| Old | New | Differences | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA | |
| 2 | 2 | SESSION 2025 | |
| 3 | - | H 1 | |
| 4 | - | HOUSE BILL 20 | |
| 3 | + | H D | |
| 4 | + | HOUSE BILL DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 5 | + | ||
| 5 | 6 | ||
| 6 | 7 | ||
| 7 | 8 | Short Title: Fair Maps Act. (Public) | |
| 8 | - | Sponsors: Representatives Harrison, Morey, Hawkins, and Prather (Primary Sponsors). | |
| 9 | - | For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site. | |
| 10 | - | Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House | |
| 11 | - | January 30, 2025 | |
| 12 | - | *H20-v-1* | |
| 9 | + | Sponsors: Representative Harrison. | |
| 10 | + | Referred to: | |
| 11 | + | ||
| 12 | + | *DRH40008 -MTy-16* | |
| 13 | 13 | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1 | |
| 14 | 14 | AN ACT TO AMEND THE NORTH CAROLINA CONSTITUTION TO PROVIDE FOR AN 2 | |
| 15 | 15 | INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING PROCESS, TO ESTABLISH THE NORTH 3 | |
| 16 | 16 | CAROLINA CITIZENS REDISTRICTING COMMISSION , AND TO MAKE 4 | |
| 17 | 17 | CONFORMING CHANGES TO THE GENERAL STATUTES . 5 | |
| 18 | 18 | The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 6 | |
| 19 | 19 | 7 | |
| 20 | 20 | PART I. INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING PROCESS 8 | |
| 21 | 21 | SECTION 1.(a) Section 3 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution reads as 9 | |
| 22 | 22 | rewritten: 10 | |
| 23 | 23 | "Sec. 3. Senate districts; apportionment of Senators. 11 | |
| 24 | 24 | The Senators shall be elected from districts. The General Assembly, at the first regular session 12 | |
| 25 | 25 | convening after the return of every decennial census of population taken by order of Congress, 13 | |
| 26 | 26 | shall revise the senate districts and the apportionment of Senators among those districts, subject 14 | |
| 27 | 27 | to the following requirements:Assembly shall establish an independent process to revise the 15 | |
| 28 | 28 | senate districts and the apportionment of Senators among those districts pursuant to Section 25 16 | |
| 29 | 29 | of this Article. 17 | |
| 30 | 30 | (1) Each Senator shall represent, as nearly as may be, an equal number of inhabitants, the 18 | |
| 31 | 31 | number of inhabitants that each Senator represents being determined for this purpose by dividing 19 | |
| 32 | 32 | the population of the district that he represents by the number of Senators apportioned to that 20 | |
| 33 | 33 | district; 21 | |
| 34 | 34 | (2) Each senate district shall at all times consist of contiguous territory; 22 | |
| 35 | 35 | (3) No county shall be divided in the formation of a senate district; 23 | |
| 36 | 36 | (4) When established, the senate districts and the apportionment of Senators shall remain 24 | |
| 37 | 37 | unaltered until the return of another decennial census of population taken by order of Congress." 25 | |
| 38 | 38 | SECTION 1.(b) Section 5 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution reads as 26 | |
| 39 | 39 | rewritten: 27 | |
| 40 | 40 | "Sec. 5. Representative districts; apportionment of Representatives. 28 | |
| 41 | 41 | The Representatives shall be elected from districts. The General Assembly, at the first regular 29 | |
| 42 | 42 | session convening after the return of every decennial census of population taken by order of 30 | |
| 43 | 43 | Congress, shall revise the representative districts and the apportionment of Representatives 31 | |
| 44 | 44 | among those districts, subject to the following requirements:Assembly shall establish an 32 | |
| 45 | 45 | independent process to revise the representative districts and the apportionment of 33 | |
| 46 | - | Representatives among those districts pursuant to Section 25 of this Article. 34 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 47 | - | Page 2 House Bill 20-First Edition | |
| 48 | - | (1) Each Representative shall represent, as nearly as may be, an equal number of 1 | |
| 49 | - | inhabitants, the number of inhabitants that each Representative represents being determined for 2 | |
| 50 | - | this purpose by dividing the population of the district that he represents by the number of 3 | |
| 51 | - | Representatives apportioned to that district; 4 | |
| 52 | - | (2) Each representative district shall at all times consist of contiguous territory; 5 | |
| 53 | - | (3) No county shall be divided in the formation of a representative district; 6 | |
| 54 | - | (4) When established, the representative districts and the apportionment of 7 | |
| 55 | - | Representatives shall remain unaltered until the return of another decennial census of population 8 | |
| 56 | - | taken by order of Congress." 9 | |
| 57 | - | SECTION 1.(c) Article II of the North Carolina Constitution is amended by adding 10 | |
| 58 | - | a new section to read: 11 | |
| 59 | - | "Sec. 25. Redistricting. 12 | |
| 60 | - | The General Assembly shall establish by law an independent process to revise electoral 13 | |
| 61 | - | districts for Congress and the General Assembly after the return of every decennial census of 14 | |
| 62 | - | population taken by order of Congress. The process shall meet at least all of the following 15 | |
| 63 | - | requirements: 16 | |
| 64 | - | (1) Neither the General Assembly nor the Governor shall have any role in revising 17 | |
| 65 | - | electoral districts for the General Assembly or the House of Representatives of the United States 18 | |
| 66 | - | Congress. 19 | |
| 67 | - | (2) Each member of the Senate and House of Representatives of the General Assembly 20 | |
| 68 | - | and the House of Representatives of the United States Congress shall represent, as nearly as may 21 | |
| 69 | - | be, an equal number of inhabitants. 22 | |
| 70 | - | (3) Each electoral district shall at all times consist of contiguous territory. 23 | |
| 71 | - | (4) When established, the electoral districts for the Senate and House of Representatives 24 | |
| 72 | - | of the General Assembly shall remain unaltered until the return of another decennial census of 25 | |
| 73 | - | population taken by order of Congress. 26 | |
| 74 | - | (5) Electoral districts adopted pursuant to the process shall have the force and effect of 27 | |
| 75 | - | acts of the General Assembly." 28 | |
| 76 | - | SECTION 1.(d) Subsection (5) of Section 22 of Article II of the North Carolina 29 | |
| 77 | - | Constitution reads as rewritten: 30 | |
| 78 | - | "(5) Other exceptions. Appointments to office. Every bill: 31 | |
| 79 | - | (a) In bill in which the General Assembly makes an appointment or appointments 32 | |
| 80 | - | to public office and which contains no other matter; 33 | |
| 81 | - | (b) Revising the senate districts and the apportionment of Senators among those 34 | |
| 82 | - | districts and containing no other matter; 35 | |
| 83 | - | (c) Revising the representative districts and the apportionment of Representatives 36 | |
| 84 | - | among those districts and containing no other matter; or 37 | |
| 85 | - | (d) Revising the districts for the election of members of the House of 38 | |
| 86 | - | Representatives of the Congress of the United States and the apportionment 39 | |
| 87 | - | of Representatives among those districts and containing no other matter, 40 | |
| 88 | - | matter shall be read three times in each house before it becomes law and shall 41 | |
| 89 | - | be signed by the presiding officers of both houses." 42 | |
| 90 | - | SECTION 1.(e) The amendments set out in subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this 43 | |
| 91 | - | section shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the State at the general election in November 44 | |
| 92 | - | 2026, which election shall be conducted under the laws then governing elections in the State. 45 | |
| 93 | - | Ballots, voting systems, or both may be used in accordance with Chapter 163 of the General 46 | |
| 94 | - | Statutes. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be: 47 | |
| 95 | - | "[ ] FOR [ ] AGAINST 48 | |
| 96 | - | A constitutional amendment providing for an independent redistricting process for 49 | |
| 97 | - | electoral districts for Congress and the General Assembly. The General Assembly would 50 | |
| 98 | - | establish the process but have no role in the revising of districts." 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 99 | - | House Bill 20-First Edition Page 3 | |
| 100 | - | SECTION 1.(f) If a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the 1 | |
| 101 | - | amendments set out in subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this section, the State Board of Elections 2 | |
| 102 | - | shall certify the amendments to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall enroll the 3 | |
| 103 | - | amendments so certified among the permanent records of that office. The amendments set out in 4 | |
| 104 | - | subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this section are effective upon certification. 5 | |
| 105 | - | SECTION 1.(g) Chapter 120 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new 6 | |
| 106 | - | Article to read: 7 | |
| 107 | - | "Article 1B. 8 | |
| 108 | - | "Redistricting. 9 | |
| 109 | - | "§ 120-4.50. Definitions. 10 | |
| 110 | - | As used in this Article, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions shall 11 | |
| 111 | - | apply: 12 | |
| 112 | - | (1) Census Bureau. – The United States Bureau of the Census. 13 | |
| 113 | - | (2) Commission. – The North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission 14 | |
| 114 | - | established pursuant to G.S. 120-4.55. 15 | |
| 115 | - | (3) Communities of interest. – Contiguous and cohesive populations of persons 16 | |
| 116 | - | that share common social, economic, or policy interests. Communities of 17 | |
| 117 | - | interest shall not include common relationships with political parties or 18 | |
| 118 | - | political candidates. Communities of interest include, but are not limited to, 19 | |
| 119 | - | populations that share any of the following characteristics: 20 | |
| 120 | - | a. A racial, cultural, geographic, or ethnic identity. 21 | |
| 121 | - | b. A common history of marginalization or discrimination. 22 | |
| 122 | - | c. Natural resources. 23 | |
| 123 | - | d. Excessive damage from past or present natural disasters or pollution. 24 | |
| 124 | - | e. An organized decision-making body. 25 | |
| 125 | - | (4) Congressional districts or plans. – Districts or plans for the House of 26 | |
| 126 | - | Representatives of the United States Congress. 27 | |
| 127 | - | (5) Federal census. – The decennial census required by federal law to be 28 | |
| 128 | - | conducted by the Census Bureau in every year ending in zero. 29 | |
| 129 | - | (6) Final plan. – A plan adopted by the Commission to be used for the purpose of 30 | |
| 130 | - | nominating and electing identified representatives. In accordance with Section 31 | |
| 131 | - | 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution, final plans shall have the 32 | |
| 132 | - | force and effect of acts of the General Assembly. 33 | |
| 133 | - | (7) Ideal population. – The number determined by dividing the number of 34 | |
| 134 | - | members in a plan into the population of the State as reported in the federal 35 | |
| 135 | - | census. 36 | |
| 136 | - | (8) Identified representative. – A member of the Senate or House of 37 | |
| 137 | - | Representatives of the General Assembly or a member of the House of 38 | |
| 138 | - | Representatives of the United States Congress. 39 | |
| 139 | - | (9) Legislative districts or plans. – Districts or plans for the Senate and House of 40 | |
| 140 | - | Representatives of the General Assembly. 41 | |
| 141 | - | (10) Metropolitan or micropolitan statistical areas. – Areas of the State defined as 42 | |
| 142 | - | metropolitan or micropolitan statistical areas by the Office of Management 43 | |
| 143 | - | and Budget of the United States. 44 | |
| 144 | - | (11) Plan. – A plan for legislative or congressional reapportionment drawn in 45 | |
| 145 | - | accordance with Section 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution 46 | |
| 146 | - | and this Article. 47 | |
| 147 | - | (12) Preliminary plan. – An initial plan released by the Commission for public 48 | |
| 148 | - | input at the beginning of the redistricting cycle. 49 | |
| 149 | - | (13) Proposed and alternative plans. – Plans released by the Commission following 50 | |
| 150 | - | public input. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 151 | - | Page 4 House Bill 20-First Edition | |
| 152 | - | (14) Public office. – Elective State, local, or federal office. 1 | |
| 153 | - | (15) Relative. – An individual who is related to the person in question as father, 2 | |
| 154 | - | mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, 3 | |
| 155 | - | husband, wife, grandfather, grandmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, 4 | |
| 156 | - | son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, 5 | |
| 157 | - | stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, or 6 | |
| 158 | - | half-sister. 7 | |
| 159 | - | "§ 120-4.55. North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission. 8 | |
| 160 | - | (a) Establishment. – There is established the North Carolina Citizens Redistricting 9 | |
| 161 | - | Commission in accordance with Section 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution to 10 | |
| 162 | - | prepare preliminary, proposed, and alternative plans and to adopt final plans for the purpose of 11 | |
| 163 | - | nominating and electing members of the Senate and House of Representatives of the General 12 | |
| 164 | - | Assembly and the House of Representatives of the United States Congress. 13 | |
| 165 | - | (b) Eligibility. – A resident of North Carolina is eligible to apply for membership on the 14 | |
| 166 | - | Commission if that person meets all of the following requirements: 15 | |
| 167 | - | (1) Has been a registered voter in North Carolina with the same party affiliation, 16 | |
| 168 | - | or lack thereof, for at least four years prior to commencement of service on 17 | |
| 169 | - | the Commission. This requirement does not apply to persons under the age of 18 | |
| 170 | - | 25. 19 | |
| 171 | - | (2) Has not contributed during one election cycle cumulatively more than two 20 | |
| 172 | - | thousand dollars ($2,000) to any candidate for public office. 21 | |
| 173 | - | (3) Does not hold public office. 22 | |
| 174 | - | (4) Is not any of the following: 23 | |
| 175 | - | a. A relative of (i) a current member of the General Assembly, (ii) a 24 | |
| 176 | - | current member of the North Carolina Council of State, or (iii) a 25 | |
| 177 | - | covered person, as defined in G.S. 138A-3(21). 26 | |
| 178 | - | b. A political appointee of the General Assembly. 27 | |
| 179 | - | c. A staff member or legal counsel to the General Assembly. 28 | |
| 180 | - | d. An official of a political party or a consultant or legal counsel to a 29 | |
| 181 | - | political party in the United States. 30 | |
| 182 | - | e. A candidate for public office. 31 | |
| 183 | - | (5) Has never done any of the following: 32 | |
| 184 | - | a. Been elected to serve in any of the following: 33 | |
| 185 | - | 1. The General Assembly or Congress at the time of or for any 34 | |
| 186 | - | period of time during the eight years preceding the date of his 35 | |
| 187 | - | or her application. 36 | |
| 188 | - | 2. Any other public office at the time of or for any period of time 37 | |
| 189 | - | during the four years preceding the date of his or her 38 | |
| 190 | - | application. 39 | |
| 191 | - | b. Held a political appointment. 40 | |
| 192 | - | c. Served as an elected or appointed officer of a political party, body, or 41 | |
| 193 | - | committee at any level of government in the United States. 42 | |
| 194 | - | d. Served as an officer, employee, or paid consultant of a political party 43 | |
| 195 | - | or body or of the campaign or campaign committee of a candidate for 44 | |
| 196 | - | public office in the United States. 45 | |
| 197 | - | e. Been convicted of any of the following crimes against a governmental 46 | |
| 198 | - | body of the United States or a crime with a direct connection to the 47 | |
| 199 | - | crimes: 48 | |
| 200 | - | 1. Espionage. 49 | |
| 201 | - | 2. Terrorism. 50 | |
| 202 | - | 3. Treason. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 203 | - | House Bill 20-First Edition Page 5 | |
| 204 | - | 4. Sabotage. 1 | |
| 205 | - | 5. Sedition. 2 | |
| 206 | - | 6. Insurrection. 3 | |
| 207 | - | (6) Is not a legislative staffer, lobbyist, or legislative liaison. 4 | |
| 208 | - | (7) Has not been employed by Congress within 10 years of applying for 5 | |
| 209 | - | membership on the Commission. 6 | |
| 210 | - | (c) Membership Application; Evaluations. – Any citizen of North Carolina may apply to 7 | |
| 211 | - | the State Auditor to be a member of the Commission, according to the following process: 8 | |
| 212 | - | (1) The State Auditor shall ensure that applications are available for at least six 9 | |
| 213 | - | months beginning in each year ending in nine. The State Auditor shall work 10 | |
| 214 | - | with the State Ethics Commission to publicize the application process, 11 | |
| 215 | - | including advertising the application period, commission qualifications, and 12 | |
| 216 | - | selection process in at least the following ways: 13 | |
| 217 | - | a. In the following: 14 | |
| 218 | - | 1. For at least one month, the 10 media outlets in the State with 15 | |
| 219 | - | the highest circulation. 16 | |
| 220 | - | 2. The main website for all State agencies. 17 | |
| 221 | - | 3. Appropriate local news broadcasts. 18 | |
| 222 | - | 4. Media outlets that serve minority communities. 19 | |
| 223 | - | b. By distributing paper applications to at least the following: 20 | |
| 224 | - | 1. At least one percent (1%) of all registered voters in North 21 | |
| 225 | - | Carolina. Recipients of paper applications shall be selected 22 | |
| 226 | - | randomly but in no event shall more than thirty-three percent 23 | |
| 227 | - | (33%) of the recipients be affiliated or not affiliated with a 24 | |
| 228 | - | particular party. 25 | |
| 229 | - | 2. Any registered voter in North Carolina who submits a request 26 | |
| 230 | - | for an application. 27 | |
| 231 | - | c. To tribal nations located in North Carolina. The State Auditor shall 28 | |
| 232 | - | encourage indigenous persons to apply to be a member of the 29 | |
| 233 | - | Commission and may coordinate for that purpose with the Division of 30 | |
| 234 | - | Indian Affairs of the North Carolina Department of Administration, 31 | |
| 235 | - | the North Carolina State Commission of Indian Affairs, and any 32 | |
| 236 | - | State-recognized Indian tribe. 33 | |
| 237 | - | (2) As part of a person's application, that person shall (i) disclose all relevant 34 | |
| 238 | - | relationships and positions and (ii) submit to the State Auditor an attestation 35 | |
| 239 | - | that the person is eligible to serve as a member of the Commission pursuant 36 | |
| 240 | - | to subsection (b) of this section. 37 | |
| 241 | - | (3) The State Auditor shall evaluate applications to ensure they meet the 38 | |
| 242 | - | requirements of this section and any other requirements of State law. The State 39 | |
| 243 | - | Auditor shall submit all eligible applications to the State Ethics Commission. 40 | |
| 244 | - | The State Ethics Commission shall review the eligible applications and submit 41 | |
| 245 | - | a diverse group of up to 60 applications to the General Assembly, as follows: 42 | |
| 246 | - | a. Applications submitted to the General Assembly shall reflect the 43 | |
| 247 | - | State's diverse races, ethnicities, nationalities, sexual orientations, 44 | |
| 248 | - | socioeconomic statuses, and geography. 45 | |
| 249 | - | b. The State Ethics Commission shall submit no more than 20 46 | |
| 250 | - | applications from persons registered in each of the following ways, as 47 | |
| 251 | - | reflected by the latest registration statistics published by the State 48 | |
| 252 | - | Board of Elections: 49 | |
| 253 | - | 1. As affiliated with the political party with the highest number 50 | |
| 254 | - | of registered affiliates. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 255 | - | Page 6 House Bill 20-First Edition | |
| 46 | + | Representatives among those districts pursuant to Section 25 of this Article. 34 | |
| 47 | + | (1) Each Representative shall represent, as nearly as may be, an equal number of 35 | |
| 48 | + | inhabitants, the number of inhabitants that each Representative represents being determined for 36 | |
| 49 | + | H.B. 20 | |
| 50 | + | Jan 29, 2025 | |
| 51 | + | HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 52 | + | Page 2 DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 53 | + | this purpose by dividing the population of the district that he represents by the number of 1 | |
| 54 | + | Representatives apportioned to that district; 2 | |
| 55 | + | (2) Each representative district shall at all times consist of contiguous territory; 3 | |
| 56 | + | (3) No county shall be divided in the formation of a representative district; 4 | |
| 57 | + | (4) When established, the representative districts and the apportionment of 5 | |
| 58 | + | Representatives shall remain unaltered until the return of another decennial census of population 6 | |
| 59 | + | taken by order of Congress." 7 | |
| 60 | + | SECTION 1.(c) Article II of the North Carolina Constitution is amended by adding 8 | |
| 61 | + | a new section to read: 9 | |
| 62 | + | "Sec. 25. Redistricting. 10 | |
| 63 | + | The General Assembly shall establish by law an independent process to revise electoral 11 | |
| 64 | + | districts for Congress and the General Assembly after the return of every decennial census of 12 | |
| 65 | + | population taken by order of Congress. The process shall meet at least all of the following 13 | |
| 66 | + | requirements: 14 | |
| 67 | + | (1) Neither the General Assembly nor the Governor shall have any role in revising 15 | |
| 68 | + | electoral districts for the General Assembly or the House of Representatives of the United States 16 | |
| 69 | + | Congress. 17 | |
| 70 | + | (2) Each member of the Senate and House of Representatives of the General Assembly 18 | |
| 71 | + | and the House of Representatives of the United States Congress shall represent, as nearly as may 19 | |
| 72 | + | be, an equal number of inhabitants. 20 | |
| 73 | + | (3) Each electoral district shall at all times consist of contiguous territory. 21 | |
| 74 | + | (4) When established, the electoral districts for the Senate and House of Representatives 22 | |
| 75 | + | of the General Assembly shall remain unaltered until the return of another decennial census of 23 | |
| 76 | + | population taken by order of Congress. 24 | |
| 77 | + | (5) Electoral districts adopted pursuant to the process shall have the force and effect of 25 | |
| 78 | + | acts of the General Assembly." 26 | |
| 79 | + | SECTION 1.(d) Subsection (5) of Section 22 of Article II of the North Carolina 27 | |
| 80 | + | Constitution reads as rewritten: 28 | |
| 81 | + | "(5) Other exceptions. Appointments to office. Every bill: 29 | |
| 82 | + | (a) In bill in which the General Assembly makes an appointment or appointments 30 | |
| 83 | + | to public office and which contains no other matter; 31 | |
| 84 | + | (b) Revising the senate districts and the apportionment of Senators among those 32 | |
| 85 | + | districts and containing no other matter; 33 | |
| 86 | + | (c) Revising the representative districts and the apportionment of Representatives 34 | |
| 87 | + | among those districts and containing no other matter; or 35 | |
| 88 | + | (d) Revising the districts for the election of members of the House of 36 | |
| 89 | + | Representatives of the Congress of the United States and the apportionment 37 | |
| 90 | + | of Representatives among those districts and containing no other matter, 38 | |
| 91 | + | matter shall be read three times in each house before it becomes law and shall 39 | |
| 92 | + | be signed by the presiding officers of both houses." 40 | |
| 93 | + | SECTION 1.(e) The amendments set out in subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this 41 | |
| 94 | + | section shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the State at the general election in November 42 | |
| 95 | + | 2026, which election shall be conducted under the laws then governing elections in the State. 43 | |
| 96 | + | Ballots, voting systems, or both may be used in accordance with Chapter 163 of the General 44 | |
| 97 | + | Statutes. The question to be used in the voting systems and ballots shall be: 45 | |
| 98 | + | "[ ] FOR [ ] AGAINST 46 | |
| 99 | + | A constitutional amendment providing for an independent redistricting process for 47 | |
| 100 | + | electoral districts for Congress and the General Assembly. The General Assembly would 48 | |
| 101 | + | establish the process but have no role in the revising of districts." 49 | |
| 102 | + | SECTION 1.(f) If a majority of votes cast on the question are in favor of the 50 | |
| 103 | + | amendments set out in subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this section, the State Board of Elections 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 104 | + | DRH40008-MTy-16 Page 3 | |
| 105 | + | shall certify the amendments to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall enroll the 1 | |
| 106 | + | amendments so certified among the permanent records of that office. The amendments set out in 2 | |
| 107 | + | subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) of this section are effective upon certification. 3 | |
| 108 | + | SECTION 1.(g) Chapter 120 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new 4 | |
| 109 | + | Article to read: 5 | |
| 110 | + | "Article 1B. 6 | |
| 111 | + | "Redistricting. 7 | |
| 112 | + | "§ 120-4.50. Definitions. 8 | |
| 113 | + | As used in this Article, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions shall 9 | |
| 114 | + | apply: 10 | |
| 115 | + | (1) Census Bureau. – The United States Bureau of the Census. 11 | |
| 116 | + | (2) Commission. – The North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission 12 | |
| 117 | + | established pursuant to G.S. 120-4.55. 13 | |
| 118 | + | (3) Communities of interest. – Contiguous and cohesive populations of persons 14 | |
| 119 | + | that share common social, economic, or policy interests. Communities of 15 | |
| 120 | + | interest shall not include common relationships with political parties or 16 | |
| 121 | + | political candidates. Communities of interest include, but are not limited to, 17 | |
| 122 | + | populations that share any of the following characteristics: 18 | |
| 123 | + | a. A racial, cultural, geographic, or ethnic identity. 19 | |
| 124 | + | b. A common history of marginalization or discrimination. 20 | |
| 125 | + | c. Natural resources. 21 | |
| 126 | + | d. Excessive damage from past or present natural disasters or pollution. 22 | |
| 127 | + | e. An organized decision-making body. 23 | |
| 128 | + | (4) Congressional districts or plans. – Districts or plans for the House of 24 | |
| 129 | + | Representatives of the United States Congress. 25 | |
| 130 | + | (5) Federal census. – The decennial census required by federal law to be 26 | |
| 131 | + | conducted by the Census Bureau in every year ending in zero. 27 | |
| 132 | + | (6) Final plan. – A plan adopted by the Commission to be used for the purpose of 28 | |
| 133 | + | nominating and electing identified representatives. In accordance with Section 29 | |
| 134 | + | 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution, final plans shall have the 30 | |
| 135 | + | force and effect of acts of the General Assembly. 31 | |
| 136 | + | (7) Ideal population. – The number determined by dividing the number of 32 | |
| 137 | + | members in a plan into the population of the State as reported in the federal 33 | |
| 138 | + | census. 34 | |
| 139 | + | (8) Identified representative. – A member of the Senate or House of 35 | |
| 140 | + | Representatives of the General Assembly or a member of the House of 36 | |
| 141 | + | Representatives of the United States Congress. 37 | |
| 142 | + | (9) Legislative districts or plans. – Districts or plans for the Senate and House of 38 | |
| 143 | + | Representatives of the General Assembly. 39 | |
| 144 | + | (10) Metropolitan or micropolitan statistical areas. – Areas of the State defined as 40 | |
| 145 | + | metropolitan or micropolitan statistical areas by the Office of Management 41 | |
| 146 | + | and Budget of the United States. 42 | |
| 147 | + | (11) Plan. – A plan for legislative or congressional reapportionment drawn in 43 | |
| 148 | + | accordance with Section 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution 44 | |
| 149 | + | and this Article. 45 | |
| 150 | + | (12) Preliminary plan. – An initial plan released by the Commission for public 46 | |
| 151 | + | input at the beginning of the redistricting cycle. 47 | |
| 152 | + | (13) Proposed and alternative plans. – Plans released by the Commission following 48 | |
| 153 | + | public input. 49 | |
| 154 | + | (14) Public office. – Elective State, local, or federal office. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 155 | + | Page 4 DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 156 | + | (15) Relative. – An individual who is related to the person in question as father, 1 | |
| 157 | + | mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, first cousin, nephew, niece, 2 | |
| 158 | + | husband, wife, grandfather, grandmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, 3 | |
| 159 | + | son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, 4 | |
| 160 | + | stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, stepbrother, stepsister, half-brother, or 5 | |
| 161 | + | half-sister. 6 | |
| 162 | + | "§ 120-4.55. North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission. 7 | |
| 163 | + | (a) Establishment. – There is established the North Carolina Citizens Redistricting 8 | |
| 164 | + | Commission in accordance with Section 25 of Article II of the North Carolina Constitution to 9 | |
| 165 | + | prepare preliminary, proposed, and alternative plans and to adopt final plans for the purpose of 10 | |
| 166 | + | nominating and electing members of the Senate and House of Representatives of the General 11 | |
| 167 | + | Assembly and the House of Representatives of the United States Congress. 12 | |
| 168 | + | (b) Eligibility. – A resident of North Carolina is eligible to apply for membership on the 13 | |
| 169 | + | Commission if that person meets all of the following requirements: 14 | |
| 170 | + | (1) Has been a registered voter in North Carolina with the same party affiliation, 15 | |
| 171 | + | or lack thereof, for at least four years prior to commencement of service on 16 | |
| 172 | + | the Commission. This requirement does not apply to persons under the age of 17 | |
| 173 | + | 25. 18 | |
| 174 | + | (2) Has not contributed during one election cycle cumulatively more than two 19 | |
| 175 | + | thousand dollars ($2,000) to any candidate for public office. 20 | |
| 176 | + | (3) Does not hold public office. 21 | |
| 177 | + | (4) Is not any of the following: 22 | |
| 178 | + | a. A relative of (i) a current member of the General Assembly, (ii) a 23 | |
| 179 | + | current member of the North Carolina Council of State, or (iii) a 24 | |
| 180 | + | covered person, as defined in G.S. 138A-3(21). 25 | |
| 181 | + | b. A political appointee of the General Assembly. 26 | |
| 182 | + | c. A staff member or legal counsel to the General Assembly. 27 | |
| 183 | + | d. An official of a political party or a consultant or legal counsel to a 28 | |
| 184 | + | political party in the United States. 29 | |
| 185 | + | e. A candidate for public office. 30 | |
| 186 | + | (5) Has never done any of the following: 31 | |
| 187 | + | a. Been elected to serve in any of the following: 32 | |
| 188 | + | 1. The General Assembly or Congress at the time of or for any 33 | |
| 189 | + | period of time during the eight years preceding the date of his 34 | |
| 190 | + | or her application. 35 | |
| 191 | + | 2. Any other public office at the time of or for any period of time 36 | |
| 192 | + | during the four years preceding the date of his or her 37 | |
| 193 | + | application. 38 | |
| 194 | + | b. Held a political appointment. 39 | |
| 195 | + | c. Served as an elected or appointed officer of a political party, body, or 40 | |
| 196 | + | committee at any level of government in the United States. 41 | |
| 197 | + | d. Served as an officer, employee, or paid consultant of a political party 42 | |
| 198 | + | or body or of the campaign or campaign committee of a candidate for 43 | |
| 199 | + | public office in the United States. 44 | |
| 200 | + | e. Been convicted of any of the following crimes against a governmental 45 | |
| 201 | + | body of the United States or a crime with a direct connection to the 46 | |
| 202 | + | crimes: 47 | |
| 203 | + | 1. Espionage. 48 | |
| 204 | + | 2. Terrorism. 49 | |
| 205 | + | 3. Treason. 50 | |
| 206 | + | 4. Sabotage. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 207 | + | DRH40008-MTy-16 Page 5 | |
| 208 | + | 5. Sedition. 1 | |
| 209 | + | 6. Insurrection. 2 | |
| 210 | + | (6) Is not a legislative staffer, lobbyist, or legislative liaison. 3 | |
| 211 | + | (7) Has not been employed by Congress within 10 years of applying for 4 | |
| 212 | + | membership on the Commission. 5 | |
| 213 | + | (c) Membership Application; Evaluations. – Any citizen of North Carolina may apply to 6 | |
| 214 | + | the State Auditor to be a member of the Commission, according to the following process: 7 | |
| 215 | + | (1) The State Auditor shall ensure that applications are available for at least six 8 | |
| 216 | + | months beginning in each year ending in nine. The State Auditor shall work 9 | |
| 217 | + | with the State Ethics Commission to publicize the application process, 10 | |
| 218 | + | including advertising the application period, commission qualifications, and 11 | |
| 219 | + | selection process in at least the following ways: 12 | |
| 220 | + | a. In the following: 13 | |
| 221 | + | 1. For at least one month, the 10 media outlets in the State with 14 | |
| 222 | + | the highest circulation. 15 | |
| 223 | + | 2. The main website for all State agencies. 16 | |
| 224 | + | 3. Appropriate local news broadcasts. 17 | |
| 225 | + | 4. Media outlets that serve minority communities. 18 | |
| 226 | + | b. By distributing paper applications to at least the following: 19 | |
| 227 | + | 1. At least one percent (1%) of all registered voters in North 20 | |
| 228 | + | Carolina. Recipients of paper applications shall be selected 21 | |
| 229 | + | randomly but in no event shall more than thirty-three percent 22 | |
| 230 | + | (33%) of the recipients be affiliated or not affiliated with a 23 | |
| 231 | + | particular party. 24 | |
| 232 | + | 2. Any registered voter in North Carolina who submits a request 25 | |
| 233 | + | for an application. 26 | |
| 234 | + | c. To tribal nations located in North Carolina. The State Auditor shall 27 | |
| 235 | + | encourage indigenous persons to apply to be a member of the 28 | |
| 236 | + | Commission and may coordinate for that purpose with the Division of 29 | |
| 237 | + | Indian Affairs of the North Carolina Department of Administration, 30 | |
| 238 | + | the North Carolina State Commission of Indian Affairs, and any 31 | |
| 239 | + | State-recognized Indian tribe. 32 | |
| 240 | + | (2) As part of a person's application, that person shall (i) disclose all relevant 33 | |
| 241 | + | relationships and positions and (ii) submit to the State Auditor an attestation 34 | |
| 242 | + | that the person is eligible to serve as a member of the Commission pursuant 35 | |
| 243 | + | to subsection (b) of this section. 36 | |
| 244 | + | (3) The State Auditor shall evaluate applications to ensure they meet the 37 | |
| 245 | + | requirements of this section and any other requirements of State law. The State 38 | |
| 246 | + | Auditor shall submit all eligible applications to the State Ethics Commission. 39 | |
| 247 | + | The State Ethics Commission shall review the eligible applications and submit 40 | |
| 248 | + | a diverse group of up to 60 applications to the General Assembly, as follows: 41 | |
| 249 | + | a. Applications submitted to the General Assembly shall reflect the 42 | |
| 250 | + | State's diverse races, ethnicities, nationalities, sexual orientations, 43 | |
| 251 | + | socioeconomic statuses, and geography. 44 | |
| 252 | + | b. The State Ethics Commission shall submit no more than 20 45 | |
| 253 | + | applications from persons registered in each of the following ways, as 46 | |
| 254 | + | reflected by the latest registration statistics published by the State 47 | |
| 255 | + | Board of Elections: 48 | |
| 256 | + | 1. As affiliated with the political party with the highest number 49 | |
| 257 | + | of registered affiliates. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 258 | + | Page 6 DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 256 | 259 | 2. As affiliated with the political party with the second-highest 1 | |
| 257 | 260 | number of registered affiliates. 2 | |
| 258 | 261 | 3. As not affiliated with either of the two political parties having 3 | |
| 259 | 262 | the highest and second-highest number of registered affiliates. 4 | |
| 260 | 263 | c. If there are fewer than 20 applications from persons registered in 5 | |
| 261 | 264 | accordance with any sub-sub-subdivision of sub-subdivision (3)b. of 6 | |
| 262 | 265 | this subsection, the State Ethics Commission may submit additional 7 | |
| 263 | 266 | eligible applications to the General Assembly, as necessary, to reach a 8 | |
| 264 | 267 | total of 60 applications. 9 | |
| 265 | 268 | (4) Of the pool of candidates submitted to the General Assembly pursuant to 10 | |
| 266 | 269 | subdivision (3) of this subsection, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, 11 | |
| 267 | 270 | the minority leader in the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, 12 | |
| 268 | 271 | and the minority leader in the House of Representatives may each strike up to 13 | |
| 269 | 272 | six candidates. 14 | |
| 270 | 273 | (d) Appointment. – The Commission shall be composed of 15 members appointed from 15 | |
| 271 | 274 | the pool of candidates that remains after the leaders of the General Assembly have made their 16 | |
| 272 | 275 | strikes pursuant to subdivision (4) of subsection (c) of this section, as follows: 17 | |
| 273 | 276 | (1) Two members affiliated in each of the three ways identified in sub-subdivision 18 | |
| 274 | 277 | b. of subdivision (3) of subsection (c) of this section, appointed by the State 19 | |
| 275 | 278 | Ethics Commission, for a total of six members. 20 | |
| 276 | 279 | (2) Three members affiliated in each of the three ways identified in 21 | |
| 277 | 280 | sub-subdivision b. of subdivision (3) of subsection (c) of this section, by the 22 | |
| 278 | 281 | six members appointed pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, for a 23 | |
| 279 | 282 | total of nine members. 24 | |
| 280 | 283 | (3) All appointing authorities shall consider the importance of diversity, as 25 | |
| 281 | 284 | defined in sub-subdivision (c)(3)a. of this section, when making their 26 | |
| 282 | 285 | appointments. 27 | |
| 283 | 286 | (e) Term of Office. – The term of office for members of the Commission shall begin on 28 | |
| 284 | 287 | July 1 of each year ending in zero. The members shall continue in office for 10 years until their 29 | |
| 285 | 288 | successors are appointed and qualified. 30 | |
| 286 | 289 | (f) Chair. – The position of chair of the Commission shall rotate every three months, 31 | |
| 287 | 290 | following a schedule randomly generated at the beginning of the redistricting cycle. No two 32 | |
| 288 | 291 | members who share the same party affiliation, or lack thereof, shall serve as chair in the same 33 | |
| 289 | 292 | six-month period. No member shall serve as chair more than once in a 12-month period. 34 | |
| 290 | 293 | (g) Removal from Office. – A member of the Commission may be removed from office, 35 | |
| 291 | 294 | as follows: 36 | |
| 292 | 295 | (1) By the authority that appointed the member for any of the following: 37 | |
| 293 | 296 | a. Failure to comply with G.S. 120-4.65. 38 | |
| 294 | 297 | b. Ineligibility pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. 39 | |
| 295 | 298 | (2) By a vote of at least 11 members of the Commission, including at least one 40 | |
| 296 | 299 | commissioner appointed from the same sub-sub-subdivision of 41 | |
| 297 | 300 | sub-subdivision b. of subdivision (3) of subsection (c) of this section, in open 42 | |
| 298 | 301 | session at any duly held meeting, for any cause that renders the member 43 | |
| 299 | 302 | incapable or unfit to discharge the duties of the office, including neglect of 44 | |
| 300 | 303 | duty or gross misconduct. All Commission member votes on removal of a 45 | |
| 301 | 304 | member pursuant to this subdivision shall be recorded in the record. 46 | |
| 302 | 305 | (h) Vacancies. – Any vacancy occurring in the membership of the Commission shall be 47 | |
| 303 | 306 | filled in the manner prescribed in this section by the authority that made the initial appointment. 48 | |
| 304 | 307 | Vacancies shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term. 49 | |
| 305 | 308 | (i) Stipend. – Members of the Commission shall receive a stipend of one thousand two 50 | |
| 306 | 309 | hundred dollars ($1,200) for each month that the Commission meets. Beginning July 1, 2040, 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 307 | - | ||
| 310 | + | DRH40008-MTy-16 Page 7 | |
| 308 | 311 | and every 10 years thereafter, the Legislative Services Officer shall adjust the monthly stipend 1 | |
| 309 | 312 | amount, as necessary, to ensure that the value of the stipend remains equivalent to the value 2 | |
| 310 | 313 | provided in the previous decade. The Legislative Services Officer shall base this adjustment on 3 | |
| 311 | 314 | the change in the Employment Cost Index (ECI) reported by the United States Bureau of Labor 4 | |
| 312 | 315 | Statistics or an equivalent measure of inflation. 5 | |
| 313 | 316 | (j) Other Expenses. – Members of the Commission may receive travel and subsistence, 6 | |
| 314 | 317 | as follows: 7 | |
| 315 | 318 | (1) Members who are officials or employees of a State agency or unit of local 8 | |
| 316 | 319 | government, in accordance with G.S. 138-6. 9 | |
| 317 | 320 | (2) All other members at the rate established in G.S. 138-5. 10 | |
| 318 | 321 | "§ 120-4.60. Staff. 11 | |
| 319 | 322 | (a) The Commission shall be administratively housed in the Legislative Services Office 12 | |
| 320 | 323 | of the General Assembly. 13 | |
| 321 | 324 | (b) The Commission may exercise its prescribed powers independently of the General 14 | |
| 322 | 325 | Assembly and the Legislative Services Officer. In order to pay expenses incidental to 15 | |
| 323 | 326 | implementing its purposes, the Commission may enter into contracts, own property, and accept 16 | |
| 324 | 327 | funds, grants, and gifts from academic and nonprofit entities that have never contributed to 17 | |
| 325 | 328 | political parties, persons holding public office, or candidates for public office. 18 | |
| 326 | 329 | (c) The Legislative Services Officer shall provide general administrative support to the 19 | |
| 327 | 330 | Commission, including purchasing, payroll, and similar administrative services. 20 | |
| 328 | 331 | (d) The Commission shall retain independent staff under contract, including an executive 21 | |
| 329 | 332 | secretary and any additional necessary supporting staff. As a whole, the political affiliations of 22 | |
| 330 | 333 | staff members, or lack thereof, shall be divided approximately into thirds among the two political 23 | |
| 331 | 334 | parties with the highest number of affiliates and among persons unaffiliated with a political party. 24 | |
| 332 | 335 | A person is ineligible to serve as a staff member to the Commission if that person would be 25 | |
| 333 | 336 | ineligible to serve as a member of the Commission pursuant to G.S. 120-4.55(b). Staff shall be 26 | |
| 334 | 337 | selected as follows: 27 | |
| 335 | 338 | (1) If there are at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 28 | |
| 336 | 339 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., staff shall be selected by a vote 29 | |
| 337 | 340 | of at least nine members composed of at least three members appointed to the 30 | |
| 338 | 341 | Commission from each sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. 31 | |
| 339 | 342 | (2) If there are not at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 32 | |
| 340 | 343 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., staff shall be selected by a vote 33 | |
| 341 | 344 | of all of the following: 34 | |
| 342 | 345 | a. At least three members from each sub-sub-subdivision of 35 | |
| 343 | 346 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with more than three members appointed to the 36 | |
| 344 | 347 | Commission. 37 | |
| 345 | 348 | b. A unanimous vote from each sub-sub-subdivision of 38 | |
| 346 | 349 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with three or fewer members appointed to the 39 | |
| 347 | 350 | Commission. 40 | |
| 348 | 351 | "§ 120-4.65. Open meetings and public records. 41 | |
| 349 | 352 | The Commission shall be subject to the Public Records Act, Chapter 132 of the General 42 | |
| 350 | 353 | Statutes, and the Open Meetings Law, Article 33C of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes, except 43 | |
| 351 | 354 | to the extent those enactments conflict with the below requirements: 44 | |
| 352 | 355 | (1) Members of the Commission and staff shall not discuss the business of the 45 | |
| 353 | 356 | Commission outside public meetings. 46 | |
| 354 | 357 | (2) If a member of the Commission violates subdivision (1) of this section, he or 47 | |
| 355 | 358 | she shall place in the public records of the Commission (i) any violating 48 | |
| 356 | 359 | written communication and (ii) a written description of any violating oral 49 | |
| 357 | 360 | communication. The written description of an oral communication must 50 | |
| 358 | 361 | include the name of the parties to the communication, the date and 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 359 | - | Page 8 | |
| 362 | + | Page 8 DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 360 | 363 | approximate time of the communication, and a description of the nature and 1 | |
| 361 | 364 | substance of the communication. 2 | |
| 362 | 365 | (3) The Commission shall provide at least 14 days' notice prior to any meeting in 3 | |
| 363 | 366 | which votes will be taken. 4 | |
| 364 | 367 | "§ 120-4.70. Redistricting criteria. 5 | |
| 365 | 368 | All plans shall meet the following goals, in order of priority: 6 | |
| 366 | 369 | (1) Each identified representative shall represent, as nearly as may be, an equal 7 | |
| 367 | 370 | number of inhabitants. 8 | |
| 368 | 371 | (2) Compliance with the North Carolina Constitution, State law, the Constitution 9 | |
| 369 | 372 | of the United States, including the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth 10 | |
| 370 | 373 | Amendment, and federal law, to ensure that everyone, including members of 11 | |
| 371 | 374 | minority groups, have an equal opportunity to elect representatives of their 12 | |
| 372 | 375 | choice. A plan shall not diminish or dilute the ability of a member of a 13 | |
| 373 | 376 | minority from electing a candidate of his or her choice, whether alone or in 14 | |
| 374 | 377 | coalition with others. 15 | |
| 375 | 378 | (3) In accordance with subdivisions (1) and (2) of this section, the population for 16 | |
| 376 | 379 | a legislative district shall be within five percent (5%) of the ideal population 17 | |
| 377 | 380 | for that district. Congressional districts shall each have a population that is as 18 | |
| 378 | 381 | nearly equal as practicable to the ideal population but in all cases within 19 | |
| 379 | 382 | one-tenth of one percent (0.1%) of the ideal population for that district. 20 | |
| 380 | 383 | (4) All districts shall be contiguous. Areas that meet only at the points of 21 | |
| 381 | 384 | adjoining corners are not contiguous. 22 | |
| 382 | 385 | (5) Minimizing the number of split communities of interest with the following 23 | |
| 383 | 386 | communities of interest prioritized above all others and in the following order: 24 | |
| 384 | 387 | a. Municipalities and census designated places. 25 | |
| 385 | 388 | b. Precincts. 26 | |
| 386 | 389 | c. Counties. 27 | |
| 387 | 390 | (6) The Commission shall not consider electoral results or political considerations 28 | |
| 388 | 391 | in the preparation of a preliminary, proposed, or alternative plan. In order to 29 | |
| 389 | 392 | ensure that each citizen of the State has substantially equal voting power on 30 | |
| 390 | 393 | the basis of party affiliation, the Commission shall evaluate every proposed 31 | |
| 391 | 394 | and alternative plan after the plan is created to avoid inadvertently diminishing 32 | |
| 392 | 395 | or diluting a voter's opportunity to aggregate with likeminded voters to elect 33 | |
| 393 | 396 | a governing majority based on party affiliation. Before adopting a final plan, 34 | |
| 394 | 397 | the Commission shall revise any plan that it deems to have violated this 35 | |
| 395 | 398 | subdivision to the minimum extent necessary to remedy that violation. 36 | |
| 396 | 399 | (7) Districts shall not favor or disfavor an incumbent, and the Commission shall 37 | |
| 397 | 400 | not consider member residency in the preparation of a plan. 38 | |
| 398 | 401 | (8) To the extent practicable, all districts shall be compact. Districts should not 39 | |
| 399 | 402 | bypass nearby communities for more distant communities. 40 | |
| 400 | 403 | "§ 120-4.75. Adoption of redistricting plans by the Commission. 41 | |
| 401 | 404 | (a) Duties. – The Commission shall adopt preliminary, proposed, alternative, and final 42 | |
| 402 | 405 | plans, as follows: 43 | |
| 403 | 406 | (1) If there are at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 44 | |
| 404 | 407 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., plans shall be adopted by a vote 45 | |
| 405 | 408 | of at least nine members composed of at least three members appointed to the 46 | |
| 406 | 409 | Commission from each sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. 47 | |
| 407 | 410 | (2) If there are not at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 48 | |
| 408 | 411 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., plans shall be adopted by a vote 49 | |
| 409 | 412 | of all of the following: 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 410 | - | ||
| 413 | + | DRH40008-MTy-16 Page 9 | |
| 411 | 414 | a. At least three members from each sub-sub-subdivision of 1 | |
| 412 | 415 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with more than three members appointed to the 2 | |
| 413 | 416 | Commission. 3 | |
| 414 | 417 | b. A unanimous vote of the members from each sub-sub-subdivision of 4 | |
| 415 | 418 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with three or fewer members appointed to the 5 | |
| 416 | 419 | Commission. 6 | |
| 417 | 420 | (b) Special Master. – At the beginning of the redistricting cycle, the State Ethics 7 | |
| 418 | 421 | Commission shall submit to the Commission a list of names of persons with an expertise in 8 | |
| 419 | 422 | redistricting who are qualified to serve as a special master. A person is ineligible to serve as a 9 | |
| 420 | 423 | special master if that person would be ineligible to serve as a member of the Commission 10 | |
| 421 | 424 | pursuant to G.S. 120-4.55(b). In the event a plan cannot be adopted pursuant to subsection (a) of 11 | |
| 422 | 425 | this section, the Commission shall appoint a special master from the list of names provided by 12 | |
| 423 | 426 | the State Ethics Commission, and the special master shall draw a plan and submit the plan, along 13 | |
| 424 | 427 | with the rationale for the plan, to the Commission, which shall adopt that plan. The special master 14 | |
| 425 | 428 | shall be appointed as follows: 15 | |
| 426 | 429 | (1) If there are at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 16 | |
| 427 | 430 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., the special master shall be 17 | |
| 428 | 431 | appointed by a vote of at least nine members composed of at least three 18 | |
| 429 | 432 | members appointed to the Commission from each sub-sub-subdivision of 19 | |
| 430 | 433 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. 20 | |
| 431 | 434 | (2) If there are not at least three members appointed to the Commission from each 21 | |
| 432 | 435 | sub-sub-subdivision of G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b., the special master shall be 22 | |
| 433 | 436 | appointed by a vote of all of the following: 23 | |
| 434 | 437 | a. At least three members from each sub-sub-subdivision of 24 | |
| 435 | 438 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with more than three members appointed to the 25 | |
| 436 | 439 | Commission. 26 | |
| 437 | 440 | b. A unanimous vote of the members from each sub-sub-subdivision of 27 | |
| 438 | 441 | G.S. 120-4.55(c)(3)b. with three or fewer members appointed to the 28 | |
| 439 | 442 | Commission. 29 | |
| 440 | 443 | (c) Time Line. – The Commission shall adopt all plans no later than October 1 of the year 30 | |
| 441 | 444 | following each federal census. Prior to the adoption of a plan, the Commission shall adhere to 31 | |
| 442 | 445 | the following maximum time line: 32 | |
| 443 | 446 | (1) Within 30 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the Commission 33 | |
| 444 | 447 | shall hold at least 10 initial public hearings pursuant to G.S. 120-4.80. 34 | |
| 445 | 448 | (2) Within 50 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the Commission 35 | |
| 446 | 449 | shall release to the public preliminary plans for revising the congressional and 36 | |
| 447 | 450 | legislative districts. 37 | |
| 448 | 451 | (3) Within 70 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the Commission 38 | |
| 449 | 452 | shall hold at least an additional 10 public hearings pursuant to G.S. 120-4.80. 39 | |
| 450 | 453 | (4) Within 90 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the Commission 40 | |
| 451 | 454 | shall release to the public all of the following: 41 | |
| 452 | 455 | a. Proposed plans for revising the congressional and legislative districts. 42 | |
| 453 | 456 | b. Alternative plans for revising the congressional and legislative 43 | |
| 454 | 457 | districts. 44 | |
| 455 | 458 | c. A summary of public input provided pursuant to G.S. 120-4.80. 45 | |
| 456 | 459 | (5) Within 110 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the Commission 46 | |
| 457 | 460 | shall vote to adopt final plans from its proposed or alternative plans for 47 | |
| 458 | 461 | revising the congressional and legislative districts. 48 | |
| 459 | 462 | (6) If the Commission fails to adopt any plan pursuant to subdivision (5) of this 49 | |
| 460 | 463 | subsection, the Commission shall adhere to the following extended maximum 50 | |
| 461 | 464 | time line: 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 462 | - | Page 10 | |
| 465 | + | Page 10 DRH40008-MTy-16 | |
| 463 | 466 | a. Within 130 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the 1 | |
| 464 | 467 | Commission shall select from the list of names provided by the State 2 | |
| 465 | 468 | Ethics Commission pursuant to subsection (b) of this section a special 3 | |
| 466 | 469 | master to complete the plan or plans. The Commission shall provide 4 | |
| 467 | 470 | the special master with its proposed and alternative plans and all 5 | |
| 468 | 471 | supporting data. 6 | |
| 469 | 472 | b. Within 150 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the special 7 | |
| 470 | 473 | master shall prepare and release a plan and a rationale for any changes 8 | |
| 471 | 474 | from the plans released by the Commission. The special master shall 9 | |
| 472 | 475 | present the plan to the Commission. 10 | |
| 473 | 476 | c. Within 170 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the 11 | |
| 474 | 477 | Commission shall hold at least 10 public hearings pursuant to 12 | |
| 475 | 478 | G.S. 120-4.80 on the plan or plans presented by the special master. 13 | |
| 476 | 479 | d. Within 180 days of receipt of data from the Census Bureau, the 14 | |
| 477 | 480 | Commission shall adopt as a final plan the plan presented by the 15 | |
| 478 | 481 | special master. 16 | |
| 479 | 482 | (7) Notwithstanding subdivisions (1) through (6) of this subsection, the 17 | |
| 480 | 483 | Commission may extend the maximum number of days between any event 18 | |
| 481 | 484 | required in this subsection by as many as seven days, up to a total of 40 days 19 | |
| 482 | 485 | over the course of a year, for good cause. 20 | |
| 483 | 486 | "§ 120-4.80. Public input. 21 | |
| 484 | 487 | (a) Public Hearings. – For each redistricting cycle, the Commission shall engage in a 22 | |
| 485 | 488 | minimum of 25 public hearings. At least one public hearing shall occur in each of the 23 | |
| 486 | 489 | metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas of the State. Of the total public hearings, at least 24 | |
| 487 | 490 | 10 hearings shall occur before a preliminary plan is released to the public, and at least 10 hearings 25 | |
| 488 | 491 | shall occur after a preliminary plan is released to the public but before a proposed or alternative 26 | |
| 489 | 492 | plan is released to the public. 27 | |
| 490 | 493 | (b) Public Input. – To the extent possible, the Commission shall facilitate the ability of 28 | |
| 491 | 494 | members of the public to provide substantive comments on any plan released to the public. To 29 | |
| 492 | 495 | achieve that goal, the Commission shall provide members of the public with all of the following: 30 | |
| 493 | 496 | (1) Sufficient time to review any plan released to the public. 31 | |
| 494 | 497 | (2) The opportunity to communicate comments, questions, and recommendations 32 | |
| 495 | 498 | on any plan released to the public, at a minimum, in person, online, and 33 | |
| 496 | 499 | through the mail. The Commission shall reserve time at the end of every 34 | |
| 497 | 500 | meeting for in-person and virtual public comment. 35 | |
| 498 | 501 | (3) Access to the same demographic data that is used by the Commission in a 36 | |
| 499 | 502 | machine-readable form. 37 | |
| 500 | 503 | (4) Access to mapping software and census data in a minimum of 30 public library 38 | |
| 501 | 504 | facilities in the State within 20 days of receipt of that data from the United 39 | |
| 502 | 505 | States Bureau of the Census. 40 | |
| 503 | 506 | (5) A public, written response to every substantive comment or recommendation 41 | |
| 504 | 507 | regarding a specific component of a plan released to the public. The response 42 | |
| 505 | 508 | shall address the viability of any recommendation and indicate whether it was 43 | |
| 506 | 509 | or will be incorporated in any other plan. A single response may be provided 44 | |
| 507 | 510 | for one or more comments or recommendations on the same topic. 45 | |
| 508 | 511 | (6) At the conclusion of the redistricting process, the Commission shall publish a 46 | |
| 509 | 512 | written evaluation of each final plan, including at least the following 47 | |
| 510 | 513 | information: 48 | |
| 511 | 514 | a. The impact of the plans on the ability of minority groups, including 49 | |
| 512 | 515 | racial minorities, to elect candidates of their choice. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
| 513 | - | ||
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| 514 | 517 | b. The degree to which the plans preserve or divide communities of 1 | |
| 515 | 518 | interest. 2 | |
| 516 | 519 | c. The rationale for changes in the plans from the prior districts. 3 | |
| 517 | 520 | d. The impact of the plans on the metropolitan and micropolitan 4 | |
| 518 | 521 | statistical areas of the State. 5 | |
| 519 | 522 | e. A summary of the public input received by the Commission on the 6 | |
| 520 | 523 | plans. 7 | |
| 521 | 524 | f. An explanation of how the plans comply with the redistricting criteria 8 | |
| 522 | 525 | provided in G.S. 120-4.70. 9 | |
| 523 | 526 | (7) A website with all of the following information: 10 | |
| 524 | 527 | a. Background information on the redistricting process available in at 11 | |
| 525 | 528 | least English and Spanish on the purpose of redistricting and its impact 12 | |
| 526 | 529 | on all communities. The Commission shall provide information in 13 | |
| 527 | 530 | other languages if at least 50,000 people petition the Commission to 14 | |
| 528 | 531 | have a particular language included. 15 | |
| 529 | 532 | b. Livestreams and recordings of all public meetings in audio, video, or 16 | |
| 530 | 533 | both formats and minutes from those meetings. 17 | |
| 531 | 534 | c. Meeting announcements. 18 | |
| 532 | 535 | d. A searchable database of feedback, including public comments, and 19 | |
| 533 | 536 | plans discussed by the Commission. This information shall be made 20 | |
| 534 | 537 | available as soon as practicable after it is generated. 21 | |
| 535 | 538 | e. Plans discussed by the Commission and the data used to create those 22 | |
| 536 | 539 | plans. 23 | |
| 537 | 540 | "§ 120-4.85. Local redistricting. 24 | |
| 538 | 541 | The General Assembly may by law assign to the Commission the duty to prepare district 25 | |
| 539 | 542 | plans for any county, city, town, special district, and other governmental subdivision, if the 26 | |
| 540 | 543 | governing board of the unit or a court of appropriate jurisdiction so requests." 27 | |
| 541 | 544 | SECTION 1.(h) Notwithstanding G.S. 120-4.55(e), as enacted by this act, for any 28 | |
| 542 | 545 | redistricting that may occur prior to the return of the 2030 federal census, the term of office for 29 | |
| 543 | 546 | members of the North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission shall begin on January 1, 30 | |
| 544 | 547 | 2027, and conclude on June 30, 2030. 31 | |
| 545 | 548 | 32 | |
| 546 | 549 | PART II. CONFORMING CHANGES 33 | |
| 547 | 550 | SECTION 2.(a) G.S. 120-2.3 reads as rewritten: 34 | |
| 548 | 551 | "§ 120-2.3. Contents of judgments invalidating apportionment or redistricting acts. 35 | |
| 549 | 552 | Every order or judgment declaring unconstitutional or otherwise invalid, in whole or in part 36 | |
| 550 | 553 | and for any reason, any act of the General Assembly plan that apportions or redistricts State 37 | |
| 551 | 554 | legislative or congressional districts shall find with specificity all facts supporting that 38 | |
| 552 | 555 | declaration, shall state separately and with specificity the court's conclusions of law on that 39 | |
| 553 | 556 | declaration, and shall, with specific reference to those findings of fact and conclusions of law, 40 | |
| 554 | 557 | identify every defect found by the court, both as to the plan as a whole and as to individual 41 | |
| 555 | 558 | districts." 42 | |
| 556 | 559 | SECTION 2.(b) G.S. 120-2.4 reads as rewritten: 43 | |
| 557 | 560 | "§ 120-2.4. Opportunity for General Assembly to remedy defects. 44 | |
| 558 | 561 | (a) If the General Assembly enacts a plan apportioning or redistricting State legislative 45 | |
| 559 | 562 | or congressional districts, districts becomes effective, in no event may a court impose its own 46 | |
| 560 | 563 | substitute plan unless the court first gives the General Assembly North Carolina Citizens 47 | |
| 561 | 564 | Redistricting Commission a period of time to remedy any defects identified by the court in its 48 | |
| 562 | 565 | findings of fact and conclusions of law. That period of time shall not be less than two weeks, 49 | |
| 563 | 566 | provided, however, that if the General Assembly is scheduled to convene legislative session 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 | |
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| 565 | 568 | within 45 days of the date of the court order that period of time shall not be less than two weeks 1 | |
| 566 | 569 | from the convening of that legislative session.weeks. 2 | |
| 567 | 570 | (a1) In the event the General Assembly North Carolina Citizens Redistricting Commission 3 | |
| 568 | 571 | does not act to remedy any identified defects to its plan within that period of time, the court may 4 | |
| 569 | 572 | impose an interim districting plan for use in the next general election only, but that interim 5 | |
| 570 | 573 | districting plan may differ from the previous districting plan enacted by the General Assembly 6 | |
| 571 | 574 | only to the extent necessary to remedy any defects identified by the court. 7 | |
| 572 | 575 | (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or authority of the State Board of 8 | |
| 573 | 576 | Elections under Chapter 163 of the General Statutes, the State Board of Elections shall have no 9 | |
| 574 | 577 | authority to alter, amend, correct, impose, or substitute any plan apportioning or redistricting 10 | |
| 575 | 578 | State legislative or congressional districts other than a plan imposed by a court under this section 11 | |
| 576 | 579 | or a plan enacted by the General Assembly.adopted by the North Carolina Citizens Redistricting 12 | |
| 577 | 580 | Commission." 13 | |
| 578 | 581 | 14 | |
| 579 | 582 | PART III. EFFECTIVE DATE 15 | |
| 580 | 583 | SECTION 3.(a) If the constitutional amendments proposed by subsections (a), (b), 16 | |
| 581 | 584 | (c), and (d) of Section 1 of this act are approved by the qualified voters as provided in subsections 17 | |
| 582 | 585 | (e) and (f) of Section 1 of this act, the following shall become effective January 1, 2027: 18 | |
| 583 | 586 | (1) Subsections (g) and (h) of Section 1 of this act. 19 | |
| 584 | 587 | (2) Part II of this act. 20 | |
| 585 | 588 | SECTION 3.(b) Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes 21 | |
| 586 | 589 | law. 22 |