I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2248 
To prohibit States from carrying out more than one Congressional redis-
tricting after a decennial census and apportionment, to require States 
to conduct such redistricting through independent commissions, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 9, 2007 
Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California (for herself, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. COSTA, Mr. 
CARDOZA, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. FARR, Mr. FILNER, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. LAN-
TOS, Mr. MCNERNEY, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, 
Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. LINDA T. SA´NCHEZ of California, Ms. LORET-
TA SANCHEZ of California, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. 
STARK, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. HONDA, and Ms. MCCOL-
LUM of Minnesota) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To prohibit States from carrying out more than one Congres-
sional redistricting after a decennial census and appor-
tionment, to require States to conduct such redistricting 
through independent commissions, and for other pur-
poses. 
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; FINDING OF CONSTITUTIONAL 
AUTHORITY. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Redistricting Reform Act of 2007’’. 
(b) FINDING.—Congress finds that it has the author-
ity to establish the terms and conditions States must fol-
low in carrying out Congressional redistricting after an 
apportionment of Members of the 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-
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. 
SEC. 2. 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 
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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-
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 (42 U.S.C. 
1973 et seq.).’’. 
SEC. 3. REQUIRING REDISTRICTING TO BE CONDUCTED 
THROUGH PLAN OF INDEPENDENT STATE 
COMMISSION OR PLAN OF HIGHEST STATE 
COURT. 
(a) USE OF PLAN REQUIRED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, any Congressional redistricting con-
ducted by a State shall be conducted in accordance 
with— 
(A) the redistricting plan developed by the 
independent redistricting commission estab-
lished in the State, in accordance with section 
5; or 
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(B) if the plan developed by such commis-
sion is not enacted into law, the redistricting 
plan selected by the highest court in the State 
or developed by a United States district court, 
in accordance with section 6. 
(2) OTHER CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES PER-
MITTED.—Nothing in this Act or the amendments 
made by this Act may be construed to prohibit a 
State from conducting Congressional redistricting in 
accordance with such criteria and procedures as the 
State considers appropriate, to the extent that such 
criteria and procedures are consistent with the appli-
cable requirements of this Act and the amendments 
made by this Act. 
(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 the Redistricting Reform 
Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 4. INDEPENDENT, BI-PARTISAN REDISTRICTING COM-
MISSION. 
(a) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish 
an independent redistricting commission composed 
of the following: 
(A) A chair, who shall be appointed by ma-
jority vote of the other members of the commis-
sion. 
(B) An equal number of members (but not 
fewer than 1) from each of the following cat-
egories: 
(i) Members affiliated with the polit-
ical party with the greatest number of 
seats in the upper house of the State legis-
lature, who shall be appointed by the mem-
bers of that house who represent the polit-
ical party with the second greatest number 
of seats in that house. 
(ii) Members affiliated with the polit-
ical party with the second greatest number 
of seats in the upper house of the State 
legislature, who shall be appointed by the 
members of that house who represent the 
political party with the greatest number of 
seats in that house. 
(iii) Members affiliated with the polit-
ical party with the greatest number of 
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seats in the lower house of the State legis-
lature, who shall be appointed by the mem-
bers of that house who represent the polit-
ical party with the second greatest number 
of seats in that house. 
(iv) Members affiliated with the polit-
ical party with the second greatest number 
of seats in the lower house of the State 
legislature, who shall be appointed by the 
members of that house who represent the 
political party with the greatest number of 
seats in that house. 
(C) A number of members who are not af-
filiated with any of the political parties referred 
to in subparagraph (B), who shall be appointed 
by not fewer than 2⁄3 of the members appointed 
under subparagraph (B), such that the percent-
age of the members of the commission who are 
appointed under this subparagraph is equal to 
the percentage of registered voters in the State 
who are not affiliated with any of the political 
parties referred to in subparagraph (B) (with 
respect to the most recent statewide election for 
Federal office held in the State for which such 
information is available). 
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(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR STATES WITH UNICAM-
ERAL LEGISLATURE.—In the case of a State with a 
unicameral legislature, the independent redistricting 
commission established under this subsection shall 
be composed of the following: 
(A) A chair, who shall be appointed by ma-
jority vote of the other members of the commis-
sion. 
(B) An equal number of members (but not 
fewer than 2) from each of the following cat-
egories: 
(i) Members appointed by a member 
of the legislature who shall be selected by 
the chair of the Government Affairs Com-
mittee of the legislature to represent the 
State political party whose candidate for 
chief executive of the State received the 
greatest number of votes on average in the 
3 most recent general elections for that of-
fice. 
(ii) Members appointed by a member 
of the legislature who shall be selected by 
the chair of the Government Affairs Com-
mittee of the legislature to represent the 
State political party whose candidate for 
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chief executive of the State received the 
second greatest number of votes on aver-
age in the 3 most recent general elections 
for that office. 
(C) A number of members who are not af-
filiated with any of the political parties referred 
to in subparagraph (B), who shall be appointed 
by not fewer than 2⁄3 of the members appointed 
under subparagraph (B), such that the percent-
age of the members of the commission who are 
appointed under this subparagraph is equal to 
the percentage of registered voters in the State 
who are not affiliated with any of the political 
parties referred to in subparagraph (B) (with 
respect to the most recent statewide election for 
Federal office held in the State for which such 
information is available). 
(3) DETERMINATION OF POLITICAL PARTY AF-
FILIATION.—For purposes of this subsection, an in-
dividual shall be considered to be affiliated with a 
political party if the individual is registered with the 
party with respect to each of the 3 most recent elec-
tions for Federal office occurring prior to the indi-
vidual’s appointment. 
(b) ELIGIBILITY.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual is eligible to 
serve as a member of an independent redistricting 
commission if— 
(A) as of the date of appointment, the in-
dividual is registered to vote in elections for 
Federal office held in the State, and was reg-
istered to vote in the 2 most recent general 
elections for Federal office held in the State; 
(B) the individual did not hold public office 
or run as a candidate for election for public of-
fice, or serve as an employee of a political party 
or candidate for election for public office, at 
any time during the 4-year period ending on the 
December 31 preceding the date of appoint-
ment; and 
(C) the individual certifies that he or she 
will not run as a candidate for the office of 
Representative in the Congress until after the 
next apportionment of Representatives under 
section 22(a) of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to 
provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decen-
nial censuses and to provide for an apportion-
ment of Representatives in Congress’’, approved 
June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a). 
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(2) DISCRIMINATION.—The membership of the 
Commission shall not be selected in a manner which 
results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any 
citizen of the United States to vote on account of 
race or color. A violation of this subsection is estab-
lished if, based on the totality of circumstances, it 
is shown that the membership of the Commission is 
not equally open to participation by members of a 
class of citizens protected by this subsection in that 
its members have less opportunity than other mem-
bers of the electorate to participate in the political 
process and to elect representatives of their choice. 
(c) VACANCY.—A vacancy in the commission shall be 
filled in the manner in which the original appointment was 
made. 
(d) DEADLINE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish a 
commission under this section, and the members of 
the commission shall appoint the commission’s chair, 
not later than the first February 1 which occurs 
after the chief executive of a State receives the State 
apportionment notice. 
(2) APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR REQUIRED PRIOR 
TO DEVELOPMENT OF REDISTRICTING PLAN.—The 
commission may not take any action to develop a re-
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districting plan for the State under section 5 until 
the appointment of the commission’s chair. 
(e) REQUIRING
MAJORITY
APPROVAL
FOR
AC-
TIONS.—The independent redistricting commission of a 
State may not submit a redistricting plan to the State leg-
islature, or take any other action, without the approval 
of at least a majority of its members given at a meeting 
at which at least a majority of its members are present. 
(f) TERMINATION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The independent redis-
tricting commission of a State shall terminate on the 
day after the date of the first regularly scheduled 
general election for Federal office which occurs after 
the chief executive of the State receives the State 
apportionment notice. 
(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. 
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