§25-2  Duties.  (a)  Legislativereapportionment.  The commission shall reapportion the members of each house ofthe legislature on the basis, method, and criteria prescribed by theConstitution of the United States and article IV of the Hawaii Constitution. Pursuant thereto, the commission shall conduct public hearings and consult withthe apportionment advisory council of each basic island unit.  Not more thanone hundred days from the date on which all members are certified, thecommission shall cause to be given in each basic island unit, public notice ofa legislative reapportionment plan prepared and proposed by the commission.  Atleast one public hearing on the proposed reapportionment plan shall be held ineach basic island unit after initial public notice of the plan.  At leasttwenty days' notice shall be given of the public hearing.  The notice shallinclude a statement of the substance of the proposed reapportionment plan, andof the date, time, and place where interested persons may be heard thereon. The notice shall be given at least once in the basic island unit where thehearing will be held.  All interested persons shall be afforded an opportunityto submit data, views, or arguments, orally or in writing, for consideration bythe commission.  After the last of the public hearings, but in no event laterthan one hundred fifty days from the date on which all members of thecommission are certified, the commission shall determine whether or not theplan is in need of correction or modification, make the correction ormodification, if any, and file with the chief election officer, a finallegislative reapportionment plan.  Within fourteen days after the filing of thefinal reapportionment plan, the chief election officer shall cause public noticeto be given of the final legislative reapportionment plan which, upon publicnotice, shall become effective as of the date of filing and govern the electionof members of the next five succeeding legislatures.

(b)  Congressional reapportionment.  At timesthat may be required by the Constitution and that may be required by law of theUnited States, the commission shall redraw congressional district lines for thedistricts from which the members of the United States House of Representativesallocated to this State shall be elected.  The commission shall first determinethe total number of members to which the State is entitled and shall thenapportion those members among single member districts so that the averagenumber of persons in the total population counted in the last preceding United States census per member in each district shall be as nearly equal as practicable. In effecting the reapportionment and districting, the commission shall beguided by the following criteria:

(1)  No district shall be drawn so as to unduly favora person or political party;

(2)  Except in the case of districts encompassing morethan one island, districts shall be contiguous;

(3)  Insofar as practicable, districts shall becompact;

(4)  Where possible, district lines shall followpermanent and easily recognized features such as streets, streams, and cleargeographical features, and when practicable, shall coincide with census tractboundaries;

(5)  Where practicable, state legislative districtsshall be wholly included within congressional districts; and

(6)  Where practicable, submergence of an area in alarger district wherein substantially different socio-economic interestspredominate shall be avoided.

Not more than one hundred days from the date onwhich all members are certified, the commission shall cause public notice to begiven of a congressional reapportionment plan prepared and proposed by thecommission.  The commission shall conduct public hearings on the proposed planin the manner prescribed under subsection (a).  At least one public hearingshall be held in each basic island unit after initial public notice of theplan.  After the last of the public hearings, but in no event later than onehundred fifty days from the date on which all members of the commission arecertified, the commission shall determine whether or not the plan is in need ofcorrection or modification, make the correction or modification, if any, andfile with the chief election officer, a final congressional reapportionmentplan.  Within fourteen days after filing of the final reapportionment plan, thechief election officer shall cause public notice to be given of the finalcongressional reapportionment plan which, upon public notice, shall becomeeffective as of the date of filing and govern the election of members of theUnited States House of Representatives allocated to this State for the nextfive succeeding congresses. [L 1969, c 79, §2; am L 1979, c 51, §3; am L 1992,c 320, §3; am L 1998, c 2, §8]

 

Note

 

  L 1990, c 199 amendment canceled by nonratification ofamendments to Const. art. IV, §§4 to 6.

 

Law Journals and Reviews

 

  Trailblaze or Retreat?  Political Gerrymandering After Viethv. Jubelirer.  27 UH L. Rev. 269.