Deschutes County confirms members for district mapping advisory committee, sets guidance for work

The Deschutes County Board of Commissioners on July 23 confirmed nominations to a new District Mapping Advisory Committee and discussed draft guidelines that will steer the group’s work on drawing commissioner districts.

The committee will be chaired and facilitated by contracted facilitator Neil Bryant, and staff said the working group that prepared the draft guidance included Strategic Initiatives Manager Jen Patterson, County Clerk Steve Dennison, former County Clerk Nancy Blankenship and others. "Our working group has consisted of Nick Leila, account administrator, Steve Dennison, county clerk, myself, Nancy Blankenship, our former county clerk, and Neil Bryant," Patterson said during the meeting.

Commissioners said they expect the committee to operate as a facilitated, nonpartisan body focused on producing draft maps for the board’s consideration. Commissioner Chang said she aimed for geographic balance in her appointees and named three nominees during the meeting, describing them as bringing city and civic perspectives and representation from Redmond. Patterson told the board staff will set up county email accounts for committee members, a group mailbox for public email, and run a scheduling poll to find meeting times that work for the seven members.

Why it matters: The committee will propose draft district boundaries that could change how county commission seats are apportioned and how constituents are represented. Commissioners emphasized the need for public meetings, transparent materials and a clear data approach so the board can review maps before any measure goes to voters.

Key points and staff direction - Draft guidance: Staff brought a working draft of guidelines for the committee covering public input, meeting facilitation, mapping criteria and technical procedures. Patterson described the document as a working draft and asked commissioners for direction on a few specific variables. - Facilitator role: Bryant will facilitate meetings and will not be a voting member. Patterson said the facilitator will manage public input at the top of each meeting and help the group reach consensus on requests for information. - Data inputs: Commissioners discussed whether maps should be drawn using 2020 Census population, current voter-registration counts, or both. County elections and clerk staff noted Census block-level population data currently available are from the 2020 Census and that voter registration figures are updated daily. Several commissioners asked staff to provide three data points (2020 census population, current voter registration, and an overlay comparison) to the committee for analysis. - District count and balance: The board directed the committee to produce five districts, with a recommended population parity goal (staff recommended a target "goal" of about 5% deviation, noting the Secretary of State guidance had suggested 10%). Commissioners agreed the committee should aim for equal population districts but retain practical flexibility where precinct boundaries create constraints. - Community representation: Commissioners emphasized geographic representation — including residents of unincorporated communities such as Tumalo, Terrebonne and Sunriver — and asked staff to confirm that nominated members represent diverse parts of the county. - Ground rules and nonpartisanship: Commissioners requested nonpartisan language in the mission and asked that Robert’s Rules-style procedures be included among meeting ground rules to structure nominations, seconds and minutes.

Next steps: Staff will post a final draft of the guidelines, set up committee email addresses and a public web page, and run a Doodle poll to schedule regular meeting times. The board asked staff to return with a revised final guidelines document for formal adoption and to post materials for public review before the committee’s first convening.

Community timeline and scope: Patterson said staff expects to confirm meeting logistics in the coming one to two weeks and to provide the committee with the three data sets commissioners requested. The county will maintain public records and meeting video and will limit alternates to appointments made by each commissioner when needed.