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January 28, 2002
TO THE PRESIDENT AND MEMBERS OF THE
COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADLEPHIA:
I am returning herewith as disapproved Bill Number 010646, entitled "An Ordinance amending Chapter 20-500 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled 'Councilmanic Districts,' by revising the boundaries of the Councilmanic Districts, under certain terms and conditions." Council passed this bill at its session on December 20, 2001.
Bill 010646 would redraw the boundaries of the City's ten Councilmanic districts pursuant to Council's obligation under section 2-102 of the Home Rule Charter to do so after the federal government's completion of the census. As you know, redistricting is intended to adjust for geographic shifts in the City's population, in order to maintain roughly equal numbers of people in each of the ten districts. Equalization of population - in order to maintain the Constitutional principle of "one person-one vote" -- is a requirement of federal and state law as well as a requirement of our Charter. The equalization of population, however, only establishes the framework within which redistricting occurs. Districts must also be contiguous, compact, protect fairly the interest or racial groups. Redistricting principles also require that attention be paid to political fairness.
Given the myriad constraints redistricting is admittedly a difficult political and legal matter. For a variety of reasons, however, I cannot approve the bill that Council has passed.
First, the bill still does not optimally equalize the populations of the districts or promote the principle of "one person-one vote" as closely as it should and can. The deviation in Bill 010646, while not as large as the deviation in Bill 010523, still remains more than two and a half times as large as the largest spread in the last thirty years, the 2.8% spread of 1971. This continues to be a troubling issue.
Second, the redistricting plan still does not make a suffic...
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