,,ii  #aahth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,s4 #cgej  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,february #g1  
#bjbd,ms4 ,klobuchar 7for herself and   
,ms4 ,butler7 introduced the following  
bill2 which was read twice and referred 
to the ,committee on the ,judiciary  ,a 
,,bill  ,to reform the congressional    
redistricting process1 and for other    
purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,redistricting      
,reform ,act of #bjbd4  #b4 ,finding of 
constitutional authority ,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  7#b7 the authority  
granted to ,congress under section #e of
 the #adth ,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 
number2  7#c7 the authority granted to  
,congress under section #e of the #adth 
,amendment to the ,constitution gives   
,congress the power to enact laws to    
enforce section #a of such amendment1   
including protections against excessive 
partisan gerrymandering that ,federal   
courts have not enforced because they   
understand such enforcement to be       
committed to ,congress by the           
,constitution2  7#d7 of the authority   
granted to ,congress to enforce article 
,,iv1 section #d1 of the ,constitution1 
and the guarantee of a ,republican ,form
 of ,government to every ,state1 which  
,federal courts have not enforced       
because they understand such enforcement

 to be committed to ,congress by the    
,constitution2  7#e7 requiring ,states  
to use uniform redistricting criteria is
 an appropriate and important exercise  
of such authority2 and  7#f7 partisan   
gerrymandering dilutes citizens' votes  
because partisan gerrymandering injures 
voters and political parties by         
infringing on their ,first ,amendment   
right to associate freely and their     
,fourteenth ,amendment right to equal   
protection of the laws4  #c4 ,ban on    
mid-decade redistricting ,a ,state that 
has been redistricted in accordance with
 this ,act may not be redistricted again
 until after the next apportionment of  
,representatives 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 unless a court        
requires the ,state to conduct such     
subsequent redistricting to comply with 

the ,constitution of the ,united        
,states1 the ,voting ,rights ,act of    
#aife 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #ajcja et seq471   
the terms or conditions of this ,act1 or
 applicable ,state law4  #d4 ,criteria  
for redistricting  7a7 ,requiring plans 
,to meet criteria ,a ,state may not use 
a congressional redistricting plan that 
is not in compliance with this section4 
7b7 ,ranked criteria ,under the         
redistricting plan of a ,state1 there   
shall be established single-member      
congressional districts using the       
following criteria as set forth in the  
following order of priority3 7#a7       
,districts shall comply with the ,united
 ,states ,constitution1 including the   
requirement that they substantially     
equalize total population1 without      
regard to age1 citizenship status1 or   
immigration status4  7#b7 ,districts    
shall comply with the ,voting ,rights   
,act of #aife 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #ajcja et  
seq471 including by creating any        
districts where1 if based upon the      

totality of the circumstances1 #b or    
more politically cohesive groups        
protected by such ,act are able to elect
 representatives of choice in coalition 
with one another1 and all other         
applicable ,federal laws4  7#c7 7,a7    
,districts shall be drawn1 to the extent
 that the totality of the circumstances 
warrant1 to ensure the practical ability
 of a group protected under the ,voting 
,rights ,act of #aife 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4    
#ajcja et seq47 to participate in the   
political process and to nominate       
candidates and to elect representatives 
of choice is not diluted or diminished1 
regardless of whether or not such       
protected group constitutes a majority  
of a district's population1 voting age  
population1 or citizen voting age       
population4  7,b7 ,for purposes of      
subparagraph 7,a71 the assessment of    
whether a protected group has the       
practical ability to nominate candidates
 and to elect representatives of choice 
shall require the consideration of the  

following factors3 7i7 ,whether the     
group is politically cohesive4  7ii7    
,whether there is racially polarized    
voting in the relevant geographic       
region4  7iii7 ,if there is racially    
polarized voting in the relevant        
geographic region1 whether the preferred
 candidates of the group nevertheless   
receive a sufficient amount of          
consistent crossover support from other 
voters such that the group is a         
functional majority with the ability to 
both nominate candidates and elect      
representatives of choice4  7#d7 7,a7   
,districts shall be drawn to represent  
communities of interest and             
neighborhoods to the extent practicable 
after compliance with the requirements  
of paragraphs 7#a7 through 7#c74  7,b7  
,for purposes of this paragraph1 the    
term community of interest-- 7i7 means  
an area for which the record before the 
entity responsible for developing and   
adopting the redistricting plan         
demonstrates the existence of broadly   

shared interests and representational   
needs1 including shared interests and   
representational needs rooted in common 
ethnic1 racial1 economic1 ,indian1      
social1 cultural1 geographic1 or        
historic identities1 or arising from    
similar socioeconomic conditions2 and   
7ii7 may1 if the record warrants1       
include political subdivisions such as  
counties1 municipalities1 ,indian lands1
 or school districts1 but shall not     
include common relationships with       
political parties or political          
candidates4  7,c7 ,for purposes of      
subparagraph 7,a71 in considering the   
needs of multiple1 overlapping          
communities of interest1 the entity     
responsible for developing and adopting 
the redistricting plan shall give       
greater weight to those communities of  
interest whose representational needs   
would most benefit from the community's 
inclusion in a single congressional     
district4  7c7 ,no favoring or          
disfavoring of political parties  7#a7  

,prohibition ,a ,state may not use a    
redistricting plan to conduct an        
election if the plan's congressional    
districts1 when considered cumulatively 
on a statewide basis1 have been drawn   
with the intent1 or have the effect of1 
materially favoring or disfavoring any  
political party4  7#b7 ,determination of
 effect ,the determination of whether a 
redistricting plan has the effect of    
materially favoring or disfavoring a    
political party shall be based on an    
evaluation of the totality of           
circumstances which1 at a minimum1 shall
 involve consideration of each of the   
following factors3 7,a7 ,computer       
modeling based on relevant statewide    
general elections for ,federal office   
held over the #h years preceding the    
adoption of the redistricting plan      
setting forth the probable electoral    
outcomes for the plan under a range of  
reasonably foreseeable conditions4  7,b7
 ,an analysis of whether the            
redistricting plan is statistically     

likely to result in partisan advantage  
or disadvantage on a statewide basis1   
the degree of any such advantage or     
disadvantage1 and whether such advantage
 or disadvantage is likely to be present
 under a range of reasonably foreseeable
 electoral conditions4  7,c7 ,a         
comparison of the modeled electoral     
outcomes for the redistricting plan to  
the modeled electoral outcomes for      
alternative plans that demonstrably     
comply with the requirements of         
paragraphs 7#a71 7#b71 and 7#c7 of      
subsection 7b7 in order to determine    
whether reasonable alternatives exist   
that would result in materially lower   
levels of partisan advantage or         
disadvantage on a statewide basis4 ,for 
purposes of this subparagraph1          
alternative plans considered may include
 both actual plans proposed during the  
redistricting process and other plans   
prepared for purposes of comparison4    
7,d7 ,any other relevant information1   
including how broad support for the     

redistricting plan was among members of 
the entity responsible for developing   
and adopting the plan and whether the   
processes leading to the development and
 adoption of the plan were transparent  
and equally open to all members of the  
entity and to the public4  7#c7         
,rebuttable presumption  7,a7 ,trigger  
,in any civil action brought under      
section #g in which a party asserts a   
claim that a ,state has enacted a       
redistricting plan which is in violation
 of this subsection1 a party may file a 
motion not later than #cj days after the
 enactment of the plan 7or1 in the case 
of a plan enacted before the date of    
enactment of this ,act1 not later than  
#cj days after the date of enactment of 
this ,act7 requesting that the court    
determine whether a presumption of such 
a violation exists4 ,if such a motion is
 timely filed1 the court shall hold a   
hearing not later than #ae days after   
the date the motion is filed to assess  
whether a presumption of such a         

violation exists4  7,b7 ,assessment ,to 
conduct the assessment required under   
subparagraph 7,a71 the court shall do   
the following3 7i7 ,determine the number
 of congressional districts under the   
plan that would have been carried by    
each political party's candidates for   
the office of ,president and the office 
of ,senator in the #b most recent       
general elections for the office of     
,president and the #b most recent       
general elections for the office of     
,senator 7other than special general    
elections7 immediately preceding the    
enactment of the plan1 except that if a 
,state conducts a primary election for  
the office of ,senator which is open to 
candidates of all political parties1 the
 primary election shall be used instead 
of the general election and the number  
of districts carried by a party's       
candidates for the office of ,senator   
shall be determined on the basis of the 
combined vote share of all candidates in
 the election who are affiliated with   

such party4  7ii7 ,determine1 for each  
of the #d elections assessed under      
clause 7i71 whether the number of       
districts that would have been carried  
by any party's candidate as determined  
under clause 7i7 results in partisan    
advantage or disadvantage in excess of  
the applicable threshold described in   
subparagraph 7,c74 ,the degree of       
partisan advantage or disadvantage shall
 be determined by one or more standard  
quantitative measures of partisan       
fairness that-- 7,i7 use a party's share
 of the statewide vote to calculate a   
corresponding benchmark share of seats2 
and  7,,ii7 measure the amount by which 
the share of seats the party's candidate
 would have won in the election involved
 exceeds the benchmark share of seats4  
7,c7 ,applicable threshold described    
,the applicable threshold described in  
this subparagraph is1 with respect to a 
,state and a number of seats1 the       
greater of-- 7i7 an amount equal to #g  
percent of the number of congressional  

districts in the ,state2 or  7ii7 one   
congressional district4  7,d7           
,description of quantitative measures2  
prohibiting rounding ,in carrying out   
this subsection-- 7i7 the standard      
quantitative measures of partisan       
fairness used by the court may include  
the simplified efficiency gap but may   
not include strict proportionality2 and 
7ii7 the court may not round any number4
  7,e7 ,presumption of violation ,a plan
 is presumed to violate paragraph 7#a7  
if1 on the basis of at least one        
standard quantitative measure of        
partisan fairness1 it exceeds the       
applicable threshold described in       
subparagraph 7,c7 with respect to #b or 
more of the #d elections assessed under 
subparagraph 7,b74  7,f7 ,stay of use of
 plan ,notwithstanding any other        
provision of this ,act1 in any action   
under this paragraph1 the following     
rules shall apply3 7i7 ,upon filing of a
 motion under subparagraph 7,a71 a      
,state's use of the plan which is the   

subject of the motion shall be          
automatically stayed pending resolution 
of such motion4  7ii7 ,if after         
considering the motion1 the court rules 
that the plan is presumed under         
subparagraph 7,e7 to violate paragraph  
7#a71 a ,state may not use such plan    
until and unless the court which is     
carrying out the determination of the   
effect of the plan under paragraph 7#b7 
determines that1 notwithstanding the    
presumptive violation1 the plan does not
 violate paragraph 7#a74  7,g7 ,no      
effect on other assessments ,the absence
 of a presumption of a violation with   
respect to a redistricting plan as      
determined under this paragraph shall   
not affect the determination of the     
effect or intent of the plan under this 
section4  7#d7 ,determination of intent 
,a court may rely on all available      
evidence when determining whether a     
redistricting plan was drawn with the   
intent to materially favor or disfavor a
 political party1 including evidence of 

the partisan effects of a plan1 the     
degree of support the plan received from
 members of the entity responsible for  
developing and adopting the plan1 and   
whether the processes leading to        
development and adoption of the plan    
were transparent and equally open to all
 members of the entity and to the       
public4  7#e7 ,no violation based on    
certain criteria ,no redistricting plan 
shall be found to be in violation of    
paragraph 7#a7 because of the proper    
application of the criteria set forth in
 paragraph 7#a71 7#b71 or 7#c7 of       
subsection 7b71 unless one or more      
alternative plans could have complied   
with such paragraphs without having the 
effect of materially favoring or        
disfavoring a political party4  7d7     
,factors prohibited from consideration  
,in developing the redistricting plan   
for the ,state1 the ,state may not1     
except as necessary to comply with the  
criteria described in paragraphs 7#a7   
through 7#c7 of subsection 7b71 to      

achieve partisan fairness and comply    
with subsection 7b71 and to enable the  
redistricting plan to be measured       
against the external metrics described  
in section #e7;c71 take into            
consideration any of the following      
factors3 7#a7 ,the residence of any     
,member of the ,house of                
,representatives or candidate4  7#b7    
,the political party affiliation or     
voting history of the population of a   
district4  7e7 ,additional criteria ,a  
,state may not rely upon criteria1      
districting principles1 or other        
policies of the ,state which are not set
 forth in this section to justify       
non-compliance with the requirements of 
this section4  7f7 ,applicability  7#a7 
,in general ,this section applies to any
 authority1 whether appointed1 elected1 
judicial1 or otherwise1 responsible for 
enacting the congressional redistricting
 plan of a ,state4  7#b7 ,date of       
enactment ,this section applies to any  
congressional redistricting plan that   

would be1 or is1 in effect after the    
date of enactment of this ,act1         
regardless of the date of enactment by  
the ,state of the congressional         
redistricting plan4  7g7 ,severability  
of criteria ,if any provision of this   
section1 or the application of any such 
provision to any person or circumstance1
 is held to be unconstitutional1 the    
remainder of this section1 and the      
application of such provision to any    
other person or circumstance1 shall not 
be affected by the holding4  #e4        
,development of plan  7a7 ,public notice
 and input  7#a7 ,use of open and       
transparent process ,the entity         
responsible for developing and adopting 
the congressional redistricting plan of 
a ,state shall solicit and take into    
consideration comments from the public  
throughout the process of developing the
 plan1 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 ,website  7,a7 ,features ,the    
entity described in paragraph 7#a7 shall
 maintain a public internet site which  
is not affiliated with or maintained by 
the office of any elected official and  
which includes the following features3  
7i7 ,all proposed redistricting plans   
and the final redistricting plan1       
including the accompanying written      
evaluation under subsection 7c74  7ii7  
,all comments received from the public  
submitted under paragraph 7#a74  7iii7  
,access in an easily usable format to   
the demographic and other data used by  
the entity to develop and analyze the   
proposed redistricting plans1 together  
with any reports analyzing and          
evaluating such plans and access to     
software that members of the public may 
use to draw maps of proposed districts4 
7iv7 ,a method by which members of the  
public may submit comments directly to  
the entity4  7,b7 ,searchable format    
,the entity described in paragraph 7#a7 

shall ensure that all information posted
 and maintained on the site under this  
paragraph1 including information and    
proposed maps submitted by the public1  
shall be maintained in an easily        
searchable format4  7#c7 ,multiple      
language requirements for all notices   
,the entity described in paragraph 7#a7 
shall make each notice which is required
 to be posted and published under this  
section available in any language in    
which the ,state 7or any jurisdiction in
 the ,state7 is required to provide     
election materials under section #bjc of
 the ,voting ,rights ,act of #aife 7#eb 
,u4,s4,c4 #ajejc74  7b7 ,development of 
plan  7#a7 ,hearings ,the entity        
responsible for developing and adopting 
the congressional redistricting plan    
shall hold hearings both before and     
after releasing proposed plans in order 
to solicit public input on the content  
of such plans4 ,these hearings shall--  
7,a7 be held in different regions of the
 ,state and streamed live on the public 

internet site maintained under          
subsection 7a77#b72 and  7,b7 be        
sufficient in number1 scheduled at times
 and places1 and noticed and conducted  
in a manner to ensure that all members  
of the public1 including members of     
racial1 ethnic1 and language minorities 
protected under the ,voting ,rights ,act
 of #aife1 have a meaningful opportunity
 to attend and provide input both before
 and after the entity releases proposed 
plans4  7#b7 ,posting of maps ,the      
entity described in paragraph 7#a7 shall
 make proposed plans1 amendments to     
proposed plans1 and the data needed to  
analyze such plans for compliance with  
the criteria of this ,act available for 
public review1 including on the public  
internet site required under subsection 
7a77#b71 for a period of not less than  
#e days before any vote or hearing is   
held on any such plan or any amendment  
to such a plan4  7c7 ,release of written
 evaluation of plan against external    
metrics required prior to vote ,the     

entity responsible for developing and   
adopting the congressional redistricting
 plan for a ,state may not hold a vote  
on a proposed redistricting plan1       
including a vote in a committee1 unless 
at least #dh hours prior to holding the 
vote the ,state has released a written  
evaluation that measures each such plan 
against external metrics which cover the
 criteria set forth in section #d7;b71  
including the impact of the plan on the 
ability of members of a class of        
citizens protected by the ,voting       
,rights ,act of #aife 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4    
#ajcja et seq47 to elect candidates of  
choice1 the degree to which the plan    
preserves or divides communities of     
interest1 and any analysis used by the  
,state to assess compliance with the    
requirements of subsections 7b7 and 7c7 
of section #d4  7d7 ,public input and   
comments ,the entity responsible for    
developing and adopting the             
congressional redistricting plan for a  
,state shall make all public comments   

received about potential plans1         
including alternative plans1 available  
to the public on the internet site      
required under subsection 7a77#b71 at no
 cost1 not later than #bd hours prior to
 holding a vote on final adoption of a  
plan4  #f4 ,failure by ,state to enact  
plan  7a7 ,deadline for enactment of    
plan  7#a7 ,in general ,except as       
provided in paragraph 7#b71 each ,state 
shall enact a final congressional       
redistricting plan following            
transmission of a notice of             
apportionment to the ,president by the  
earliest of-- 7,a7 the deadline set     
forth in ,state law1 including any      
extension to the deadline provided in   
accordance with ,state law2  7,b7       
,february #ae of the year in which      
regularly scheduled general elections   
for ,federal office are held in the     
,state2 or  7,c7 #ij days before the    
date of the next regularly scheduled    
primary election for ,federal office    
held in the ,state4  7#b7 ,special rule 

for plans enacted prior to date of      
enactment of ,act ,if a ,state enacted a
 final congressional redistricting plan 
prior to the date of enactment of this  
,act and the plan is not in compliance  
with the requirements of this ,act1 the 
,state shall enact a final redistricting
 plan which is in compliance with the   
requirements of this ,act not later than
 #de days after the date of enactment of
 this ,act4  7b7 ,development of plan by
 court in case of missed deadline ,if a 
,state has not enacted a final          
congressional redistricting plan by the 
applicable deadline under subsection    
7a71 or it appears reasonably likely    
that a ,state will fail to enact a final
 congressional redistricting plan by    
such deadline-- 7#a7 any citizen of the 
,state may file an action in the ,united
 ,states district court for the         
applicable venue asking the district    
court to assume jurisdiction2  7#b7 the 
,united ,states district court for the  
applicable venue1 acting through a      

#c-;judge court convened pursuant to    
section #bbhd of title #bh1 ,united     
,states ,code1 shall have the exclusive 
authority to develop and publish the    
congressional redistricting plan for the
 ,state2 and  7#c7 the final            
congressional redistricting plan        
developed and published by the court    
under this section shall be deemed to be
 enacted on the date on which the court 
publishes the final congressional       
redistricting plan1 as described in     
subsection 7e74  7c7 ,applicable venue  
,for purposes of this section1 the term 
applicable venue with respect to a      
,state is the ,district of ,columbia or 
the judicial district in which the      
capital of the ,state is located1 as    
selected by the first party to file with
 the court sufficient evidence that a   
,state has failed to1 or is reasonably  
likely to fail to1 enact a final        
redistricting plan for the ,state prior 
to the expiration of the applicable     
deadline set forth in subsection 7a74   

7d7 ,procedures for ,development of     
,plan  7#a7 ,criteria ,in developing a  
redistricting plan for a ,state under   
this section1 the court shall adhere to 
the same terms and conditions that      
applied 7or that would have applied1 as 
the case may be7 to the development of a
 plan by the ,state under section #d4   
7#b7 ,access to information and records 
,the court shall have access to any     
information1 data1 software1 or other   
records and material that was used 7or  
that would have been used1 as the case  
may be7 by the ,state in carrying out   
its duties under this ,act4  7#c7       
,hearing2 public participation ,in      
developing a redistricting plan for a   
,state1 the court shall-- 7,a7 hold one 
or more evidentiary hearings at which   
interested members of the public may    
appear and be heard and present         
testimony1 including expert testimony1  
in accordance with the rules of the     
court2 and  7,b7 consider other         
submissions and comments by the public1 

including proposals for redistricting   
plans to cover the entire ,state or any 
portion of the ,state4  7#d7 ,use of    
special master ,to assist in the        
development and publication of a        
redistricting plan for a ,state under   
this section1 the court may appoint a   
special master to make recommendations  
to the court on possible plans for the  
,state4  7e7 ,publication of plan  7#a7 
,public availability of initial plan    
,upon completing the development of one 
or more initial redistricting plans1 the
 court shall make the plans available to
 the public at no cost1 and shall also  
make available the underlying data used 
to develop the plans and a written      
evaluation of the plans against external
 metrics 7as described in section       
#e7;c774  7#b7 ,publication of final    
plan ,at any time after the expiration  
of the #ad-;day period which begins on  
the date the court makes the plans      
available to the public under paragraph 
7#a71 and taking into consideration any 

submissions and comments by the public  
which are received during such period1  
the court shall develop and publish the 
final redistricting plan for the ,state4
  7f7 ,use of interim plan ,in the event
 that the court is not able to develop  
and publish a final redistricting plan  
for the ,state with sufficient time for 
an upcoming election to proceed1 the    
court may develop and publish an interim
 redistricting plan which shall serve as
 the redistricting plan for the ,state  
until the court develops and publishes a
 final plan in accordance with this     
section4 ,nothing in this subsection may
 be construed to limit or otherwise     
affect the authority or discretion of   
the court to develop and publish the    
final redistricting plan1 including the 
discretion to make any changes the court
 deems necessary to an interim          
redistricting plan4  7g7 ,appeals       
,review on appeal of any final or       
interim plan adopted by the court in    
accordance with this section shall be   

governed by the appellate process in    
section #g4  7h7 ,stay of ,state        
proceedings ,the filing of an action    
under this section shall act as a stay  
of any proceedings in ,state court with 
respect to the ,state's congressional   
redistricting plan unless otherwise     
ordered by the court4  #g4 ,civil       
enforcement  7a7 ,civil ,enforcement    
7#a7 ,actions by ,attorney ,general ,the
 ,attorney ,general may bring a civil   
action for such relief as may be        
appropriate to carry out this ,act4     
7#b7 ,availability of private right of  
action  7,a7 ,in general ,any person    
residing or domiciled in a ,state who is
 aggrieved by the failure of the ,state 
to meet the requirements of the         
,constitution or ,federal law1 including
 this ,act1 with respect to the ,state's
 congressional redistricting1 may bring 
a civil action in the ,united ,states   
district court for the applicable venue 
for such relief as may be appropriate to
 remedy the failure4  7,b7 ,special rule

 for claims relating to partisan        
advantage ,for purposes of subparagraph 
7,a71 a person who is aggrieved by the  
failure of a ,state to meet the         
requirements of section #d7;c7 may      
include-- 7i7 any political party or    
committee in the ,state2 and  7ii7 any  
registered voter in the ,state who      
resides in a congressional district that
 the voter alleges was drawn in a manner
 that contributes to a violation of such
 section4  7,c7 ,no awarding of damages 
to prevailing party ,except for an award
 of attorney's fees under subsection    
7d71 a court in a civil action under    
this section shall not award the        
prevailing party any monetary damages1  
compensatory1 punitive1 or otherwise4   
7#c7 ,delivery of complaint to ,house   
and ,senate ,in any action brought under
 this section1 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 ,exclusive jurisdiction and        

applicable venue ,the district courts of
 the ,united ,states shall have         
exclusive jurisdiction to hear and      
determine claims asserting that a       
congressional redistricting plan        
violates the requirements of the        
,constitution or ,federal law1 including
 this ,act4 ,the applicable venue for   
such an action shall be the ,united     
,states ,district ,court for the        
,district of ,columbia or for the       
judicial district in which the capital  
of the ,state is located1 as selected by
 the person bringing the action4 ,in a  
civil action that includes a claim that 
a redistricting plan is in violation of 
subsection 7b7 or 7c7 of section #d1 the
 ,united ,states ,district ,court for   
the ,district of ,columbia shall have   
jurisdiction over any defendant who has 
been served in any ,united ,states      
judicial district in which the defendant
 resides1 is found1 or has an agent1 or 
in the ,united ,states judicial district
 in which the capital of the ,state is  

located4 ,process may be served in any  
,united ,states judicial district where 
a defendant resides1 is found1 or has an
 agent1 or in the ,united ,states       
judicial district in which the capital  
of the ,state is located4  7#e7 ,use of 
#c-;judge court ,if an action under this
 section raises statewide claims under  
the ,constitution or this ,act1 the     
action shall be heard by a #c-;judge    
court convened pursuant to section #bbhd
 of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code4   
7#f7 ,review of final decision ,a final 
decision in an action brought under this
 section shall be reviewable on appeal  
by the ,united ,states ,court of        
,appeals for the ,district of ,columbia 
,circuit1 which shall hear the matter   
sitting en banc4 ,there shall be no     
right of appeal in such proceedings to  
any other court of appeals4 ,such appeal
 shall be taken by the filing of a      
notice of appeal within #aj days of the 
entry of the final decision4 ,a final   
decision by the ,court of ,appeals may  

be reviewed by the ,supreme ,court of   
the ,united ,states by writ of          
certiorari4  7b7 ,expedited             
,consideration ,in any action brought   
under this section1 it shall be the duty
 of the district court1 the ,united     
,states ,court of ,appeals for the      
,district of ,columbia ,circuit1 and the
 ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states 
7if it chooses to hear the action7 to   
advance on the docket and to expedite to
 the greatest possible extent the       
disposition of the action and appeal4   
7c7 ,remedies  7#a7 ,adoption of        
replacement plan  7,a7 ,in general ,if  
the district court in an action under   
this section finds that the             
congressional redistricting plan of a   
,state violates1 in whole or in part1   
the requirements of this ,act-- 7i7 the 
court shall adopt a replacement         
congressional redistricting plan for the
 ,state in accordance with the process  
set forth in section #f2 or  7ii7 if    
circumstances warrant and no delay to an

 upcoming regularly scheduled election  
for the ,house of ,representatives in   
the ,state would result1 the district   
court1 in its discretion1 may allow a   
,state to develop and propose a remedial
 congressional redistricting plan for   
review by the court to determine whether
 the plan is in compliance with this    
,act1 except that-- 7,i7 the ,state may 
not develop and propose a remedial plan 
under this clause if the court          
determines that the congressional       
redistricting plan of the ,state was    
enacted with discriminatory intent in   
violation of the ,constitution or       
section #d7;b72 and  7,,ii7 nothing in  
this clause may be construed to permit a
 ,state to use such a remedial plan     
which has not been approved by the      
court4  7,b7 ,prohibiting use of plans  
in violation of requirements ,no court  
shall order a ,state to use a           
congressional redistricting plan which  
violates1 in whole or in part1 the      
requirements of this ,act1 or to conduct

 an election under terms and conditions 
which violate1 in whole or in part1 the 
requirements of this ,act4  7,c7        
,special rule in case final adjudication
 not expected within #c months of       
election  7i7 ,duty of court ,if final  
adjudication of an action under this    
section is not reasonably expected to be
 completed at least #c months prior to  
the next regularly scheduled primary    
election for the ,house of              
,representatives in the ,state1 the     
district court shall-- 7,i7 develop1    
adopt1 and order the use of an interim  
congressional redistricting plan in     
accordance with section #f7;f7 to       
address any claims under this ,act for  
which a party seeking relief has        
demonstrated a substantial likelihood of
 success2 or  7,,ii7 order adjustments  
to the timing of primary elections for  
the ,house of ,representatives and other
 related deadlines1 as needed1 to allow 
sufficient opportunity for adjudication 
of the matter and adoption of a remedial

 or replacement plan for use in the next
 regularly scheduled general elections  
for the ,house of ,representatives4     
7ii7 ,prohibiting failure to act on     
grounds of pendency of election ,the    
court may not refuse to take any action 
described in clause 7i7 on the grounds  
of the pendency of the next election    
held in the ,state or the potential for 
disruption1 confusion1 or additional    
burdens with respect to the             
administration of the election in the   
,state4  7#b7 ,no stay pending appeal   
,notwithstanding the appeal of an order 
finding that a congressional            
redistricting plan of a ,state violates1
 in whole or in part1 the requirements  
of this ,act1 no stay shall issue which 
shall bar the development or adoption of
 a replacement or remedial plan under   
this subsection1 as may be directed by  
the district court1 pending such appeal4
 ,if such a replacement or remedial plan
 has been adopted1 no appellate court   
may stay or otherwise enjoin the use of 

such plan during the pendency of an     
appeal1 except upon an order holding1   
based on the record1 that adoption of   
such plan was an abuse of discretion4   
7#c7 ,special authority of ,court of    
,appeals  7,a7 ,ordering of new remedial
 plan ,if1 upon consideration of an     
appeal under this ,act1 the ,court of   
,appeals determines that a plan does not
 comply with the requirements of this   
,act1 it shall direct that the ,district
 ,court promptly develop a new remedial 
plan with assistance of a special master
 for consideration by the ,court of     
,appeals4  7,b7 ,failure of district    
court to take timely action ,if1 at any 
point during the pendency of an action  
under this section1 the ,district ,court
 fails to take action necessary to      
permit resolution of the case prior to  
the next regularly scheduled election   
for the ,house of ,representatives in   
the ,state or fails to grant the relief 
described in paragraph 7#a77;,c71 any   
party may seek a writ of mandamus from  

the ,court of ,appeals for the ,district
 of ,columbia ,circuit4 ,the ,court of  
,appeals shall have jurisdiction over   
the motion for a writ of mandamus and   
shall establish an expedited briefing   
and hearing schedule for resolution of  
the motion4 ,if the ,court of ,appeals  
determines that a writ should be        
granted1 the ,court of ,appeals shall   
take any action necessary1 including    
developing a congressional redistricting
 plan with assistance of a special      
master to ensure that a remedial plan is
 adopted in time for use in the next    
regularly scheduled election for the    
,house of ,representatives in the       
,state4  7#d7 ,effect of enactment of   
replacement plan ,a ,state's enactment  
of a redistricting plan which replaces a
 plan which is the subject of an action 
under this section shall not be         
construed to limit or otherwise affect  
the authority of the court to adjudicate
 or grant relief with respect to any    
claims or issues not addressed by the   

replacement plan1 including claims that 
the plan which is the subject of the    
action was enacted1 in whole or in part1
 with discriminatory intent1 or claims  
to consider whether relief should be    
granted under section #c7;c7 of the     
,voting ,rights ,act of #aife 7#eb      
,u4,s4,c4 #ajcjb7;c77 based on the plan 
which is the subject of the action4  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#eb ,u4,s4,c4    

#ajcja 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#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #ajcja et seq474
  7f7 ,legislative privilege ,no person1
 legislature1 or ,state may claim       
legislative privilege under either      
,state or ,federal law in a civil action
 brought under this section or in any   
other legal challenge1 under either     
,state or ,federal law1 to a            
redistricting plan enacted under this   
,act4  7g7 ,removal  7#a7 ,in general   
,at any time1 a civil action brought in 
a ,state court which asserts a claim for
 which the district courts of the       
,united ,states have exclusive          
jurisdiction under this ,act may be     
removed by any party in the case1       
including an intervenor1 by filing1 in  
the district court for an applicable    
venue under this section1 a notice of   
removal signed pursuant to ,rule #aa of 
the ,federal ,rules of ,civil ,procedure

 containing a short and plain statement 
of the grounds for removal4 ,consent of 
parties shall not be required for       
removal4  7#b7 ,claims not within the   
original or supplemental jurisdiction   
,if a civil action removed in accordance
 with paragraph 7#a7 contains claims not
 within the original or supplemental    
jurisdiction of the district court1 the 
district court shall sever all such     
claims and remand them to the ,state    
court from which the action was removed4
  #h4 ,no effect on elections for ,state
 and local office ,nothing in this ,act 
may be construed to affect the manner in
 which a ,state carries out elections   
for ,state or local office1 including   
the process by which a ,state           
establishes the districts used in such  
elections4  #i4 ,effective date ,this   
,act shall apply on the date of         
enactment of this ,act4