By Wentworth S.J.R. No. 27
76R7563 JSA-D
A JOINT RESOLUTION
1-1 proposing a constitutional amendment to create the Texas
1-2 Redistricting Commission to establish legislative and congressional
1-3 districts and to revise the constitutional redistricting
1-4 provisions.
1-5 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Section 28, Article III, Texas Constitution, is
1-7 amended to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 28. (a) The Texas Redistricting Commission exercises
1-9 the legislative authority of this state to adopt redistricting
1-10 plans for the election of the Texas House of Representatives, Texas
1-11 Senate, and the members of the United States House of
1-12 Representatives elected from this state. Districts for those
1-13 legislative bodies may not be established or changed except as
1-14 provided by this section.
1-15 (b) The commission consists of five members selected as
1-16 follows:
1-17 (1) one member appointed by a majority vote of the
1-18 members of the Texas House of Representatives belonging to the
1-19 political party with the most members in the house of
1-20 representatives;
1-21 (2) one member appointed by a majority vote of the
1-22 members of the Texas House of Representatives belonging to the
1-23 political party with the second highest number of members in the
1-24 house of representatives;
2-1 (3) one member appointed by a majority vote of the
2-2 members of the Texas Senate belonging to the political party with
2-3 the most members in the senate;
2-4 (4) one member appointed by a majority vote of the
2-5 members of the Texas Senate belonging to the political party with
2-6 the second highest number of members in the senate; and
2-7 (5) one member appointed by an affirmative vote of not
2-8 less than three of the members of the commission selected under
2-9 Subdivisions (1) through (4) of this subsection.
2-10 (c) The member appointed under Subsection (b)(5) of this
2-11 section is a nonvoting member and serves as presiding officer of
2-12 the commission.
2-13 (d) Each member of the commission must be a resident of this
2-14 state. A person is not eligible to serve on the commission if the
2-15 person:
2-16 (1) is an elected public officer;
2-17 (2) holds an office in a political party other than
2-18 membership on a precinct committee; or
2-19 (3) has served in a position described by Subdivision
2-20 (1) or (2) of this subsection within the two years preceding the
2-21 date the person is appointed to the commission.
2-22 (e) The full term of a member of the commission begins on
2-23 February 1 of the year ending in one in which the initial
2-24 appointment to the position is required to be made and expires on
2-25 January 31 of the next year ending in one. A vacancy on the
2-26 commission is filled in the same manner as provided by this section
2-27 for the original appointment. The supreme court fills a vacancy
3-1 only if the initial appointing authority fails to fill the vacancy
3-2 on or before the 20th day after the date the vacancy occurs.
3-3 (f) A member of the commission may not be a candidate in an
3-4 election for the Texas Senate or Texas House of Representatives
3-5 before the second anniversary of the last date the commission
3-6 adopted a plan or modification of a plan for that body during the
3-7 person's service on the commission.
3-8 (g) A redistricting plan or modification of a redistricting
3-9 plan is adopted by a vote of not less than three members of the
3-10 commission.
3-11 (h) The members of the commission appointed under
3-12 Subsections (b)(1) through (4) of this section shall be appointed
3-13 not earlier than January 25 or later than January 31 of each year
3-14 ending in one. The member appointed under Subsection (b)(5) of
3-15 this section shall be appointed not later than the 30th day after
3-16 the commission convenes under Subsection (i) of this section. If a
3-17 member is not appointed in the time provided by this subsection,
3-18 the supreme court shall make the appointment before the sixth day
3-19 after the last date on which the initial appointing authority could
3-20 have made the appointment.
3-21 (i) The commission shall convene on the first business day
3-22 after January 31 of each year ending in one and shall adopt a
3-23 redistricting plan for the Texas Senate, Texas House of
3-24 Representatives, and the members of the United States House of
3-25 Representatives elected from this state not later than July 1 of
3-26 that year, unless the federal decennial census is delivered to the
3-27 appropriate officials of this state after May 1 of that year, in
4-1 which event the commission shall adopt those redistricting plans
4-2 not later than the 90th day after the date the census is delivered.
4-3 (j) If the commission does not adopt a plan within the time
4-4 required by Subsection (i) of this section, the commission's
4-5 authority to adopt a plan is suspended and the supreme court shall
4-6 adopt a plan for the applicable legislative body not later than
4-7 September 1 of the year in which the census is delivered, or the
4-8 60th day after the last date by which the commission is directed to
4-9 adopt a plan under Subsection (i) of this section, whichever date
4-10 is later.
4-11 (k) The commission may reconvene on the motion of at least
4-12 two of its voting members at any time after the adoption of the
4-13 initial state senate, state house, or congressional redistricting
4-14 plan to modify that plan if the plan becomes unenforceable by order
4-15 of a court or by action of any other appropriate authority or is
4-16 subject to legal challenge in a court proceeding. In modifying a
4-17 redistricting plan, the commission must comply with all applicable
4-18 standards imposed by this section, other provisions of this
4-19 constitution, and laws enacted under this section but is not
4-20 limited to modifications necessary to correct legal deficiencies.
4-21 (l) The commission may reconvene to adopt a redistricting
4-22 plan if the supreme court does not adopt a plan for the applicable
4-23 body in the time provided by Subsection (j) of this section, if the
4-24 supreme court is required to adopt a plan for that body because the
4-25 commission did not adopt an initial plan for that body as required
4-26 by Subsection (i) of this section.
4-27 (m) In a redistricting plan or modification of a plan
5-1 adopted under this section:
5-2 (1) each district must contain a population, excluding
5-3 nonresident military personnel, as nearly equal as practicable to
5-4 the population of any other district in the plan; and
5-5 (2) to the extent reasonable, each district must
5-6 contain contiguous territory, be compact and convenient, and be
5-7 separated from adjoining districts by natural geographic barriers,
5-8 artificial barriers, or political subdivision boundaries.
5-9 (n) The commission or supreme court may not draw a
5-10 redistricting plan purposely to favor or discriminate against any
5-11 political party or group.
5-12 (o) The legislature shall enact laws consistent with this
5-13 section to implement this section. The laws may include additional
5-14 qualifications for commission members and additional standards
5-15 applicable to redistricting plans.
5-16 (p) The legislature shall appropriate funds to enable the
5-17 commission to carry out its duties.
5-18 (q) The supreme court has original jurisdiction to hear and
5-19 decide cases involving congressional or state legislative
5-20 redistricting, including a case involving a redistricting plan
5-21 adopted by the supreme court under this section. A member of the
5-22 court is not disqualified from participating in a redistricting
5-23 case because the member has participated or may participate in the
5-24 adoption of a redistricting plan, but may recuse himself or herself
5-25 from the case.
5-26 (r) The commission shall convene for the first time on the
5-27 first business day after January 31, 2001. The commission may not
6-1 exercise any power under this section before that date. This
6-2 subsection expires January 1, 2002. [The Legislature shall, at its
6-3 first regular session after the publication of each United States
6-4 decennial census, apportion the state into senatorial and
6-5 representative districts, agreeable to the provisions of Sections
6-6 25, 26, and 26-a of this Article. In the event the Legislature
6-7 shall at any such first regular session following the publication
6-8 of a United States decennial census, fail to make such
6-9 apportionment, same shall be done by the Legislative Redistricting
6-10 Board of Texas, which is hereby created, and shall be composed of
6-11 five (5) members, as follows: The Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker
6-12 of the House of Representatives, the Attorney General, the
6-13 Comptroller of Public Accounts and the Commissioner of the General
6-14 Land Office, a majority of whom shall constitute a quorum. Said
6-15 Board shall assemble in the City of Austin within ninety (90) days
6-16 after the final adjournment of such regular session. The Board
6-17 shall, within sixty (60) days after assembling, apportion the state
6-18 into senatorial and representative districts, or into senatorial or
6-19 representative districts, as the failure of action of such
6-20 Legislature may make necessary. Such apportionment shall be in
6-21 writing and signed by three (3) or more of the members of the Board
6-22 duly acknowledged as the act and deed of such Board, and, when so
6-23 executed and filed with the Secretary of State, shall have force
6-24 and effect of law. Such apportionment shall become effective at
6-25 the next succeeding statewide general election. The Supreme Court
6-26 of Texas shall have jurisdiction to compel such Commission to
6-27 perform its duties in accordance with the provisions of this
7-1 section by writ of mandamus or other extraordinary writs
7-2 conformable to the usages of law. The Legislature shall provide
7-3 necessary funds for clerical and technical aid and for other
7-4 expenses incidental to the work of the Board, and the Lieutenant
7-5 Governor and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be
7-6 entitled to receive per diem and travel expense during the Board's
7-7 session in the same manner and amount as they would receive while
7-8 attending a special session of the Legislature. This amendment
7-9 shall become effective January 1, 1951.]
7-10 SECTION 2. Subsections (e) and (i), Section 7a, Article V,
7-11 Texas Constitution, are amended to read as follows:
7-12 (e) Unless the legislature enacts a statewide
7-13 reapportionment of the judicial districts following each federal
7-14 decennial census, the board shall convene not later than the first
7-15 Monday of June of the third year following the year in which the
7-16 federal decennial census is taken to make a statewide
7-17 reapportionment of the districts. The board shall complete its
7-18 work on the reapportionment and file its order with the secretary
7-19 of state not later than August 31 of the same year. If the
7-20 Judicial Districts Board fails to make a statewide apportionment by
7-21 that date, the Texas [Legislative] Redistricting Commission [Board]
7-22 established by Article III, Section 28, of this constitution shall
7-23 convene on September 1 of the same year to make a statewide
7-24 reapportionment of the judicial districts not later than the 90th
7-25 [150th] day after the final day for the Judicial Districts Board to
7-26 make the reapportionment.
7-27 (i) The legislature, the Judicial Districts Board, or the
8-1 Texas [Legislative] Redistricting Commission [Board] may not
8-2 redistrict the judicial districts to provide for any judicial
8-3 district smaller in size than an entire county except as provided
8-4 by this section. Judicial districts smaller in size than the
8-5 entire county may be created subsequent to a general election where
8-6 a majority of the persons voting on the proposition adopt the
8-7 proposition "to allow the division of ____________ County into
8-8 judicial districts composed of parts of ____________ County." No
8-9 redistricting plan may be proposed or adopted by the legislature,
8-10 the Judicial Districts Board, or the Texas [Legislative]
8-11 Redistricting Commission [Board] in anticipation of a future action
8-12 by the voters of any county.
8-13 SECTION 3. Section 26a, Article III, Texas Constitution, is
8-14 repealed.
8-15 SECTION 4. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
8-16 submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 2, 1999.
8-17 The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
8-18 following proposition: "The constitutional amendment to establish
8-19 the Texas Redistricting Commission to redistrict the Texas
8-20 Legislature and Texas congressional districts and to revise the
8-21 redistricting provisions of the Texas Constitution."