You can testify at the congressional redistricting hearing in Arlington
Texas Lawmakers will be in North Texas on Monday to hear from the public wanting to share its thoughts on the state’s mid-decade congressional redistricting efforts.
Members of the Texas House’s Select Committee on Congressional Redistricting will meet at 5 p.m. on July 28 at UT Arlington to consider public testimony.
According to the hearing notice, the meeting will focus counties that fall wholly or partly within Congressional Districts 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 24, 25, 26, 30, 32, and 33, but testimony can be provided on any part of the state. Each person will have two minutes to testify and testimony will be capped at five hours total.
Committee hearings do not typically have a cap on overall length, though it’s common to limit the length of time per speaker.
Testimony can also be submitted in writing at the meeting or electronically.
Other House hearings have been scheduled July 24 in Austin and in July 26 in Houston. Virtual testimony is also being accepted for the Austin hearing, which will be held at the Texas Capitol. Those wishing to speak virtually must register in advance by 2 p.m. on July 23.
The Arlington hearing is being held at the Rosebud Theatre in the E.H. Hereford University Center, 300 W. First St.
Redistricting on Texas’ special session agenda
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has put redistricting on Texas’ legislative agenda for the special session which started July 21. It’s one of several items before lawmakers, including flood response and laws around access to consumable THC products.
The redistricting efforts have drawn criticism from some. House and Senate Democrats have blasted the redistricting push, mulling options to stop or delay new maps. The Texas Tribune reported that Republican members of Congress from Texas and Abbott were also reluctant to pursue congressional redistricting, which President Donald Trump has advocated for. In an interview with The Texan, Abbott said reporting that he told members of Congress he was hesitant to redistrict is not accurate.
Trump would reportedly like to see Texas pick up five Republican seats. Currently, 12 of Texas’ 38 congressional seats are held by Democrats.
The special session agenda item follows a Department of Justice letter to state officials saying four districts — including U.S. House District 33 represented by Fort Worth Democrat Marc Veasey — are unconstitutional because they are racially gerrymandered.
The House hadn’t yet released proposed new congressional maps as of early Tuesday afternoon. Current districts can be viewed online at redistricting.capitol.texas.gov.
Rep. Chris Turner, an Arlington Democrat who is a member of the House’s Congressional Redistricting Committee, said he doesn’t know when proposed maps will be released. An email requesting comment sent to the office of the committee’s chair, Rep. Cody Vasut, an Angleton Republican, was not immediately returned.
“I think one of the worst things that can happen is, we do these public hearings and hear from hundreds, maybe thousands of Texans, and they don’t have a map to actually testify on and tell us what they really think of the map,” Turner said. “So, I hope that there will be a map proposal public prior to these public hearings, but I have no insight into whether that’s the case or not.”
Senate committee will focus on congressional redistricting
North Texans will also have an opportunity to weigh in on Senate proposals. The Senate’s committee focused on congressional redistricting, chaired by Sen. Phil King, a Weatherford Republican, will also meet over the coming days. King did not immediately return an interview request sent by text message late Tuesday morning.
Four hearings have been scheduled for the Senate committee, each focused on a different region, though members of the public can speak about any part of the state. Senate versions of new maps have also not been released.
In-person testimony isn’t being taken at the regional-focused hearings, which are being held at the Capitol in Austin. Instead comments are being taken virtually by video conference. Those wishing to speak must register in advance. Members of the public can also tune in virtually.
A July 26 hearing is focused on North Texas. Registration closes at 10 p.m. on July 25.
Other regional-focused hearings are scheduled for July 25, July 28 and July 29.
