Summary:
Idaho's 2000 legislative districts were created by a six-person, by-partisan commission, consisting of six commission members, three democrats and three republicans. This commission was given 90 days to redraw congressional and legislative district boundaries for the state of Idaho. Due to lawsuits, the process was extended. This legislative plan was approved by the commission on March 9th, 2000 and was previously called L97. All digital data originates from TIGER/Line files and 2000 US Census data.
Frequently asked questions:
How often are Idaho's legislative and congressional districts redrawn?
Once every ten years after each census, as required by law, or when directed by the Idaho Supreme Court. The most recent redistricting followed the 2000 census. Redistricting is not expected to occur again in Idaho until after the 2010 census.
Who redrew Idaho's legislative and congressional districts?
In 2001, for the first time, Idaho used a citizens' commission to redraw its legislative and congressional district boundaries. Before Idaho voters amended the state Constitution in 1994 to create a Redistricting Commission, redistricting was done by a committee of the Idaho Legislature. The committee's new district plans then had to pass the Legislature before becoming law.
Who was on the Redistricting Commission?
Idaho's first Commission on Redistricting was composed of Co-Chairmen Kristi Sellers of Chubbuck and Tom Stuart of Boise and Stanley. The other four members were Raymond Givens of Coeur d'Alene, Dean Haagenson of Hayden Lake, Karl Shurtliff of Boise, John Hepworth of Buhl (who resigned effective December 4, 2001), and Derlin Taylor of Burley (who was appointed to replace Mr. Hepworth).
What are the requirements for being a Redistricting Commissioner?
According to Idaho Law, no person may serve on the commission who:
1. Is not a registered voter of the state at the time of selection; or
2. Is or has been within one (1) year a registered lobbyist; or
3. Is or has been within two (2) years prior to selection an elected official or elected legislative district, county or state party officer. (This requirement does not apply to precinct committeepersons.)
The individual appointing authorities may consider additional criteria beyond these statutory requirements. Idaho law also prohibits a person who has served on the Redistricting Commission from serving in either house of the legislature for five years following their service on the commission.
When did Idaho's first Commission on Redistricting meet?
Idaho law allows the Commission only 90 days to conduct its business. The Redistricting Commission was formed on June 5, 2001. Its 90-day time period would expire on September 3, 2001. After holding hearings around the state in June and July, a majority of the Commission voted to adopt new legislative and congressional districts on August 22, 2001. On November 29th, the Idaho Supreme Court ruled the Commission's legislative redistricting plan unconstitutional and directed them to reconvene and adopt an alternative plan. The Commission did so, adopting a new plan on January 8, 2002. The Idaho Supreme Court found the Commission's second legislative map unconstitutional on March 1, 2002 and ordered the Commission to try again. The Commission adopted a third plan on March .9, 2000. The Supreme Court denied numerous challenges to this third map. It then became the basis for the 2002 primary and General elections and is expected to be used until the 2012 elections.
What is the basic timetable for Idaho to redraw its legislative and congressional districts?
Typically, and according to Idaho law, the Redistricting Commission cannot be formally convened until after Idaho has received the official census counts and not before June 1 of a year ending in one. Idaho's first Commission on redistricting was officially created on June 5, 2001.
By law, a Commission then has 90 days (or until September 3, 2001 in the case of Idaho's first Commission) to approve new legislative and congressional district boundaries based on the most recent census figures.
If at least four of the six commissioners fail to approve new legislative and congressional district plans before that 90-day time period expires, the Commission will cease to exist. The law is silent as to what happens next.
Could you summarize the important dates for Idaho's first Commission on Redistricting one more time please?
After January 1, 2001 but before April 1, 2001: As required by federal law, the Census Bureau must deliver to the states the small area population counts upon which redistricting is based. The Census Bureau determines the exact date within this window when Idaho will get its population figures. Idaho's were delivered on March 23, 2001.
Why conduct a census anyway?
The original and still primary reason for conducting a national census every ten years is to determine how the 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives are to be apportioned among the 50 states. Each state receives its share of the 435 seats in the U.S. House based on the proportion of its population to that of the total U.S. population. For example, the population shifts during the 1990's resulted in the Northeastern states losing population and therefore seats in Congress to the Southern and the Western states.
What is reapportionment?
Reapportionment is a federal issue that applies only to Congress. It is the process of dividing up the 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives among the 50 states based on each state's proportion of the total U.S. population as determined by the most recent census.
Apportionment determines the each state's power, as expressed by the size of their congressional delegation, in Congress and, through the electoral college, directly affects the selection of the president (each state's number of votes in the electoral college equals the number of its representatives and senators in Congress). Like all states, Idaho has two U.S. senators. Based on our 1990 population of 1,006,000 people and our 2000 population of 1,293,953, and relative to the populations of the other 49 states, Idaho will have two seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Even with the state's 28.5% population increase from 1990 to 2000, Idaho will not be getting a third seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Assuming Idaho keeps growing at the same rate it did through the decade of the 1990's, it will likely be 30 or 40 years (after 3 or 4 more censuses) before Idaho gets a third congressional seat.
What is redistricting?
Redistricting is the process of redrawing the boundaries of legislative and congressional districts within each state to achieve population equality among all congressional districts and among all legislative districts. The U.S. Constitution requires this be done for all congressional districts after each decennial census. The Idaho Constitution also requires that this be done for all legislative districts after each census.
The democratic principle behind redistricting is "one person, one vote." Requiring that districts be of equal population ensures that every elected state legislator or U.S. congressman represents very close to the same number of people in that state, therefore, each citizen's vote will carry the same weight.
How are reapportionment and redistricting related to the census?
The original and still primary reason for conducting a census every ten years is to apportion the (now) 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives among the several states. The census records population changes and is the legally recognized basis for redrawing electoral districts of equal population.
Why is redistricting so important?
In a democracy, it is important for all citizens to have equal representation. The political parties also see redistricting as an opportunity to draw districts that favor electing their members and, conversely, that are unfavorable for electing their political opposition. (It's for this reason that redistricting has been described as "the purest form of political bloodsport.")
What is PL 94-171?
Public Law (PL) 94-171 (Title 13, United States Code) was enacted by Congress in 1975. It was intended to provide state legislatures with small-area census population totals for use in redistricting. The law's origins lie with the "one person, one vote" court decisions in the 1960's. State legislatures needed to reconcile Census Bureau's small geographic area boundaries with voting tabulation districts (precincts) boundaries to create legislative districts with balanced populations. The Census Bureau worked with state legislatures and others to meet this need beginning with the 1980 census. The resulting Public Law 94-171 allows states to work voluntarily with the Census Bureau to match voting district boundaries with small-area census boundaries. With this done, the Bureau can report to those participating states the census population totals broken down by major race group and Hispanic origin for the total population and for persons aged 18 years and older for each census subdivision.
Idaho participated in the Bureau's Census 2000 Redistricting Data Program and, where counties used visible features to delineate precinct boundaries, matched those boundaries with census reporting areas. In those instances where counties did not use visible features to define their precinct boundaries, approximations of those precinct areas based on nearby visible features were submitted to the Census Bureau. As a result, Idaho will receive the 2000 census counts by small census area subdivision as well as by precinct. Receiving the census results in this fashion will aid Idaho's first Commission on Redistricting in drawing new legislative and congressional districts that are substantially equal in population and that do not discriminate racial or ethnic minorities.
What are TIGER/Line files?
The Census 2000 TIGER/Line files for Redistricting form a computerized map of the entire United States specifically intended to support the redrawing of legislative and congressional districts. TIGER is an acronym for "Topologically Integrated, Geographic Encoding and Referencing." They were first used in the 1990 census. The individual files are extracts from the Census Bureau's master computerized database of geographic features for the entire United States. The Census Bureau created this 1:100,000-scale digital map of all fifty states for the purposes of conducting a complete and accurate census in a cost-effective manner, and reporting the results to the states in a form most useful for redistricting.
The Census Bureau provides the TIGER/Line files to all interested parties in ASCII text format only, NOT in the form of map images. To create maps with the TIGER/Line files, one would typically use Geographic Information System (GIS) or other mapping software. When used together, the TIGER/Line files and the PL 94-171 data form a computerized map and attribute database designed specifically for redistricting.
How many people does each of Idaho's two U.S. congressmen represent?
Based on the 1990 census, each Idaho congressman represented close to 503,400 people after the last redistricting ten years ago. As the decade progressed and Idaho experienced rapid growth, particularly in its urban areas, the population of the two congressional districts have grown unevenly and beyond that ideal size. Based on 2000 census figures, our two congressmen will each represent about 647,000 people.
What about our two U.S. senators?
Unlike in the U.S. House of Representatives, representation in the U.S. Senate is not based on a state's population. Each state gets two Senate seats regardless of how large or small - population wise - they are. Therefore, each state's two U.S. senators represent all of that state's citizens. The 1990 census determined Idaho's population to be 1,006,749. The 2000 census determined our population to be 1,293,953.
How many people does each state legislator represent?
Idaho had 35 legislative districts during the 1990's - the Idaho Constitution says that there can be no less than 30 nor more than 35 legislative districts.
Each legislative district is represented by one senator and two representatives. Since Idaho's legislative districts are not further split into two House of Representative districts, both representatives, like the senator, serve the entire district. Based on the 1990 census, each state legislator represented about 28,800 people after the last redistricting ten years ago. As the decade progressed and Idaho experienced rapid growth, particularly in its urban areas, the population of many legislative districts has grown far beyond that ideal size. Based on 2000 census figures, each of the 105 state legislators will represent about 37,000 people to start off the first decade of the third millennium.