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DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA STATUTES CONCERNING REDISTRICTING

§1-1308. Election wards.

(a)(1) Not later than 10 days after receiving the official report of the federal decennial census ("census report") for the District of Columbia ("District") by the United States Bureau of the Census, the Mayor shall transmit the census report to the Council, including all information pertaining to the official total population of the District and the official population size of each of the census tracts, census blocks, and election wards in the District.

(2) The Mayor and the District-of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics ("Board") shall provide the Council with technical and analytical services necessary for decennial redistricting, including but not limited to, statistical and demographic analysis of official census data and production of computerized election district maps.

(3) The Mayor and the Board shall make available to the public, at cost, copies of the census data base and any maps to be used for redistricting in hard copy or machine readable form.

(b) The Council shall, by act after public hearing, make any adjustment in the boundaries of election wards that is necessary as a result of population shifts and changes, not later than 90 days after the Council's receipt of the census report, or not later than July 14th of the year in which the census report is received, whichever is later.

(c) The Council shall divide the District into 8 compact and contiguous election wards, each of which shall be approximately equal in population size.

(d) The total District population and the population of the District's defined sub-units, as determined by the census report, or any official adjustment of the census report, shall be the exclusive permissible population data for apportionment of election wards.

(e) The boundaries of each of the 8 election wards shall conform to the greatest extent possible with the boundaries of the census tracts that are established by the United States Bureau of the Census.

(f) No redistricting plan or proposed amendment to a redistricting plan shall result in district populations with a deviation range more than 10% or a relative deviation greater than plus-or-minus 5%, unless the deviation results from the limitations of census geography or from the promotion of a rational public policy, including but not limited to respect for the political geography of the District, the natural geography of the District, neighborhood cohesiveness, or the development of compact and contiguous districts.

(g) No redistricting plan or proposed amendment to a redistricting plan shall be considered if the plan or amendment has the purpose and effect of diluting the voting strength of minority citizens.

(h) Any adjustment made less than 180 days prior to a regularly scheduled election shall not be effective for that election, or, if that election is a primary election, for the general election following the primary election.

SUBCHAPTER II ELECTION AREA BOUNDARIES

§ 1-1331. Establishment of ward task forces on Advisory Neighborhood Commissions.

(a) Each member of the Council of the District of Columbia ("Council") elected from a ward shall appoint a broadly-based ward task force on Advisory Neighborhood Commissions ("ward task force") for his or her ward.

(b) In appointing the members of a ward task force, each Councilmember shall give full consideration to assuring fair representation for all racial and ethnic minorities, women, and geographical areas in his or her ward.

(c) Each member of a ward task force shall be a registered voter and resident of the ward for which his or her ward task force is appointed.

(d) Each member of the Council elected at-large and the Chairman of the Council may appoint a person to each ward task force. .

(e) Ward task force members shall serve until the ward task force files its final report with the Council unless the Council, by resolution, -extends the term of the ward task force.

(f) Each ward task force member shall serve without compensation.

§1-1332. Report of ward task forces.

(a) (1) Each ward task force shall submit a report to the Council not later than 90 days after approval by the Mayor (or in the event of veto by the Mayor, action by the Council to override the veto) of legislation that reapportions the boundaries of the election wards pursuant to § 1-1308.

(2) The Mayor and the District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics ("Board") shall provide each ward task force with technical and analytical services necessary for decennial redistricting, including, but not limited to, statistical and demographic analysis of official census data and production of computerized election district maps.

(3) The Mayor and the Board shall make available to the public, at cost, copies of the census data base and any maps to be used for redistricting in hard copy or machine readable form.

(b) The report submitted by a ward task force shall contain:

(1) Alternative recommendations for the adjustment of the boundaries of Advisory Neighborhood Commission area and single-member districts for that ward; and

(2) Other recommendations with respect to the operation of advisory neighborhood commissions.

(c) In developing its report, each ward task force shall comply with the requirements of this section and the requirements of §1-254.

(d) The total District population and the population of defined sub-units of the District population as determined by the federal decennial census, or any official adjustment to the federal decennial census, shall be the exclusive permissible population data for apportionment of single-member districts.

(e) No redistricting plan or proposed amendment to a redistricting plan shall result in district populations with a deviation range greater than 10% or a relative deviation greater than plus-or-minus 5%, unless the deviation results from the limitations of census geography or from the promotion of a rational public policy, including, but not limited to, respect for the political geography of the District, the natural geography of the District, neighborhood cohesiveness, or the development of compact and contiguous districts.

(f) No redistricting plan or proposed amendment to a redistricting plan shall be considered if the plan or amendment has the purpose and effect of diluting the voting strength of minority citizens.

Redistricting Statutes District of Columbia Code

Redistricting Statutes
District of Columbia Code