New Jersey Senate Bill 587 and Assembly Bill 2937 (2017)
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redistricting procedures |
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2020 |
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Senate Bill 587 was introduced in the New Jersey State Senate in 2016. The legislation proposed requiring that incarcerated individuals from New Jersey be counted as residents of the district in which they last resided for state legislative redistricting purposes. Assembly Bill 2937 was the identical counterpart of Senate Bill 587. After clearing both the Senate and the New Jersey General Assembly, the legislation was vetoed by Governor Chris Christie (R) in July 2017.[1]
Note: This page summarizes a noteworthy law regarding redistricting in New Jersey. It is not part of a comprehensive list of redistricting legislation for this year or state.
Background
- See also: Redistricting in New Jersey
Redistricting is the process by which new congressional and state legislative district boundaries are drawn. Each of New Jersey's 12 United States Representatives and 120 state legislators are elected from political divisions called districts. United States Senators are not elected by districts, but by the states at large. District lines are redrawn every 10 years following completion of the United States census. The federal government stipulates that districts must have nearly equal populations and must not discriminate on the basis of race or ethnicity.[2][3][4][5]
New Jersey was apportioned 12 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2020 census, the same number it received after the 2010 census. Click here for more information about redistricting in New Jersey after the 2020 census.
Legislative history
Senate Bill 587 was introduced in the New Jersey State Senate on January 12, 2016. It was referred to the Committee on State Government, Wagering, Tourism, and Historic Preservation, which reported favorably on the bill October 20, 2016. The Senate approved the bill by a vote of 21-15 on November 14, 2016, at which point it was referred to the New Jersey General Assembly Judiciary Committee. The Judiciary Committee reported favorably on the bill on February 13, 2017. The Assembly approved its identical counterparty bill, Assembly Bill 2937, on May 22, 2017, by a vote of 47-28. Governor Chris Christie vetoed the legislation on July 13, 2017.[1][6]
Provisions
The following summary of Senate Bill 587 is excerpted from a statement filed by the New Jersey State Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism, and Historic Preservation Committee on October 17, 2016:[7]
| “ | This bill provides that individuals who are incarcerated in the State are to be counted at the individual’s last known complete street address for legislative redistricting purposes. Under the bill, the State Department of Corrections is to collect and maintain an electronic record of the residential address of each individual entering its custody starting on the 30th day following the date of enactment of the bill. At a minimum, this record would contain the last known complete street address of each such individual prior to incarceration, the individual’s race, whether the individual is of Hispanic or Latino origin, and whether the person is over the age of 18. For the purposes of the bill, the classification of an individual’s race, ethnic origin, and age would be the same as used by the United States Bureau of the Census for the purposes of Pub.L.94-171 (13 U.S.C. s.141).[8] | ” |
See also
- Redistricting in New Jersey
- Redistricting legislation at the state and city levels in the United States, 2017
- New Jersey State Legislature
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 New Jersey Legislature, "S587," accessed February 7, 2018
- ↑ All About Redistricting, "Why does it matter?" accessed April 8, 2015
- ↑ Indy Week, "Cracked, stacked and packed: Initial redistricting maps met with skepticism and dismay," June 29, 2011
- ↑ The Atlantic, "How the Voting Rights Act Hurts Democrats and Minorities," June 17, 2013
- ↑ Redrawing the Lines, "The Role of Section 2 - Majority Minority Districts," accessed April 6, 2015
- ↑ Point Pleasant Patch, "Chris Christie Signs 16 Bills, Vetoes Attempt To Stop Trump Travel Ban," July 17, 2017
- ↑ New Jersey Legislature, "Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism, and Historic Preservation Committee Statement to Senate, No. 587," October 17, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
