Opinion ID: 1933405
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: legislative redistricting

Text: To comply with federal and state constitutional requirements that state legislatures afford substantially equal weight to citizens' votes, the General Assembly is required to redraw legislative voting districts after each federal decennial census or after a state census taken for the purpose of redistricting. Vt. Const. ch. II, § 73; 17 V.S.A. § 1903(a). In forming representative and senatorial districts which shall afford equality of representation, the General Assembly shall seek to maintain geographical compactness and contiguity and to adhere to boundaries of counties and other existing political subdivisions. Vt. Const. ch. II, §§ 13, 18. Statutory criteria also require, insofar as practicable, that the districts be drawn consistent with the following policies: (1) preservation of existing political subdivision lines; (2) recognition and maintenance of patterns of geography, social interaction, trade, political ties and common interests; [and] (3) use of compact and contiguous territory. 17 V.S.A. § 1903(b). Following the 1990 census, the Legislature reapportioned the House and Senate. See 1991, No. 116 (Adj.Sess.) (initial House districts); 1991, No. 147 (Adj.Sess.) (subdivided House districts and established Senate districts). The Legislature also amended the statutory procedures for redistricting the House in the same bill that redrew the initial House districts. 1991, No. 116 (Adj.Sess.), §§ 7-12. Under the new law, the bipartisan Legislative Apportionment Board, whose members do not serve in the General Assembly, must prepare a tentative redistricting proposal, consider the responsive recommendations of the municipal boards of civil authority, and then prepare a final proposal for dividing the state into initial districts for the election of the 150 representatives. 17 V.S.A. §§ 1905-1906. The final proposal is referred to the appropriate legislative committee, and eventually the General Assembly, which may accept or amend the proposal, or substitute another plan. Id. § 1906. House districts may have no more than two members, Vt. Const. ch. II, § 13, but larger districts may be approved preliminarily subject to further subdivision. See 17 V.S.A. § 1906a(c). Similarly, two-member districts may be subdivided at that time. Id. § 1906a(b). The boards of civil authority within districts that are subdivided must prepare a proposal for drawing the internal lines within the districts, based on considerations of incumbencies in addition to the statutory criteria specified above. Id. §§ 1906b(b), (c) and 1906c(b), (c). The proposal is referred to the appropriate legislative committee, and eventually the General Assembly, which shall approve the House districts proposed by the town boards if they are consistent with the standards set forth in the statutes. Id. §§ 1906b(e), (f) and 1906c(e), (f). If a majority of the town boards fail to agree to a subdivision proposal for a two-member House district, the Legislature may divide the initial district into single-member representative districts. Id. § 1906b(e). If a majority of the town boards fail to agree to a subdivision proposal for a House district with three or more representatives, the Legislature shall divide the initial district into representative districts. Id. § 1906c(e). [1] Any five citizens may petition this Court, which has original and exclusive jurisdiction, for review of a final House or Senate plan. See id. § 1909(a). If this Court finds the plan in violation of constitutional or statutory requirements, it must forward its decision to the General Assembly and retain jurisdiction until the Legislature has approved a plan conforming to those requirements. Id. § 1909(e); see Vt. Const. ch. II, § 73 (authorizing Supreme Court to order reapportionment of legislative districts if Legislature fails to revise the districts as required). In the present case, the Legislative Apportionment Board proposed a Senate and a House plan, neither of which was accepted by the Legislature. The legislative committees devised their own plans, which were adopted by the Legislature in most respects. The initial multimember districts created by Act 116 were subdivided by Act 147, resulting in a final House plan with an overall deviation of 17.6%. [2] The Legislature approved a final Senate plan with an overall deviation of 16.4%. Five petitions challenged specific districts within the House plan, and one petition challenged the Senate plan. In all but one of the petitions, hearings were held before masters, who took testimony and made findings of fact. See 17 V.S.A. § 1909(d). We declined to order any interim relief, pending resolution of the petitions, and elections have proceeded under the new redistricting plans.