PENDENT STATE COMMISSION. 
(a) USE OF PLAN REQUIRED.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, any Congressional redistricting 
conducted by a State shall be conducted in accordance 
with— 
(1) the redistricting plan developed and enacted 
into law by the independent redistricting commission 
established in the State, in accordance with title II; 
or 
(2) if a plan developed by such commission is 
not enacted into law, the redistricting plan developed 
and enacted into law by a 3-judge court of the 
United States District Court for the District of Co-
lumbia, in accordance with section 301. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 22(c) of 
the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fifteenth and 
subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for an ap-
portionment of Representatives in Congress’’, approved 
June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a(c)), is amended by striking 
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‘‘in the manner provided by the law thereof’’ and insert-
ing: ‘‘in the manner provided by the Redistricting Reform 
Act of 2017’’. 
TITLE II—INDEPENDENT 
REDISTRICTING COMMISSIONS 
SEC. 201. INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION. 
(a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The nonpartisan agency es-
tablished or designated by a State under section 
204(a) shall establish an independent redistricting 
commission for the State, which shall consist of 12 
members appointed by the agency as follows: 
(A) The agency shall appoint 4 members 
on a random basis from the majority category 
of the approved selection pool (as described in 
section 202(b)(1)(A)). 
(B) The agency shall appoint 4 members 
on a random basis from the minority category 
of the approved selection pool (as described in 
section 202(b)(1)(B)). 
(C) The agency shall appoint 4 members 
on a random basis from the independent cat-
egory of the approved selection pool (as de-
scribed in section 202(b)(1)(C)). 
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(2) APPOINTMENT OF ALTERNATES TO SERVE 
IN CASE OF VACANCIES.—At the time the agency ap-
points the members of the independent redistricting 
commission under paragraph (1) from each of the 
categories referred to in such paragraph, the agency 
shall, on a random basis, designate 2 other individ-
uals from such category to serve as alternate mem-
bers who may be appointed to fill vacancies in the 
commission in accordance with paragraph (3). 
(3) VACANCY.—If a vacancy occurs in the com-
mission with respect to a member who was ap-
pointed from one of the categories referred to in 
paragraph (1), the nonpartisan agency shall fill the 
vacancy by appointing, on a random basis, one of 
the 2 alternates from such category who was des-
ignated under paragraph (2). At the time the agency 
appoints an alternate to fill a vacancy under the pre-
vious sentence, the agency shall designate, on a ran-
dom basis, another individual from the same cat-
egory to serve as an alternate member, in accord-
ance with paragraph (2). 
(b) PROCEDURES
FOR CONDUCTING COMMISSION 
BUSINESS.— 
(1) CHAIR.—Members of an independent redis-
tricting commission established under this section 
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shall select by majority vote one member who was 
appointed from the independent category of the ap-
proved 
selection 
pool 
described 
in 
section 
202(b)(1)(C) to serve as chair of the commission. 
The commission may not take any action to develop 
a redistricting plan for the State under section 203 
until the appointment of the commission’s chair. 
(2) REQUIRING MAJORITY APPROVAL FOR AC-
TIONS.—The independent redistricting commission 
of a State may not publish and disseminate any 
draft or final redistricting plan, or take any other 
action, without the approval of at least— 
(A) a majority of the whole membership of 
the commission; and 
(B) at least one member of the commission 
appointed from each of the categories of the ap-
proved selection pool described in section 
202(b)(1). 
(3) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 
the commission shall constitute a quorum. 
(c) STAFF; CONTRACTORS.— 
(1) 
STAFF.—The 
independent 
redistricting 
commission of a State may appoint and set the pay 
of such staff as it considers appropriate, subject to 
State law. 
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(2) CONTRACTORS.—The independent redis-
tricting commission of a State may enter into such 
contracts with vendors as it considers appropriate, 
subject to State law, except that any such contract 
shall be valid only if approved by the vote of a ma-
jority of the members of the commission, including 
at least one member appointed from each of the cat-
egories of the approved selection pool described in 
section 202(b)(1). 
(3) GOAL OF IMPARTIALITY.—The commission 
shall take such steps as it considers appropriate to 
ensure that any staff appointed under this sub-
section, and any vendor with whom the commission 
enters into a contract under this subsection, will 
work in an impartial manner, and may require any 
person who applies for an appointment to a staff po-
sition or for a vendor’s contract with the commission 
to provide information on the person’s history of po-
litical activity (including donations to candidates, po-
litical committees, and political parties) as a condi-
tion of the appointment or the contract. 
(d) TERMINATION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The independent redis-
tricting commission of a State shall terminate on the 
earlier of— 
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(A) June 14 of the following year ending 
in the numeral zero; or 
(B) the day on which the nonpartisan 
agency established or designated by a State 
under section 204(a) has, in accordance with 
section 202(b)(1), submitted a selection pool to 
the Select Committee on Redistricting for the 
State established under section 204(b). 
(2) PRESERVATION
OF
RECORDS.—The State 
shall ensure that the records of the independent re-
districting commission are retained in the appro-
priate State archive in such manner as may be nec-
essary to enable the State to respond to any civil ac-
tion brought with respect to Congressional redis-
tricting in the State. 
SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT OF SELECTION POOL OF INDI-
VIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO SERVE AS MEMBERS 
OF COMMISSION. 
(a) CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual is eligible to 
serve as a member of an independent redistricting 
commission if the individual meets each of the fol-
lowing criteria: 
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(A) As of the date of appointment, the in-
dividual is registered to vote in elections for 
Federal office held in the State. 
(B) During the 3-year period ending on 
the date of the individual’s appointment, the in-
dividual has been continuously registered to 
vote with the same political party, or has not 
been registered to vote with any political party. 
(C) The individual submits to the non-
partisan agency established or designated by a 
State under section 203, at such time and in 
such form as the agency may require, an appli-
cation for inclusion in the selection pool under 
this section, and includes with the application a 
written statement containing the following in-
formation and assurances: 
(i) A statement of the political party 
with which the individual is affiliated, if 
any. 
(ii) An assurance that the individual 
shall commit to carrying out the individ-
ual’s duties under this Act in an honest, 
independent, and impartial fashion, and to 
upholding public confidence in the integrity 
of the redistricting process. 
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(iii) An assurance that, during the 
covered periods described in paragraph (3), 
the individual has not taken and will not 
take any action which would disqualify the 
individual from serving as a member of the 
commission under paragraph (2). 
(2) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—An individual is not 
eligible to serve as a member of the commission if 
any of the following applies during any of the cov-
ered periods described in paragraph (3): 
(A) The individual or (in the case of the 
covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 
and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 
member of the individual holds public office or 
is a candidate for election for public office. 
(B) The individual or (in the case of the 
covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 
and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 
member of the individual serves as an officer of 
a political party or as an officer, employee, or 
paid consultant of a campaign committee of a 
candidate for public office. 
(C) The individual or (in the case of the 
covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 
and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 
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member of the individual holds a position as a 
registered lobbyist under the Lobbying Disclo-
sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) or an 
equivalent State or local law. 
(D) The individual or (in the case of the 
covered periods described in subparagraphs (A) 
and (B) of paragraph (3)) an immediate family 
member of the individual is an employee of an 
elected public official, a contractor with the leg-
islature of the State, or a donor to the cam-
paign of any candidate for public office (other 
than a donor who, during any of such covered 
periods, gives an aggregate amount of $20,000 
or less to the campaigns of all candidates for all 
public offices). 
(3) COVERED
PERIODS
DESCRIBED.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘‘covered period’’ means, with 
respect to the appointment of an individual to the 
commission, any of the following: 
(A) The 5-year period ending on the date 
of the individual’s appointment. 
(B) The period beginning on the date of 
the individual’s appointment and ending on Au-
gust 14 of the next year ending in the numeral 
one. 
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