Oklahoma City redistricting meeting slated for Wednesday, December 15

CapitolBeatOK Staff Report

Published: 14-Dec-2010

Oklahoma City area residents have invited to attend a session scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday, December 15) which is focused on legislative redistricting, one in a series of such public meetings. State Rep. Randy McDaniel, an Oklahoma City Republican and member of the State House of Representatives’ Redistricting Steering Committee, made the announcement today in a press release sent to CapitolBeatOK and other news organizations.

Announcement of the session follows earlier planning of a meeting in Chickasha for Monday, December 20.

The meeting tomorrow will be sponsored by the Redistricting Steering Committee, co-chaired by Rep. Dale DeWitt, a Braman Republican, and Rep. John Trebilcock, a Broken Arrow Republican. The gathering will be held at the State Capitol, in the House Chambers, at 5:30 p.m.

Local elected officials and other civic leaders are invited to sit on the House floor, with overflow area available in the House gallery, on the fifth floor. The State Capitol Building is located at 2300 N Lincoln Blvd, in Oklahoma City. The meeting will also be available via streaming video.

Redistricting Steering Committee members and House redistricting staff will respond to questions and take statements from constituents about the redistricting process.

Besides Reps. McDaniel, DeWitt, and Trebilcock, other members of the Redistricting Steering Committee are as follows:  Rep. Danny Morgan, a Prague Democrat, Co-Vice Chair; Rep. Paul Roan a Tishomingo Democrat), Co-Vice Chair; Rep. Lisa Billy, a Purcell Republican); Speaker Pro Tempore-elect Jeff Hickman, a Dacoma Republican; and Rep. Jabar Shumate, a Tulsa Democrat.

By law, the legislature must redraw its district and congressional boundaries to reflect changes in population every 10 years immediately following the decennial Census. According to preliminary Census figures, the state’s population increased by 6.9 percent in the past decade, but most of that growth was in urban areas.

Rural areas, particularly in the western half of the state, have sustained significant losses. Oklahoma lost one congressional seat in the last reapportionment process, but projected estimates indicate Oklahoma will retain its five congressional seats for the 2012 election cycle and the next decade.

The legislature must complete its work for legislative redistricting in 2011, pursuant to the constitutional deadline. There is not a deadline for the legislature to redraw the congressional district boundaries, but the goal is to complete the work prior to candidate filing for congressional offices in 2012.