HomeMy WebLinkAbout1991-03-13 - AGENDA REPORTS - CA ELECTIONS REPPORTIONMEN (2)I
CONSENT CALENDAR
DATE: March 13, 1991
AGENDA REPORT
City Manager Approval
Item to be presented by- *
Michael P. Murnhv
SUBJECT: California Senate Elections and Reapportionment
Committee Hearing
DEPARTMENT: City Manager
BACKGROUND
Every ten years, upon certification of the Federal Census, new district
boundaries are drawn for elective offices based upon population. These new
district lines are drawn by the State Legislature with approval by the Governor.
In preparation for the reconfiguration of new Congressional; State Senate and
Assembly districts, the Senate Elections and Reapportionment Committee has
scheduled a series of hearings throughout California. The purpose of these
hearings is to obtain information.relative to changed community demographics
since legislative lines were last drawn in 1982.
The City of Santa Clarita has been invited to participate in the March 22, 1991
hearing in Los Angeles. Attached is the notice of hearing and specific issues
of interest to the Elections and Reapportionment Committee.
The City Council Legislative Committee discussed this issue at their March 5,
1991, meeting. It was determined that testimony should be presented at the
hearing outlining the City's concerns relative to reapportionment.
In addition to the issues requested by the Senate Elections and.Reapportionment
Committee, the City Council Legislative Committee identified additional points
to be included in the City's testimony.
Thesesupplementarypoints are:
- Two Assembly Districts should comprise one Senate District.
- Districts should be as compact as possible.
- Communities should be retained in a single legislative district.
- Communities with similar regional or subregional concerns
should be retained in a single legislative district.
RECOMMENDATION q�
Discuss.
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CHAIR FAX '9161 327 7229
1100 J STREET SUITE 332
SACRAMENTO CA 95815
9181 327-¢68
February 22, 1991
Mayor
City of Santa Clarita
1st Floor
23920 Valencia Blvd.
Santa Clarita, CA 91355
Dear Friend:
On behalf of the Elections and Reapportionment Committee of the
California State Senate, I.would respectfully invite your
participation at a hearing on the 1991 Senate and Congressional
redistricting for Los Angeles, the San Gabriel and the San
Fernando Valleys. In order to maximize participation in this
large and diverse area, two hearings will be held. Your
participation is requested at the hearing affecting your area.
The first hearing, which will focus primarily on the east side
of Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley is scheduled for
Saturday,.March 9, 1991, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the State
Office Building, 107. S. Broadway, Room 1138, Los Angeles. If you
are interested in offering either written or oral testimony,
please contact either Fran Burton (916/327-1288) or Tim Hodson
(916/445-2601) by March 1, 1991.
on
from 9:30 a.m. to
Broadway, Room 113
offering either wr
and
As you may know, both the federal and state -Constitutions require
decennial adjustments of congressional, legislative, and Board of
Equalization district boundaries to ensure population equality and
protection of minority voting rights. In order to provide ample
opportunity for public participation, the State Senate is conducting
an extensive series of public hearings throughout the state. The
Los Angeles hearings are next in a series of thirteen hearings
which comprise the first phase of this effort. Additional hearings
will be held later in the year when specific data and proposals are
ready for public review.
February 22, 1991
Page 2
The purposeof these initial hearings.is.to.solicit general
testimony_ on. factors and concerns' -which we"should take into
consideration once the official census data arrives next Sri_ng.
Simply_stated, this is an opport'unity for the Commi't_tee to hear
about ... y_our_community. Although our principal focus'at this time
is the redistricting of the state Senate, we are also interested
in testimony regarding Congressional redistricting. Consequently,
the Committee would be particularly interested in any.information
you may have regarding:
-- the changing demographics in your area, especially in
terms of racial, ethnic and/or language minority groups;
-- political and voting rights concerns of racial, ethnic,
and/or language minority groups;
-- local communities of interest; where are such communities
located, how are they defined, what, if any, part do such
communities play in the local planning, zoning and other
processes;
-- the accuracy of the federal census in your area.
The hearings to date have been very productive and have generated
considerable interest. Witnesses have outlined the human
boundaries of various communities, such as Little Saigon in Orange
County; offered suggestions for clustering counties in legislative
districts, and detailed geographic and socioeconomic communities
of interest which should be protected by redistricting. This type
of testimony provides the Committee with much more than is
available from mere population figures and will make the.task of
drawing district lines easier.
These hearings and your cooperation and participation are essential
to our commitment to develop a fair and effective redistricting and
to protect the voting rights of minorities. Since I anticipate a
great deal of interest, I request that you assist us by scheduling
testimony. While flexibility in scheduling is desirable, it may
not always be possible to accommodate all unscheduled testimony.
I am committed to a fair, effective and representative process.
I believe that itis possible, even in the politically charged
world of redistricting and reapportionment, to work together in
a positive manner. In that hope, I look forward to hearing from
you soon.
February 22, 1991
Page 3
Please.do not hesitate to contact me or the Committee staff if ,you
have any questions regarding these hearings, future hearings or any
other matter.
Si erely,
7w
44
MILTON MARKS
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