Bill Text: WV HB2405 | 2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Redistricting of the House of Delegates into one hundred single member districts after the 2020 census
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-02-13 - To House Judiciary [HB2405 Detail]
Download: West_Virginia-2013-HB2405-Introduced.html
H. B. 2405
(By Delegates Kump, Canterbury and Howell)
[Introduced February 13, 2013; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §1-2-2c, relating to the redistricting of the House of Delegates into one hundred single member districts after the 2020 census.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated §1-2-2c, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. APPORTIONMENT OF REPRESENTATION.
§1-2-2c. Redistricting.
(a) The Legislature finds that:
(1) Single member districts best exemplify the principle of one person, one vote;
(2) Single member districts provide enhanced responsiveness to constituent needs, as the less constituents that each delegate represents, the more time and energy a delegate has to devote to their needs;
(3) Single member districts provide enhanced accountability, as it is easier for citizens to follow the actions of one delegate than to follow the actions of many;
(4) Single member districts would aid in the implementation of campaign finance reform as these smaller districts would reduce the amount of money needed for candidates to successfully contest elections;
(5) Where large sums of money must be raised to compete in multidelegate districts, inordinate attention is given to the interests of contributors, and not the citizenry as a whole;
(6) Historically, multimember districts were a tactic used in the segregation era to deny minority voters the full exercise of their franchise;
(7) Multimember districts continue to cause the disenfranchisement of large groups of voters in whole regions of West Virginia, including among others, voters in eastern Kanawha County and Mason County;
(8) Only ten states do not use the single member district system; and
(9) That of all the states in the Union, only West Virginia and New Hampshire continue to have legislative districts consisting of three or more members.
(b) The Legislature, therefore, declares it to be in the best interest of its citizens that:
(1) The State of West Virginia establish as a principle that single member delegate districts are needed for better functioning of our state’s political system;
(2) Their use would lead to greater accountability and effective representation in our political process;
(3) They would serve as a check on corruption of our public life and our ideals;
(4) They would correct gross inequities currently present in our existing system; and
(5) To achieve these ends, the policy of the state is to enact a plan for single member districts.
(c) Based upon the legislative findings and declarations contained within this section, the House of Delegates is to be permanently composed of one hundred single member districts, with apportionment to meet Constitutional standards, based upon the results of the 2020 United States Census.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create one hundred single member districts after the 2020 census.
This section is new; therefore, it has been completely underscored.
