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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8.3 Redistricting Commis SupportG~~~ OF DU~l f~ /// ~-' 1`~~~j2 ~~ ~ /l ~~LIFOR~~~ STAFFREPORT CITY CLERK DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL _ _File # ^~~~-~~ DATE: May 17, 2011 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers FROM: Joni Pattillo, City Manager SUBJEC : Letter of Support to California Citizen Redistricting Commission Prepared By: Christopher L. Foss, Assistant City Manager EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The City Council will consider a letter to the California Citizen Redistricting Commission. FINANCIAL IMPACT: There are no fiscal impacts associated with this action. RECOMMENDATION: It is staff's recommendation that the City Council authorize the Mayor to sign the letter to the California Citizen Redistricting Commission. /~ Prepared By Assistant City Manager Page 1 of 3 ITEM NO. g'~ DESCRIPTION: Every 10 years, after the federal census, California must redraw the boundaries of its Congressional, State Senate, State Assembly, and State Board of Equalization districts, to reflect the new population data. For many years, those boundaries were drawn by elected legislators. Following the passage of VOTERS First Act (Proposition 11) in November 2008, those lines will now be drawn by the California Citizen Redistricting Commission. In accordance with the Voters FIRST Acf (Act), the California State Auditor randomly selected members of the first Citizens Redistricting Commission (Commission) on November 18, 2010. The 14-member Commission must draw the district lines'in conformity with strict, nonpartisan rules designed to create districts of relatively equal population that will provide fair representation for all Californians. The Commission must hold public hearings and accept public comment. After hearing from the public and drawing the maps for the House of Representatives districts, 40 Senate districts, 80 Assembly districts, and four Board of Equalization districts, the Commission must vote on the new maps to be used for the next decade. It is expected that the first draft maps will be released in June 2011 and the final maps must be approved and transmitted to the Secretary of State no later than August 15, 2011. The Tri-Valley region is spread over three neighboring valleys at the eastern end of Alameda County and southern end of Contra Costa County, and is comprised of the cities of Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton, and San Ramon, and the Town of Danville. The region's residents depend on the same transportation networks, have similar demographics and sources of employment, have formed strong business partnerships, work on water issues, and collaborate at the local level on a multitude of regional projects. Yet; the Tri-Valley region is represented by 4 representatives at the Federal level, and at the State level by three Senate districts and five Assembly districts. Those districts are as follows: U.S. Congress John Garamendi - 10th District Barbara Lee - 9~h District Jerry McNerney - 11 th District George Miller - 7t`' District State Senate Ellen Corbett - 16th District Mark DeSaulnier - 7th District Loni Hancock - 9th District State Assembl Susan Bonilla - 11th District Joan Buchanan - 15th District Mary Hayashi - 18th District Nancy Skinner - 14t" District Albert Torricio - 20'h District Livermore, San Ramon San Ramon Danville, Dublin, Pleasanton, San Ramon San Ramon Livermore, Pleasanton Danville, Livermore, San Ramon Dublin, Livermore, San Ramon San Ramon Danville, Livermore, Pleasanton, San Ramon Dublin, Pleasanton San Ramon Pleasanton Therefore, when redistricting occurs, it would be beneficial to the Tri-Valley area if the cities are kept together during the process of drawing districts for Congress, the State Senate, and State Page 2 of 3 Assembly. As the 2011 redistricting process has begun for California senate and assembly districts as well as Congressional Districts, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission is accepting comments into the redistricting process. Providing input in the redistricting process is critical to ensuring district lines are drawn to keep communities whole and grouped with nearby c~ommunities with similar interests. At a meeting of Tri-Valley Mayors and City Managers held on Monday, May 1, 2011, the topic of the redistricting process was discussed. There was support among the group to provide input to the California Citizens Redistricting Commission to consider the Tri-Valley cities as a "Community of Interest" during the redistricting process. The California Constitution defines a community of interest as "a contiguous population which shares common social and economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation." At the City Council meeting of May 3, 2011, Mayor Sbranti asked that the draft letter be agendized for consideration by the City Council. A Letter of Support (Attachment 1) has been prepared requesting that the Tri-Valley should be considered a"community of interest" when decisions are made regarding redistricting. NOTICING REQUIREMENTS/PUBLIC OUTREACH: Not applicable ATTACHMENTS: 1. Draft Letter of Support for Unified Districting of Tri-Valley Cities Page 3 of 3 ~~'~ May 4, 2011 Citizens Redistricting Commission 1130 K Street, Suite 101 Sacramento, CA 95814 Dear Commissioners: On behalf of the Tri-Valley City Councils, we wanted to express our desire that efforts be made to keep our communities together during the process of drawing new legislative districts for Congress, the State Senate, and the State Assembly. We recognize the fact that the Citizens Redistricting Commission has a unique and challenging responsibility, but we believe that the Tri-Valley meets the criteria to be considered a community of interest, and that our boundaries should be respected during the redistricting process. The Tri-Valley region is spread over three neighboring valleys at the eastern end of Alameda County and the southern end of Contra Costa County, and is comprised of the adjacent cities of Livermare, Pleasanton, Dublin, San Ramon, and Danville. Despite the fact that we are in two separate counties, our residents identify far more with the Tri- Valley region than either Alameda ar Contra Costa County. In fact, we believe that the Tri-Valley can be considered a model for regional collabaration tliroughout the State of California in many traditional and non-traditional ways. The Tri-Valley shares a common identity and spirit among its residents, residents of our five cities depend on the same transportation networks, we have similar demographics and sources of employment, businesses have formed partnerships throughout the area, our children play in the same sports leagues, and local governments collaborate on a multitude of regiorial projects. Some specific examples on how our five jurisdictions formally collaborate include the Tri-Valley Transportation Council, which identifies and funds needed projects to relieve congestion in our region. We are all partners in the Tri-Valley Housing and Opportunity Center, which is an agency that jointly manages our five cities affordable housing programs and services. Tri-Valley Community Television is another entity that focuses solely on programming unique to our region. Other smaller agencies such as the Dublin San Ramon Services District, Livermore Amador Valley Transit Authority, and Zone 7 are entirely within the Tri-Valley. Our five City Councils meet together in joint sessions on issues of regional concern every few months, while our Mayors, City Managers, and Staffs meet both formally and informally several times a month to further solidify our public partnerships. ~ 5-1~-~1 g,3 AITACNMENI' a ~-~~. Our cultural and economic life also revolves around the Tri-Valley community. For instance, the Tri-Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau is a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding tourism options amongst our five cities. Innovation Tri-Valley is a private sector collaborative of leading businesses from the five cities to promote economic development. The Tri-Valley Business Council is another entity that represents private business interests in the five cities. Most significantly for our future, the five Tri- Valley'cities are partners in IGATE (Innovation Green Advanced Technology Excellence) with the Lawrence Livermore National Lab, Sandia National Lab, other Tri- Valley businesses, non-profits, educational institutions, and government agencies to collaborate on making our area a high-tech innovation hub, attract new businesses, and expand educational opportunities. The Tri-Valley has flourished over the years due to our tremendous cooperation, and our region is poised for even greater excellence moving forward. However, in order to continue to thrive and achieve our mutual goals, we must be able to continue working together in close collaboration with legislators dedicated to the needs of the Tri-Valley. We appreciate your consideration of our request that the Tri-Valley be considered a community of interest, and we hope that the Commission will make strong efforts to keep us together while drawing Congressional, State Senate, and State Assembly districts. Sincerely,