ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 5008
__________
[Originating in the Committee on Rules; Reported September 18,
2001.]
__________
A BILL to amend and reenact section one, article two, chapter one
of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, relating to apportionment of the
Senate into seventeen senatorial districts for the purpose of
electing thirty-four members; defining terms; and requiring
all actions necessary and related to such apportionment.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one, article two, chapter one of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2. APPORTIONMENT OF REPRESENTATION.
§1-2-1. Senatorial districts.
(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the
"Senate Redistricting Act of 2001".
(b) As used in this section:
(1) "County" means the territory comprising a county of this
state as such county existed on the first day of January, two
thousand, notwithstanding any boundary changes thereof made subsequent thereto;
(2) "Block" and "voting district" mean those geographic areas
as defined by the bureau of the census of the United States
department of commerce for the taking of the two thousand census of
population and described on census maps prepared by the bureau of
the census. Such maps are, at the time of this enactment,
maintained by the bureau of the census and filed in the office of
legislative services;
(3) "Incumbent senator" means a senator elected at the general
election held in the year two thousand or at any general election
thereafter, with an unexpired term of at least two years in
duration.
(c) The Legislature recognizes that in dividing the state into
senatorial districts, the Legislature is bound not only by the
United States constitution but also by the West Virginia
constitution; that in any instance where the West Virginia
constitution conflicts with the United States constitution, the
United States constitution must govern and control, as recognized
in section one, article one of the West Virginia constitution; that
the United States constitution, as interpreted by the United States
supreme court and other federal courts, requires state legislatures
to be apportioned so as to achieve equality of population as near
as is practicable, population disparities being permissible where
justified by rational state policies; and that the West Virginia
constitution requires two senators to be elected from each
senatorial district for terms of four years each, one such senator being elected every two years, with one half of the senators being
elected biennially, and requires senatorial districts to be
compact, formed of contiguous territory and bounded by county
lines. The Legislature finds and declares that it is not possible
to divide the state into senatorial districts so as to achieve
equality of population as near as is practicable as required by the
United States supreme court and other federal courts and at the
same time adhere to all of these provisions of the West Virginia
constitution; but that, in an effort to adhere as closely as
possible to all of these provisions of the West Virginia
constitution, the Legislature, in dividing the state into
senatorial districts, as described and constituted in subsection
(d)of this section, has:
(1) Adhered to the equality of population concept, while at
the same time recognizing that from the formation of this state in
the year one thousand eight hundred sixty-three, each constitution
of West Virginia and the statutes enacted by the Legislature have
recognized political subdivision lines and many functions, policies
and programs of government have been implemented along political
subdivision lines;
(2) Made the senatorial districts as compact as possible,
consistent with the equality of population concept;
(3) Formed the senatorial districts of "contiguous territory"
as that term has been construed and applied by the West Virginia
supreme court of appeals;
(4) Deviated from the long-established state policy, recognized in subdivision (1) above, by crossing county lines only
when necessary to ensure that all senatorial districts were formed
of contiguous territory or when adherence to county lines produced
unacceptable population inequalities and only to the extent
necessary in order to maintain contiguity of territory and to
achieve acceptable equality of population; and
(5) Also taken into account in crossing county lines, to the
extent feasible, the community of interests of the people involved.
(d) The Senate shall be composed of thirty-four senators, one
senator to be elected at the general election to be held in the
year two-thousand two, and biennially thereafter for a four-year
term from each of the senatorial districts hereinafter in this
subsection described and constituted as follows:
(1) The counties of Brooke, Hancock and voting districts
1, 4,
5, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 20, 23, 24, 28, 29, 31, 36, 49, 77, 103,
104, 107, 108, 113, 115, 116, 119, 120, 122, 124, 125, 127, 128,
129, 130, 131, 135, 137, 141, 143, 146, 148, 158, 161 of Ohio
shall constitute the first senatorial district;
(2) The counties of Calhoun, Doddridge, Marshall, Ritchie,
Tyler, Wetzel and voting districts 59, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 72, 74,
78 of Marion and voting districts 40, 41, 42, 44, 47, 51, 52, 53,
54, 55, 58, 67, block: 0113001033, 68, block: 0113002014 of
Monongalia and voting districts 60, 64, 69, 100, 102 of Ohio shall
constitute the second senatorial district;
(3) The counties of Pleasants, Wirt, Wood and voting districts
4, 5, 7, 10, 15, 16, 22, blocks: 9629003000, 9629003002, 9629003003, 9629003005, 9629003006, 9629003014, 9629003015,
9629003016, 9629003017, 9629003018, 9629003019, 9629003020,
9629003022, 9629003025, 9629003029, 9629003030, 9629003031,
9629003032, 9629003033, 9629003034, 9629003035, 9629003036,
9629003037, 9629003038, 9629003039, 9629003040, 9629003999,
9629004000, 9629004001, 9629004002, 9629004003, 9629004004,
9629004005, 9629004006, 9629004007, 9629004008, 9629004009,
9629004010, 9629004014, 9629004015, 9629004016, 9631001012
, 25, 28,
29, 30, 32 of Roane
shall constitute the third senatorial district;
(4) The counties of Jackson, Mason, Putnam and voting
districts 1, 11, 12, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, blocks:
9629001071,
9629003007, 9629003008, 9629003009, 9629003010, 9629003011,
9629003012, 9629003023, 9629003024, 9629003046, 9629003048,
9629003057, 9629003058, 9629003059, 9630004018, 9630004019,
9630004020, 9630004021, 9630004040, 9630004042, 23 of Roane
shall
constitute the fourth senatorial district;
(5) The county of Cabell and voting districts 11, 12, blocks:
0203001000, 0203001011, 0203002001, 0203002041, 0203006000,
0203006002, 0203006003, 0203006004, 0203006005, 0203006006,
0203006007, 0203006008, 0203006009, 0203006010, 0203006011,
0203006012, 0203006013, 0203006021, 0203006024, 0203006033,
0203006034, 0203006040, 0203006041, 0203006042, 0203006043,
0203006044, 0203006045, 0203006046, 0203006048, 0203006049,
0203006050, 0203006051, 0203006052, 0203006053, 0203006054,
0203006055, 0203006056, 0203006057, 0203006063, 0203006064,
0203006998, 0203006999, 16, blocks: 0204001009, 0204001013, 56, 59, 60, 61, 62, blocks: 0052002000, 0052002001, 0052002002, 0052002010,
0052002011, 0052002012, 0052002032, 0201002002, 0201002003,
0201002011 and 63 of Wayne
shall constitute the fifth senatorial
district;
(6) The counties of McDowell and voting districts 2, 3, 4, 5,
42, 46, 49, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 57, blocks: 9509001025, 9509001026,
9511002003, 9511002004, 9511002005, 9511002024, 9511002025, 58, 60,
61, 62, 66, 67, 68, 69, 71, 72, 79, 96 of Mercer, Mingo and voting
districts 1, 3, 5, 6, 12, blocks
: 0203001001, 0203006001,
0203006997,
13, 14, 16, blocks:
0203002026, 0203002027, 0203002028,
0203002029, 0203002030, 0203002031, 0203002032, 0203002040,
0203002996, 0203003006, 0204001010, 0204001011, 0204001012,
0204001014, 0204001015, 0204001016, 0204001017, 0204001034,
0204001054, 0204001055, 0204001056, 0204001057, 0204001058,
0204001059, 0204001060, 0204001061, 0204001062, 0204001996,
17, 18,
20, 21, 31, 34, 36, 37, 38, 62, blocks:
0201002000, 0201002001,
0201002004, 0201002005, 0201002006, 0201002007, 0201002008,
0201002009, 0201002010, 0201002012, 0201002013, 0201002014,
0201002015, 0201002016, 0201002018, 0204003008, 0204003009,
0204003010, 0204003011, 0204003012, 0204003013, 0204003014,
0204003015, 0204003016, 0204003017, 0204003021
of Wayne and voting
districts 5, 10, 11, 23, 24 and 25 of Wyoming shall constitute the
sixth senatorial district;
(7) The counties of Boone, Lincoln, Logan and voting districts
19, 22, 30, 41, 42, 45, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54 and 57 of Wayne
shall constitute the seventh senatorial district;
(8) The county of Kanawha shall constitute the eighth
senatorial district;
(9) The county of Raleigh and voting districts 1, 2, 4, 6, 7,
8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31,
32, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48 and 99 of
Wyoming shall constitute the ninth senatorial district;
(10) The counties of Monroe, Summers, Greenbrier, voting
districts 68 and 72 of Fayette, voting districts 1, 14, 15, 20, 27,
28, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 36, 37, 38, 44, 47, 48, 56, 57, blocks:
9511002006, 9511002007, 9511002008, 9511002009, 9511002010,
9511002011, 9511002012, 9511002013, 9511002014, 9511002015,
9511002016, 9511002017, 9511002018, 9511002019, 9511002020,
9511002021, 9511002022, 9511002023, 9511002026, 9511002027,
9511002028, 9511003003, 9511003004, 9511003005, 9511003007,
9511003008, 9511003009, 9511003010, 9511003011, 9511003012,
9511003013, 9511003014, 9511003015, 9511003016, 9511003017,
9511003018, 9511003019, 9511003020, 9511003021,
59, 64, 65, 73, 74,
77, 78, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 95 and 98 of Mercer
shall constitute the tenth senatorial district;
(11) The counties of Clay, Nicholas, Webster, voting districts
1, 4, 5, 8, 9,
10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 26, 28,
29, 31, 32, 37, 38, 41, 42, 45, 46, 47, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 58, 59,
60, 65, 67, 74 of Fayette and voting districts 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12,
13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 25, 27, 35, 38, 42, 44 and 47 of Upshur
shall constitute the eleventh senatorial district;
(12) The counties of Braxton, Gilmer, Harrison and Lewis; shall constitute the twelfth senatorial district;
(13) The voting districts 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 13, 16, 18, 20, 27,
28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48,
50, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57, 58, 61, 62, 82, 83, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90,
92, 96, 98, 100, 101, 102, 104, 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118,
120, 121, 122, 123, 124 and 125 of Marion and voting district 1,
blocks:
0110001008, 0110001019, 0110001020, 0110001021, 0110001022,
0110001023, 0110001024, 0110001025, 0110001027, 0110001029,
0110001030, 0110001031, 0110001032, 0110001033, 0110001034,
0110001999, 0110002005, 0110002007, 0110002008, 0110002009,
0110002041, 0110002048, 0110002049, 0110002050, 0110002051,
0110002052, 0110002053, 0110002054, 0110002999, 0110003003,
0110003004, 0110003009, 0110003011, 0110003012, 0110003018,
0110003019, 0110003999, voting districts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28,
29, 30, 31, 32, 35, 36A, 36B, 39, 46, 48, 49, 56, 64, 67, blocks:
0113001008, 0113001009, 0113001010, 0113001011, 0113001012,
0113001013, 0113001014, 0113001015, 0113001016, 0113001017,
0113001018, 0113001019, 0113001020, 0113001021, 0113001022,
01130010
23, 01130010
24, 01130010
25, 01130010
26, 01130010
27,
01130010
28, 01130010
29, 01130010
30, 0113001032, 01130010
34,
01130010
35, 01130010
36, 0113001999, 011300
3013, 011300
3
014,
011300
3
015, 011300
3
016, 011300
3
017, 011300
3
018, 011300
3
019,
011300
3
020, 011300
3
021, 011300
3
022, 011300
3
024, 011300
3
025,
011300
3
026, 011300
3
027, 011300
3
028, 011300
3
029, 68, blocks:
0113001000, 011300100
1, 011300100
2, 011300100
3, 011300100
4, 011300100
5, 0113001031, 0113002002, 011300200
3, 011300200
4,
011300200
5, 011300200
6, 011300200
7, 011300200
8, 011300200
9,
0113002010, 01130020
11, 01130020
12, 01130020
13, 01130020
15,
01130020
16, 01130020
17, 01130020
18, 01130020
19, 01130020
20,
01130020
21, 01130020
22, 01130020
23, 01130020
24, 01130020
25, 69, 70,
71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, blocks:
0109022036, 0109022048, 0110002040, 0110002044, 0110003000,
0110003005, 86, 87, 88, 90, 91 and 92 of Monongalia
shall
constitute the thirteenth senatorial district;
(14) The counties of Mineral, Preston, Taylor, Tucker, Barbour
and voting districts 8, 9, 10, 14 and 15 of Grant and voting
district 1, blocks: 0110002042, 0110002045, 0110002047, 0110003007,
0110003008, 0110003010, 0110003013, 0110003017, 0110003020,
0110003998, 33, 34, 37, 38, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 85, blocks:
0109022035, 0109022037, 0109022047, 0109022062, 0109022064,
0109022065, 0110002043, 0110002046, 0110003001, 0110003002,
0110003006, 0110003014, 0110003015, 0110003016, 0110003021,
0110003022, 0110003023, 0110003024, 0110003025, 0110003026,
0110003027, 0110003028, 0110003029, 0110003996, 0110003997,
0118022007, 0118025003, 0118025006, 0118025007 and 0118025008
of
Monongalia shall constitute the fourteenth senatorial district;
(15) The counties of Hampshire, Hardy, Morgan, Pendleton,
Pocahontas, Randolph and voting district 22, blocks: 9712006072,
9712006073, 9712006074, 9712006075, 9719002004, 9719002006, 43,
blocks: 9718003004, 9718003010, 9718003011, 9718003012, 9718003013,
9718003014, 9718003015, 9718003016, 9718003017, 9718003021, 9718003022, 9718003023, 9718003024, 9718003025, 9718003026,
9718003027, 9718003028, 9718003029, 9718003030, 9718003031, 45, 46,
blocks: 9712006065, 9712006070, 9712006071, 9718001036, 9718001037,
9718001038, 9718001039, 9718001040, 9718001043, 9718001050,
9718001051, 47, 51, blocks: 9721003018, 9721003019, 9721003020,
9721003021, 9721003022, 9721003023, 9721003024, 9721003025,
9721003026, 9721003027, 9721003028 and 9721003029
, of Berkeley,
voting districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12 and 13 of Grant and
voting districts 33 and 39 of Upshur
shall constitute the fifteenth
senatorial district;
(16) The counties of Jefferson and voting districts 1, 2, 5,
6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 15A, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22,
blocks:
9712006076, 9712006077, 9716003005, 9716003006, 9717004012,
9719001010, 9719001011, 9719001012, 9719001013, 9719001014,
9719001015, 9719001016, 9719001017, 9719001018, 9719001019,
9719001020, 9719002000, 9719002001, 9719002003, 9719002007,
9719002008, 9719003024, 9719003025
, 23, 24, 25, 25A, 26, 27, 28,
29, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, blocks:
9718003000, 9718003006, 9718003007, 9718003008, 9718003009,
9718003018, 9718003019, 9718003020, 44, 46, blocks:
9718001044,
9718001045, 9718001046, 9718001047, 9718001048, 9718001049,
9718001052, 9718001053, 9718001054, 9718001055, 9718003001,
9718003002, 9718003003
, 48, 49, 50, 51, blocks:
9721003013,
9721003015, 9721003016, 9721004015, 9721004016, 9721004018,
9721004019, 9721004020, 9721004021, 9721004022, 9721004023,
9721004024, 9721004025, 9721004026, 9721005009, 9721005012, 9721005019 and 9721005022 of Berkeley
shall constitute the
sixteenth senatorial district; and
(17) The county of Kanawha shall constitute the seventeenth
senatorial district.
(e) The West Virginia constitution further provides, in
section four, article VI thereof, that where a senatorial district
is composed of more than one county, both senators for such
district shall not be chosen from the same county, a residency
dispersal provision which is clear with respect to senatorial
districts which follow county lines, as required by such
constitution, but which is not clear in application with respect to
senatorial districts which cross county lines. However, in an
effort to adhere as closely as possible to the West Virginia
constitution in this regard, the following additional provisions,
in furtherance of the rationale of such residency dispersal
provision and to give meaning and effect thereto, are hereby
established:
(1) With respect to a senatorial district which is composed of
one or more whole counties and one or more parts of another county
or counties, no more than one senator shall be chosen from the same
county or part of a county to represent such senatorial district;
(2) With respect to a senatorial district which does not
contain any whole county but only parts of two or more counties, no
more than one senator shall be chosen from the same part to
represent such senatorial district; and
(3) With respect to superimposed senatorial districts which contain only one whole county, all senators shall be chosen from
such county to represent such senatorial districts.
(f) Candidates for the Senate shall be nominated as provided
in section four, article five, chapter three of this code, except
that such candidates shall be nominated in accordance with the
residency dispersal provisions specified in section four, article
VI of the West Virginia constitution and the additional residency
dispersal provisions specified in subsection (e) of this section.
Candidates for the Senate shall also be elected in accordance with
the residency dispersal provisions specified in said section and
the additional residency dispersal provisions specified in
subsection (e) of this section. In furtherance of the foregoing
provisions of this subsection, no person may file a certificate of
candidacy for election from a senatorial district described and
constituted in subsection (d) of this section if he or she resides
in the same county and the same such senatorial district wherein
also resides an incumbent senator, whether the senatorial district
wherein such incumbent senator resides was described and
constituted by chapter eighty-five, acts of the Legislature, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-three, or was described and
constituted in subsection (d) of this section or its immediately
prior enactment. Any vacancy in a nomination shall be filled, any
appointment to fill a vacancy in the Senate shall be made and any
candidates in an election to fill a vacancy in the Senate shall be
chosen so as to be consistent with the residency dispersal
provisions specified in section four, article VI of the West Virginia constitution and the additional residency dispersal
provisions specified in subsection (e) of this section.
(g) Regardless of the changes in senatorial district
boundaries made by the provisions of subsection (d) of this
section, all senators elected at the general election held in the
year one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight and at the general
election held in the year two thousand shall continue to hold their
seats as members of the Senate for the term, and as representatives
of the senatorial district, for which each thereof, respectively,
was elected. Any appointment made or election held to fill a
vacancy in the Senate shall be for the remainder of the term and as
a representative of the senatorial district, for which the vacating
senator was elected or appointed, and any such election shall be
held in the district as the same was described and constituted at
the time the vacating senator was elected or appointed.
(h) The secretary of state may promulgate rules and
regulations to implement the provisions of this section, including
emergency rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to the
provisions of section five, article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of
this code.