Local impacts of new maps don’t get enough attention

The flurry of redistricting actions and opinions happening this month can make a Pennsylvanian’s head spin.

The legislature and Gov. Tom Wolf are involved in redrawing three district maps in a process mandated by state and federal law every 10 years after the national census.

On the federal level, U.S. Congressional districts are being redrawn as 17 districts in Pennsylvania, a loss of one seat because of population shifts reflecting a loss of people in the commonwealth.

On the state level, the legislature must reset legislative districts for the state House of Representatives and state senatorial districts. The number of districts is set by the state Constitution at 203 seats in the house and 50 in the senate with redistricting mandated after the census to reflect population shifts within the state.

The clock is ticking on finalizing these 3 maps so that candidates can file petitions for the spring primary, a process that starts February 15 for the May 17 primary.

With just a few weeks left on that timeline, a lot remains up in the air.

On the congressional maps, the House State Government committee sponsored a proposal by a volunteer map drawer outside state government, calling it “a historic departure from the way this body has operated in the past.” But the proposal adopted by the Republican-controlled legislature failed to garner Wolf’s support, creating a stalemate and bringing the courts into the process.

Commonwealth Court set a Jan. 30 deadline to render judgment on proposals that are submitted to it, and after that, there will likely be appeal to the state Supreme Court, setting up a map drawn by the court. The state court was responsible for the current congressional district map after a lawsuit forced an overturn of the previous districts approved in 2011.

The new maps for General Assembly districts were developed by a five-member Legislative Reapportionment Commission, and public comment was invited for a time period that ended last Monday. More than 6,000 comments were received, according to the commission’s website. The state maps do not need approval by the legislature or Wolf, but objections to the commission’s proposal may also end up in the courts.

What does all this mean for voters in Pennsylvania?

For the most part, the partisan bickering on display is rooted in party leaders working to gain or hold on to power, not in the interests of the individual. Lost in the shuffle is preserving community interests.

So MediaNews Group staff writers asked a number of local legislators about potential impact of map proposals in their own districts, revealing where common interests are divided and where positive changes are proposed that correct previous divisions.

For example, state Rep. Todd Stephens (R-151st) said he is hosting a “Keep Horsham Whole” petition on his website in order to keep that municipality entirely in his district. Since 2014 Horsham has led a group of neighboring municipalities in fighting for state and federal funding to clean up contamination left by former military bases in that area, and Stephens said those efforts could be jeopardized by splitting the township under the draft map.

In contrast, it makes sense for the adjacent boroughs of Trappe and Collegeville, which share a school district and public works operation, to be represented by the same House member, said Amy Smith, chief of staff for state Rep. Joe Webster, D-150th Dist., who will lose Skippack and West Norriton under the new plan, but gain Trappe and all of Upper Providence Township.

On proposals for the U.S. congressional map, Berks County is once again divided with sections tacked on to parts of other counties. Berks voters’ concerns are meshed with more suburban voters to the east and south and more rural to the north and west. We would prefer to see a district integral to Berks voters.

The time for public comment on the maps has ended, but it’s not too late to contact your state representatives or the governor’s office and tell them that your local districts are what matter to you. Failure to compromise and let the process be decided by the courts is a failure for all Pennsylvanians.