New plan to add legislative districts helps the Big Horn Basin

UPDATE: The link provides a map to latest Big Horn Basin/Region 8 districts https://greenwoodmap.com/redistrict/map#zcr=8.99135113118804/-12142376.985875707/5486464.430790961/0&lyrs=topoesri,reion8_20220202,counties

WORLAND — The Joint Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee voted last Thursday, Jan. 22, to go with a redistricting plan to add two new House Districts and one new Senate District in the state, a plan that benefits the Big Horn Basin.

While the plan proposed adding one House district in Laramie County and one between Converse and Natrona counties, Rep. Mike Greear said the plan, “gives us a little freedom in the Basin to adjust some sensitive boundaries in some communities; we appreciate that.”

Greear said that for months and months the Committee had supported the fact that the Big Horn Basin region was outside the allotted deviation at -6.2%

Washakie County Clerk Mary Grace Strauch said each legislative district, to be presumptively constitutional, needs to be plus or minus 5% deviation of the ideal population for that district.

The Big Horn Basin proposal, prior to the new 62-31 plan was -6.2 percent over the ideal mean for each district and region.

According to the Legislative Service Office website, the Wyoming Constitution requires that the Legislature redraw state legislative districts at the first budget session following the federal census. Redistricting is based on a “one person, one vote,” following a lawsuit more than 20 years ago. Previously districts were based on county boundaries.

The new 62 House Districts, 31 Senate Districts plan, changes the ideal population, thus decreases the amount of deviation in the Big Horn Basin.

Based on a statewide population of 576,851 per the 2020 U.S. census, the ideal population for House Districts would be 9,304 instead of 9,614. The ideal population for Senate Districts with 31 would be 18,608.

The districts within the Big Horn Basin are nearly identical population — HD24 at 9,031; HD25 at 9,018; HD26 at 9,027; HD27 at 9,021; HD28 at 9,012; and HD50 at 9,027. The districts range from -6.06% deviation from the ideal (HD24) to -6.26% deviation (HD28). The ideal population based on 60 House Districts is 9,614 per district.

Senate District 18 is House Districts 24 and 50, Senate District 19 is House Districts 25 and 26 and Senate District 20 is House Districts 27 and 28. Senate District ideal population, based on 30 districts, should be 19,228.

Under the new 62/31 statewide plan, the average deviation in the Basin is -3%. Senate District 18 is -2.96%, 19 is -3.11% and 20, that encompasses House District 27 and 28 is at -3.01%.

House District 28, represented by Rep. John Winter of Thermopolis is at -2.94% under the new plan, House District 27 represented by Greear is at -3.07%, House District 26 represented by Rep. Jamie Flitner of Greybull is at -3.14%. House Districts in Park County are as follows for deviation, HD25 -3.07%, HD24 at -2.93% and HD50 at -2.98%.

While the committee would give support to the over deviation for the Big Horn Basin, Greear said it was a battle at every meeting. The committee was also getting veiled threats from different organizations indicating that the redistricting plan would be contested if the Big Horn Basin remained outside of the plus or minus 5% deviation.

“When the 62 plan came up and kept the same boundaries for the Big Horn Basin and brought us within deviation, I knew this solves a problem,” Greear said.

He said there is a little bit of flexibility to adjust some district boundaries within the Big Horn Basin overall boundary. He said he would be working with Park County Deputy Clerk Hans Odde and Big Horn County Clerk Lori Smallwood on those minor adjustments as they are mostly in Big Horn County.

The 62-31 plan, Greear said, “Brings us into deviation, keeps our core representation and we don’t have to fight it every time.”

He said when the Corporations committee voted last fall to keep the 60-30 districts, in the back of his mind he did not feel it would work based on the state’s population.

Initially, he said, he thought the committee might look at decreasing the number of districts rather than increasing them. “There was no political will to shrink the number of districts.”

He said the cost for the new legislators is “minimal,” with the bigger question of finding room in the House Chambers for two more desks.

Greear said he feels the plan will provide “more effective representation and allows us to be more effective.”

The Corporations committee is set to meet again on Friday, Feb. 11 with the session and full bill for redistricting to be drafted and ready for introduction when the budget session opens Monday, Feb. 14.New plan to add legislative districts helps the Big Horn Basin

By KARLA POMEROY

Editor

WORLAND — The Joint Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee voted last Thursday, Jan. 22, to go with a redistricting plan to add two new House Districts and one new Senate District in the state, a plan that benefits the Big Horn Basin.

While the plan proposed adding one House district in Laramie County and one between Converse and Natrona counties, Rep. Mike Greear said the plan, “gives us a little freedom in the Basin to adjust some sensitive boundaries in some communities; we appreciate that.”

Greear said that for months and months the Committee had supported the fact that the Big Horn Basin region was outside the allotted deviation at -6.2%

Washakie County Clerk Mary Grace Strauch said each legislative district, to be presumptively constitutional, needs to be plus or minus 5% deviation of the ideal population for that district.

The Big Horn Basin proposal, prior to the new 62-31 plan was -6.2 percent over the ideal mean for each district and region.

According to the Legislative Service Office website, the Wyoming Constitution requires that the Legislature redraw state legislative districts at the first budget session following the federal census. Redistricting is based on a “one person, one vote,” following a lawsuit more than 20 years ago. Previously districts were based on county boundaries.

The new 62 House Districts, 31 Senate Districts plan, changes the ideal population, thus decreases the amount of deviation in the Big Horn Basin.

Based on a statewide population of 576,851 per the 2020 U.S. census, the ideal population for House Districts would be 9,304 instead of 9,614. The ideal population for Senate Districts with 31 would be 18,608.

The districts within the Big Horn Basin are nearly identical population — HD24 at 9,031; HD25 at 9,018; HD26 at 9,027; HD27 at 9,021; HD28 at 9,012; and HD50 at 9,027. The districts range from -6.06% deviation from the ideal (HD24) to -6.26% deviation (HD28). The ideal population based on 60 House Districts is 9,614 per district.

Senate District 18 is House Districts 24 and 50, Senate District 19 is House Districts 25 and 26 and Senate District 20 is House Districts 27 and 28. Senate District ideal population, based on 30 districts, should be 19,228.

Under the new 62/31 statewide plan, the average deviation in the Basin is -3%. Senate District 18 is -2.96%, 19 is -3.11% and 20, that encompasses House District 27 and 28 is at -3.01%.

House District 28, represented by Rep. John Winter of Thermopolis is at -2.94% under the new plan, House District 27 represented by Greear is at -3.07%, House District 26 represented by Rep. Jamie Flitner of Greybull is at -3.14%. House Districts in Park County are as follows for deviation, HD25 -3.07%, HD24 at -2.93% and HD50 at -2.98%.

While the committee would give support to the over deviation for the Big Horn Basin, Greear said it was a battle at every meeting. The committee was also getting veiled threats from different organizations indicating that the redistricting plan would be contested if the Big Horn Basin remained outside of the plus or minus 5% deviation.

“When the 62 plan came up and kept the same boundaries for the Big Horn Basin and brought us within deviation, I knew this solves a problem,” Greear said.

He said there is a little bit of flexibility to adjust some district boundaries within the Big Horn Basin overall boundary. He said he would be working with Park County Deputy Clerk Hans Odde and Big Horn County Clerk Lori Smallwood on those minor adjustments as they are mostly in Big Horn County.

The 62-31 plan, Greear said, “Brings us into deviation, keeps our core representation and we don’t have to fight it every time.”

He said when the Corporations committee voted last fall to keep the 60-30 districts, in the back of his mind he did not feel it would work based on the state’s population.

Initially, he said, he thought the committee might look at decreasing the number of districts rather than increasing them. “There was no political will to shrink the number of districts.”

He said the cost for the new legislators is “minimal,” with the bigger question of finding room in the House Chambers for two more desks.

Greear said he feels the plan will provide “more effective representation and allows us to be more effective.”

The Corporations committee is set to meet again on Friday, Feb. 11 with the session and full bill for redistricting to be drafted and ready for introduction when the budget session opens Monday, Feb. 14.