HomeMy WebLinkAbout21 - PH-1 - Public Hearing to Receive Input from Com - 8/3/20211
CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
MEETING DATE: AUGUST 3, 2021 ITEM NUMBER: PH-1
SUBJECT: PUBLIC HEARING TO RECEIVE INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY REGARDING THE
REDISTRICTING PROCESS
DATE: JULY 15, 2021
FROM: CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE
PRESENTATION BY: BRENDA GREEN, CITY CLERK
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda Green, City Clerk (714) 754-5221
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council:
1. Receive the staff report on the redistricting process and permissible criteria to be
considered to evaluate district boundaries.
2. Conduct a public hearing to receive public input.
BACKGROUND:
Every ten years, cities with by-district election systems must use new census data to
review and, if needed, redraw district lines to reflect how local populations have changed.
This process, called redistricting, ensures all districts have nearly equal population. The
redistricting process for the City of Costa Mesa must be completed by April 17, 2022.
On April 6, 2021, the City Council selected National Demographics Corporation (NDC)
for the demographics analysis of census data, and to engage the public in the redistricting
process.
In November 2016, Ordinance 16-05 was approved by the voters which amended the
City’s method of electing members to the City Council commencing in November 2018.
Pursuant to the approved Ordinance the City is currently divided into 6 geographic
districts, with a Mayor elected by voters citywide. The districts must now be evaluated
using the 2020 census data and in compliance with the FAIR MAPS Act, which was
adopted by the California Legislature as AB 849 and took effect January 1, 2020.
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Under the Act, the council shall draw and adopt boundaries using the following criteria in
the listed order of priority (Elections Code 21601(c) for general law cities):
1. Comply with the federal requirements of equal population and the federal Voting
Rights Act
2. Geographically contiguous
3. Undivided neighborhoods and “communities of interest” (socio-economic geographic
areas that should be kept together)
4. Easily identifiable boundaries
5. Compact (do not bypass one group of people to get to a more distant group of people)
6. Shall not favor or discriminate against a political party
Once the above prioritized criteria are met, other traditional districting principles may be
considered, such as:
1. Minimize the number of voters delayed from voting due to a change of their district
2. Respect voters’ choices / continuity in office
3. Future population growth
By law, the City must hold at least four public hearings that enable community members
to provide input on the redistricting process. The process involves the following
requirements:
At least one hearing must occur before the City draws draft maps (8/3/2021)
At least two hearings must happen after the drawing of draft maps
The fourth hearing can happen either before or after the drawing of draft maps
City staff or consultants may hold a public workshop instead of one of the
required public redistricting hearings
The purpose of this public hearing is to inform the public about the districting process and
to hear from the community on what factors should be taken into consideration while
evaluating district boundaries. The public is requested to provide input regarding
communities of interest and other local factors that should be considered while drafting
district maps. A community of interest under the relevant Elections Code for cities
(Section 21601(c) / 21621(c)] is “a population that shares common social or economic
interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and
fair representation.”
Possible features defining community of interest might include, but are not limited to:
A. School attendance areas;
B. Natural dividing lines such as major roads, hills, or highways;
C. Areas around parks and other neighborhood landmarks;
D. Common issues, neighborhood activities, or legislative/election concerns; and
E. Shared demographic characteristics, such as:
(1) Similar levels of income, education, or linguistic isolation;
(2) Languages spoken at home; and
(3) Single-family and multi-family housing unit areas.
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The next steps are to conduct community meetings to seek additional public input on
suggested criteria for consideration on drafting district maps. Attached is the tentative
timeline for the redistricting process.
In addition, the City will have a dedicated webpage where the draft district maps will be
posted. The districting webpage will include online mapping tools and an Interactive
Review Map.
ANALYSIS:
At the conclusion of each United States Census process, the City must conduct a process
to analyze population data in order to evaluate district boundaries to ensure that districts
are substantially equal in population. The California Voting Rights Act has additional
provisions with the purpose of ensuring equal access to voting and representation.
ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED:
The City Council may discuss and take other action related to this item.
FISCAL REVIEW:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this public hearing. However, the City Clerk’s
budget includes sufficient funding to cover the estimated redistricting cost of $80,000.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed this report and approved as to form.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends the City Council:
1. Receive the staff report on the redistricting process and permissible criteria to be
considered to evaluate district boundaries.
2. Conduct a public hearing to receive public input.
_______________________________ ________________________________
BRENDA GREEN KIMBERLY HALL BARLOW
City Clerk City Attorney
_______________________________
CAROL MOLINA SUSAN PRICE
Finance Director Assistant City Manager
ATTACHMENT: 1. Tentative Timeline