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Report regarding providing direction to staff on how to proceed with the Council redistricting project of South San Francisco. (Rosa Govea Acosta, City Clerk; Kristen Parks, National Demographics Corporation)
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
It is recommended that the City Council provide direction to staff regarding whether the Council prefers to complete the redistricting process without a commission or using one of the three options to establish a Council Redistricting Commission.
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BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
The U.S. Constitution requires that everyone residing in the United States be counted every decade. The resulting Census data is used for geographically defining State and local legislative districts. This process is called “redistricting.” According to the California Elections Code, following each decennial Federal census, the Council using that census as a basis, shall adjust the boundaries of any or all the Council Districts so that the districts shall be as nearly equal in population as feasible. Although the City had a similar redistricting process in 2018, the State has made significant statutory reforms to the redistricting process since that time through the Fair Maps Act (AB 849), signed into law in October 2019. In 2018, when the City transitioned to District elections, the Council did not form a commission and completed the districting process with staff and NDC.
When redrawing district boundaries, the Council must comply with the requirements of the U.S. Constitution, California Constitution, the Federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the California Elections Code. These authorities require each district to have substantially equal population, generally prohibit using race as a predominate criterion for redrawing districts, and prohibit diluting the voting rights of racial or language minority communities. Additionally, based on the updated Elections Code, the updated district boundaries must be redrawn using the following state legal criteria listed in order of priority:
1. Council districts shall be geographically contiguous.
2. The geographic integrity of any local neighborhood or local community of interest shall be respected in a manner that minimizes its division.
3. Council district boundaries should be easily identifiable and understandable by residents.
4. Council districts shall be drawn to encourage geographical compactness in a manner that nearby areas of population are not bypassed in favor of more distant populations. Further, districts must not be redrawn to favor or discriminate against any political party.
OPTIONS:
The City Council may either take on the redistricting project responsibility without establishing a commission or may establish a Redistricting Commission. If the Council decides to complete the redistricting process without a commission, the Council will work directly with consultants and staff on the project. If the Council decides to create a Redistricting Commission, it has three options for the type of commission.
The list below outlines options for the three commission formats permitted by the Elections Code along with the corresponding level of responsibility of each. There are also membership eligibility requirements, which are summarized in Attachment A. Additionally, an overview of what we know other cities and ounties are doing is summarized in Attachment B.
1. Advisory Redistricting Commission: This Commission would recommend boundaries to the Council. The Council establishes the manner in which members are appointed to the Commission and makes the appointments, similar to other boards and commissions. City elected officials, family members, staff, or paid campaign staff of a City elected official cannot be appointed to this Commission.
2. Hybrid Redistricting Commission: This Commission would be directed by the Council to recommend two or more maps, after a public process, one of which the Council agrees to adopt without modification. This Commission may not be appointed directly by the Council, so the Council would have to first form a body to make the appointments to the Commission. The Council may recommend the manner in which members are appointed provided the application process is open to all eligible residents. Should the City pursue this option, a pre-defined appointment process would need to be established in order to select Commission members. Members of a Hybrid Commission are subject to similar preservice and post-service limitations as members of an Independent Commission, discussed below.
3. Independent Redistricting Commission: This Commission would be authorized by the Council to adopt new boundaries without returning to the Council for approval. This Commission may not be appointed directly by the Council, but the Council may recommend the manner in which members are appointed provided the application process is open to all eligible residents. Should the City pursue this option, a pre-defined appointment process would need to be established in order to select Commission members. Commissioners must pass an extensive list of possible disqualifications and there are post-service limitations on their ability to run for local office, serve on a local board or commission, seek city employment or otherwise contract with the City.
The Advisory Redistricting Commission would evaluate the existing boundaries of the Council Districts and develop options for boundary adjustments to account for population and demographic changes that have occurred between the 2020 and 2010 census. Public hearings will be conducted to consider any proposal to adjust the boundaries of a district. Ultimately the Advisory Redistricting Commission would make a recommendation to the Council for district boundaries, which would be subject to approval by the City Council.
KEY DATES & DEADLINES
Under current state law, the Council must adopt boundaries no later than 205 days prior to the City’s next regular election held after January 1, 2022. The City’s next regular election after January 1, 2022 is the statewide general election, which is presently scheduled for November 8, 2022. April 17, 2022 is 205 days prior to the November 8, 2022 general election.
Based on this, the Council would need to adopt an ordinance redrawing the Council boundaries no later than March 24, 2022. If the Council fails to adopt the new boundaries by April 17, 2022, the Council shall immediately file a petition with the Superior Court within five days for an order adopting district boundaries.
The U.S. Census Bureau typically releases census data by March. As a result of delays caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, this date has been postponed to September 30, 2021. The State will also need to reallocate State prisoners to their appropriate County, and it is anticipated that this will take up to 30 days before the final census data is received. Consequently, the City might not receive final census data until late October 2021.
PROPOSED TIMELINE:
The timeline is subject to change based on the release of census data and possible changes in state
deadlines through proposed legislation.
Ø May - June 2021: Project Planning & Initial Outreach
§ Determination of process and commission type, if any.
§ Determine public mapping tool.
§ Launch Redistricting Website.
§ Outreach begins.
Ø July - August 2021: Initial Data Analysis & Initial Hearings/Forums
§ Population, demographic, socio-economic analysis and matching.
§ Initial hearings including an overview of the redistricting laws and criteria.
§ July 14 and July 28, 2021 proposed dates for 1st and 2nd public hearing.
§ Additional outreach to the public.
Ø September 2021- March 2022: Draft Map Preparation & Review
§ 2020 Census total population counts released, and California Statewide Database completes “prison adjustments” of the data. Total population counts in outreach materials and mapping tools are updated with the official Census data.
§ Hearing(s) to review the draft maps, narrow down the list of initial draft maps, and provide direction on any desired new or revised maps.
Ø April 17, 2022: Map Adoption
§ The target date for adoption of the final map is March 24, 2022.
The City’s Redistricting efforts will ensure that Council districts comply with State requirements and achieve appropriate representation for South San Francisco constituents.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no increase in the city’s costs associated with the recommended action. If the Council chooses to form a committee, members will be appointed to serve on a volunteer basis. The City Clerk has retained the services of National Demographics Corporation (NDC) as the demographer and consultant for public outreach and to assist the City as this process moves forward. The current consultant cost is approximately $60,000 and sufficient appropriations are included in the FY 2020-21 Adopted Budget for the Office of the City Clerk.
CONCLUSION
It is recommended that the City Council provide direction to staff regarding whether the Council prefers to complete the redistricting process without a commission, or whether to use one of the commission options. If the Council prefers to use one of the commission options, it is recommended that the Council provide direction about what form of commission to use