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Charter commission proposes easing reapportionment deadlock: lower fifth‑member threshold, mayoral fallback
Summary
Commissioners recommended changing reapportionment selection rules to allow 3 of 4 commissioners to select a fifth member and to add a 30‑day mayoral appointment fallback (with council confirmation) to avoid deadlock; counsel will draft precise language including compliance with federal law.
During a May 13 workshop on Chapter 2, the Charter Revision Commission focused part of its discussion on reapportionment rules after commissioners and counsel reviewed problems from prior cycles.
Commissioner Sofranick, who has chaired two past reapportionment efforts, described how the current unanimous selection requirement for a fifth member has repeatedly deadlocked panels and proposed lowering the threshold so that "the threshold drop to a simple majority as opposed to a unanimous" decision — in practice, 3 of the 4 appointed members. He argued that without such a change the advisory commission can fail to constitute itself and thus be unable to submit a plan.
Counsel recommended that reapportionment language require plans to be "substantially equal in population consistent with federal constitutional standards and in compliance with all other applicable federal laws," citing the Voting Rights Act as an example of a federal law that should be accommodated in the charter language. Counsel and commissioners both noted that federal law can change, and recommended drafting language that requires compliance with laws in force at the time a plan is prepared.
Commissioners also discussed a fallback if the advisory commission cannot agree: several members supported a 30‑day period after which the mayor would appoint the fifth member with majority council confirmation. Members warned against a blanket mandate to hire a professional demographer after past experience in which an outside consultant produced flawed work and high costs; instead they asked counsel to draft fallback language that allows appointment of a qualified consultant "in consultation with the city council" and which requires the consultant to meet objective qualifications.
The commission reached consensus on the approach: lower the selection threshold to a 3‑of‑4 majority and include a time‑limited mayoral appointment fallback with council confirmation; corporation counsel will prepare red‑line language for the commission to review in a subsequent meeting.
Next steps and caveats: commissioners asked counsel to (1) draft precise text for the 3‑of‑4 threshold and the 30‑day fallback, (2) add catch‑all language for compliance with applicable federal laws (including the Voting Rights Act), and (3) specify qualifications or procurement practices for any professional the council might appoint to assist if necessary.
