provided under each such plan shall be dis-
played. 
(C) A hearing held upon the approval of 
the final redistricting plan under subsection 
(c)(2), at which the congressional district maps 
provided under such plan shall be displayed. 
(3) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENT 
AFTER
DISPLAY
OF
MAPS.—The commission shall 
accept and consider comments from the public with 
respect to congressional district maps displayed at 
any hearing described in paragraph (2) for not fewer 
than 30 days after the date of the hearing. 
(4) AVAILABILITY OF DATA AND SOFTWARE.— 
The commission shall make available to the public 
all of the demographic data used by the commission 
to develop the proposed redistricting plans, together 
with any software used to draw maps of proposed 
districts. 
(5) MEETINGS AND HEARINGS IN VARIOUS GEO-
GRAPHIC LOCATIONS.—To the greatest extent prac-
ticable, the commission shall hold its meetings and 
hearings in various geographic regions and locations 
throughout the State. 
(c) PROCESS FOR ENACTMENT OF FINAL REDIS-
TRICTING PLAN.— 
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(1) PUBLICATION OF DRAFT PLANS.—Not later 
than the first June 1 which occurs after the chief 
executive of the State receives the State apportion-
ment notice, the commission shall publish and dis-
seminate multiple draft redistricting plans. 
(2) PERIOD
FOR
CONSIDERATION
OF
PUBLIC 
COMMENTS.—After publishing and disseminating the 
draft redistricting plans under paragraph (1), the 
commission shall solicit and take into consideration 
comments from the public on such draft plans dur-
ing a period of at least 60 days following the date 
on which such draft plans are published and dis-
seminated. 
(3) PUBLICATION OF FINAL PLAN.—After tak-
ing into consideration comments from the public on 
the draft redistricting plans, the commission shall 
publish and disseminate a final redistricting plan for 
the State, and shall vote on approving such final 
plan for enactment into law by not later than the 
first August 15 which occurs after the chief execu-
tive of the State receives the State apportionment 
notice. 
(4) ENACTMENT.—The final redistricting plan 
published and disseminated under paragraph (3) 
shall be deemed to be enacted into law if— 
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(A) the plan is approved by a majority of 
the whole membership of the commission; and 
(B) at least one member of the commission 
appointed from each of the final selection pools 
described in section 4(a)(1) approves the plan. 
SEC. 6. ENACTMENT OF PLAN DEVELOPED BY COURTS. 
(a) STATE COURT.— 
(1) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN BY SPECIAL MAS-
TER.—If a redistricting plan developed by the inde-
pendent redistricting commission of a State is not 
enacted into law under section 5(c) by the first Au-
gust 31 which occurs after the chief executive of the 
State receives the State apportionment notice, the 
chief election official of the State shall petition the 
highest court of the State for an order directing the 
appointment of a special master to develop and 
present a redistricting plan to the court. 
(2) ENACTMENT.—If the highest court of the 
State approves a redistricting plan developed and 
presented by a special master under paragraph (1), 
the plan shall serve as the redistricting plan for the 
State, and shall be deemed to be enacted on the date 
on which the court approves the plan. 
(3) ADHERENCE TO CRITERIA APPLICABLE TO 
PLANS
OF
COMMISSION.—In developing a redis-
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tricting plan under this subsection, the highest court 
of a State shall ensure that the plan meets the cri-
teria applicable under paragraphs (1) and (2) of sec-
tion 5(a) to plans developed by the independent re-
districting commission of the State. 
(b) FEDERAL COURT.— 
(1) FAILURE
OF
STATE
COURT
TO
ENACT 
PLAN.— 
(A) NOTICE TO COURT IF PLAN NOT SE-
LECTED BY STATE COURT.—If the chief election 
official of a State petitions the highest court of 
the State for an order under subsection (a) and 
the court does not approve a redistricting plan 
in accordance with such subsection by the first 
October 15 which occurs after the chief execu-
tive of the State receives the State apportion-
ment notice, the State shall file a notice with 
the United States district court for the district 
in which the capital of the State is located. 
(B) DEVELOPMENT
AND
SELECTION
OF 
PLAN BY FEDERAL COURT.—Not later than 45 
days after receiving a notice from a State under 
subparagraph (A), the court shall develop and 
publish a final redistricting plan for the State, 
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which shall be deemed to be enacted on the date 
on which the court publishes the plan. 
(2) FAILURE OF STATE TO ESTABLISH COMMIS-
SION.—If a State does not establish an independent 
redistricting commission under section 4 by the 
deadline set forth in section 4(f)— 
(A) the State may not establish the com-
mission; and 
(B) the United States district court for the 
district in which the capital of the State is lo-
cated shall develop and publish a final redis-
tricting plan for the State not later than the 
first November 30 which occurs after the chief 
executive of the State receives the State appor-
tionment notice. 
(3) CRITERIA.—It is the sense of Congress 
that, in developing a redistricting plan for a State 
under this subsection, the district court should ad-
here to the same terms and conditions that applied 
to the development of the plan of the commission 
under section 5(a). 
(c) ACCESS
TO INFORMATION
AND RECORDS
OF 
COMMISSION.—A court which is required to develop a re-
districting plan for a State under this section shall have 
access to any information, data, software, or other records 
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and material used by the independent redistricting com-
mission of the State in carrying out its duties under this 
Act. 
SEC. 7. SPECIAL RULE FOR REDISTRICTING CONDUCTED 
UNDER ORDER OF FEDERAL COURT. 
If a Federal court requires a State to conduct redis-
tricting subsequent to an apportionment of Representa-
tives in the State in order to comply with the Constitution 
or to enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965, sections 5 
and 6 shall apply with respect to the redistricting, except 
that— 
(1) the independent redistricting commission 
shall be established and the commission’s chair shall 
be appointed prior to the expiration of the 60-day 
period which begins on the date of the final order of 
the Federal court to conduct the redistricting; 
(2) if the commission fails to enact into law a 
final redistricting plan in accordance with section 
5(c) prior to the expiration of the 150-day period 
which begins on the date of the final order of the 
Federal court to conduct the redistricting, the chief 
election official of the State shall petition the highest 
court of the State for an order directing the appoint-
ment of a special master to develop and present a 
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(1) the number of Representatives to which the 
State is entitled, as provided under the notice; and 
(2) $150,000. 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A State shall use the payment 
made under this section to establish and operate the 
State’s independent redistricting commission, to imple-
ment the State redistricting plan, and to otherwise carry 
out Congressional redistricting in the State. 
(c) NO PAYMENT TO STATES WITH SINGLE MEM-
BER.—The Election Assistance Commission shall not 
make a payment under this section to any State which 
is not entitled to more than one Representative under its 
State apportionment notice. 
(d) REQUIRING ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION AS 
CONDITION OF PAYMENT.—The Election Assistance Com-
mission may not make a payment to a State under this 
section until the State certifies to the Commission that 
the State has established an independent redistricting 
commission, and that a chair of the commission has been 
appointed, in accordance with section 4. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for payments under this section. 
SEC. 9. CIVIL ENFORCEMENT. 
(a) CIVIL ENFORCEMENT.— 
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(1) ACTIONS BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The At-
torney General may bring a civil action in an appro-
priate district court for such relief as may be appro-
priate to carry out this Act. 
(2) AVAILABILITY OF PRIVATE RIGHT OF AC-
TION.—Any elector of a State who is aggrieved by 
the failure of the State redistricting plan which is 
enacted into law under section 5(b)(3) to meet the 
requirements for such a plan under this Act may 
bring a civil action in an appropriate district court 
for such relief as may be appropriate to remedy the 
failure, so long as the elector brings the action dur-
ing the 45-day period which begins on the date on 
which the plan is enacted into law. 
(b) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION.—In any action 
brought for under this section, the following rules shall 
apply: 
(1) The action shall be filed in the appropriate 
United States district court and shall be heard by a 
3-judge court convened pursuant to section 2284 of 
title 28, United States Code. 
(2) The 3-judge court shall consolidate actions 
brought for relief under subsection (b)(1) with re-
spect to the same State redistricting plan. 
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(3) A copy of the complaint shall be delivered 
promptly to the Clerk of the House of Representa-
tives and the Secretary of the Senate. 
(4) A final decision in the action shall be re-
viewable only by appeal directly to the Supreme 
Court of the United States. Such appeal shall be 
taken by the filing of a notice of appeal within 10 
days, and the filing of a jurisdictional statement 
within 30 days, of the entry of the final decision. 
(5) It shall be the duty of the district court and 
the Supreme Court of the United States to advance 
on the docket and to expedite to the greatest pos-
sible extent the disposition of the action and appeal. 
(c) LOCATION OF COURT.—For purposes of an action 
under this section, the appropriate district court shall be 
the district court of the United States for the district 
which includes the capital of the State involved. 
(d) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—In a civil action under this 
section, the court may allow the prevailing party (other 
than the United States) reasonable attorney fees, includ-
ing litigation expenses, and costs. 
(e) RELATION TO OTHER LAWS.— 
(1) RIGHTS
AND
REMEDIES
ADDITIONAL
TO 
OTHER
RIGHTS
AND
REMEDIES.—The rights and 
remedies established by this section are in addition 
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to all other rights and remedies provided by law, and 
neither the rights and remedies established by this 
section nor any other provision of this Act shall su-
persede, restrict, or limit the application of the Vot-
ing Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.). 
(2) VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965.—Nothing in 
this Act authorizes or requires conduct that is pro-
hibited by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 
1973 et seq.). 
SEC. 10. STATE APPORTIONMENT NOTICE DEFINED. 
In this Act, the ‘‘State apportionment notice’’ means, 
with respect to a State, the notice sent to the State from 
the Clerk of the House of Representatives under section 
22(b) 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), of the number of 
Representatives to which the State is entitled. 
SEC. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall 
apply with respect to redistricting carried out pursuant to 
the decennial census conducted during 2020 or any suc-
ceeding decennial census. 
Æ 
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