Common Cause Calls Proposed Constitutional Amendment “Unacceptable”
For Immediate Release:
Contact: Susan Lerner
March 12, 2012
212-691-6421
Common Cause Calls Proposed Constitutional Amendment “Unacceptable”
The proposed Constitutional Amendment is a far cry from independent redistricting, with final approval of the maps squarely in the hands of the legislature. This is not reform let alone even an improvement. This is change for change’s sake. The so called “independent commission” is not independent at all, but rather a proxy for the Legislature. In the end, this is an attempt to memorialize a system where both parties run roughshod over the voters. This is the system we currently have which the public has consistently rejected.
The proposed section on criteria is couched in equivocation, with incumbency elevated above the need to keep counties, cities, and towns intact. Communities of interest is listed dead last and is not defined. This pales in comparison to the New York City language which reads: “District lines shall keep intact neighborhoods and communities with established ties of common interest and association, whether historical, racial, economic, ethnic, religious or other.”
Incumbency, in coded language, is given primacy, and there is no mention of prison based gerrymandering. In stark contrast, the proposed criteria devised in the 1967 constitutional convention states simply: “Gerrymandering for any purpose is prohibited” (Section 2, subsection c).
In order to achieve meaningful reform in the future, and for the next ten years, the Governor must hold firm to his promise to veto any politicized maps, and work toward a solid constitutional amendment which truly reforms the redistricting process.
Common Cause evaluated the proposed amendment against its own criteria, and reform criteria outlined by Professor Gerald Benjamin in a February 27th op-ed in the Albany Times Union.
1. Entirely replace what are outdated, substantially invalid constitutional provisions. NO – the amendment layers more confusing language on top of the arcane 19th century language.
2. Provide for an independent commission with an odd number of members (5 to 13) appointed by a diversity of authorities exclusively from a pool of interested citizens. NO
3. Lobbyists, elected officials and those directly or indirectly dependent upon them for employment could not serve. YES
4. Members would reflect the political and demographic diversity of the state. NOT CLEAR.
5. Clear timetable. YES
6. Employ clear criteria, including in order of priority: a. compliance with federal requirements. YES b. observance of the integrity of the state’s regions, defined by its natural and built environment. NOT CLEAR c. recognition within regions of social and demographic communities of interest. NOT CLEAR
7. Use of data reflecting partisanship or incumbent residency in designing districts would be prohibited. NOT CLEAR
8. Commission’s decisions would not be subject to revision by the Legislature. NO
9. Language to expressly prohibit political gerrymandering. NOT CLEAR
10. Make communities of interest a mandatory priority. NOT CLEAR
11. Eliminate the mechanical requirement not to split counties and towns, allowing for a more flexible standard that recognizes that cities, villages and school districts may also be important indicators of community in different parts of the state. NO
12. Preserve ban on prison-based gerrymandering. NO