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Lane County Commissioners voted Tuesday to place a proposal on the November ballot that would overhaul redistricting and trigger new election maps next year.
The proposal would amend the charter - a document similar to a constitution.
Normally, commissioners appoint a volunteer charter review committee to suggest changes they send to voters. This time around, they passed over most of the committee’s proposals in favor of an outside proposal.
That proposal called for early redistricting, an independent committee with strict membership rules, and adding some permanent election boundaries to the charter.
After concerns were raised by the public, the elections office, county legal advisors, and the charter committee, commissioners made a few compromises.
A requirement that participants must have voted in the last two of three elections and have been registered to vote for three years have been replaced with any ‘registered voter.’ Restrictions on participants having been lobbyists, campaign staffers or county employees appear to still be a part of the ballot measure.
The restrictive boundaries have been removed from the proposal, and many of the redistricting duties have been moved from the elections office, which has said it doesn’t have capacity, to the county administrator.
The most controversial aspect of the proposal - an out of cycle redistricting not tied to the census - will appear on the ballot.
During the hearing, Commissioner Pat Farr said his goal was to undo the current maps which he argued are unfairly Eugene-centric.
“There are elements of it that just weren't right,” Farr said. “I am and have been for every statement that I've made in favor of redistricting before the next election.”
Commissioner David Loveall argued the county’s previous redistricting process itself was flawed maps and led to Eugene voters having more sway than rural voters.
“That’s an unfair gerrymandered advantage that’s already in place that I would like to correct,” Loveall said.
Commissioner Laurie Trieger said reforms take time, public input and thorough vetting to get right. She said the proposal heading to voters, the final version of which wasn’t public until minutes before it was approved, could result in unintended consequences.
She said one aspect that’s still in the proposal before voters - that the committee not the commissioners get the final say on maps - could result in less accountability if there are issues with the process.
“We didn’t do it perfectly before, but we sure did better,” she said. “We tested it once, some people didn’t like the result and we have a chance to refine it, but we’re giving up that opportunity with this vote today.”
Commissioner Heather Buch also voted against the proposal. She said trying to draw new maps not tied to the census is a break from democratic norms.
“There is no need to govern this way,” Buch said. “This is a horribly rushed process and we’re not getting public input. I cannot believe we’re in this position.”
