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1 1 (February 25, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govecjw0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional *.Research Service inforring the legisative dXbate since 1914 Congressional Redistricting Criteria and Considerations February 25, 2021 Congressional redistricting involves creating geographic boundaries for U.S. House districts within a state. Following each decennial census, House districts are first allocated among states through apportionment (or reapportionment), then allocated within states based upon each state's redistricting process. The sections below describe selected federal and state redistricting criteria for congressional districts, followed by a brief discussion of recent related congressional proposals. This product does not provide a legal analysis; for discussion of redistricting law, see CRS Report R44199, Congressional Redistricting: Legal and Constitutional Issues, by L. Paige Whitaker, and CRS Report R44798, Congressional Redistricting Law: Background and Recent Court Rulings, by L. Paige Whitaker. Selected Redistricting Criteria Redistricting criteria commonly reflect a combination of state and federal statutes, judicial interpretations, and historical practices. They may be viewed as efforts to provide fair representation for residents and prevent arbitrary or discriminatory boundaries. Certain federal standards apply to House districts, related to population equality and minority protections, but other standards are largely determined by states. Redistricting processes can require or prohibit consideration of certain factors when drawing districts. Often, decisionmakers weigh trade-offs between criteria, and some states specify a priority order in which factors are considered. Population Equality Federal standards address population equality among a state's congressional districts. The U.S. Supreme Court has addressed population size variance among congressional districts within a state, or malapportionment. Under the equality standard or one person, one vote principle, the Court has found congressional districts within a state should be drawn to approximately equal population sizes. Across states, however, district population sizes can vary. Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov IN11618 CRS INSIGHT Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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