,i  #aacth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #bigh  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,august #b1 #bjac    
,mr4 ,lowenthal introduced the following
 bill2 which was referred to the        
,committee on the ,judiciary  ,a ,,bill 
,to require ,states to conduct          
,congressional redistricting through    
independent commissions1 and for other  
purposes4  #a4 ,short title2 finding of 
constitutional authority  7a7 ,short    
title ,this ,act may be cited as the    
,let the ,people ,draw the ,lines ,act  
of #bjac4  7b7 ,finding ,congress finds 
that it has the authority to establish  
the terms and conditions ,states must   
follow in carrying out ,congressional   
redistricting after an apportionment of 
,members of the ,house of               
,representatives because--  7#a7 the    
authority granted to ,congress under    
article ,i1 section #d of the           
,constitution of the ,united ,states    
gives ,congress the power to enact laws 
governing the time1 place1 and manner of

 elections for ,members of the ,house of
 ,representatives2 and  7#b7 the        
authority granted to ,congress under    
section #e of the fourteenth amendment  
to the ,constitution gives ,congress the
 power to enact laws to enforce section 
#b of such amendment1 which requires    
,representatives to be apportioned among
 the several ,states according to their 
number4  #b4 ,limit on congressional    
redistricting after an apportionment    
,the ,act entitled ,an ,act for the     
relief of ,doctor ,ricardo ,vallejo     
,samala and to provide for congressional
 redistricting1 approved ,december #ad1 
#aifg 7#b ,u4,s4,c4 #b;c71 is amended by
 adding at the end the following3 ,a    
,state which has been redistricted in   
the manner provided by law after an     
apportionment under section #bb7;a7 of  
the ,act entitled ,an ,act to provide   
for the fifteenth and subsequent        
decennial censuses and to provide for an
 apportionment of ,representatives in   
,congress1 approved ,june #ah1 #aibi 7#b

 ,u4,s4,c4 #b;a71 may not be            
redistricted again until after the next 
apportionment of ,representatives under 
such section1 unless a court requires   
the ,state to conduct such subsequent   
redistricting to comply with the        
,constitution or to enforce the ,voting 
,rights ,act of #aife 7#db ,u4,s4,c4    
#aigc et seq4744  #c4 ,requiring        
congressional redistricting to be       
conducted through plan of independent   
,state commission  7a7 ,use of plan     
required  7#a7 ,in general              
,notwithstanding any other provision of 
law1 any ,congressional redistricting   
conducted by a ,state shall be conducted
 in accordance with--  7,a7 the         
redistricting plan developed and enacted
 into law by the independent            
redistricting commission established in 
the ,state1 in accordance with section  
#e2 or  7,b7 if a plan developed by such
 commission is not enacted into law1 the
 redistricting plan selected by the     
highest court in the ,state or developed

 by a ,united ,states district court1 in
 accordance with section #f4  7#b7      
,exception for ,states using existing   
nonpartisan independent commissions     
7,a7 ,exception ,paragraph 7#a7 does not
 apply to a ,state in which1 under law  
that is in effect continuously on and   
after the date of the enactment of this 
,act1 ,congressional redistricting is   
conducted in accordance with a plan     
developed by a nonpartisan independent  
commission4  7,b7 ,nonpartisan          
independent status ,for purposes of this
 paragraph1 a commission shall be       
considered to be a nonpartisan          
independent commission if the number of 
its members who are affiliated with the 
political party with the largest        
percentage of the registered voters in  
the ,state who are affiliated with a    
political party 7as determined with     
respect to the most recent ,statewide   
election for ,federal office held in the
 ,state for which such information is   
available7 is equal to the number of its

 members who are affiliated with the    
political party with the second largest 
percentage of the registered voters in  
the ,state who are affiliated with a    
political party 7as so determined74  7b7
 ,conforming amendment ,section #bb7;c7 
of the ,act entitled ,an ,act to provide
 for the fifteenth and subsequent       
decennial censuses and to provide for an
 apportionment of ,representatives in   
,congress1 approved ,june #ah1 #aibi 7#b
 ,u4,s4,c4 #b;a7c771 is amended by      
striking in the manner provided by the  
law thereof and inserting3 in the manner
 provided by the ,let the ,people ,draw 
the ,lines ,act of #bjac4  #d4          
,independent redistricting commission   
7a7 ,appointment of members  7#a7 ,in   
general ,each ,state shall establish an 
independent redistricting commission    
composed of #ad members appointed as    
follows3  7,a7 #e members from the final
 majority selection pool 7as described  
in subparagraph 7,a7 of subsection      
7b77#d771 of whom--  7i7 #b shall be    

appointed by the leader of the party in 
the upper house of the ,state           
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   
individuals in such pool2  7ii7 #b shall
 be appointed by the leader of the party
 in the lower house of the ,state       
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   
individuals in such pool2 and  7iii7 #a 
shall be appointed on a random basis by 
the selection panel described in        
subsection 7b77#a74  7,b7 #e members    
from the final minority selection pool  
7as described in subparagraph 7,b7 of   
subsection 7b77#d771 of whom--  7i7 #b  
shall be appointed by the leader of the 
party in the upper house of the ,state  
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   
individuals in such pool2  7ii7 #b shall
 be appointed by the leader of the party
 in the lower house of the ,state       
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   

individuals in such pool2 and  7iii7 #a 
shall be appointed on a random basis by 
the selection panel described in        
subsection 7b77#a74  7,c7 #d members    
from the final independent selection    
pool 7as described in subparagraph 7,c7 
of subsection 7b77#d771 each of whom    
shall be appointed on a random basis by 
the selection panel described in        
subsection 7b77#a74  7#b7 ,special rule 
for states with unicameral legislature  
,in the case of a ,state with a         
unicameral legislature--  7,a7 the      
appointments referred to in clauses 7i7 
and 7ii7 of paragraph 7#a77;,a7 shall be
 made by the leader of the party in the 
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   
individuals in the final majority       
selection pool2 and  7,b7 the           
appointments referred to in clauses 7i7 
and 7ii7 of paragraph 7#a77;,b7 shall be
 made by the leader of the party in the 
legislature whose members are affiliated
 with the same political party as the   

individuals in the final minority       
selection pool4  7b7 ,establishment of  
,selection ,pools  7#a7 ,initial pool of
 nominees  7,a7 ,development of pool by 
panel of retired judges ,not later than 
,january #a of each year in which a     
decennial census is conducted1 the      
highest court of each ,state shall      
appoint a panel of retired judges of    
courts of the ,state 7hereafter referred
 to as the selection panel7 to develop  
an initial pool of individuals who are  
eligible to serve as members of the     
independent redistricting commission of 
the ,state under this ,act4  7,b7       
,encouraging residents to apply for     
inclusion in pool ,the selection panel  
shall take such steps as may be         
necessary to ensure that residents of   
the ,state across various geographic    
regions and demographic groups are aware
 of the opportunity to serve on the     
commission1 including publicizing the   
role of the panel and using newspapers1 
broadcast media1 and online sources to  

encourage individuals to apply for      
inclusion in the initial pool developed 
under this paragraph4  7,c7 ,individuals
 within pool ,the selection panel shall 
include an individual within the initial
 pool of eligible individuals under this
 paragraph if--  7i7 the individual     
submits an application to the panel for 
inclusion in the pool1 at such time as  
the panel may require2 and  7ii7 the    
individual meets the criteria for       
eligibility under subsection 7c7 for    
service as a member of the independent  
redistricting commission4  7,d7         
,publication of names of applicants and 
reasons for rejection of inclusion ,not 
later than the first ,august #aj        
occurring after its appointment1 the    
selection panel shall make public--  7i7
 the name of each individual who applies
 to be included in the initial pool     
under this paragraph2 and  7ii7 in the  
case of any individual who applies to be
 included in the pool but is not so     
included1 the reasons for the failure of

 the panel to include the individual in 
the pool4  7#b7 ,intermediate selection 
pool  7,a7 ,selections from initial pool
 ,not later than the first ,october #a  
occurring after its appointment1 the    
selection panel shall establish and     
present to the legislature of the ,state
 an intermediate selection pool of #fj  
individuals who are eligible to serve as
 members of the independent             
redistricting commission of the ,state  
under this ,act1 consisting of          
individuals in the following categories3
  7i7 ,a majority category1 consisting  
of #bj individuals who are affiliated   
with the political party with the       
largest percentage of the registered    
voters in the ,state who are affiliated 
with a political party 7as determined   
with respect to the most recent         
,statewide election for ,federal office 
held in the ,state for which such       
information is available74  7ii7 ,a     
minority category1 consisting of #bj    
individuals who are affiliated with the 

political party with the second largest 
percentage of the registered voters in  
the ,state who are affiliated with a    
political party 7as so determined74     
7iii7 ,an independent category1         
consisting of #bj individuals who are   
not affiliated with either of the       
political parties described in clause   
7i7 or clause 7ii74  7,b7 ,factors taken
 into account in establishing pool ,in  
selecting individuals for the           
intermediate selection pool under this  
paragraph1 the selection panel shall    
take into consideration the analytical  
skills of the individuals selected1     
their ability to work on an impartial   
basis1 and the need for the pool to     
reflect the representative demographic  
groups and geographic regions of the    
,state4  7,c7 ,determination of         
political party affiliation ,for        
purposes of this section1 an individual 
shall be considered to be affiliated    
with a political party if the individual
 has been continuously registered to    

vote with the party during the #c-year  
period ending on the date of the        
individual's appointment4  7#c7 ,removal
 of individuals from intermediate       
selection pool by leaders of legislature
  7,a7 ,removal ,not later than the     
first ,november #ae occurring after the 
appointment of the selection panel1 each
 of the following individuals may reduce
 the number of individuals in the       
intermediate selection pool under       
paragraph 7#b77;,a7 by removing not more
 than #b individuals from each of the #c
 categories described in such paragraph3
  7i7 ,the leader of the party with the 
greatest number of seats in the upper   
house of the ,state legislature4  7ii7  
,the leader of the party with the       
greatest number of seats in the lower   
house of the ,state legislature4  7iii7 
,the leader of the party with the second
 greatest number of seats in the upper  
house of the ,state legislature4  7iv7  
,the leader of the party with the second
 greatest number of seats in the lower  

house of the ,state legislature4  7,b7  
,special rule for states with unicameral
 legislature ,in the case of a ,state   
with a unicameral legislature--  7i7 the
 leader of the party with the greatest  
number of seats in the legislature may  
exercise the removal authority described
 in clauses 7i7 and 7ii7 of subparagraph
 7,a72 and  7ii7 the leader of the party
 with the second greatest number of     
seats in the legislature may exercise   
the removal authority described in      
clauses 7iii7 and 7iv7 of subparagraph  
7,a74  7#d7 ,final selection pools ,not 
later than the first ,november #bj      
occurring after the appointment of the  
selection panel1 the selection panel    
shall establish the following final     
selection pools of individuals who may  
be appointed to serve on the independent
 redistricting commission under         
subsection 7a73  7,a7 ,a final majority 
selection pool1 consisting of #aj       
individuals selected at random from the 
majority category under clause 7i7 of   

paragraph 7#b77;,a71 as reduced under   
paragraph 7#c74  7,b7 ,a final minority 
selection pool1 consisting of #aj       
individuals selected at random from the 
minority category under clause 7ii7 of  
paragraph 7#b77;,a71 as reduced under   
paragraph 7#c74  7,c7 ,a final          
independent selection pool1 consisting  
of #aj individuals selected at random   
from the independent category under     
clause 7ii7 of paragraph 7#b77;,a71 as  
reduced under paragraph 7#c74  7c7      
,criteria for ,eligibility  7#a7 ,in    
general ,an individual is eligible to   
serve as a member of an independent     
redistricting commission if the         
individual meets each of the following  
criteria3  7,a7 ,as of the date of      
appointment1 the individual is          
registered to vote in elections for     
,federal office held in the ,state4     
7,b7 ,the individual has voted in at    
least #b of the #c most recent          
,statewide general elections held prior 
to the date of appointment4  7,c7       

,during the #c-year period ending on the
 date of the individual's appointment1  
the individual has been continuously    
registered to vote with the same        
political party1 or has not been        
registered to vote with any political   
party4  7,d7 ,the individual provides   
the selection panel with a written      
statement containing the following      
assurances3  7i7 ,an assurance that the 
individual shall commit to carrying out 
the individual's duties under this ,act 
in an honest1 independent1 and impartial
 fashion1 and to upholding public       
confidence in the integrity of the      
redistricting process4  7ii7 ,an        
assurance that1 during the covered      
periods described in paragraph 7#c71 the
 individual has not taken and will not  
take any action which would disqualify  
the individual from serving as a member 
of the commission under such paragraph4 
7#b7 ,disqualifications ,an individual  
is not eligible to serve as a member of 
the commission if any of the following  

applies during any of the covered       
periods described in paragraph 7#c73    
7,a7 ,the individual or 7in the case of 
the covered periods described in        
subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b7 of paragraph
 7#c77 an immediate family member of the
 individual holds public office or is a 
candidate for election for public       
office4  7,b7 ,the individual or 7in the
 case of the covered periods described  
in subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b7 of       
paragraph 7#c77 an immediate family     
member of the individual serves as an   
officer of a political party or as an   
officer1 employee1 or paid consultant of
 a campaign committee of a candidate for
 public office4  7,c7 ,the individual or
 7in the case of the covered periods    
described in subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b7
 of paragraph 7#c77 an immediate family 
member of the individual holds a        
position as a registered lobbyist under 
the ,lobbying ,disclosure ,act of #aiie 
7#b ,u4,s4,c4 #afja et seq47 or an      
equivalent ,state or local law4  7,d7   

,the individual or 7in the case of the  
covered periods described in            
subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b7 of paragraph
 7#c77 an immediate family member of the
 individual is an employee of an elected
 public official1 a contractor with the 
legislature of the ,state1 or a donor to
 the campaign of any candidate for      
public office 7other than a donor who   
gives an aggregate amount of less than  
#aj1jjj to the candidate with respect to
 the election74  7#c7 ,covered periods  
described ,in this subsection1 the term 
covered period means1 with respect to   
the appointment of an individual to the 
commission1 any of the following3  7,a7 
,the #c-year period ending on the date  
of the individual's appointment4  7,b7  
,the period in which the commission is  
carrying out its duties4  7,c7 ,the     
#c-year period beginning on the date of 
the commission's termination4  7#d7     
,immediate family member defined ,in    
this subsection1 the term immediate     
family member means1 with respect to an 

individual1 a father1 mother1 son1      
daughter1 brother1 sister1 husband1     
wife1 father-in-law1 or mother-in-law4  
7d7 ,removal2 ,vacancies  7#a7 ,removal 
,after having been served written notice
 and provided with an opportunity for a 
response1 a member of the commission may
 be removed by the ,governor1 with the  
concurrence of two-thirds of the upper  
house of the ,state legislature 7or1 in 
the case of a ,state with a unicameral  
legislature1 the legislature71 for      
substantial neglect of duty1 gross      
misconduct in office1 or inability to   
discharge the duties of office4  7#b7   
,vacancy ,a vacancy in the commission   
shall be filled in the manner in which  
the original appointment was made4  7e7 
,procedures for ,conducting ,commission 
,business  7#a7 ,chair ,members of an   
independent redistricting commission    
established under this subsection shall 
select by majority vote one member who  
was appointed from the final independent
 selection pool described in subsection 

7b77#d77;,c7 to serve as chair of the   
commission4 ,the commission may not take
 any action to develop a redistricting  
plan for the ,state under section #e    
until the appointment of the            
commission's chair4  7#b7 ,requiring    
majority approval for actions ,the      
independent redistricting commission of 
a ,state may not publish and disseminate
 any draft or final redistricting plan1 
or take any other action1 without the   
approval of at least a majority of its  
members given at a meeting at which at  
least a majority of its members are     
present4  7#c7 ,quorum ,a majority of   
the members of the commission shall     
constitute a quorum4  7f7 ,deadline     
,each ,state shall establish a          
commission under this section not later 
than ,december #ca of each year in which
 a decennial census is conducted4  7g7  
,termination  7#a7 ,in general ,the     
independent redistricting commission of 
a ,state shall terminate on the day     
after the date of the first regularly   

scheduled general election for ,federal 
office which occurs after the chief     
executive of the ,state receives the    
,state apportionment notice4  7#b7      
,preservation of records ,the ,state    
shall ensure that the records of the    
independent redistricting commission are
 retained in the appropriate ,state     
archive in such manner as may be        
necessary to enable the ,state to       
respond to any civil action brought with
 respect to ,congressional redistricting
 in the ,state4  #e4 ,development of    
,redistricting ,plan by ,independent    
,commission2 ,public ,notice and ,input 
7a7 ,development of redistricting plan  
7#a7 ,criteria ,the independent         
redistricting commission of a ,state    
shall develop a redistricting plan for  
the ,state in accordance with the       
following criteria1 prioritized         
according to the following order3  7,a7 
,districts shall each have equal        
population per representative as nearly 
as practicable1 in accordance with the  

,constitution of the ,united ,states4   
7,b7 ,districts shall comply with the   
,voting ,rights ,act of #aife 7#db      
,u4,s4,c4 #aigc et seq474  7,c7         
,districts shall be geographically      
contiguous4  7,d7 ,to the extent        
practicable1 district boundaries shall  
minimize the division of any            
municipality1 county1 neighborhood1 or  
community of interest4 ,for purposes of 
this subparagraph1 a community of       
interest is a contiguous population     
which shares common social and economic 
interests that should be included within
 a single district for purposes of its  
effective and fair representation4      
,examples of such shared interests are  
those common to an urban area1 a rural  
area1 an industrial area1 or an         
agricultural area1 and those common to  
areas in which the people share similar 
living standards1 use the same          
transportation facilities1 have similar 
work opportunities1 or have access to   
the same media of communication relevant

 to the election process4 ,communities  
of interest shall not include           
relationships with political parties1   
incumbent officeholders1 or political   
candidates4  7,e7 ,to the extent        
practicable1 districts shall be         
geographically compact such that nearby 
areas of population are not bypassed for
 more distant areas of population4  7,f7
 ,to the extent practicable1 district   
lines shall use visible geographic      
features4  7#b7 ,factors prohibited from
 consideration ,in developing the       
redistricting plan for the ,state1 the  
independent redistricting commission may
 not take into consideration any of the 
following factors1 except to the extent 
necessary to comply with the ,voting    
,rights ,act of #aife3  7,a7 ,the       
political party affiliation of the      
population of a district4  7,b7 ,the    
residence of any ,member of the ,house  
of ,representatives or candidate4  7b7  
,public notice and input  7#a7 ,use of  
open and transparent process ,the       

commission shall hold each of its       
meetings in public1 shall solicit and   
take into consideration comments from   
the public throughout the process of    
developing the redistricting plan for   
the ,state1 and shall carry out its     
duties in an open and transparent manner
 which provides for the widest public   
dissemination reasonably possible of its
 proposed and final redistricting plans4
  7#b7 ,minimum public hearings ,the    
commission shall hold1 at a minimum1 the
 following public hearings at which     
members of the public may provide input 
and comments3  7,a7 ,a hearing held     
prior to the development of draft       
redistricting plans under subsection    
7c77#a74  7,b7 ,a hearing held upon the 
development and publication of such     
draft redistricting plans1 at which the 
congressional district maps provided    
under each such plan shall be displayed4
  7,c7 ,a hearing held upon the approval
 of the final redistricting plan under  
subsection 7c77#b71 at which the        

congressional district maps provided    
under such plan shall be displayed4     
7#c7 ,minimum period for public comment 
after display of maps ,the commission   
shall accept and consider comments from 
the public with respect to congressional
 district maps displayed at any hearing 
described in paragraph 7#b7 for not     
fewer than #cj days after the date of   
the hearing4  7#d7 ,availability of data
 and software ,the commission shall make
 available to the public all of the     
demographic data used by the commission 
to develop the proposed redistricting   
plans1 together with any software used  
to draw maps of proposed districts4     
7#e7 ,meetings and hearings in various  
geographic locations ,to the greatest   
extent practicable1 the commission shall
 hold its meetings and hearings in      
various geographic regions and locations
 throughout the ,state4  7c7 ,process   
for ,enactment of ,final ,redistricting 
,plan  7#a7 ,publication of draft plans 
,not later than the first ,june #a which

 occurs after the chief executive of the
 ,state receives the ,state             
apportionment notice1 the commission    
shall publish and disseminate multiple  
draft redistricting plans4  7#b7 ,period
 for consideration of public comments   
,after publishing and disseminating the 
draft redistricting plans under         
paragraph 7#a71 the commission shall    
solicit and take into consideration     
comments from the public on such draft  
plans during a period of at least #fj   
days following the date on which such   
draft plans are published and           
disseminated4  7#c7 ,publication of     
final plan ,after taking into           
consideration comments from the public  
on the draft redistricting plans1 the   
commission shall publish and disseminate
 a final redistricting plan for the     
,state1 and shall vote on approving such
 final plan for enactment into law by   
not later than the first ,august #ae    
which occurs after the chief executive  
of the ,state receives the ,state       

apportionment notice4  7#d7 ,enactment  
,the final redistricting plan published 
and disseminated under paragraph 7#c7   
shall be deemed to be enacted into law  
if--  7,a7 the plan is approved by a    
majority of the whole membership of the 
commission2 and  7,b7 at least one      
member of the commission appointed from 
each of the final selection pools       
described in section #d7;a77#a7 approves
 the plan4  #f4 ,enactment of plan      
developed by courts  7a7 ,state court   
7#a7 ,development of plan by special    
master ,if a redistricting plan         
developed by the independent            
redistricting commission of a ,state is 
not enacted into law under section      
#e7;c7 by the first ,august #ca which   
occurs after the chief executive of the 
,state receives the ,state apportionment
 notice1 the chief election official of 
the ,state shall petition the highest   
court of the ,state for an order        
directing the appointment of a special  
master to develop and present a         

redistricting plan to the court4  7#b7  
,enactment ,if the highest court of the 
,state approves a redistricting plan    
developed and presented by a special    
master under paragraph 7#a71 the plan   
shall serve as the redistricting plan   
for the ,state1 and shall be deemed to  
be enacted on the date on which the     
court approves the plan4  7#c7          
,adherence to criteria applicable to    
plans of commission ,in developing a    
redistricting plan under this           
subsection1 the highest court of a      
,state shall ensure that the plan meets 
the criteria applicable under paragraphs
 7#a7 and 7#b7 of section #e7;a7 to     
plans developed by the independent      
redistricting commission of the ,state4 
7b7 ,federal court  7#a7 ,failure of    
state court to enact plan  7,a7 ,notice 
to court if plan not selected by state  
court ,if the chief election official of
 a ,state petitions the highest court of
 the ,state for an order under          
subsection 7a7 and the court does not   

approve a redistricting plan in         
accordance with such subsection by the  
first ,october #ae which occurs after   
the chief executive of the ,state       
receives the ,state apportionment       
notice1 the ,state shall file a notice  
with the ,united ,states district court 
for the district in which the capital of
 the ,state is located4  7,b7           
,development and selection of plan by   
federal court ,not later than #de days  
after receiving a notice from a ,state  
under subparagraph 7,a71 the court shall
 develop and publish a final            
redistricting plan for the ,state1 which
 shall be deemed to be enacted on the   
date on which the court publishes the   
plan4  7#b7 ,failure of state to        
establish commission ,if a ,state does  
not establish an independent            
redistricting commission under section  
#d by the deadline set forth in section 
#d7;f7--  7,a7 the ,state may not       
establish the commission2 and  7,b7 the 
,united ,states district court for the  

district in which the capital of the    
,state is located shall develop and     
publish a final redistricting plan for  
the ,state not later than the first     
,november #cj which occurs after the    
chief executive of the ,state receives  
the ,state apportionment notice4  7#c7  
,criteria ,it is the sense of ,congress 
that1 in developing a redistricting plan
 for a ,state under this subsection1 the
 district court should adhere to the    
same terms and conditions that applied  
to the development of the plan of the   
commission under section #e7;a74  7c7   
,access to information and records of   
commission ,a court which is required to
 develop a redistricting plan for a     
,state under this section shall have    
access to any information1 data1        
software1 or other records and material 
used by the independent redistricting   
commission of the ,state in carrying out
 its duties under this ,act4  #g4       
,special rule for redistricting         
conducted under order of ,federal court 

,if a ,federal court requires a ,state  
to conduct redistricting subsequent to  
an apportionment of ,representatives in 
the ,state in order to comply with the  
,constitution or to enforce the ,voting 
,rights ,act of #aife1 sections #e and  
#f shall apply with respect to the      
redistricting1 except that--  7#a7 the  
independent redistricting commission    
shall be established and the            
commission's chair shall be appointed   
prior to the expiration of the #fj-;day 
period which begins on the date of the  
final order of the ,federal court to    
conduct the redistricting2  7#b7 if the 
commission fails to enact into law a    
final redistricting plan in accordance  
with section #e7;c7 prior to the        
expiration of the #aej-;day period which
 begins on the date of the final order  
of the ,federal court to conduct the    
redistricting1 the chief election       
official of the ,state shall petition   
the highest court of the ,state for an  
order directing the appointment of a    

special master to develop and present a 
redistricting plan to the court in      
accordance with section #f7;a72  7#c7 if
 the chief election official of the     
,state petitions the highest court of   
the ,state for an order in accordance   
with section #f7;a71 the court shall    
approve a final redistricting plan in   
accordance with section #f7;a7 prior to 
the expiration of the #ahj-;day period  
which begins on the date of the final   
order of the ,federal court to conduct  
the redistricting2 and  7#d7 if the     
highest court of the ,state fails to    
meet the requirements of paragraph 7#c71
 a district court of the ,united ,states
 shall develop and publish a final      
redistricting plan for the ,state in    
accordance with section #f7;b7 prior to 
the expiration of the #baj-;day period  
which begins on the date of the final   
order of the ,federal court to conduct  
the redistricting4  #h4 ,payments to    
,states for carrying out redistricting  
7a7 ,authorization of payments ,subject 

to subsection 7d71 not later than #cj   
days after a ,state receives a ,state   
apportionment notice1 the ,election     
,assistance ,commission shall make a    
payment to the ,state in an amount equal
 to the product of--  7#a7 the number of
 ,representatives to which the ,state is
 entitled1 as provided under the notice2
 and  7#b7 #aej1jjj4  7b7 ,use of funds 
,a ,state shall use the payment made    
under this section to establish and     
operate the ,state's independent        
redistricting commission1 to implement  
the ,state redistricting plan1 and to   
otherwise carry out ,congressional      
redistricting in the ,state4  7c7 ,no   
payment to states with single member    
,the ,election ,assistance ,commission  
shall not make a payment under this     
section to any ,state which is not      
entitled to more than one               
,representative under its ,state        
apportionment notice4  7d7 ,requiring   
,establishment of ,commission as        
,condition of ,payment ,the ,election   

,assistance ,commission may not make a  
payment to a ,state under this section  
until the ,state certifies to the       
,commission that the ,state has         
established an independent redistricting
 commission1 and that a chair of the    
commission has been appointed1 in       
accordance with section #d4  7e7        
,authorization of appropriations ,there 
are authorized to be appropriated such  
sums as may be necessary for payments   
under this section4  #i4 ,civil         
enforcement  7a7 ,civil ,enforcement    
7#a7 ,actions by ,attorney ,general ,the
 ,attorney ,general may bring a civil   
action in an appropriate district court 
for such relief as may be appropriate to
 carry out this ,act4  7#b7             
,availability of private right of action
 ,any elector of a ,state who is        
aggrieved by the failure of the ,state  
redistricting plan which is enacted into
 law under section #e7;b77#c7 to meet   
the requirements for such a plan under  
this ,act may bring a civil action in an

 appropriate district court for such    
relief as may be appropriate to remedy  
the failure1 so long as the elector     
brings the action during the #de-;day   
period which begins on the date on which
 the plan is enacted into law4  7b7     
,expedited ,consideration ,in any action
 brought for under this section1 the    
following rules shall apply3  7#a7 ,the 
action shall be filed in the appropriate
 ,united ,states district court and     
shall be heard by a #c-;judge court     
convened pursuant to section #bbhd of   
title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code4  7#b7 
,the #c-;judge court shall consolidate  
actions brought for relief under        
subsection 7b77#a7 with respect to the  
same ,state redistricting plan4  7#c7 ,a
 copy of the complaint shall be         
delivered promptly to the ,clerk of the 
,house of ,representatives and the      
,secretary of the ,senate4  7#d7 ,a     
final decision in the action shall be   
reviewable only by appeal directly to   
the ,supreme ,court of the ,united      

,states4 ,such appeal shall be taken by 
the filing of a notice of appeal within 
#aj days1 and the filing of a           
jurisdictional statement within #cj     
days1 of the entry of the final         
decision4  7#e7 ,it shall be the duty of
 the district court and the ,supreme    
,court of the ,united ,states to advance
 on the docket and to expedite to the   
greatest possible extent the disposition
 of the action and appeal4  7c7         
,location of ,court ,for purposes of an 
action under this section1 the          
appropriate district court shall be the 
district court of the ,united ,states   
for the district which includes the     
capital of the ,state involved4  7d7    
,attorney's ,fees ,in a civil action    
under this section1 the court may allow 
the prevailing party 7other than the    
,united ,states7 reasonable attorney    
fees1 including litigation expenses1 and
 costs4  7e7 ,relation to ,other ,laws  
7#a7 ,rights and remedies additional to 
other rights and remedies ,the rights   

and remedies established by this section
 are in addition to all other rights and
 remedies provided by law1 and neither  
the rights and remedies established by  
this section nor any other provision of 
this ,act shall supersede1 restrict1 or 
limit the application of the ,voting    
,rights ,act of #aife 7#db ,u4,s4,c4    
#aigc et seq474  7#b7 ,voting ,rights   
,act of #aife ,nothing in this ,act     
authorizes or requires conduct that is  
prohibited by the ,voting ,rights ,act  
of #aife 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #aigc et seq474 
#aj4 ,state apportionment notice defined
 ,in this ,act1 the ,state apportionment
 notice means1 with respect to a ,state1
 the notice sent to the ,state from the 
,clerk of the ,house of ,representatives
 under section #bb7;b7 of the ,act      
entitled ,an ,act to provide for the    
fifteenth and subsequent decennial      
censuses and to provide for an          
apportionment of ,representatives in    
,congress1 approved ,june #ah1 #aibi 7#b
 ,u4,s4,c4 #b;a71 of the number of      

,representatives to which the ,state is 
entitled4  #aa4 ,effective date ,this   
,act and the amendments made by this    
,act shall apply with respect to        
redistricting carried out pursuant to   
the decennial census conducted during   
#bjbj or any succeeding decennial       
census4