By JOHN HANNA ~ Associated Press
TOPEKA (AP) – Kansas House members will take as much leeway as they think the courts will allow them in redrawing the boundaries of their own districts, over the protests of a few
legislators from growing regions who argued that districts ought to be as equal in population as possible.
Under rules approved Monday by the House Redistricting Committee, districts for the chamber may vary by as much as 5 percent from the ideal population of about 22,700 – the same guideline it used in redrawing the boundaries 10 years ago. The rules also carry over a provision that in redrawing boundaries, members will attempt to avoid pairing incumbents in the same district.
The committee met only hours before the House and Senate convened to begin the annual 90-day session. The agenda already is crowded with big financial issues, including proposals from Gov. Sam Brownback to lower the state’s top individual income tax rates, overhaul the Medicaid program providing health coverage to the needy and rewriting the formula for distributing state dollars to public schools.
Many lawmakers expect the session to be unusually contentious because of redistricting. The House committee’s first meeting illustrated that the politics involved can be regional or can
reflect a split between rural legislators and urban or suburban ones.
The unsuccessful push to give the House members less flexibility came from Rep. Jim Ward, a Wichita Democrat, whose district is under-populated but whose city has growing areas. Joining him in advocating a tougher standard was Rep. Anthony Brown, a conservative Eudora Republican who has the state’s most over-populated House district.
Legislators in western Kansas and the state’s southeastern corner expect to lose clout in the House when districts are redrawn, with Johnson County and the Wichita area gaining
representation.
“The folks in my district don’t have the same voice that people in rural Kansas still do, and I think that’s a problem,” Brown said. “I think we have to be as close to zero as possible.”
Kansas legislators are required to redraw state House and Senate districts after the new census every decade, along with districts for the State Board of Education and the state’s U.S. House
districts. The Legislature’s staff has said that in past rulings, courts across the nation have allowed legislative districts to vary from ideal populations by as much as 5 percent before they come under scrutiny over variations in the number of potential voters.
Several committee members said legislators talked about allowing a 5 percent variance during hearings around the state this summer, and Kansans want to avoid splitting counties and cities as much as possible.
“One of our goals is to keep like communities together, and by having that zero tolerance, we will lose the ability to keep as many cities and counties whole,” said Rep. Caryn Tyson, a Parker Republican, whose district is under-populated.
Illustrating the importance legislators place on redistricting is House Speaker Mike O’Neal’s decision to name himself chairman of the committee and Minority Leader Paul Davis of Lawrence as its ranking Democrat.
O’Neal, a Hutchinson Republican, said he wants the committee to draft a plan and have public hearings by the end of the month.
By tradition, neither chamber changes the other’s plan for redrawing members’ districts. O’Neal said he doesn’t expect that to change this year, even though at least five House members are
running for the Senate.
The Senate Reapportionment Committee has its first meeting Friday and plans to consider the rules it will use in redrawing that chamber’s districts. Chairman Tim Owens, an Overland Park
Republican, said he favors using the same rules as the House, the same ones in place 10 years ago.
Both committees’ rules also are likely to put a priority on avoiding the pairing of incumbents in districts, the same tack legislators followed in 2002.
O’Neal raised the issue during the House committee’s meeting, saying he has mixed feelings. He said he believes residents of a legislative district, having elected someone, expect that person to continue in office. But, he said, legislators could be perceived as protecting themselves.
“The purists just want to draw boundaries,” he said. “They want to draw boundaries that are nice and neat and clean.”
But House committee members didn’t want to ditch the rule, saying it was part of a set that worked well in the past.
“We’re being more politically honest if we keep it in there,” said Rep. Scott Schwab, an Olathe Republican.