REDISTRICTING CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
New Redistricting Constitutional Amendment Introduced
What’s Next For New York’s Mid-Decade Redistricting- And Beyond?
Late Monday night on June 1st, Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins introduced a constitutional amendment (S.10637/A.11553) to amend the state constitution’s redistricting sections. The amendment is expected to be voted on by the Senate and Assembly on Thursday, June 4th before the chambers adjourn the regular 2026 session.
If approved, the new legislature elected in November will have to vote on the same amendment next year. If approved again, the amendment will go to the voters for approval in late 2027.
The amendment’s most significant features permit mid-decade congressional redistricting, provide for simple majority vote map approvals in both chambers, and limits the state Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) to holding hearings and produce one set of congressional, senate, and assembly maps to send to the legislature by January 15 in the second year of each decade.
New Redistricting Changes:
– Deadlines: IRC must submit maps by January 15th in the second year of each decade. If no maps are submitted or if legislature fails to approve the maps, the legislature shall draw maps (with implementing legislation) and send them to the governor for approval. No further action by the IRC is provided, eliminating the need for a second set of commission maps for the legislature to consider.
-Majority Votes: the Senate and Assembly can approve maps subject to majority votes, eliminating the need for voting majorities based on divided-party chamber control.
-Mid-decade redistricting: the legislature is provided with the authority to redraw congressional districts at any time during the decade following approval or rejection of the commission’s map.
-Criteria: (minority voting rights) maps shall not be drawn with the purpose of denying racial or language groups with less opportunity to elect representatives of their choice based on the totality of the circumstances, eliminating any “results” test.
-Criteria: (compactness) districts need not be as compact as might be practicable.
-Criteria (removes ban on partisan gerrymandering) districts can be drawn without taking into consideration whether they discourage competition or favoring or disfavoring incumbents, candidates, or political parties.
-Criteria (Senate block-on-border) eliminates state senate “block on border” restrictions (previously removed from Assembly requirements in the 2014 amendment) permitting more flexibility to meet other mapping requirements
-Remedial redistricting: the IRC will not be required to draw new maps after courts order changes based on any legal violations
State Legislative Authority: In the event a state court invalidates a congressional redistricting map, the legislature shall have the power to draw a remedial map. State courts shall not order the drawing of a congressional map unless the legislature fails to do so first.
Note that all maps approved by the legislature are still subject to approval by the Governor.
Unchanged Provisions:
-the IRC shall continue to hold at least12 hearings across the state in designated counties before preparing a map to send to the legislature
-the IRC will continue to have 10 members who are appointed by the legislative leaders (8 members) and 2 selected by the 8 legislative appointees
-the IRC map for the senate and assembly will be voted on by the legislature in one bill that can also include the congressional map.
-the IRC’s internal voting requirements remain intact as well as all other responsibilities assigned to it, including the ability to retain staff.