RÉSUMÉ DIGEST
HCR 90 2021 Regular Session Schexnayder
New Joint Rule provides for minimally acceptable criteria for consideration of redistricting
plans in the following manner:
(1)All redistricting plans must meet the following criteria:
(a)Compliance with the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and the
15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution; Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act
of 1965, as amended; and all other applicable federal and state law.
(b)Each district shall be composed of contiguous geography.
(c)(i)To the extent practicable, each district within a plan shall contain whole
election precincts as those are represented as Voting Districts (VTDs) in the
most recent Census Redistricting TIGER/Line Shapefiles for Louisiana which
corresponds to the P.L. 94-171 data released by the U.S. Bureau of the
Census for the decade in which the redistricting is to occur or if the
redistricting plan is submitted after the year in which the legislature is
required by Art. III, §6, of the Const. of La. to reapportion, then to the extent
practicable, the redistricting plan submitted for consideration shall contain
whole election precincts as those are represented as VTDs as validated
through the data verification program of the House and Senate in the most
recent Shapefiles made available on the website of the legislature.
(ii)If a VTD must be divided, it shall be divided into as few districts as
practicable using a visible census tabulation boundary or boundaries.
(d)All redistricting plans shall respect the established boundaries of parishes,
municipalities, and other political subdivisions and natural geography of this
state to the extent practicable; however, this criterion is subordinate to and
shall not be used to undermine the maintenance of communities of interest
within the same district to the extent practicable.
(e)The most recent P.L. 94-171 data released by the United States Bureau of the
Census, as validated through the data verification program of the House and
Senate, shall be the population data used to establish and for evaluation of
proposed redistricting plans.
(f)Each redistricting plan submitted by the public shall be submitted
electronically in a comma-delimited block equivalency file.
(2)In addition, redistricting plans for the House, Senate, PSC, and BESE shall meet the
following criteria:
(a)Single-member districts.
(b)Districts that are substantially equal in population. Therefore, under no
circumstances shall any plan be considered if the plan has an absolute
deviation of population which exceeds plus or minus 5% of the ideal district
population.
(c)A whole plan which assigns all of the geography of the state.
(d)Due consideration given to traditional district alignments to the extent
practicable.
(3)In addition, redistricting plans for congress shall meet the following criteria:
(a)Single-member districts. (b)Each district shall have a population as nearly equal to the ideal district
population as practicable.
(c)Be a whole plan which assigns all of the geography of the state.
(4)In addition, redistricting plans for the supreme court shall be a whole plan which
assigns all of the geography of the state.
Effective June 10, 2021.
(Adds Joint Rule No. 21)