Redistricting is an important once-in-a-decade task that two committees, the Senate and House, are currently undertaking. The hearing on August 18, while being a concurrent meeting of the two different committees, was the first redistricting hearing since the U.S. Census Bureau has provided states the census data to begin this critical task.
Our data contractor, ESRI, has now had the time to upload the new data file and like these two committees, Oregonians can begin drawing new lines using the gold standard data.
As reported in April during the reapportionment announcement, Oregon has grown. This growth clearly shows that we are a state people want to move to. While some have moved here for reasons such as our beautiful weather, the coast, agricultural bounty or our strong sense of community and others had family that grew and expanded here, this body now has an obligation to ensure this redistricting process is done in a fair, open and transparent manner- reasons all Oregonians can support.
I want to touch on a couple important points:
One, the public absolutely must be engaged in this process, otherwise it may not result in maps that reflect communities of common interest with their meaningful input.
The ability for the public to draw or propose their own maps not only helps us understand what they value, but it also adds to their understanding of how we are accomplishing this work on their behalf.
And two, this should be a process that’s out in the open for not only the people to engage with but see, understand and respond to with input that is taken seriously.
That’s how we can ensure that whatever our committees generate, it follows statute and meaningfully responds to public testimony.
House Interim Committee on Redistricting meeting - August 18
The next public meeting of the House and Senate Interim Redistricting Committees will be on Friday, September 3rd at 8:00 AM. It will be a remote informational hearing to discuss draft plans created by the Committees before a series of public hearings starting on September 8th. More information, including a link to view the meeting remotely will be available on the redistricting website soon.
Our ESRI partners have now reformatted and loaded the 2020 Census data needed for redistricting into the redistricting application. This application may be used by the public to draw and submit maps for consideration by the Committees. The deadline to submit maps is September 7th at 5:00 PM. More information on using the application and how to submit plans can be found in the "Redistricting Software Information" section. Please review the "Map Submission Checklist" document before submitting any plans.
The U.S. Census Bureau originally released the 2020 data on August 12th. The Bureau's press release as well as links to the data can be found here.
On April 26, 2021 the U.S. Census Bureau announced the apportionment results for the 2020 Census. More information related to apportionment can be found on the Census Bureau's website.
- Oregon Resident Population: 4,237,256
- Average Population per Congressional District: 706,209
- Average Population per Oregon Senate District: 141,242
- Average Population per Oregon House District: 70,621
Please check the redistricting website for changes to the Public Hearing schedule. Due to Covid-19, these dates are subject to change.
Talk soon,
 Capitol Phone: 503-986-1415
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, H-389, Salem, OR 97301
Email: Rep.ShellyBoshartDavis@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/boshartdavis
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