Amend Floor Amendment No. 1 by Darby to SB 3 by adding the following ARTICLE to the bill and renumbering the other ARTICLES of the bill accordingly:

ARTICLE III

SECTION 1.  If the redistricting plan described by Article II of this Act becomes unenforceable by order of a court as violative of state or federal law or if the plan may not be implemented because the plan has not been precleared as required by Section 5 of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, then the legislature adopts the following principles and standards as the policy of this state to guide a court or other entity in devising any interim or permanent plan for the districts used to elect members of the Texas House of Representatives:

(1)  the requirements of Section 26, Article III, Texas Constitution, regarding the maintaining of whole counties in the apportionment of house districts shall yield to the requirements of federal law, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965 or the federal constitution;

(2)  the house districts in total shall reflect the ethnic diversity of this state;

(3)  population deviations among house districts shall be reduced to the extent practicable, including among multiple house districts located entirely within a single county;

(4)  communities of interest shall be kept whole whenever possible;

(5)  splitting of county voting precincts and of voting blocs along racial lines shall be avoided whenever possible; and

(6)  ethic minority communities shall not be fragmented in any circumstances when they can elect candidates of their choice when retained in a single house district.