Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Civics topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Monterey County board backs federal measures limiting midterm redistricting; one abstention on late-filed bill
Summary
The Board of Supervisors voted to support federal measures aimed at banning midterm-era redistricting by states, approving support letters for two bills and noting continued monitoring for additional related legislation.
The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted to support federal legislation seeking to prohibit states from enacting new congressional redistricting plans after the decennial census and before the next midterm election.
What they voted on: County legislative staff presented three federal bills for consideration, described in the staff report as measures that would create uniform limits on mid-decade redistricting nationwide. "These three bills seek to inhibit the ability for states to redistrict before midterm elections nationwide," Legislative Program Manager Nicole Hollingsworth told the board.
Board action and votes - The board voted to support two of the measures described in the staff report (authored by members of the county's federal delegation). The motion to support the first two bills passed with the board recording the motion as carried. - The board also considered a third measure introduced very recently that lacked full legislative text at the time of the meeting. Supervisors agreed to register support in concept but said they would monitor language as the bill develops; Supervisor Alejo abstained on the third bill because the bill's language had not yet been published and related, earlier-introduced companion language was favored by Alejo.
Context: The staff report said the measures were presented in response to recent mid-decade redistricting actions in other states and noted that some members of the county's federal delegation had led or co-authored the measures. Supporters argued the measures would advance fairness and uniformity across states; staff said additional legislative language may follow and recommended a "support in concept" posture with monitoring of bill text.
Next steps: The board asked staff to monitor bill language and to report back if language changes raise issues with county policy. The board also asked staff to coordinate with the county's federal lobbying partners for follow-up advocacy where appropriate.
Closing: Supervisors said it was important to take a local stand on a national issue that could directly affect the fairness of congressional redistricting and to ensure the county's position was on the record to federal lawmakers.
