Supporting the creation of a citizens' commission for legislative and congressional redistricting.

WHEREAS, The citizens of the City of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania deserve a fair, fully transparent, impartial and depoliticized process of the decennial drawing of state legislature and congressional districts of near equal population; and

WHEREAS, Legislative and congressional redistricting has at times resulted in gerrymandered districts that favor one political party over others; and

WHEREAS, Such gerrymandering of legislative and congressional districts has worked at times to the detriment of our representative democracy; and

WHEREAS, The creation of a truly independent citizens redistricting commission devoid of political motivation or partisanship will: ensure a fair, transparent, and accurate legislative and congressional redistricting process that respects political subdivisions; prohibit districts from being drawn to favor or discriminate against a political party or candidate; require the use of impartial and sound methodology when setting district boundaries; require public input; and fully comply with the constitutional requirement that “no county, city, incorporated town, borough, township or ward” be divided “unless absolutely necessary”; and

WHEREAS, State legislation is required to reform the decennial legislative and congressional redistricting process with the intent of using fairness and sound methodology in a non-partisan fashion; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby supports state legislative efforts to assign the decennial task of both legislative and congressional redistricting to an independent citizens' redistricting commission.

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