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| Proposing to enact Section 43 of Article II of the | 1 |
| Constitution of the State of Ohio to establish a | 2 |
| constitutional process for congressional | 3 |
| redistricting. | 4 |
| Be it resolved by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio, | 5 |
| three-fifths of the members elected to each house concurring | 6 |
| herein, that there shall be submitted to the electors of the | 7 |
| state, in the manner prescribed by law at the general election to | 8 |
| be held on November 3, 2015, a proposal to enact Section 43 of | 9 |
| Article II of the Constitution of Ohio to read as follows: | 10 |
| 43. (A)(1) The general assembly shall be responsible | 11 |
| for the redistricting of this state for congress based on the | 12 |
| prescribed number of congressional districts apportioned to the | 13 |
| state pursuant to Section 2 of Article 1 of the Constitution of | 14 |
| the United States. Each congressional district shall be entitled | 15 |
| to a single representative in the United States house of | 16 |
| representatives in each congress. | 17 |
| (2) Congressional districts shall be created in the following | 18 |
| order: | 19 |
| (a) The whole population of the state, as determined by the | 20 |
| federal decennial census, shall be divided by the number of | 21 |
| congressional districts apportioned to the state pursuant to | 22 |
| Section 2 of Article 1 of the Constitution of the United States, | 23 |
| and the quotient shall be the congressional ratio of | 24 |
| representation for the ten years next succeeding such | 25 |
| apportionment. | 26 |
| (b) Proceeding in succession from the largest to the | 27 |
| smallest, each county that, based on population, could contain | 28 |
| more than one whole congressional district shall be divided into | 29 |
| not more congressional districts than the number of whole | 30 |
| congressional districts the county could contain, plus one. | 31 |
| (c) The remaining territory of the state shall be combined | 32 |
| into congressional districts. | 33 |
| (3) A congressional district plan shall comply with all | 34 |
| applicable provisions of the Constitution of the United States and | 35 |
| of federal law. | 36 |
| (B) Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of this | 37 |
| section or by a final unappealed order of a court of competent | 38 |
| jurisdiction, a congressional district plan shall become effective | 39 |
| only in a year ending in the numeral one. | 40 |
| (C)(1)(a) A joint legislative committee shall be responsible | 41 |
| to propose a congressional district plan. The committee shall | 42 |
| consist of the following six members, each of whom shall be a | 43 |
| current member of the general assembly: | 44 |
| (i) Two persons appointed by the speaker of the house of | 45 |
| representatives; | 46 |
| (ii) Two persons appointed by the president of the senate; | 47 |
| (iii) One person appointed by the legislative leader of the | 48 |
| largest political party in the house of representatives of which | 49 |
| the speaker is not a member; | 50 |
| (iv) One person appointed by the legislative leader of the | 51 |
| largest political party in the senate of which the president of | 52 |
| the senate is not a member. | 53 |
| (b) Not later than the fifteenth day of August of a year | 54 |
| ending in the numeral one, the committee shall propose a | 55 |
| congressional district plan to the general assembly by the | 56 |
| affirmative vote of four members of the committee, including at | 57 |
| least one member of the committee who is a member of the largest | 58 |
| political party represented in the general assembly and one member | 59 |
| of the committee who is a member of the second largest political | 60 |
| party represented in the general assembly. | 61 |
| (c) If the committee fails to propose a congressional | 62 |
| district plan to the general assembly not later than the | 63 |
| fifteenth day of August of a year ending in the numeral one, in | 64 |
| accordance with division (C)(1)(b) of this section, the committee | 65 |
| shall propose a congressional district plan to the general | 66 |
| assembly not later than the fifteenth day of September of that | 67 |
| year. The proposal of a district plan under this division shall | 68 |
| require the affirmative vote of four members of the committee, | 69 |
| including at least two members of the committee who are | 70 |
| representatives and two members of the committee who are senators. | 71 |
| (2)(a) Notwithstanding division (A) of Section 15 of this | 72 |
| article, the general assembly shall vote on whether to adopt a | 73 |
| plan proposed under division (C)(1) of this section, without | 74 |
| amendment, by joint resolution. If the district plan was proposed | 75 |
| under division (C)(1)(b) of this section, the general assembly | 76 |
| shall vote on whether to adopt the proposed plan not later than | 77 |
| the thirty-first day of August of that year. If the district plan | 78 |
| was proposed under division (C)(1)(c) of this section, the general | 79 |
| assembly shall vote on whether to adopt the proposed plan not | 80 |
| later than the first day of October of that year. The adoption of | 81 |
| the proposed district plan shall require the affirmative vote of a | 82 |
| majority of the members elected to each house of the general | 83 |
| assembly. After the district plan is adopted, it shall be filed | 84 |
| with the secretary of state. Upon filing with the secretary of | 85 |
| state, the plan shall become effective. | 86 |
| (b) If the general assembly fails to adopt the proposed | 87 |
| congressional district plan not later than the applicable deadline | 88 |
| prescribed by division (C)(2)(a) of this section, the proposed | 89 |
| congressional district plan shall be filed with the secretary of | 90 |
| state. Upon filing with the secretary of state, the plan shall | 91 |
| become effective. | 92 |
| (D)(1) A district plan that meets any of the following | 93 |
| conditions shall be effective for elections occurring in the year | 94 |
| following the year in which the plan became effective and shall be | 95 |
| subject to a vote of the electors as provided in division (D)(2) | 96 |
| of this section: | 97 |
| (a) The plan was proposed under division (C)(1)(b) of this | 98 |
| section, was not adopted by the general assembly, and became | 99 |
| effective under division (C)(2)(b) of this section. | 100 |
| (b) The plan was proposed under division (C)(1)(c) of this | 101 |
| section and was adopted by the general assembly under division | 102 |
| (C)(2)(a) of this section. | 103 |
| (c) The plan was proposed under division (C)(1)(c) of this | 104 |
| section, was not adopted by the general assembly, and became | 105 |
| effective under division (C)(2)(b) of this section. | 106 |
| (2) At the general election conducted in the year following | 107 |
| the year in which the plan became effective, the following | 108 |
| question shall be submitted to the electors of the state: | 109 |
| "Shall the Ohio General Assembly draw new congressional | 110 |
| districts?" | 111 |
| (3) If a majority of the electors vote in favor of requiring | 112 |
| the general assembly to draw new congressional districts, not | 113 |
| earlier than the first day of February of the following year, the | 114 |
| joint legislative committee shall propose, and the general | 115 |
| assembly shall adopt, new congressional districts in accordance | 116 |
| with this section. The new plan shall be drawn using the same | 117 |
| population data as were used to draw the plan described in | 118 |
| division (D)(1) of this section. | 119 |
| (4) If a majority of the electors vote against requiring the | 120 |
| general assembly to draw new congressional districts, the district | 121 |
| plan described in division (D)(1) of this section shall remain in | 122 |
| effect until one-half of the general elections for congress | 123 |
| scheduled to occur during the period beginning after the election | 124 |
| at which the electors voted not to require the general assembly to | 125 |
| draw new congressional districts and ending in the next year | 126 |
| ending in the numeral one have occurred. If an odd number of | 127 |
| applicable elections are scheduled to occur during that period, | 128 |
| the number of general elections to be held using the plan | 129 |
| described in division (D)(1) of this section shall be determined | 130 |
| by rounding up to the next whole number. After a plan described in | 131 |
| division (D)(1) of this section ceases to be effective under this | 132 |
| division, and not earlier than the first day of February of the | 133 |
| year following the year in which the plan ceased to be effective, | 134 |
| the joint legislative committee shall propose, and the general | 135 |
| assembly shall adopt, new congressional districts, in accordance | 136 |
| with this section, to be used until the next time for | 137 |
| redistricting under this section. The new plan shall be drawn | 138 |
| using the same population data as were used to draw the plan | 139 |
| described in division (D)(1) of this section. | 140 |
| (E) A congressional district plan that becomes effective | 141 |
| under this section is not subject to the referendum and is not | 142 |
| subject to the veto of the governor. The electors may not propose | 143 |
| a congressional district plan by initiative. | 144 |
| 145 | |
| If adopted by a majority of the electors voting on this | 146 |
| proposal, Section 43 of Article II of the Constitution of the | 147 |
| State of Ohio takes effect January 1, 2021. | 148 |