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Report regarding a fourth public hearing to receive a report from the city’s demographer, National Demographic Corporation (NDC) regarding the redrawing of district maps for the City of South San Francisco. (Rosa Govea Acosta, City Clerk and Kristen Parks, National Demographics Corporation)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
It is recommended that the City Council: (1) receive a report from the City’s demographer, NDC, who has prepared a district map from public input and Council feedback; and (2) conduct a fourth public hearing to receive public input on district boundaries and provide direction regarding the proposed map revision.
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BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
Every ten years, cities with by-district election systems must use new census data to review and, if needed, redraw district lines to reflect how local populations have changed. This process, called redistricting, ensures all districts have nearly equal population. The redistricting process for the City of South San Francisco must be completed by April 17, 2022.
The city adopted its current district boundaries on July 11, 2018, based on 2010 census data as required by law. Once the data is evaluated, and if found to be imbalanced, the city must redraw districts in compliance with the FAIR MAPS Act adopted by the California legislature as AB 849 and took effect January 1, 2020.
Under the Act, the council must draw and adopt boundaries using the following criteria in the listed order of priority (Elec. Code §21601) for general law cities:
1. Comply with federal requirements of equal population and the Voting Rights Act.
2. Geographically contiguous.
3. Undivided neighborhoods and “communities of interest”.
4. Easily identifiable boundaries.
5. Compact (do not bypass one group of people to get to a more distant group of people).
6. Shall not favor or discriminate against a political party.
By law, the city must hold at least four public hearings, at an affixed time, to inform the public about the process and solicit community member input before adopting a final map:
• At least one public hearing before Council draws a map;
• At least two public hearings must happen after Council draws a map;
• At least one hearing, or workshop/community meeting, must be held on a Saturday or Sunday.
The public is requested to provide input regarding communities of interest and other local factors that should be considered while drafting district maps. A community of interest under the relevant Elections Code for cities (Section 21601(c), 21621(c)) is a “population that shares common social or economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation.” Possible features defining community of interest might include, but are not limited to:
• School attendance areas;
• Natural dividing lines such as major roads, hills, or highways;
• Areas around parks and other neighborhood landmarks;
• Common issues, neighborhood activities, or legislative/election concerns; and
• Shared demographic characteristics, such as:
-Similar levels of income, education, or linguistic isolation;
-Languages spoken at home; and
-Single-family and multi-family housing unit areas.
On April 22, 2021, the city entered into an agreement with National Demographics Corporation (NDC) to guide and support the City Council through the redistricting process. NDC presented the information to Council on June 9, 2021, and on June 23, 2021, the City Council chose to continue the redistricting process without a commission. On October 13, 2021, NDC presented the 2020 final Census Data for the City of South San Francisco.
The City Council held the first public hearing on July 14, 2021, the second public hearings on December 1, 2021, and the third public hearing on January 26, 2022, to receive community input regarding district boundaries and solicit draft maps.
PROPOSED REDISTRICTING SCHEDULE
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Date |
Details |
|
February 23, 2022 |
4th Public Hearing to discuss and revise draft maps |
|
March 9, 2022 |
Adopt final map as ordinance |
|
November 8, 2022 |
District election with new districts |
Community members that require translation services, including American Sign Language, may solicit these services in advance (72-hours) to the City Clerk's office.
MAPPING TOOLS
Draft maps were due on Tuesday, January 18, 2022. A total of four maps were submitted for Council’s consideration and posted to the city’s Redistricting website for public viewing.
NEXT STEPS
The City Council will adopt the final map on March 9, 2022.
RELATIONSHIP TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN
The City’s Redistricting efforts will promote community participation and strengthen collaboration with County partners by contributing to the City’s Strategic Plan Priority
No. 6 - Community Connections.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with holding this public hearing.
CONCLUSION
It is recommended that the City Council: (1) receive a report from the City’s demographer, National Demographic Corporation, who has prepared a district map from public input and Council feedback; and (2) conduct a fourth public hearing to receive public input on district boundaries and provide direction regarding the proposed map revision.