BILL NUMBER: SCA 3	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 10, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 13, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 22, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 9, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JANUARY 4, 2006
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JULY 6, 2005
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JULY 5, 2005
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 27, 2005
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 13, 2005

INTRODUCED BY   Senators Lowenthal and Ashburn
   (Principal coauthor: Senator Simitian)
   (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Richman)
   (Coauthors: Senators Alquist, Kehoe, and Soto)
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Canciamilla, Leno, Nation, and Wolk)


                        DECEMBER 6, 2004

   A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California
an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by repealing and
adding Article XXI thereof, relating to redistricting.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SCA 3, as amended, Lowenthal  Elections: redistricting. 
   Existing provisions of the California Constitution require that
each member of the Senate, Assembly, Congress, and the State Board of
Equalization be elected from a single-member district. 

   This measure would require that each of the 40 Senate districts be
divided into 2 Assembly districts. 
   Existing provisions of the California Constitution require the
Legislature, in the year following the year in which the federal
census is taken at the beginning of each decade, to adjust the
boundary lines of the state Senate, Assembly, congressional, and
State Board of Equalization districts in accordance with specified
standards.
   This measure would delete this provision, and would instead create
a procedure for the appointment of an independent redistricting
commission, composed of 11 members, that would be charged with
establishing Senate, Assembly, congressional, and State Board of
Equalization districts of equal population across the state, adjusted
as necessary to  accommodate various   achieve
designated  goals  , as specified  .
   This measure would provide that certain records of the
redistricting commission are public records  and would require
the commission to hold   public hearings  .
   This measure would grant the California Supreme Court original and
exclusive jurisdiction over all challenges to a redistricting plan
adopted by the commission, and would authorize an affected elector to
file a petition for a writ of mandate or prohibition within 45 days
after the commission certified the plan to the Secretary of State.
The California Supreme Court would be required to act expeditiously
on the petition. If the plan is held to be unconstitutional, this
measure would require the court to provide relief as it deems
appropriate  to remedy any   such  violation
  requirements   and to otherwise accomplish the
purposes of this measure  .
   This measure would, among other things, require the establishment
of a pool of  50   55  candidates for
appointment to the commission, as nominated by a panel of 10 retired
 superior court  judges  or judges  of the Court of
Appeal  appointed by the Judicial Council  , would require
the selection and appointment of the 11 commission members from this
pool  according to a specified procedure,   by
  officers of the Senate and Assembly, and by   the
  Fair Political Practices Commission,  and would
provide for the filling  of  vacancies on the commission.
   This measure would require the Governor in 2009, and annually
thereafter, to include in the Governor's Budget submitted to the
Legislature an amount of funding sufficient to meet the estimated
redistricting expenses, and would require the Legislature to make the
necessary appropriation in the annual Budget Bill. It would
authorize the commission to contract and to hire staff and
consultants, including legal representation, for purposes of this
measure.  It would provide that  the panelists and 
commissioners are eligible for reimbursement of expenses pursuant to
law.
   Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.




   Resolved by the Senate, the Assembly concurring, That the
Legislature of the State of California at its 2005 -06 Regular
Session commencing on the sixth day of December 2004, two-thirds of
the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to the
people of the State of California that the Constitution of the State
be amended as follows:
  First--  That Article XXI thereof is repealed.
  Second--  That Article XXI is added thereto, to read:
      ARTICLE XXI
REAPPORTIONMENT OF SENATE, ASSEMBLY, CONGRESSIONAL, AND STATE BOARD
OF EQUALIZATION DISTRICTS

      SECTION 1.  (a) Each member of the Senate, Assembly, Congress,
and the State Board of Equalization shall be elected from a
single-member district.  The territory of each Senate
district established pursuant to this section shall be divided into
two Assembly districts. 
   (b) By February 28 of each year ending in the number one, the
Independent Redistricting Commission shall be established to provide
for the redistricting of Senate, Assembly, congressional, and State
Board of Equalization districts. As used in this article, "commission"
means the Independent Redistricting Commission.
   (c) The commission shall consist of 11 members and all of the
following shall apply:
   (1) No more than four members of the commission may be members of
the same political party.
   (2) Of the eight commission members appointed pursuant to
subdivisions (b) and (c) of Section 2,  no two or more
  no more than two  may reside in the same county.

   (3) Each commission member shall be a registered California voter
who has been continuously registered with the same political party,
or has been registered as unaffiliated with a political party, for
three or more years immediately preceding appointment.
   (4) Each commission member shall commit to applying this article
in an honest, independent, and impartial fashion and to upholding
public confidence in the integrity of the redistricting process.
   (d) (1) Within the three years immediately preceding 
appointment, a commission member may not have done either of
  appointment, neither a commission member, nor a member
of his or her immediate family, may have done any of  the
following:
   (A) Been appointed to, elected to, or have been a candidate for
any other public office.
   (B) Served as an officer of a political party  , a
registered lobbyist, or an officer   or as an officer,
paid staff, or paid consultant  of a candidate's campaign
committee.  
   (C) Been a registered lobbyist or an employee of, or a consultant
to, a registered lobbyist. 
   (2) Legislative and congressional staff and consultants, persons
under a contract with the Legislature, and any person  with a
financial or family relationship with the Governor, a  
who has contributed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more to, has a
financial relationship with, or is an immediate family member of,
the Governor, a  Member of the Legislature, a Member of
Congress, or a member of the State Board of Equalization, are not
eligible to serve as members of the commission.
   (3) A member of the commission shall be ineligible, during his or
her term of office, and for three years thereafter, to hold public
office in this State or to register as a lobbyist.  
   (4) As used in this subdivision, a member of a person's "immediate
family" is one with whom the person has a bona fide relationship
established through blood, marriage, or adoption. 
      SEC. 2.  (a) (1)  The Judicial Council, panelists, Members
of the Legislature, and the Fair Political Practices Commission or
its successor agency, shall work to ensure that the panelists, pool
of candidates, and commissioners, as applicable, are representative
of this state's racial, ethnic, cultural, geographic, and gender
diversity. 
    (2)    A panel of 10 retired  superior
court judges or  judges of the Court of Appeal, appointed by the
Judicial Council, shall nominate candidates for appointment to the
commission.  The Judicial Council shall adopt rules and
procedures for appointing qualified panelists and for selecting
alternates in the event that a panelist is unable to carry out his or
her duties.  
   (2) 
    (3)  Of the 10 panelists, 5 shall be registered with
each of the two largest political parties in California based on
party registration.  
   (3) 
    (4)  Each panelist shall be a registered voter in this
State who has been continuously registered with the same political
party for three or more years immediately preceding his or her
appointment.  
   (4) 
    (5)  By January 8 of each year ending in the number one,
the panel shall establish a pool of qualified persons who are
willing to serve on the commission, and submit a list of the names of
those persons to the President pro Tempore of the Senate, the
minority floor leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the Assembly,
 and the minority floor leader of the Assembly. 
the minority floor leader of the Assembly, and the Fair Political
Practices Commission or its successor agency.  
   (5) 
    (6)  The pool of candidates shall consist of  50
  55  nominees, with  19   20
 nominees from each of the two largest political parties in
California based on party registration, and  12 
 15  who are not registered with either of the two largest
political parties in this State.  
   (6) The panel shall make every effort to ensure that the pool of
candidates is representative of both genders and this State's racial,
ethnic, and cultural diversity. 
   (b) (1) No later than January 31 of each year ending in the number
one, the President pro Tempore of the Senate, the minority floor
leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the Assembly and the minority
floor leader of the Assembly may each strike from the pool of
candidates up to two  candidates who are registered with a
political party, other than the political party of that legislative
officer or leader, that is one of the two largest political parties
in California based on party registration. Each  
candidates. Each legislative  officer or 
leader shall, in the following order, appoint to the commission from
the remaining candidates in the pool two candidates who are
registered with the same political party as that legislative 
officer or  leader:
   (A) The President pro Tempore of the Senate.
   (B) The minority floor leader of the Senate.
   (C) The Speaker of the Assembly.
   (D) The minority floor leader of the Assembly.  
   (2) If an appointment to be made under paragraph (1) by any of the
legislative officers or leaders is not made and submitted to the
Secretary of State by January 31, that appointment is forfeited and
shall be filled pursuant to subdivision (d). In the event that there
are two or more minority parties within the Assembly or the Senate,
the leader of the largest minority party by statewide party
registration shall make the appointment.  
   (2) The Fair Political Practices Commission, or its successor
agency, shall appoint three persons, by random selection from the
pool of candidates, who are not registered with either of the two
largest political parties in this State, under a public process that
is open to disclosure. 
   (c) Any vacancy in the  eight   11 
commission positions described in subdivision (b) that remains as of
March 1 of a year ending in the number one shall be filled from the
pool of nominees by the panel of retired judges described in
subdivision (a).  The panel shall strive for political
balance and fairness in making that appointment.   
   (d) At a meeting called by the Secretary of State, the eight
commission members appointed pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c)
shall select by majority vote from the nomination pool three
additional members who are not registered with any party already
represented on the commission. If the eight members fail to appoint
one or more of the three additional members within 15 days of that
meeting, the panel of retired judges described in subdivision (a)
shall appoint from the nomination pool, for those positions remaining
unfilled, the additional members who are not registered with any
party already represented on the commission. One of the three
additional members appointed pursuant to this subdivision, as
selected by majority vote of the eight members appointed pursuant to
subdivision (b), shall serve as the chair of the commission.
 
   (d) The 11 members of the commission shall select one of the three
members appointed pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) to
serve as the chair of the commission.  
   (e) The 11 members of the commission shall select by majority vote
one of their members to serve as the vice chair.  
   (f) 
    (e)  The term of office of each member of the commission
expires upon the appointment of the first member of the succeeding
commission.
      SEC. 3.  (a) After having been served written notice and
provided with an opportunity for a response, a member of the
commission may be removed by the Governor, with the concurrence of
two-thirds of the Senate, for substantial neglect of duty, gross
misconduct in office, or inability to discharge the duties of office.

   (b) (1) If a member of the commission vacates his or her office or
is removed pursuant to subdivision (a) prior to the completion of
his or her term for any reason, the panel of retired  judges
described in Section 2 shall nominate a pool of three candidates
  judges described in subdivision (a) of Section 2 shall
fill the vacancy from the pool of nominees selected pursuant to that
subdivision  within the first 30 days after the vacancy occurs.

   (2) The  nominees   nominee chosen 
shall be of the same political party membership, or nonpartisan
status, as the case may be, held by the vacating member at the time
of his or her appointment. The  panel shall work to ensure
diversity and fairness in filling that vacancy. If the vacating
member was the chair of the commission, the commission shall select a
new chair.   appointment of the successor member shall
be made from the pool of nominees by the person, persons, or entity
that, pursuant to subdivision (b), (c), or (d) of Section 2,
appointed the member vacating the office, except that a successor
appointed pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 2 under these
circumstances is not thereby made the chair of the commission and, in
the event of that appointment, a new chair shall be selected by a
majority vote of the remaining members. 
   (3)  If the appointment of a replacement member is not
made within 14 days following the presentation of the nominees, the
panel described in Section 2 shall make the appointment, striving for
political balance and fairness. The newly appointed member 
 The newly appointed member  shall serve out the remainder
of the original term of the vacating member.
      SEC. 4.  (a) The activities of the commission are subject to
all of the following:
   (1) Six members of the commission, one of whom may be the chair or
vice chair, shall constitute a quorum.
   (2) Six or more affirmative votes shall be required for any
official action.
   (3) The commission shall comply with the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting
Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Division 3 of
Title 2 of the Government Code), or its successor. The commission
shall provide not less than 14 days' public notice for each meeting.

   (4) The records of the commission pertaining to redistricting, and
all data considered by the commission, are public records, open to
inspection by members of the public upon request, except that the
commission may withhold from public inspection preliminary drafts,
notes, and communications between commission members  , staff,
and consultants  .
   (5) Any written or verbal communication with any commission member
outside of a public hearing, other than by staff or by legal
counsel, is prohibited as to any matter on which the commission is
required to meet pursuant to paragraph (3). This paragraph does not
prohibit any communication between commission members that is
otherwise permitted by the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act or its
successor.
   (b) The duties of the commission include all of the following:
   (1) To establish Senate, Assembly, congressional, and State Board
of Equalization districts based on a mapping process for 
each district that shall consist initially of the creation of
districts of equal population across the State.   each
district in accordance with the goals specified in paragraph (2).

   (2) To  adjust the districts established  
establish districts  pursuant to paragraph (1) as necessary to
 accommodate   achieve  each of the
following goals, prioritized according to the following order:

   (A) Districts shall comply with the United States Constitution.
 
   (A) Congressional districts shall each have equal population with
other districts for the same office in compliance with the United
States Constitution. 
   Senate, Assembly,  congressional,  and State
Board of Equalization districts shall each have equal population with
other districts for the same office, to the extent practicable 
, in compliance with the United States Constitution  .
   (B) Districts shall comply with the federal Voting Rights Act of
1965 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1971 and following).
   (C) Districts shall be geographically contiguous to the extent
practicable.
   (D) District boundaries shall respect communities of interest to
the extent practicable.
   (E) To the extent practicable, district lines shall use visible
 geographic features, city and county boundaries, and
undivided census tracts.   geographic  
features and city and county boundaries. 
   (F) Districts shall be geographically compact to the extent
practicable.  
   (3) 
    (c)  Party registration and voting history data shall be
excluded from the mapping process described in paragraphs (1) and
(2), but may be used to test maps for compliance with this
subdivision. The places of residence of incumbents or candidates may
not be identified or considered in the creation of a map pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (2), but maybe considered in establishing the
boundaries of final maps pursuant to  paragraph (5) 
 subdivision (e)  .  
   (4) The  
   (d) (1) The commission shall establish and implement an open and
noticed hearing process for public input and deliberation. The
hearing process shall include at least the following three stages:
(A) one or more hearings to receive public input before the
commission draws any maps; (B) one or more hearings following the
initial drawing and display of commission maps; and (C) one or more
hearings following the drawing and display of the final maps. 
    (2)     The commission shall propose and
implement a plan to provide the public access to the United States
census data and to make software available to the public for drawing
maps and providing input through   the hearing process. At
the first two sta   ges, the  commission shall display
 a the map   the maps  created pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (2)  of subdivision (b)  of Senate,
Assembly, congressional, and State Board of Equalization districts to
the public for comment, in a manner designed to achieve the widest
public dissemination reasonably possible, and public comment shall be
taken for at least 30 days from the date of public display. Either
the Senate or the Assembly, or both, may act within this period to
make recommendations to the commission by majority or by minority
report, which recommendations shall be considered by the commission.

   (5) 
    (e)  The commission shall, after consideration of public
comments and recommendations made by the Senate or Assembly pursuant
to  paragraph (4)   subdivision (d), and having
made every effort to draw the proposed maps in compliance with the
criteria listed in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (b)  ,
establish the boundaries of  the  final maps for Senate,
Assembly, congressional, and State Board of Equalization districts,
and shall certify those districts to the Secretary of State. The
approval of the final boundaries shall be by majority vote of the
membership of the commission, and requires that one or more votes for
approval be cast by members of the commission registered with each
of the two largest political parties in California based on party
registration, and that one or more votes for approval be cast by
members of the commission not registered with either of these two
political parties.  
   (f) The commission shall issue, with its final plan, a report that
explains the basis on which the commission made its decisions in
achieving compliance with the goals listed in paragraph (2) of
subdivision (b), particularly where compliance with one goal resulted
in less than full compliance with another. The report shall define
or describe, as applicable, the terms and standards used in drawing
the maps. 
      SEC. 5.  (a) In 2009, and annually thereafter, the Governor
shall include in the Governor's Budget submitted to the Legislature
pursuant to Section 12 of Article IV an amount of funding sufficient
to meet the estimated expenses of the subsequent redistricting
process occurring pursuant to this article, and shall make adequate
office space available for the operation of the  panel and 
commission. The Legislature shall make the necessary appropriation in
the annual budget bill.
   (b) The  panel and  commission, with fiscal oversight
from the Department of Finance or its successor, shall have
procurement and contracting authority and may hire staff and
consultants, exempt from the civil service, for the purposes of this
article, including legal representation.
   (c) The commission has standing in legal actions regarding a
redistricting plan and to establish whether funds or other resources
provided for the operation of the commission are adequate. The
commission has sole authority to determine whether the Attorney
General or legal counsel hired or selected by the commission shall
represent the people of California in the legal defense of a
redistricting plan.  
   (d) The commission shall establish criteria for the hiring and
removal of staff and consultants. The commission may apply the
provisions of subdivision (d) of Section 1 to the hiring of staff and
consultants to the extent practicable.  
   (d) 
    (e)  (1) The California Supreme Court has original and
exclusive jurisdiction in all proceedings in which a redistricting
plan adopted by the commission is challenged.
   (2) To challenge a redistricting plan, any affected elector may
file a petition for a writ of mandate or writ of prohibition, within
45 days after the commission has certified the plan to the Secretary
of State, to bar the Secretary of State from implementing the plan on
the grounds that the filed plan violates this Constitution, the
United States Constitution, or any federal statute.
   (3) The court shall act expeditiously on the petition. If the
court determines that a redistricting plan adopted by the commission
violates this Constitution, the United States Constitution, or any
federal statute, the court shall fashion the relief that it deems
appropriate  to remedy any such violation and otherwise
accomplish the purposes of this article  .
      SEC. 6.  (a) Members of the  panel and the  commission
are eligible for reimbursement of personal expenses incurred in
connection with the duties performed  for the commission
pursuant to law, and a  pursuant to this article. A
 member's residence is deemed to be the member's post of duty
for purposes of reimbursement of expenses.
   (b) The commission may not meet or incur expenses after the
redistricting plan becomes final pursuant to  paragraph (5)
of subdivision (b)   subdivision (e)  of Section 4,
except with respect to any pending litigation or government approval
concerning the plan, to revise districts if required by court order,
or if the number of Senate, Assembly, congressional, or State Board
of Equalization districts is changed.
   (c) For purposes of this article, "day" means a calendar day,
except that if the final day of a period within which an act is to be
performed is a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday, the period is extended
to the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday.
   (d) This article is self-executing.