SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Fair Representation Act’’. 
(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—RANKED CHOICE VOTING 
Sec. 101. Requiring ranked choice voting for election of Senators and Rep-
resentatives. 
‘‘Subtitle C—Ranked Choice Voting 
‘‘PART 1—REQUIRING RANKED CHOICE VOTING FOR ELECTION OF 
SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES 
‘‘Sec. 321. Requiring ranked choice voting for election of Senators and 
Representatives. 
‘‘Sec. 322. Application to District of Columbia and territories. 
‘‘Sec. 323. Treatment of States not holding primary elections prior to date 
of general election. 
‘‘PART 2—TABULATION PROCESS 
‘‘Sec. 331. Tabulation for single-seat congressional elections. 
‘‘Sec. 332. Tabulation for multi-seat congressional elections. 
‘‘Sec. 333. Exclusion of inactive ballots. 
‘‘Sec. 334. Batch elimination. 
‘‘Sec. 335. Treatment of ties between candidates. 
‘‘Sec. 336. Continuing candidate defined. 
‘‘PART 3—PAYMENTS TO STATES TO IMPLEMENT RANKED CHOICE VOTING 
‘‘Sec. 341. Payments to States to implement ranked choice voting. 
Sec. 102. Applicability of enforcement provisions of Help America Vote Act of 
2002. 
Sec. 103. Effective date. 
TITLE II—MULTI-MEMBER DISTRICTS 
Sec. 201. Requiring use of multi-member districts in certain States. 
Sec. 202. Requiring certain States to elect all Representatives at large. 
Sec. 203. Establishing minimum number of candidates in general election. 
Sec. 204. Conforming amendments. 
Sec. 205. Exception for States in which use of multi-member districts will re-
sult in diminishment of voting rights. 
Sec. 206. Effective date. 
TITLE III—REQUIREMENTS FOR CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING 
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Subtitle A—General Requirements 
Sec. 301. Requiring congressional redistricting to be conducted through plan of 
independent State commission. 
Sec. 302. Limit on congressional redistricting after an apportionment. 
Subtitle B—Independent Redistricting Commissions 
Sec. 311. Independent redistricting commission. 
Sec. 312. Establishment of selection pool of individuals eligible to serve as 
members of commission. 
Sec. 313. Criteria for redistricting plan by independent commission; public no-
tice and input. 
Sec. 314. Establishment of related entities. 
Sec. 315. Report on diversity of memberships of independent redistricting com-
missions. 
Subtitle C—Role of Courts in Development of Redistricting Plans 
Sec. 321. Enactment of plan developed by 3-judge court. 
Sec. 322. Special rule for redistricting conducted under order of Federal court. 
Subtitle D—Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions 
Sec. 331. Payments to States for carrying out redistricting. 
Sec. 332. Civil enforcement. 
Sec. 333. State apportionment notice defined. 
Sec. 334. Special rules for redistricting pursuant to 2020 decennial census. 
TITLE IV—GENERAL PROVISIONS 
Sec. 401. No effect on elections for State and local office. 
Sec. 402. Severability. 
Sec. 403. 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 and in admin-
istering elections for the Senate and House of Representa-
tives because— 
(1) the authority granted to Congress under ar-
ticle I, section 4 of the Constitution of the United 
States gives Congress the power to enact laws gov-
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erning the time, place, and manner of elections for 
Senators and Members of the House of Representa-
tives; and 
(2) the authority granted to Congress under 
section 5 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitu-
tion gives Congress the power to enact laws to en-
force section 2 of such amendment, which requires 
Representatives to be apportioned among the several 
States according to their number. 
TITLE I—RANKED CHOICE 
VOTING 
SEC. 101. REQUIRING RANKED CHOICE VOTING FOR ELEC-
TION OF SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 
Vote Act of 2001 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subtitle: 
‘‘Subtitle C—Ranked Choice Voting 
‘‘PART 1—REQUIRING RANKED CHOICE VOTING 
FOR ELECTION OF SENATORS AND REP-
RESENTATIVES 
‘‘SEC. 321. REQUIRING RANKED CHOICE VOTING FOR ELEC-
TION OF SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES. 
‘‘(a) RANKED CHOICE VOTING.—Each State shall 
carry out elections for the office of Senator and the office 
of Representative in Congress using a system of ranked 
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choice voting under which each voter shall rank the can-
didates for the office in the order of the voter’s preference, 
in accordance with the following: 
‘‘(1) In any single-seat election and any election 
for the office of Senator, the State shall carry out 
the election using single-seat ranked choice voting as 
described in section 331. 
‘‘(2) In any multi-seat election, the State shall 
carry out the election using multi-seat ranked choice 
voting as described in section 332. 
‘‘(b) BALLOT DESIGN.—Each State shall ensure that 
the ballot used in an election carried out using a system 
of ranked choice voting under this title meets each of the 
following requirements: 
‘‘(1) The ballot shall be simple and easy to un-
derstand. 
‘‘(2) The ballot shall include all qualified can-
didates for the election and (to the extent permitted 
under State law) options for voters to select write- 
in candidates. If feasible, the ballot shall permit vot-
ers to rank every candidate in the election. If it is 
not feasible for the ballot to permit voters to rank 
every candidate, the State may limit the number of 
candidates who may be ranked on the ballot to not 
fewer than six. 
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‘‘(3) The ballot shall include such instructions 
as the State considers necessary to enable the voter 
to rank candidates and successfully cast the ballot 
under the system. 
‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—In this title— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘single-seat election’ means any 
primary election in which exactly one candidate in 
the primary election will advance to the general elec-
tion, any special election for exactly one seat, any 
general election for the office of Senator, and any 
general election in which only one Representative is 
elected at large; and 
‘‘(2) the term ‘multi-seat election’ means any 
primary election in which more than one candidate 
in the primary election will advance to the general 
election, any special election for more than one seat, 
and any general election in which more than one 
Representative is elected at large or in a multi-mem-
ber district. 
‘‘SEC. 322. APPLICATION TO DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND 
TERRITORIES. 
‘‘(a) ELECTION OF DELEGATES AND RESIDENT COM-
MISSIONER.—In this subtitle, the term ‘Representative’ in-
cludes a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the Con-
gress. 
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‘‘(b) APPLICATION
TO NORTHERN MARIANA IS-
LANDS.—This subtitle shall apply with respect to the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in the 
same manner as this subtitle applies to a State. 
‘‘SEC. 323. TREATMENT OF STATES NOT HOLDING PRIMARY 
ELECTIONS PRIOR TO DATE OF GENERAL 
ELECTION. 
‘‘Nothing in this title shall be construed to require 
a State to hold a primary election for the office of Senator 
or Representative in Congress prior to the date established 
under section 25 of the Revised Statutes of the United 
States (2 U.S.C. 7) for the regularly scheduled general 
election for such office, so long as the determination of 
the candidates who are elected to such office is based sole-
ly on the votes cast with respect to the election held on 
such date, as determined in accordance with the system 
of ranked choice voting under this title. 
‘‘PART 2—TABULATION PROCESS 
‘‘SEC. 
331. 
TABULATION 
FOR 
SINGLE-SEAT 
CONGRES-
SIONAL ELECTIONS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(1) DETERMINATION OF CANDIDATE’S NUM-
BER OF VOTES.—In the case of a single-seat elec-
tion, the number of votes received by a candidate in 
either the initial tabulation or in an additional round 
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‘‘(1) VOTES COUNTED IN ROUNDS.—In the case 
of a multi-seat election, the votes shall be counted in 
a series of rounds of tabulation until the number of 
winning candidates equals the required number of 
winning candidates with respect to the election, as 
described in paragraph (4). 
‘‘(2) CRITERIA FOR ELECTION.—In the case of 
a multi-seat election, a candidate shall be considered 
a winning candidate and shall be elected to one of 
the offices of Representative in the congressional 
district (or, in the case of a primary election, shall 
advance to the general election for such offices as 
provided under the law of State involved) if— 
‘‘(A) in any round, the candidate has a 
vote total that exceeds the multi-seat election 
threshold, as determined under this section; or 
‘‘(B) the candidate is a continuing can-
didate and the number of remaining continuing 
candidates plus the number of candidates al-
ready designated as winning candidates is equal 
to or less than the required number of winning 
candidates with respect to the election. 
‘‘(3) DETERMINATION
OF
MULTI-SEAT
ELEC-
TION THRESHOLD.—The multi-seat election thresh-
old with respect to an election shall be equal to the 
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total number of valid votes cast in the election di-
vided by the sum of the number one and the re-
quired number of winning candidates with respect to 
the election, rounded up to four decimal places. 
‘‘(4) TABULATION PROCESS.—In the case of a 
multi-seat election, the votes shall be counted in a 
series of rounds, beginning with the initial round, 
under which each candidate has a number of votes 
equal to the number of votes cast in the election in 
which the candidate was the highest-ranked can-
didate, and proceeding as follows: 
‘‘(A) If, following any round of counting, 
the number of winning and continuing can-
didates combined is greater than the required 
number of winning candidates with respect to 
the election, and at least one candidate has a 
vote total that exceeds the multi-seat election 
threshold, as determined under this section, 
then the following round shall be a surplus tab-
ulation round. 
‘‘(B) If, following any round of counting, 
the number of winning and continuing can-
didates combined is greater than the required 
number of winning candidates with respect to 
the election, and no candidate has a vote total 
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that exceeds the multi-seat election threshold, 
as determined under this section, then the fol-
lowing round shall be a candidate elimination 
round. 
‘‘(C) If, following any round of counting, 
the number of winning and continuing can-
didates combined is equal to or less than the re-
quired number of winning candidates with re-
spect to the election, then the remaining con-
tinuing candidates shall be designated as win-
ning candidates, and the tabulation is complete. 
‘‘(5) TABULATION ROUNDS DESCRIBED.— 
‘‘(A) SURPLUS
TABULATION
ROUND.—In 
this section, a ‘surplus tabulation round’ is a 
tabulation round under which each candidate 
with a vote total greater than the multi-seat 
election threshold is designated as a winning 
candidate and the surplus votes for such can-
didate are transferred to other candidates, as 
described in subsection (b)(2). 
‘‘(B) CANDIDATE ELIMINATION ROUND.— 
In this section, a ‘candidate elimination round’ 
is a tabulation round under which the candidate 
with the fewest votes is designated as defeated 
and votes for that candidate are transferred to 
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other candidates, as described in subsection 
(b)(3). 
‘‘(b) PROCESS FOR TRANSFERRING VOTES.— 
‘‘(1) SURPLUS
TABULATION
ROUNDS.—In a 
surplus tabulation round, each candidate with a vote 
total that exceeds the multi-seat election threshold 
shall be designated as a winning candidate, and the 
election official shall transfer the surplus votes for 
each such candidate to other candidates as follows: 
‘‘(A) The official shall determine the sur-
plus fraction for each candidate designated as a 
winning candidate at the beginning of the 
round by taking the difference between the can-
didate’s vote total at the beginning of the round 
and the multi-seat election threshold, and divid-
ing that difference by the candidate’s vote total 
at the beginning of the round. 
‘‘(B) The official shall reweight each vote 
counting for each candidate designated as a 
winning candidate at the beginning of the 
round by multiplying the vote’s current weight 
(equal to one if the vote has not been re-
weighted in any prior surplus tabulation round) 
by the surplus fraction determined with respect 
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to the candidate under subparagraph (A), 
rounding down to four decimal places. 
‘‘(C) The official shall transfer each vote 
counting for each candidate designated as a 
winning candidate at the beginning of the 
round to the highest ranked continuing can-
didate on the ballot on which the vote was cast, 
counting the vote as a fraction of a vote equal 
to its new weight as determined under subpara-
graph (B). 
‘‘(D) For all subsequent surplus tabulation 
rounds, the official shall set the vote total of 
each candidate designated as a winning can-
didate at the beginning of the round to be equal 
to the multi-seat election threshold. 
‘‘(2) CANDIDATE ELIMINATION ROUNDS.—In a 
candidate elimination round, the candidate with the 
fewest votes (or, in the case of a State which applies 
batch elimination under section 334, each candidate 
in the batch elimination group) shall be designated 
as defeated, and the election official shall transfer 
the votes for such candidate to other candidates as 
follows: 
‘‘(A) The official shall transfer each vote 
counting for the candidate designated as de-
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feated at the beginning of the round to the 
highest ranked continuing candidate on the bal-
lot on which the vote was cast, except that if 
the vote was counted as a fraction of a vote due 
to being reweighted in a prior surplus transfer 
round, it shall continue to count as the same 
fraction of a vote in the subsequent candidate 
elimination round. 
‘‘(B) For all subsequent candidate elimi-
nation rounds, the official shall set the vote 
total of each candidate designated as defeated 
at the beginning of the round to zero votes. 
‘‘SEC. 333. EXCLUSION OF INACTIVE BALLOTS. 
‘‘(a) INITIAL TABULATION.—In the initial tabulation 
of ballots under section 331 or the initial round of tabula-
tion under section 332, if a vote is cast on an inactive 
ballot, no vote on the ballot shall be counted for any can-
didate. 
‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL ROUNDS OF TABULATION.— 
‘‘(1) SINGLE-SEAT ELECTIONS.—In any addi-
tional round of tabulation conducted with respect to 
a single-seat election under section 331(b), if a vote 
cast for a defeated candidate is cast on an inactive 
ballot, no vote on the ballot may be transferred to 
a continuing candidate under section 331(b). 
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‘‘(2) MULTI-SEAT
ELECTIONS.—In any addi-
tional round of tabulation conducted with respect to 
a multi-seat election under section 332(b)— 
‘‘(A) if a vote cast for the winning can-
didate is cast on an inactive ballot, no portion 
of the surplus vote on such ballot may be trans-
ferred to a continuing candidate under any sur-
plus vote tabulation round described in para-
graph (2) of section 332(b); and 
‘‘(B) if a vote cast for a defeated candidate 
is cast on an inactive ballot, the vote may not 
be transferred to any continuing candidate 
under any candidate elimination round de-
scribed in paragraph (3) of section 332(b). 
‘‘(c) INACTIVE BALLOT DEFINED.—In this sub-
section, the term ‘inactive ballot’ means— 
‘‘(1) a ballot on which the voter does not rank 
any of the continuing candidates in order of pref-
erence; 
‘‘(2) a ballot on which the voter ranked more 
than one continuing candidate at the highest order 
of preference; or 
‘‘(3) a ballot on which the voter skips two or 
more consecutive numerical rankings prior to the 
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ranking for the continuing candidate at the highest 
order of preference. 
‘‘SEC. 334. BATCH ELIMINATION. 
‘‘At the option of the State, with respect to any can-
didate elimination round carried out under this subsection, 
a State may use batch elimination to treat multiple can-
didates as defeated candidates for purposes of section 
331(b)(2) and section 332(b)(2). A continuing candidate 
is in the elimination batch if the number of winning and 
continuing candidates with more votes than that candidate 
is greater than the number of winning candidates required 
with respect to the election, and it is mathematically im-
possible for that candidate to be a winning candidate in 
the election for any of the following reasons: 
‘‘(1) The candidate’s vote total in the initial 
tabulation of ballots plus all of the votes that could 
possibly be transferred to the candidate in the addi-
tional rounds of tabulation would not be enough to 
equal or surpass the continuing candidate with the 
next highest vote total in the initial tabulation of 
ballots. 
‘‘(2) The candidate has a lower current vote 
total than a continuing candidate who is described 
by paragraph (1). 
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‘‘SEC. 335. TREATMENT OF TIES BETWEEN CANDIDATES. 
‘‘If a tie occurs between candidates with the greatest 
number of votes or the fewest number of votes at any point 
in the tabulation of ballots under this part and the tabula-
tion cannot proceed until the tie is resolved, the tie shall 
be resolved in accordance with State law. 
‘‘SEC. 336. CONTINUING CANDIDATE DEFINED. 
‘‘In this part, the term ‘continuing candidate’ means, 
with respect to any round of tabulation under this part, 
a candidate who is neither a winning candidate nor a can-
didate who is treated as a defeated candidate under such 
subsection during the tabulation of ballots under that 
round of tabulation. 
‘‘PART 3—PAYMENTS TO STATES TO IMPLEMENT 
RANKED CHOICE VOTING 
‘‘SEC. 341. PAYMENTS TO STATES TO IMPLEMENT RANKED 
CHOICE VOTING. 
‘‘(a) PAYMENTS.—Not later than June 1, 2021, the 
Commission shall make a payment to the State in an 
amount equal to— 
‘‘(1) in the case of the District of Columbia, the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, 
Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, and the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
$1,500,000; or 
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‘‘(2) in the case of any other State, the sum of 
$1,000,000 and the product of— 
‘‘(A) the number of Representatives to 
which the State is entitled under the reappor-
tionment of Representatives resulting from the 
regular decennial census conducted during 
2020; and 
‘‘(B) $500,000. 
‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A State shall use the payment 
made under subsection (a) to implement ranked choice 
voting under this subtitle, including educating voters 
about ranked choice voting, and to otherwise carry out 
elections for Federal office in the State. 
‘‘(c) NO EFFECT ON REQUIREMENTS PAYMENTS.— 
The receipt or use of the payment made under this section 
shall not affect a State’s eligibility for or use of a require-
ments payment made under part 1 of subtitle D of title 
II. 
‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for payments under this section.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
of such Act is amended by adding at the end of the item 
relating to title III the following: 
‘‘Subtitle C—Ranked Choice Voting 
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‘‘PART 1—REQUIRING RANKED CHOICE VOTING FOR ELECTION OF 
SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES 
‘‘Sec. 321. Requiring ranked choice voting for election of Senators and 
Representatives. 
‘‘Sec. 322. Application to District of Columbia and territories. 
‘‘Sec. 323. Treatment of States not holding primary elections prior to date 
of general election. 
‘‘PART 2—TABULATION PROCESS 
‘‘Sec. 331. Tabulation for single-seat congressional elections. 
‘‘Sec. 332. Tabulation for multi-seat congressional elections. 
‘‘Sec. 333. Exclusion of inactive ballots. 
‘‘Sec. 334. Batch elimination. 
‘‘Sec. 335. Treatment of ties between candidates. 
‘‘Sec. 336. Continuing candidate defined. 
‘‘PART 3—PAYMENTS TO STATES TO IMPLEMENT RANKED CHOICE VOTING 
‘‘Sec. 341. Payments to States to implement ranked choice voting. 
SEC. 102. APPLICABILITY OF ENFORCEMENT PROVISIONS 
OF HELP AMERICA VOTE ACT OF 2002. 
Section 401 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 
(52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking ‘‘sections 301, 
302, and 303’’ and inserting ‘‘title III’’. 
SEC. 103. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This title and the amendments made by this title 
shall apply with respect to— 
(1) elections for the office of Senator which are 
held during 2022 or any succeeding year; and 
(2) elections for the office of Representative 
which are held pursuant to the reapportionment of 
Representatives resulting from the regular decennial 
census conducted during 2020 and all subsequent 
elections. 
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TITLE II—MULTI-MEMBER 
DISTRICTS 
SEC. 201. REQUIRING USE OF MULTI-MEMBER DISTRICTS 
IN CERTAIN STATES. 
(a) RULES FOR STATES WITH SIX OR MORE REP-
RESENTATIVES.—If a State is entitled to six or more Rep-
resentatives in Congress under an apportionment made 
under section 22(a) of the Act entitled ‘‘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(a)), the 
State shall establish a number of districts for the election 
of Representatives in the State that is less than the num-
ber of Representatives to which the State is entitled, and 
Representatives shall be elected only from districts so es-
tablished. 
(b) CRITERIA FOR NUMBER OF DISTRICTS.—In es-
tablishing the number of districts for the State under sub-
section (a), the State shall follow the following criteria: 
(1) The State shall ensure that districts shall 
each have equal population per Representative as 
nearly as practicable, in accordance with the Con-
stitution of the United States. 
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(2) The number of Representatives to be elected 
from any district may not be fewer than three or 
greater than five. 
SEC. 202. REQUIRING CERTAIN STATES TO ELECT ALL REP-
RESENTATIVES AT LARGE. 
If a State is entitled to five or fewer Representatives 
in Congress under an apportionment made under section 
22(a) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fif-
teenth and subsequent decennial censuses and to provide 
for an apportionment of Representatives in Congress’’, ap-
proved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a(a)), the State shall 
elect all such Representatives at large. 
SEC. 203. ESTABLISHING MINIMUM NUMBER OF CAN-
DIDATES IN GENERAL ELECTION. 
(a) STATES WITH PARTISAN NOMINATING PRI-
MARIES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—If, in a primary election for 
the office of Representative, the candidates that ad-
vance to the general election do so by winning the 
nomination of a political party (without regard to 
whether or not the election is open or closed to vot-
ers on the basis of political party preference), the 
State shall ensure that the number of candidates to 
be nominated by each political party is equal to the 
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number of Representatives who will be elected from 
the district involved. 
(2) AUTHORITY OF POLITICAL PARTIES TO DE-
TERMINE NUMBER OF CANDIDATES ADVANCING IN 
MULTI-SEAT
ELECTIONS.—Notwithstanding para-
graph (1), in the case of a primary election de-
scribed in such paragraph which is a multi-seat pri-
mary election, a State may permit a political party 
to adopt a rule that provides for such number of 
nominees of that political party to advance to the 
general election as the party considers appropriate, 
so long as the number is not less than two. 
(3) 
MULTI-SEAT
PRIMARY
ELECTION
DE-
FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘multi-seat 
primary election’’ means a primary election held to 
select the candidates for a general election in which 
more than one Representative shall be elected. 
(b) STATES WITH NONPARTISAN BLANKET PRI-
MARIES.— 
(1) NUMBER OF CANDIDATES.—If a State uses 
a nonpartisan blanket primary election to determine 
which candidates will advance to the general election 
for the office of Representative, the State shall en-
sure that the number of candidates who advance to 
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the general election for the office is not less than the 
greater of— 
(A) five; 
(B) twice the number of Representatives 
who will be elected from the district involved; or 
(C) such greater number as the State may 
establish by law. 
(2) NONPARTISAN
BLANKET
PRIMARY
ELEC-
TION DEFINED.—In this subsection, a ‘‘nonpartisan 
blanket primary election’’ is a primary election for 
the office of Representative conducted prior to the 
date established under section 25 of the Revised 
Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 7) for the 
regularly scheduled general election for such office, 
under which— 
(A) each candidate for such office, regard-
less of the candidate’s political party preference 
or lack thereof, shall appear on a single ballot; 
(B) each voter in the State who is eligible 
to vote in elections for Federal office in the dis-
trict involved may cast a ballot in the election, 
regardless of the voter’s political party pref-
erence or lack thereof; and 
(C) the identification and number of can-
didates who advance to the general election for 
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the office is determined without regard to the 
candidates’ political party preferences or lack 
thereof. 
(c) EXCEPTION FOR STATES NOT HOLDING PRIMARY 
ELECTIONS PRIOR TO DATE OF REGULARLY SCHEDULED 
GENERAL ELECTION.—In the case of a State that does 
not hold primary elections for the office of Representative 
prior to the date established under section 25 of the Re-
vised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 7) for the 
regularly scheduled general election for such offices, all 
seats shall be elected at the election taking place on such 
date. 
SEC. 204. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 
(a) ELECTION OF REPRESENTATIVES PRIOR TO RE-
APPORTIONMENT.—Section 22(c) of the Act entitled ‘‘An 
Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial 
censuses and to provide for an apportionment of Rep-
resentatives in Congress’’, approved June 18, 1929 (2 
U.S.C. 2a(c)), is amended by striking ‘‘Until a State’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Except as provided in title II of the Fair Rep-
resentation Act, until a State’’. 
(b) NUMBER OF REPRESENTATIVES.—Section 22(b) 
of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for apportioning 
Representatives in Congress among the several States by 
the equal proportions method’’, approved November 15, 
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1941 (2 U.S.C. 2b), is amended by striking ‘‘Each State’’ 
and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in title II of the Fair 
Representation Act, each State’’. 
(c) NUMBER
OF REPRESENTATIVES FROM EACH 
DISTRICT.—The Act entitled ‘‘An Act for the relief of 
Doctor Ricardo Vallejo Samala and to provide for congres-
sional redistricting’’, approved December 14, 1967 (2 
U.S.C. 2c), is amended by striking ‘‘In each State’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Except as provided in title II of the Fair Rep-
resentation Act, in each State’’. 
(d) 
NOMINATION
FOR
REPRESENTATIVES
AT 
LARGE.—Section 5 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act For the 
apportionment of Representatives in Congress among the 
several States under the Thirteenth Census’’, approved 
August 8, 1911 (2 U.S.C. 5), is amended by striking 
‘‘Candidates for Representative’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as 
provided in title II of the Fair Representation Act, can-
didates for Representative’’. 
SEC. 205. EXCEPTION FOR STATES IN WHICH USE OF 
MULTI-MEMBER DISTRICTS WILL RESULT IN 
DIMINISHMENT OF VOTING RIGHTS. 
(a) EXCEPTION.—If the written evaluation of any of 
the redistricting plans of the independent redistricting 
commission of a State under subtitle B of title III with 
respect to the apportionment of Representatives resulting 
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from a decennial census, as developed and published under 
section 313(e), indicates that the redistricting plan will 
deny or abridge the right to vote by having the effect of 
diminishing the ability of any citizens of the United States 
on account of race or color, or in contravention of the 
guarantees set forth in section 4(f)(2) of the Voting 
Rights Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10303(f)(2)), to elect their 
preferred candidates of choice— 
(1) this title shall not apply with respect to any 
election held in the State which is based on the ap-
portionment of Representatives to which such redis-
tricting plan would apply; and 
(2) the independent redistricting commission 
shall (in accordance with subtitle B of title III) de-
velop and publish a redistricting plan for the State 
for purposes of title III under which there are no 
multi-member districts in the State. 
(b) NO EFFECT ON OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—Noth-
ing in this section shall be construed to waive the applica-
tion of any of the other titles of this Act or the amend-
ments made by any of the other titles of this Act to a 
State for which there are no multi-member districts as a 
result of this section, including the requirement to use 
ranked choice voting as set forth in title I or the require-
ment to carry out congressional redistricting in the State 
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through the use of independent redistricting commissions 
as set forth in title III. 
SEC. 206. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This title and the amendments made by this title 
shall apply with respect to the One Hundred Eighteenth 
Congress and each subsequent Congress. 
TITLE III—REQUIREMENTS FOR 
CONGRESSIONAL 
REDIS-
TRICTING 
Subtitle A—General Requirements 
SEC. 301. REQUIRING CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING TO 
BE CONDUCTED THROUGH PLAN OF INDE-
PENDENT STATE COMMISSION. 
(a) USE OF PLAN REQUIRED.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, and except as provided in sub-
section (c) and subsection (d), any congressional redis-
tricting conducted by a State shall be conducted in accord-
ance with— 
(1) the redistricting plan developed and enacted 
into law by the independent redistricting commission 
established in the State, in accordance with subtitle 
B; or 
(2) if a plan developed by such commission is 
not enacted into law, the redistricting plan developed 
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and enacted into law by a 3-judge court, in accord-
ance with section 321. 
(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 
‘‘in the manner provided by the law thereof’’ and insert-
ing: ‘‘in the manner provided by title III of the Fair Rep-
resentation Act’’. 
(c) SPECIAL RULE FOR EXISTING COMMISSIONS.— 
Subsection (a) does not apply to any State in which, under 
law in effect continuously on and after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, congressional redistricting is car-
ried out in accordance with a plan developed and approved 
by an independent redistricting commission which is in 
compliance with each of the following requirements: 
(1) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE APPLICATION PROC-
ESS.—Membership on the commission is open to citi-
zens of the State through a publicly available appli-
cation process. 
(2) DISQUALIFICATIONS
FOR
GOVERNMENT 
SERVICE
AND
POLITICAL
APPOINTMENT.—Individ-
uals who, for a covered period of time as established 
by the State, hold or have held public office, individ-
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uals who are or have been candidates for elected 
public office, and individuals who serve or have 
served as an officer, employee, or paid consultant of 
a campaign committee of a candidate for public of-
fice are disqualified from serving on the commission. 
(3) SCREENING
FOR
CONFLICTS.—Individuals 
who apply to serve on the commission are screened 
through a process that excludes persons with con-
flicts of interest from the pool of potential commis-
sioners. 
(4) MULTI-PARTISAN COMPOSITION.—Member-
ship on the commission represents those who are af-
filiated with the two political parties whose can-
didates received the most votes in the most recent 
statewide election for Federal office held in the 
State, as well as those who are unaffiliated with any 
party or who are affiliated with political parties 
other than the two political parties whose candidates 
received the most votes in the most recent statewide 
election for Federal office held in the State. 
(5) CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING.—Members 
of the commission shall draw maps in accordance 
with the criteria set forth in section 313(a). 
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(6) PUBLIC INPUT.—Public hearings are held 
and comments from the public are accepted before 
a final map is approved. 
(7) BROAD-BASED SUPPORT FOR APPROVAL OF 
FINAL PLAN.—The approval of the final redistricting 
plan requires a majority vote of the members of the 
commission, including the support of at least one 
member of each of the following: 
(A) Members who are affiliated with the 
political party whose candidate received the 
most votes in the most recent statewide election 
for Federal office held in the State. 
(B) Members who are affiliated with the 
political party whose candidate received the sec-
ond most votes in the most recent statewide 
election for Federal office held in the State. 
(C) Members who not affiliated with any 
political party or who are affiliated with polit-
ical parties other than the political parties de-
scribed in subparagraphs (A) and (B). 
SEC. 302. LIMIT ON CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING 
AFTER AN APPORTIONMENT. 
A State which has been redistricted in the manner 
provided by law after an apportionment under section 
22(a) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the fif-
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teenth and subsequent decennial censuses and to provide 
for an apportionment of Representatives in Congress’’, ap-
proved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a), may not be redis-
tricted again until after the next apportionment of Rep-
resentatives under such section, unless a court requires 
the State to conduct such subsequent redistricting to com-
ply with the Constitution, to enforce the Voting Rights 
Act of 1965 (52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), to comply with 
this Act, or to comply with any other applicable Federal 
law. 
Subtitle B—Independent 
Redistricting Commissions 
SEC. 311. INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION. 
(a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The nonpartisan agency es-
tablished or designated by a State under section 
314(a) shall establish an independent redistricting 
commission for the State, which shall consist of 15 
members appointed by the agency as follows: 
(A) Not later than October 1 of a year 
ending in the numeral zero, the agency shall, at 
a public meeting held not earlier than 15 days 
after notice of the meeting has been given to 
the public, first appoint 6 members as follows: 
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(i) The agency shall appoint 2 mem-
bers on a random basis from the majority 
category of the approved selection pool (as 
described in section 312(b)(1)(A)). 
(ii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem-
bers on a random basis from the minority 
category of the approved selection pool (as 
described in section 312(b)(1)(B)). 
(iii) The agency shall appoint 2 mem-
bers on a random basis from the inde-
pendent category of the approved selection 
pool (as described in section 312(b)(1)(C)). 
(B) Not later than November 15 of a year 
ending in the numeral zero, the members ap-
pointed by the agency under subparagraph (A) 
shall, at a public meeting held not earlier than 
15 days after notice of the meeting has been 
given to the public, then appoint 9 members as 
follows: 
(i) The members shall appoint 3 mem-
bers from the majority category of the ap-
proved selection pool (as described in sec-
tion 312(b)(1)(A)). 
(ii) The members shall appoint 3 
members from the minority category of the 
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approved selection pool (as described in 
section 312(b)(1)(B)). 
(iii) The members shall appoint 3 
members from the independent category of 
the approved selection pool (as described in 
section 312(b)(1)(C)). 
(2) RULES
FOR
APPOINTMENT
OF
MEMBERS 
APPOINTED BY FIRST MEMBERS.— 
(A) AFFIRMATIVE VOTE OF AT LEAST 4 
MEMBERS.—The appointment of any of the 9 
members of the independent redistricting com-
mission who are appointed by the first members 
of the commission pursuant to subparagraph 
(B) of paragraph (1), as well as the designation 
of alternates for such members pursuant to 
subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) and the ap-
pointment of alternates to fill vacancies pursu-
ant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4), shall 
require the affirmative vote of at least 4 of the 
members appointed by the nonpartisan agency 
under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1), in-
cluding at least one member from each of the 
categories referred to in such subparagraph. 
(B) ENSURING DIVERSITY.—In appointing 
the 9 members pursuant to subparagraph (B) 
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of paragraph (1), as well as in designating al-
ternates pursuant to subparagraph (B) of para-
graph (3) and in appointing alternates to fill 
vacancies pursuant to subparagraph (B) of 
paragraph (4), the first members of the inde-
pendent redistricting commission shall ensure 
that the membership is representative of the de-
mographic groups (including racial, ethnic, eco-
nomic, and gender) and geographic regions of 
the State, and provides racial, ethnic, and lan-
guage minorities protected under the Voting 
Rights Act of 1965 with a meaningful oppor-
tunity to participate in the development of the 
State’s redistricting plan. 
(3) DESIGNATION OF ALTERNATES TO SERVE 
IN CASE OF VACANCIES.— 
(A) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY AGENCY.— 
At the time the agency appoints the members 
of the independent redistricting commission 
under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) from 
each of the categories referred to in such sub-
paragraph, the agency shall, on a random basis, 
designate 2 other individuals from such cat-
egory to serve as alternate members who may 
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be appointed to fill vacancies in the commission 
in accordance with paragraph (4). 
(B) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY FIRST MEM-
BERS.—At the time the members appointed by 
the agency appoint the other members of the 
independent redistricting commission under 
subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) from each 
of the categories referred to in such subpara-
graph, the members shall, in accordance with 
the special rules described in paragraph (2), 
designate 2 other individuals from such cat-
egory to serve as alternate members who may 
be appointed to fill vacancies in the commission 
in accordance with paragraph (4). 
(4) APPOINTMENT OF ALTERNATES TO SERVE 
IN CASE OF VACANCIES.— 
(A) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY AGENCY.—If 
a vacancy occurs in the commission with respect 
to a member who was appointed by the non-
partisan agency under subparagraph (A) of 
paragraph (1) from one of the categories re-
ferred to in such subparagraph, the agency 
shall fill the vacancy by appointing, on a ran-
dom basis, one of the 2 alternates from such 
category who was designated under subpara-
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graph (A) of paragraph (3). At the time the 
agency appoints an alternate to fill a vacancy 
under the previous sentence, the agency shall 
designate, on a random basis, another indi-
vidual from the same category to serve as an al-
ternate member, in accordance with subpara-
graph (A) of paragraph (3). 
(B) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY FIRST MEM-
BERS.—If a vacancy occurs in the commission 
with respect to a member who was appointed by 
the first members of the commission under sub-
paragraph (B) of paragraph (1) from one of the 
categories referred to in such subparagraph, the 
first members shall, in accordance with the spe-
cial rules described in paragraph (2), fill the va-
cancy by appointing one of the 2 alternates 
from such category who was designated under 
subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3). At the time 
the first members appoint an alternate to fill a 
vacancy under the previous sentence, the first 
members shall, in accordance with the special 
rules described in paragraph (2), designate an-
other individual from the same category to 
serve as an alternate member, in accordance 
with subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3). 
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(5) REMOVAL.—A member of the independent 
redistricting commission may be removed by a ma-
jority vote of the remaining members of the commis-
sion if it is shown by a preponderance of the evi-
dence that the member is not eligible to serve on the 
commission under section 312(a). 
(b) PROCEDURES
FOR CONDUCTING COMMISSION 
BUSINESS.— 
(1) CHAIR.—Members of an independent redis-
tricting commission established under this section 
shall select by majority vote one member who was 
appointed from the independent category of the ap-
proved 
selection 
pool 
described 
in 
section 
312(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 313 
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 
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(B) at least one member of the commission 
appointed from each of the categories of the ap-
proved selection pool described in section 
312(b)(1). 
(3) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 
the commission shall constitute a quorum. 
(c) STAFF; CONTRACTORS.— 
(1) STAFF.—Under a public application process 
in which all application materials are available for 
public inspection, the independent redistricting com-
mission of a State shall appoint and set the pay of 
technical experts, legal counsel, consultants, and 
such other staff as it considers appropriate, subject 
to State law. 
(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 312(b)(1). 
(3) REPORTS ON EXPENDITURES FOR POLIT-
ICAL ACTIVITY.— 
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(A) REPORT BY APPLICANTS.—Each indi-
vidual who applies for a position as an employee 
of the independent redistricting commission and 
each vendor who applies for a contract with the 
commission shall, at the time of applying, file 
with the commission a report summarizing— 
(i) any expenditure for political activ-
ity made by such individual or vendor dur-
ing the 10 most recent calendar years; and 
(ii) any income received by such indi-
vidual or vendor during the 10 most recent 
calendar years which is attributable to an 
expenditure for political activity. 
(B) ANNUAL
REPORTS
BY
EMPLOYEES 
AND VENDORS.—Each person who is an em-
ployee or vendor of the independent redis-
tricting commission shall, not later than one 
year after the person is appointed as an em-
ployee or enters into a contract as a vendor (as 
the case may be) and annually thereafter for 
each year during which the person serves as an 
employee or a vendor, file with the commission 
a report summarizing the expenditures and in-
come described in subparagraph (A) during the 
10 most recent calendar years. 
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(C) EXPENDITURE FOR POLITICAL ACTIV-
ITY
DEFINED.—In this paragraph, the term 
‘‘expenditure for political activity’’ means a dis-
bursement for any of the following: 
(i) An independent expenditure, as de-
fined in section 301(17) of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 
30101(17)). 
(ii) An electioneering communication, 
as defined in section 304(f)(3) of such Act 
(52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)) or any other pub-
lic communication, as defined in section 
301(22) 
of 
such 
Act 
(52 
U.S.C. 
30101(22)) that would be an electioneering 
communication if it were a broadcast, 
cable, or satellite communication. 
(iii) Any dues or other payments to 
trade associations or organizations de-
scribed in section 501(c) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from 
tax under section 501(a) of such Code that 
are, or could reasonably be anticipated to 
be, used or transferred to another associa-
tion or organization for a use described in 
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paragraph (1), (2), or (4) of section 501(c) 
of such Code. 
(4) 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 beyond the information on the per-
son’s expenditures for political activity provided in 
the reports required under paragraph (3) (including 
donations to candidates, political committees, and 
political parties) as a condition of the appointment 
or the contract. 
(5) DISQUALIFICATION; WAIVER.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The independent redis-
tricting commission may not appoint an indi-
vidual as an employee, and may not enter into 
a contract with a vendor, if the individual or 
vendor meets any of the criteria for the dis-
qualification of an individual from serving as a 
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member of the commission which are set forth 
in section 312(a)(2). 
(B) WAIVER.—The commission may by 
unanimous vote of its members waive the appli-
cation of subparagraph (A) to an individual or 
a vendor after receiving and reviewing the re-
port filed by the individual or vendor under 
paragraph (3). 
(d) TERMINATION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The independent redis-
tricting commission of a State shall terminate on the 
earlier of— 
(A) June 14 of the next year ending in the 
numeral zero; or 
(B) the day on which the nonpartisan 
agency established or designated by a State 
under section 314(a) has, in accordance with 
section 312(b)(1), submitted a selection pool to 
the Select Committee on Redistricting for the 
State established under section 314(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-
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tion brought with respect to congressional redis-
tricting in the State. 
SEC. 312. 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: 
(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 313, 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, with an attestation under 
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penalty of perjury, containing the following in-
formation and assurances: 
(i) The full current name and any 
former names of, and the contact informa-
tion for, the individual, including an elec-
tronic mail address, the address of the in-
dividual’s residence, mailing address, and 
telephone numbers. 
(ii) The individual’s race, ethnicity, 
gender, age, date of birth, and household 
income for the most recent taxable year. 
(iii) The political party with which the 
individual is affiliated, if any. 
(iv) The reason or reasons the indi-
vidual desires to serve on the independent 
redistricting commission, the individual’s 
qualifications, and information relevant to 
the ability of the individual to be fair and 
impartial, including, but not limited to— 
(I) any involvement with, or fi-
nancial support of, professional, so-
cial, political, religious, or community 
organizations or causes; and 
(II) the individual’s employment 
and educational history. 
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(v) 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. 
(vi) 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 
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a political party or as an officer, employee, or 
paid consultant of a campaign committee of a 
candidate for public office or of any political ac-
tion committee (as determined in accordance 
with the law of the State). 
(C) 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 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 gov-
ernment of the State, or a donor to the cam-
paign of any candidate for public office or to 
any political action committee (other than a 
donor who, during any of such covered periods, 
gives an aggregate amount of $1,000 or less to 
the campaigns of all candidates for all public 
offices and to all political action committees). 
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(E) 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 paid a civil money 
penalty or criminal fine, or was sentenced to a 
term of imprisonment, for violating any provi-
sion of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 
1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.). 
(F) 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 agent of a for-
eign principal under the Foreign Agents Reg-
istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 
611 et seq.). 
(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 10-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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(C) The 10-year period beginning on the 
day after the last day of the period described in 
subparagraph (B). 
(4) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.—In 
this subsection, the term ‘‘immediate family mem-
ber’’ means, with respect to an individual, a father, 
stepfather, mother, stepmother, son, stepson, daugh-
ter, stepdaughter, brother, stepbrother, sister, step-
sister, husband, wife, father-in-law, or mother-in- 
law. 
(b) DEVELOPMENT AND SUBMISSION OF SELECTION 
POOL.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than June 15 of 
each year ending in the numeral zero, the non-
partisan agency established or designated by a State 
under section 314(a) shall develop and submit to the 
Select Committee on Redistricting for the State es-
tablished under section 314(b) a selection pool of 36 
individuals who are eligible to serve as members of 
the independent redistricting commission of the 
State under this Act, consisting of individuals in the 
following categories: 
(A) A majority category, consisting of 12 
individuals who are affiliated with the political 
party whose candidate received the most votes 
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in the most recent statewide election for Fed-
eral office held in the State. 
(B) A minority category, consisting of 12 
individuals who are affiliated with the political 
party whose candidate received the second most 
votes in the most recent statewide election for 
Federal office held in the State. 
(C) An independent category, consisting of 
12 individuals who are not affiliated with either 
of the political parties described in subpara-
graph (A) or subparagraph (B). 
(2) FACTORS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN DEVEL-
OPING POOL.—In selecting individuals for the selec-
tion pool under this subsection, the nonpartisan 
agency shall— 
(A) ensure that the pool is representative 
of the demographic groups (including racial, 
ethnic, economic, and gender) and geographic 
regions of the State, and includes applicants 
who would allow racial, ethnic, and language 
minorities protected under the Voting Rights 
Act of 1965 a meaningful opportunity to par-
ticipate in the development of the State’s redis-
tricting plan; and 
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(B) take into consideration the analytical 
skills of the individuals selected in relevant 
fields (including mapping, data management, 
law, community outreach, demography, and the 
geography of the State) and their ability to 
work on an impartial basis. 
(3) INTERVIEWS
OF
APPLICANTS.—To assist 
the nonpartisan agency in developing the selection 
pool under this subsection, the nonpartisan agency 
shall conduct interviews of applicants under oath. If 
an individual is included in a selection pool devel-
oped under this section, all of the interviews of the 
individual shall be transcribed and the transcriptions 
made available on the nonpartisan agency’s website 
contemporaneously with release of the report under 
paragraph (6). 
(4) DETERMINATION OF POLITICAL PARTY AF-
FILIATION OF INDIVIDUALS IN SELECTION POOL.— 
For purposes of this section, an individual shall be 
considered to be affiliated with a political party only 
if the nonpartisan agency is able to verify (to the 
greatest extent possible) the information the indi-
vidual provides in the application submitted under 
subsection (a)(1)(D), including by considering addi-
tional information provided by other persons with 
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knowledge of the individual’s history of political ac-
tivity. 
(5) ENCOURAGING RESIDENTS TO APPLY FOR 
INCLUSION IN POOL.—The nonpartisan agency shall 
take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that 
residents of the State across various geographic re-
gions and demographic groups are aware of the op-
portunity to serve on the independent redistricting 
commission, including publicizing the role of the 
panel and using newspapers, broadcast media, and 
online sources, including ethnic media, to encourage 
individuals to apply for inclusion in the selection 
pool developed under this subsection. 
(6) REPORT
ON
ESTABLISHMENT
OF
SELEC-
TION POOL.—At the time the nonpartisan agency 
submits the selection pool to the Select Committee 
on Redistricting under paragraph (1), it shall pub-
lish and post on the agency’s public website a report 
describing the process by which the pool was devel-
oped, and shall include in the report a description of 
how the individuals in the pool meet the eligibility 
criteria of subsection (a) and of how the pool reflects 
the factors the agency is required to take into con-
sideration under paragraph (2). 
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(7) PUBLIC COMMENT ON SELECTION POOL.— 
During the 14-day period which begins on the date 
the nonpartisan agency publishes the report under 
paragraph (6), the agency shall accept comments 
from the public on the individuals included in the se-
lection pool. The agency shall post all such com-
ments contemporaneously on the nonpartisan agen-
cy’s website and shall transmit them to the Select 
Committee on Redistricting immediately upon the 
expiration of such period. 
(8) ACTION BY SELECT COMMITTEE.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Not earlier than 15 
days and not later than 21 days after receiving 
the selection pool from the nonpartisan agency 
under paragraph (1), the Select Committee on 
Redistricting shall— 
(i) approve the pool as submitted by 
the nonpartisan agency, in which case the 
pool shall be considered the approved selec-
tion pool for purposes of section 311(a)(1); 
or 
(ii) reject the pool, in which case the 
nonpartisan agency shall develop and sub-
mit a replacement selection pool in accord-
ance with subsection (c). 
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