Font ResizeIf you're a republican, you should love the new plan to create an independent commission to draw legislative districts in Utah. The plan is contained in an initiative petition that a group called the Fair Boundaries Coalition seeks to place on the Nov. 2, 2010, ballot. It strikes us as both fair and innovative.
Notice that we spelled republican with a small "r." This isn't about party, about Republicans or Democrats. It's about creating boundaries for legislative seats in Congress and the Utah Legislature that best reflect the ideals of a republic, that is, elected representation based on equal apportionment.
Too often, that's not what happens when the Utah Legislature redraws boundaries after the U.S. census every 10 years. Too often, legislators draw the lines to make it easiest for them to retain their seats and their party's control. That is why the power to draw new boundaries should be placed in the hands of an independent commission.
The Fair Boundaries petition would do that by creating an 11-member commission to redraw the boundaries within 150 days after the census count becomes available. The commission would prepare an initial plan, convene public hearings on it around the state, then recommend a final plan to the Legislature. The Legislature would be required to vote the plan up or down in a special session. If the Legislature rejects the plan, it would have to prepare and adopt a plan of its own, applying the same standards that the
The Fair Boundaries initiative would keep the process open and insulate the commission from power brokers on Capitol Hill. For example, neither legislative leaders nor the governor would appoint the commission's members. Elected or appointed officials would be barred. The presidents of the Utah Association of Counties and the League of Cities and Towns would each appoint three members. The chair of the state school board would appoint the seventh. These members then would choose the remaining four members, and any qualified voter over age 25 could apply to be appointed. Members of the public also could submit their own redistricting plans to the commission.
The commission would create a neutral matrix to score each draft plan, based on standards of equal population and whether the districts were compact, contiguous, blind to voters' party affiliation and whether they respect boundaries of cities and towns. They could preserve communities of common interest, but not based on political party. For the complete petition, go to fairboundaries.org.
That's a better, fairer way to draw a republican map.
