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2021 - 2022 LEGISLATURE
SENATE SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1,
TO SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 63
September 28, 2021 - Offered by Senators Smith, Agard, Erpenbach, Bewley,
Carpenter, Wirch, Ringhand, Pfaff, Johnson, Roys, L. Taylor and Larson.
SJR63-SSA1,1,3 1Relating to: requiring consideration of 2021 Senate Bill 389 and 2021 Assembly Bill
2395 and providing access to members of the legislature to attorneys and records
3used in the redistricting process.
SJR63-SSA1,1,54 Whereas, the Wisconsin Constitution requires the legislature to provide for
5reapportionment of state legislative districts after each federal census; and
SJR63-SSA1,1,76 Whereas, Wisconsin's current legislative districts are considered the most
7gerrymandered maps in the United States; and
SJR63-SSA1,1,118 Whereas, current legislative maps created split communities of interest after
9seven times more voters were moved from one assembly district to another and five
10times more voters were moved from one senate district to another in the 2011
11redistricting bill than was necessary; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,3
1Whereas, in 2011, Republican legislators shielded their partisan
2gerrymandering efforts from the public and signed secrecy oaths to protect their
3majority; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,64 Whereas, competitive districts are needed for a healthy democracy and will
5help overwhelmingly popular policies to be adopted with a more responsive
6legislative body; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,87 Whereas, 55 of Wisconsin's 72 counties support nonpartisan redistricting
8reform; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,109 Whereas, legislators should not choose their voters, voters should choose their
10elected officials; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,1211 Whereas, 2021 Senate Bill 389 and its assembly companion 2021 Assembly Bill
12395 were introduced on June 10, 2021, and June 11, 2021, respectively; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,1413 Whereas, SB 389 and AB 395 establish a nonpartisan process for redistricting
14in Wisconsin; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,1715 Whereas, SB 389 and AB 395 direct the nonpartisan legislative reference
16bureau to draw state legislative and congressional redistricting plans based on the
172020 federal decennial census; and
SJR63-SSA1,2,1918 Whereas, SB 389 and AB 395 require that any redistricting plan drawn by the
19legislative reference bureau satisfy all of the following requirements:
SJR63-SSA1,2,2420 1. The plan must be based on population requirements imposed under the
21Wisconsin Constitution and the U.S. Constitution and requirements imposed under
22Section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act, which, among other things, generally
23prohibits redistricting plans from abridging the right to vote on account of race or
24color or because a person is a member of a language minority group.
SJR63-SSA1,3,9
12. The senate and assembly districts established in the plan must satisfy equal
2population standards. Among other things, no senate district may have a population
3that exceeds that of any other senate district by more than 10 percent and no
4assembly district may have a population that exceeds that of any other assembly
5district by more than 10 percent, unless necessary to maintain compliance with
6Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Congressional districts established in the plan
7must each have a population as nearly equal as practicable to the ideal population
8for such districts, while maintaining compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights
9Act.
SJR63-SSA1,3,1610 3. District boundaries under the plan must coincide with municipal ward
11boundaries and, to the extent consistent with the Wisconsin Constitution, the U.S.
12Constitution, and Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, must coincide with the
13boundaries of political subdivisions. The number of political subdivisions divided
14among more than one district must be as small as possible and, if there is a choice
15among political subdivisions to divide, the more populous political subdivisions shall
16be divided before the less populous.
SJR63-SSA1,3,1817 4. Districts must be composed of convenient contiguous territory. Under the
18bill, areas which meet only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous.
SJR63-SSA1,3,2019 5. To the extent consistent with the requirements described in items 1. to 3.,
20districts must be compact.
SJR63-SSA1,4,521 6. In preparing the plan, the LRB must be strictly nonpartisan. No district may
22be drawn for the purpose of favoring a political party, incumbent legislator or
23member of Congress, or other person or group or, except to the extent necessary to
24meet the requirements described in item 1., for the purpose of augmenting or diluting
25the voting strength of a language or racial minority group. The LRB may not use

1political affiliations of registered voters, previous election results, or demographic
2information, except as necessary to test the efficiency gap and competitiveness of
3each district, or use residence addresses of incumbent legislators or members of
4Congress. The LRB may also use demographic information as necessary to meet the
5requirements described in item 1.
SJR63-SSA1,4,106 7. The number of assembly districts may not be less than 54 nor more than 100.
7The number of senate districts may not be more than one-third nor less than
8one-fourth of the number of assembly districts. Each senate district must contain
9only whole assembly districts and each congressional district may contain only whole
10senate districts, to the extent possible.
SJR63-SSA1,4,1311 8. Districts must be drawn so that neither the intent nor the result of the plan
12abridges the equal opportunity of racial or language minorities to participate in the
13political process; and
SJR63-SSA1,4,1614 Whereas, SB 389 and AB 395 establish a bipartisan Redistricting Advisory
15Commission to assist the legislative reference bureau in drawing state legislative
16and congressional districts based on the 2020 federal decennial census; and
SJR63-SSA1,4,1917 Whereas, SB 389 and AB 395 establish a timeline and procedures for the
18legislative reference bureau to complete the redistricting plans required under the
19bills; now, therefore, be it
SJR63-SSA1,4,23 20Resolved by the senate, the assembly concurring, That 2021 Senate Bill
21389 is placed on the calendar for the next legislative day that the senate is in session,
22shall be taken up and voted on during the fourteenth order of business, and may not
23be tabled or referred to committee; and
SJR63-SSA1,5,2 24Be it further resolved, That 2021 Assembly Bill 395 is placed on the calendar
25for the next legislative day that the assembly is in session, shall be taken up and

1voted on during the thirteenth order of business, and may not be tabled or referred
2to committee; and
SJR63-SSA1,5,8 3Be it further resolved, That each member of the legislature regardless of
4political party affiliation shall have free and open access to all attorneys retained by
5the legislature or either house of the legislature for purposes of legislative and
6congressional redistricting and to all drafts of redistricting maps and all other
7records or documents used in the redistricting process by the legislature or either
8house of the legislature or the legislature's attorneys or advisors.
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