Legislature May Need to Redraw District; Legislature Authorizes New Session on Districts; Legislature Will Hold Special Session on Redistricting; Redistricting Revised News Clippings

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ByA.L.MAY

Chlcl C.oltol Corr6Doodsrt

N.C. Justice Department law-
yers told legislative leaders firurs-
day that they doubted they could
successfully defend legislative
redistricting plarc against a pend-
ing court ehallenge, raising the
likelihood that lawmakers will re-
turn to Raleigh later this month to
redraw district boundaries.

A final decision on the additional
session is expected today as the
I*si:lature winds up its budget
sesslon.

fire redistricting plans approved
by the Legislature earlier this
year were challenged in a lawsuit
by the NAACP Legal Defense and

Edueation Fund.
"14re just said we had problems

(successfully defending) it,', said
James F. Bullock, a senior deputy
attorney- general, after meeting
with key lawmakers.

Bullock said his advice to Lt.
Gov. James C. Green, House
Speaker Liston B. Ramsey and
other legislative leaders was that
legislators should consider
reworking the plans.

Rep. Robert A. Jones, D-Ruther-
ford, co+hairman of the House
Legislative Redistricting Commit-
tee, said, "I'd say the chances are
pretty good we'll have one (redis-
tricting session) some time in
lggl."

Membens of the House and Sen-
ate redistricting committees were
briefed Wednesday on the lawsuit
by the Juslice Department defense
team.

Bullock said the legislators werc
told that the sta0e successfully
could defend the congressional
plan, which also was redrawn dur-
ing the last session of the General
Assembly, but that it probably
would lose on tlre legislative plans
because of the U.S. Supieme
Qu"t's one-man, one-vote princi
ple.

Jones said the special session
pnobably would be later this month
and that the redistricting commit-
tees could start preparing new

plans as early as next week. The
aetion is needed soon because the
filing period for the spring,s pri-
mary is Jan. 4, Jones said. -

The NAACP Legat Defense and
Bucation Fund, Icting on behalf
of four black residents] rued suit
last month against the state House
qna *n"!g plans and the congres-
sional redistricting plan.

fire suit alleges that the legisla-
tive plans violate the Supreme
Court's principle of "one man, one
vote" and the voting rights of
blacks as protected by the U.S.
Constitution and the t96S Voting
RightsAct.

The suit's challenge to the con-
gressional redistricting plan fo-

cuses on alleged discrimination
agains! blacks in the 2nd Congres-
sional District, which hooks ti the
west of Durham and Chapel HilI.
The issue of one man, one iote also
was raised with regard to the con_
gressional plan.

. Lawgake-rs were required to ad-
just political boundariei to popula-
tion shifts shovm in the l*t0'cen-
sus.

The House and Senate plans,
which.made. q1rly e few chinged
from the existin! districts sel'ir
l97l, allowed significant devia
tions in district populations. Thq
House plan contain} a differenc

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ji populations of 23.6 Percent be-
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lgicts. The Scnate plans contains a

22.6 percent devlatlon.

"lEdrlier this year. a three-judge
kderal court panel overturned
Virginia's legislative Plans be-
tiuie thev contained deviations of
ibout 26 percent. Legislators said
fhursday that the state attorneys
Bid said that a total deviation of
1d.5 percent was the greatest dif-
frirence allowed bv a federal court.
:lSullock said [hat figure had
been mentioned. But he said that
ii oreoaring the state's legal de-

fc'nie.'lawvers had found that. to
il safe, tlie districts should devi-
afe no more than l0 Percent.
i .Ramsey said that if a session
ivere held, it likely would be within
a'month and probablY would last
oily two days.jl"But *" haven't decided anY-
lhing, and I can't saY anY.thing
brore until I have a chance to meet
bittr ttre lieutenant governor," he
iaia.' Asked about the PossibilitY of a

isoecial session or ieconvening of
tfre General AssemblY after to-
dav's expected adjournment of the
buileet iession, Green said, "I've
sot t-o get with the speaker and see
ihat w1've got to work out."

Green said the redistricting is-
sue was "not under consideration
by the Senate at this time-"

bly would be
But some legislators who Proba'
v would be affected bY a changcbyblv would be attected DY a cnangc

in'district lines said they were op
-^.-,r +^ o cmcial session and saidoosed to a special session and said r

. furey wante<i the state to fight the
issue in court.

"I'm opposed," said ReP. Edd
Nve. D-Biiden, whose House dis-
trict is to percent below the nu-
merical ideal. "Bullock is not the
iudee. and I don't know whY we
ltro"uta no holding a session just be-
cause of his oPinion that we can't
win."

Nve said that anyone who thinks
the !ensitive topic'of redistricting
could be handled in a one'or two'
day session is engaging in wishful
thinking.

Julius Chambers, president of
the NAACP Legal Defense Fund ,
said in an interview that his group
would be concerned whether, in
ariy redistricting effort, legislators
would continue to follow the state
Constitution's requirement that
legislative districts be comprised
of whole counties.

ln its lawsuit, the fund has chal-
lenged the state constitutional prG'
vision on grounds that it inhibits
the formation of single-member
legislative districts that rvould be
more advantageous to black can'
didates.

!

dt.f C:



Legislature
' 'antthorizes

new sess?on

on'ditsti'icts
.. ByA.L.MAY
CttLt C.pilol Corr.3Doll{tcat

At 12:{5 a.m., with the clocks in
both chambers stopped just shfr
of midnight because of a previoits
adjournment resolution, the legis-
Iators irformally decided to ?a-
journ the session at g a.m. todayt

The House earlier voted 6$17ito
hold the redistricting session,
which would be an unpiecedented
third session in a year. Ttre Senate
tentatively approved the measur{,31-0. \

During the session, legislator$ .

will try to head off a court chal-\
|enge,to their newly {rawn_district \

1

!i

Ttrc Legislature decided Friday
. to hold a special redistricting ses-
sion Oct. 29, while iawmakers
gave final approval tc a $3(X) mil-
lion water and sewer bond referen-
dum and headed toward final

boundaries by the NAACP Legal l

Defense and Education Fund.
State Justice Department attor-
leys said Thursday they would
have problems defending against
the suit.

Ttre dispute between the House
and Senate over school adminis-

,.trators' pay was the tra_St rpadblock
delaying fin'al passage of tbe bud-
get.

The -proposed S percent salary
upgrading would not take effecl
for any superintendents, princi-
pals or other supervisors until
1984-85. But the N.C. Assoeiation of
Fducators, representing teachers,
lobbied againit the raGe because
teachers were not guaranteed a
similar pay increase.

Senatord supporting the ad- '

ministrators and House members
supporting the teachers were close
to an agreement, but still were
haggling over the language of a
compromise.

Not involved in the dispute is the

Sec LEGISLATURE,pqe 6

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sage of a 8122 million
tal state budget.

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Legislaturewill hold special session on refistricting
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.rh. bod is* bilt .r.d.d th. ir-G aiJicri, * or -,er'rv "ua rtuGd ro $;-;;ioi: ' '- -'-_- in mil.pporriorud di3triirs Md Bur Hou* spe,kc' Lsron B

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This neut s4a4er' s oFinion

I _ The legislative redistrictini olan
Sdopted by the General fusErirblv
deviates so widely from the one-pef-
son, one-vote principle that North
Carolina lawm-akerslave no choice
but to revise it. In carrvins out ihli'.. hecessary task, howevei. tEe Lesii-
[dture faces more than a sim[le
nUmbers game.

:,i
t\ edistricting revisited

:.The numbers, of eourse, are
stark. The plan adopted in June oer-
inits variation of niore than 22 ircr-
cbnt between the largest and sniati-
est House and SenatC districts, con-
slderably more than the variations
under the existing plan and more
than the highest j t'6 percent - al-
lowed by a eourt. In d telling blow
against the plan, the state Attornev
General's Office savs it cannot dei-
fdnd it successfully in federal court.
.'A fair system of representation
being essential to a derirocracy. the
U.S. Supreme Court laid down a
sound test with its one-person, one-
vote doctrine, requiring that each
citizen's votd cairv r"oushlv the
same weight in leeislative e"ledtions.
Since even the stlte's own lawvers
say the plan fails that test. whal al-
ternativ-e does the Legislature have
than to try to repa-ir the job it
botched in iune?

Yet, the NAACP Legal Defense
and Edueation Fund's l-awsuit soei
beyond challenging the wide p6pu-
ra[ron varlanees approved bv the
Legislature. The 'suit also "ctral-
lenges the state Constitution,s Dro_
vision prohibiting the crossind of
county Iines in drawing distiictsl
-The Legislature's redisirictins

plan retained the current rmixeil
system - some districts reoresent-ed by a single member.^ others
represented by two or moie rhem-
bers. Some North Carolinians have
one representative and one senator.
others have several representativei
and senators. L .

. Acco-rdingly, lawmakers are con_
Ironte-q wrth a constitutional issue
as well as a numbers game. Lesis-
lators indeed should Eonsider ihepossib-ility of a constitutionil
amendment permitting the dividineot counties. Such an-amendment]

which would require approval in a
statewide referehdum.' would ooen
the way to the adoptioir of a sinile-
member district plin, in which elch
voter would be represented by one
representative and one senatof.

The U.S. Supreme Court has said
that multi-meinber districts are not
necessarily unconstitutional. But
there is precedent - in Louisiana.
for example - for a federal court
ordering a single-member district
plan into effect. In anv case. all lep-
islators are elected-'from' sinelE-
member districts in B0 states,"in-
cluding such Southern states as AIa-
panla, Tennessee, Mississippi andLouisiana. i .: .

The Legal Defense Fund arsues
that multi-member districts ma[e it
more difficult to elect blacks to the
Legislature. If lawmakers decide to t
stick with the current svstem. thai -
point would be tested in court. gut.
aside from the qugstion of minority
representation, -there are certaih
aclvantages to single-member dis-
tncts.

Single-member districts oroduce
g wld-er diversity of intere'sts in a
t egrslature. Voters have clearer
choices at election time, rather than
|1ving to select several legislaioii
fron1. -a large, amorphoui"iGki-;i i
candidates.The idea of sinele-mem- ,

ber districts in North Carofini G not I
ne-w. Such legislators as J. Allen
Adams of Wake Countv and W.D.(Billy) Mills of Onslow eountv have
raised the issue in the past. 5ut the
G-eneral Assembly haS turned ihe
idea down.

Though revising the plan is im-
perative., merely s-hiftinf a few lines
nere and there to narrow population
variances may not be enoireh to nro-
duee a satisfactory map 6f Hriuse
and Senate differences.' e-soeciit
ses.sion of the Legislature fo re-write redistricting -would not havL
Deen _necessary had lawmakers
done the job well Iast sorine. But
the Legislature's current dilEmma
may also be an opportunity to take i
rresh Iook at amending the Constitu-

llrrt i3[l enacting singte-member