Bill Text: TX SJR1 | 2011 | 82nd Legislature 1st Special | Introduced
Bill Title: Proposing a constitutional amendment to establish certain principles and procedures for the drawing of congressional districts.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-06-03 - Filed [SJR1 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SJR1-Introduced.html
| By: Rodriguez | S.J.R. No. 1 | |
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| proposing a constitutional amendment to establish certain | ||
| principles and procedures for the drawing of congressional | ||
| districts. | ||
| BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Article III, Texas Constitution, is amended by | ||
| adding Section 28-a to read as follows: | ||
| Sec. 28-a. (a) The legislature's authority established by | ||
| Section 1 of this article includes the authority to enact | ||
| congressional redistricting plans for this state following a | ||
| federal decennial census. When enacting a congressional plan, the | ||
| legislature shall comply with the following principles to the | ||
| extent practicable and authorized by law: | ||
| (1) districts must keep intact identifiable | ||
| communities of interest defined by social, economic, racial, | ||
| ethnic, cultural, industrial, commercial, or geographic | ||
| commonalities; | ||
| (2) districts must respect the integrity of the | ||
| state's basic geographical regions; | ||
| (3) districts must be geographically compact and | ||
| composed of convenient contiguous territory; | ||
| (4) districts must be coterminous with the boundaries | ||
| of counties and municipalities and not unnecessarily divide | ||
| counties or municipalities; | ||
| (5) districts must be composed solely of undivided | ||
| census tracts; | ||
| (6) districts may not be drawn based on partisan | ||
| political considerations or with intent to favor or disfavor any | ||
| specific person, political party, or other organization; | ||
| (7) districts must be as nearly equal in population as | ||
| practicable and feasible in accordance with these principles; and | ||
| (8) redistricting plans must comply with state and | ||
| federal constitutional requirements. | ||
| (b) The Supreme Court of Texas has original jurisdiction of | ||
| a legal challenge to a congressional redistricting plan enacted by | ||
| the legislature. | ||
| (c) The legislature may not redistrict this state's | ||
| congressional districts more than once following each federal | ||
| decennial census except to replace a plan ordered by a court with a | ||
| plan enacted by the legislature. | ||
| SECTION 2. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be | ||
| submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 8, 2011. | ||
| The ballot shall be printed to provide for voting for or against the | ||
| proposition: "The constitutional amendment to establish fair | ||
| redistricting principles and procedures for the drawing of | ||
| congressional districts for the State of Texas." | ||
