Today’s Proposed Congressional Districts

The unveiling of the Massachusetts Congressional redistricting maps signals that the committee and the legislature are now focused on perhaps the most important element of this year’s effort.

Given the importance of the necessary changes in our congressional districts, transparency and inclusiveness are absolutely critical to the process of approving these maps. What began with extensive public hearings, which centered largely around changes in Congressional districts, must continue now that the time to make decisions is approaching.

Unfortunately the committee did not meet to discuss the maps that were put forth today prior to their release, and that limited the role of the committee members in producing them.

Now, however, as we continue to digest the numbers and the details of the maps presented today, it is imperative that legislators and the public have sufficient time to understand what is being proposed and offer comment before any more decisions are made. Should doing so mean returning to formal session for a day past the scheduled date for the end of those sessions, then we should do exactly that.

Please click here to view an image of the proposed congressional map and to read more about the redistricting process.

New Districts Approved

Today the House and the Senate voted to approve new districts for each of the legislative bodies and the Executive Council. The new maps, which were approved, are based on the information produced by the most recent (2010) federal census and the work of the Special Committee on Redistricting. You can view the maps depicting these new districts by clicking here.

Still pending in the legislative process are the state’s Congressional districts, which must be redesigned to reflect the results of the 2010 Federal Census. These districts are likely losing one seat in Congress, and all of the remaining 9 districts must be reconfigured as to accommodate the redistribution of the total population.

Votes to Note: UI Rates and Joint Redistricting Committee

On Thursday the Massachusetts State Senate unanimously engrossed a bill that would freeze the unemployment insurance rate for this calendar year. The bill, “An Act Relative to Unemployment Insurance Rates”, was drafted to help provide economic relief for businesses by freezing a scheduled unemployment insurance rate increase and marks the second year in a row that the Senate has taken this course of action. Freezing the unemployment insurance rate will prevent additional financial strains from contributing to the overhead costs to businesses and will provide the flexibility needed for some businesses to expand or retain jobs. The bill is now awaiting action in the House of Representatives. Following the vote I released a statement that can be viewed by clicking “Read more” below.

Also during last week’s formal session, the Senate acted to reauthorize and modify the committee charged with developing new state legislative and congressional districts. Our caucus opposed this action because we persist in our belief that the redistricting process should include the benefit of an independent redistricting committee. Senate Republicans moved for a roll call vote on this issue, and the bill, “An Act Relative to Establishing a Special Joint Committee on Redistricting”, was engrossed by a vote of 34-4.

To view the actual votes taken by the members of the Senate please click the “Read more” link below.




Senate Bill 8, “An Act Relative to Unemployment Insurance Rates”

Roll Call Votes: Yea/Nay

Frederick E. Berry Yea
Stephen M. Brewer Yea
Gale D. Candaras Yea
Harriette L. Chandler
Yea
Sonia Chang-Diaz Yea
Katherine Clark Yea
Cynthia Stone Creem
Yea
Sal N. DiDomenico Yea
Kenneth J. Donnelly Yea
Eileen Donoghue Yea
Benjamin B. Downing
Yea
James B. Eldridge Yea
Susan C. Fargo
Did not vote
Barry Finegold Yea
Jennifer L. Flanagan Yea
John Hart
Yea
Robert L. Hedlund
Yea
Patricia D. Jehlen Yea
Brian A. Joyce
Yea
John Keenan Yea
Thomas P. Kennedy
Yea
Michael R. Knapik
Yea
Thomas M. McGee
Yea
Mark C. Montigny
Yea
Michael O. Moore Yea
Richard T. Moore
Yea
Senate President Therese Murray Yea
Marc Pacheco Did not vote
Anthony Petruccelli Yea
Michael Rodrigues Yea
Stanley C. Rosenberg
Did not vote
Richard J. Ross Yea
Michael Rush Did not vote
Karen E. Spilka Yea
Bruce E. Tarr
Yea
James E. Timilty Yea
Steven A. Tolman
Yea
James Welch
Yea
Daniel Wolf
Yea

36-0

Senate Bill 9, “An Act Relative to Establishing a Special Joint Committee on Redistricting”

Roll Call Votes: Yea/Nay


Steven A. Baddour Yea
Frederick E. Berry Yea
Stephen M. Brewer Yea
Gale D. Candaras Yea
Harriette L. Chandler
Yea
Sonia Chang-Diaz Yea
Katherine Clark Yea
Cynthia Stone Creem
Yea
Sal N. DiDomenico Yea
Kenneth J. Donnelly Yea
Eileen Donoghue Yea
Benjamin B. Downing
Yea
James B. Eldridge Yea
Susan C. Fargo
Did not vote
Barry Finegold Yea
Jennifer L. Flanagan Yea
John Hart
Yea
Robert L. Hedlund
Nay
Patricia D. Jehlen Yea
Brian A. Joyce
Yea
John Keenan Yea
Thomas P. Kennedy
Yea
Michael R. Knapik
Nay
Thomas M. McGee
Yea
Mark C. Montigny
Yea
Michael O. Moore Yea
Richard T. Moore
Yea
Senate President Therese Murray Did not vote
Marc Pacheco Did not vote
Anthony Petruccelli Yea
Michael Rodrigues Yea
Stanley C. Rosenberg
Yea
Richard J. Ross Nay
Michael Rush Did not vote
Karen E. Spilka Yea
Bruce E. Tarr
Nay
James E. Timilty Yea
Steven A. Tolman
Yea
James Welch
Yea
Daniel Wolf
Yea

32-4

Votes to Note: Senate Rules Re-Districting Amendment

Today the Massachusetts Senate has begun debate on the Rules for the 2011-2012 Legislative Session. One amendment that the Senate Republican Caucus filed ordered the establishment of an independent re-districting commission. The commission would strengthen the redistricting process by including an independent perspective with the drawing of new congressional and state district lines, unfortunately it failed by a roll call vote of 5-34.

To view the text of the amendment or the actual vote taken by the members of the Senate please click the “Read more” link. Below is also a recent State House News article further detailing the debate establishing an independent re-districting commission.

Senate Dems Scuttle Independent Redistricting Panel







Relative to establishing an independent redistricting commission



Messrs. Tarr, Knapik, Hedlund and Ross move to amend the order (Senate, No. 6), by inserting after joint rule 1G the following new rule:

“1H. An independent redistricting commission, herein referred to as the commission, shall be convened and shall divide the commonwealth into congressional districts, 160 representative districts, 40 senatorial districts, and eight councilor districts. The federal census shall be the basis for determining congressional districts for the ten year period beginning with the first Wednesday of the third January following the commencement of the taking of said census. All districts shall comprise contiguous territory, shall be equal in population to the extent required by law, and shall comply with federal constitutional and statutory requirements. No district shall be drawn for the purpose or with the effect of diluting the voting strength of any group based on race, ethnicity or language minority status, or for the purpose of augmenting or diluting the voting strength of a political party, or any individual. In drawing district lines, the commission shall not consider residential address, party affiliation, or partisan voting history of any individual or groups of individuals, except to the extent necessary to avoid dilution of voting strength based on race, ethnicity or language minority status. In addition, to the maximum extent possible, district boundaries shall be drawn so as to: (1) maintain the unity of well-defined municipal neighborhoods; (2) observe municipal boundaries; (3) establish senatorial districts that follow representative district boundaries; (4) establish councilor districts that follow representative district boundaries and (5) promote geographic compactness of districts. If it is not possible to draw district boundaries that fully comply with these criteria while also complying with the mandatory requirements set forth herein, then districts shall be drawn to optimize the criteria in the order of priority set forth hereinabove. The commission shall also consider communities of interest in determining which cities, towns, or neighborhoods thereof to aggregate into a single district.

Within 30 days of the passage of this act, the following offices shall each appoint one member of the commission: the governor of the commonwealth, who shall appoint a dean or professor of law or political science or government at an institution of higher learning in the commonwealth; the attorney general of the commonwealth, who shall appoint a retired justice who resides in the commonwealth; and the secretary of the commonwealth, who shall appoint an expert in civil rights law who is a resident of the commonwealth.



By the same date, the house speaker, the house minority leader, the senate president, and the senate minority leader shall each nominate three individuals. The appointees chosen by the governor, attorney general, and secretary of the commonwealth shall then select one of the three nominees named by each said official within 7 days of their nomination.

If nominations or appointments are not made within 30 days of the passage of this act, the office responsible for making the appointment or nominations shall forfeit its rights under this section and the remaining direct appointees shall then make an appointment to fill the vacancy within 7 days. Nominations and appointments shall reflect the geographic, racial, ethnic, gender, and age diversity of the commonwealth to the maximum extent feasible and shall be selected on the basis of civic involvement and knowledge of redistricting policy, civil rights, political science, demographics or statistics, election expertise, voting rights, community organizing, or law. No person nominated or appointed to the commission, in the five years preceding such nomination or appointment, shall have held Congressional, state legislative or statewide elective office, or shall have served as mayor or city councilor of a city in the commonwealth, governor’s councilor, or shall have been elected to a state or federal party committee; or shall be a current employee, agent or family member of any of the above; or, in the two years preceding such nomination or appointment, shall have been a legislative agent. The commissioners shall agree: (1) not to stand for election to the general court, congress, or the governor’s council until districts are redrawn following the next census; (2) to apply the provisions of this article in an honest, independent, and impartial fashion; and (3) to act at all times so as to uphold public confidence in the integrity of the redistricting process.



The commission shall be convened no later than 60 days following the passage of this act. The commission shall disband only upon final adoption and exhaustion of judicial review of challenges to representative, councilor, and senatorial districts.



The commission shall hire staff and may retain experts to assist it in the performance of its duties. The commission shall establish rules governing its operation and procedures. Commissioners may receive compensation for actual time spent on commission duties and shall be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary expenses. The budget of the commonwealth shall provide adequate funding for the operation of the commission.



A member of the commission or an appointing authority may petition the supreme judicial court to remove a commissioner on the grounds of neglect, misconduct, or inability to perform the duties of a commissioner. A vacancy so created shall be filled by the office which appointed the removed commissioner or by the nomination and selection process set forth in section 6, as applicable.



All meetings of the commission shall be open to the public, consistent with the laws of the commonwealth concerning open meetings as of the date of the adoption of this Article. All documents produced by or for the commission shall be public. The commission shall hold public hearings in at least five geographically disbursed counties. The public shall be afforded the opportunity to submit proposed maps for consideration by the commission and the commission shall make map-making software available for public use. The commission shall take all steps necessary to ensure that the public can exercise its right to review and comment on proposed district maps before they are approved and shall publish all preliminary and final plans in publicly accessible forums that are free of charge and that ensure wide public distribution. Proposed districts shall be presented in both graphic and narrative form.



No later than April 20, 2011, the commission shall prepare and publish for public comment a preliminary plan for representative, councilor, and senatorial districts. The public shall have a three-week period to comment on the preliminary district plan. The commission may revise the preliminary district plan in response to public comment and shall, no later than May 11, 2011, submit the revised plan to the special joint committee on redistricting, as created by order of the general court, as adopted by the senate on January 29, 2009 and adopted by the house on March 5, 2009, which shall vote on the revised plan. If the plan is rejected by either the committee or the general court, the commission shall prepare, publish, revise, and submit a second-round preliminary district plan in the same manner as the first within 30 days of the rejection of the initial plan. Following the three-week period for public comment, the commission may revise the preliminary district plan in response to public comment and shall submit the revised plan to the joint committee for a vote no later than July 29, 2011.



With respect to each plan the commission submits to the joint committee for a vote, the vote must be taken within two weeks of submission. No amendments to the plan as submitted may be made. If the plan is approved by a majority of the joint committee present and voting, or if no vote is taken within the two-week period, it shall be submitted to the general court for a vote. With respect to each plan the joint committee submits to the general court for a vote, the vote must be taken within two weeks of submission. No amendments to the plan as submitted may be made. If the plan is approved by a majority of the members of the house of representatives and the senate present and voting or if no vote is taken within the two-week period, then the plan as submitted shall become law.



Original jurisdiction is hereby vested in the supreme judicial court upon the petition of any voter of the commonwealth for judicial relief relative to the establishment of the congressional districts. The general court may by law limit the time within which judicial proceedings may be instituted to challenge any redistricting map."




Roll Call Votes: Yea Nay


Steven A. Baddour: Nay
Frederick E. Berry: Nay
Stephen M. Brewer: Nay
Gale D. Candaras: Nay
Harriette L. Chandler: Nay
Sonia Chang-Diaz: Nay
Katherine Clark: Nay
Cynthia Stone Creem: Nay
Sal N. DiDomenico: Nay
Kenneth J. Donnelly: Nay
Eileen Donoghue: Nay
Benjamin B. Downing: Nay
James B. Eldridge: Yea
Susan C. Fargo: Nay
Barry Finegold: Nay
Jennifer L. Flanagan: Nay
John Hart: Nay
Robert L. Hedlund: Yea
Patricia D. Jehlen: Nay
Brian A. Joyce: Nay
John Keenan: Nay
Thomas P. Kennedy: Nay
Michael R. Knapik: Yea
Thomas M. McGee: Nay
Joan M. Menard: Nay
Mark C. Montigny: Nay
Michael O. Moore: Nay
Richard T. Moore: Nay
Senate President Therese Murray: Did Not Vote
Marc R. Pacheco: Nay
Anthony Petruccelli: Nay
Michael Rodrigues: Nay
Stanley C. Rosenberg: Nay
Richard J. Ross: Yea
Michael Rush: Nay
Karen E. Spilka: Nay
Bruce E. Tarr: Yea
James E. Timilty: Nay
Steven A. Tolman: Nay
James Welch: Nay
Daniel Wolf: Nay

Objectivity in Redistricting

Today the Senate Minority Caucus released this press release in response to the need for an independent redistricting commission:



Senate Republicans call for independent redistricting commission


BOSTON – Seeking to infuse the redistricting process with objectivity and avoid the legal challenges that have tarnished the process in the past, the Senate Republican Caucus is calling for the establishment of an independent redistricting commission to assist lawmakers in the drawing of new legislative boundaries for members of Congress, the Legislature and the Governor’s Council.

Senate Republicans have filed language to create the new advisory commission, which will be charged with developing a redistricting plan that will be subject to legislative approval prior to its implementation. The Senate is scheduled to take up the proposal as part of its rules debate on Thursday, January 20, but the Caucus will also be filing it as a stand-alone bill for the 2011-2012 session.

“The voting rights of every citizen in the Commonwealth are affected by redistricting, and it requires our strongest efforts,” said Senate Minority Leader Bruce E. Tarr. “The commission we are proposing would infuse objectivity and expertise into a very complex process that would benefit from both. Our voters deserve the best we can give to redistricting, and the commission would provide guidance free from the traditional politics that have decided who we send to Beacon Hill and Capitol Hill.”

The League of Women Voters, Common Cause, former Governor Mitt Romney and Governor Deval Patrick have all endorsed the concept of an independent redistricting commission in the past. A MassINC poll released earlier this month shows that 62 percent of Massachusetts residents also favor using such a commission.

“Poll after poll has shown the public has grown tired of the traditional political games surrounding redistricting,” noted Senator Michael R. Knapik. “An independent commission would ensure that districts are apportioned appropriately in an impartial manner guided by principle and rooted in fairness. This legislature should move beyond power plays and parochialism and adopt districts that make historical, geographic, and economic sense.”

Senate Republicans have proposed creating a seven-member redistricting commission, which would be comprised entirely of non-elected individuals who would be selected based on their civic involvement and their knowledge of redistricting policy, civil rights, political science, voting rights and other areas of expertise. The proposal also requires that the members reflect, as much as possible, the geographic, racial, ethnic, gender and age diversity of the state’s population.

Under the proposal, the Governor would appoint a dean or professor of law, political science or government from a Massachusetts institution of higher learning, while the Attorney General would select a retired justice and the Secretary of State would name an expert in civil rights law. To ensure bipartisan balance on the commission, the four remaining members would be chosen from a list of nominees submitted by the House Speaker, House Minority Leader, Senate President and Senate Minority Leader.

“The concept of an independent commission clearly favored by Massachusetts residents, will take the politics out of the process and in so doing help to ensure fairness and integrity in our electoral process,” said Senate Minority Whip Robert L. Hedlund.

The Caucus proposal calls for the commission to hold public hearings across the state, and to release a preliminary redistricting plan for public comment no later than April 20, 2011. A final, revised plan would be submitted to the Legislature’s redistricting committee by July 29, 2011.

“It is imperative that the redistricting process not only be fair but free of political influence,” said Senator Richard J. Ross. “By establishing an independent redistricting commission, I believe we will be able to obtain the best legislative districts possible while making sure all constituents are well represented.”

An Issue of Fair Representation

An article by Brian Mooney in today’s Boston Globe highlights the importance of a fair redistricting process. Senate Republicans are continuing to advocate for an independent mechanism to focus on how Congressional and State legislative districts should be drawn to achieve the best possible representation for the citizens of the Commonwealth.

Globe Redistricting Article

A Recent Salem News Editorial

A recent editorial in the Salem News makes some compelling points about an independent redistricting process.

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