The Senate Special Committee on Redistricting met on February 3 to discuss the matter of redistricting in the San Antonio area. The Committee received invited and public testimony. A video of the hearing can be found here.
The HillCo report below is a summary of remarks intended to give you an overview and highlight of the discussions on the various topics discussed. This report is not a verbatim transcript; it is based upon what was audible or understandable to the observer and the desire to get details out as quickly as possible with few errors or omissions.
Presentation
Dr. Lloyd Potter, Texas State Demographer
- Census data derived used to allocate over $1.5 trillion in federal funds
- Apportionment file will be sent on 4/30/2021
- Redistricting data file will be received by Governor no later than July 31, 2021; will be released to states in groups of 8 states per week
- Data will include race, Hispanic origin, 18 and older, occupancy statues, and group quarters by type
- Texas population percent change from 2010 was 16.8% or approximately 4.2 million in growth
- Texas should get 3 more congressional seats
- The Texas Senate District size should grow by approximately 10,000 people
- The U.S. Texas House District size should grow by approximately 7,000 people
- Data projections are based off of Census Bureau estimates and TDC projections
- Most of the population growth has been in the DFW, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, and Rio Grande Valley area
- The rural parts of the state have lost population for the most part
- Bexar County has added over 100,000 people in the past decade
- The suburban counties around the urban cores has coincided with urban growth in terms of percent change
- Hispanic population is drastically increasing and will be equal or greater to the White population by the beginning of 2022
- The Hispanic population accounts for approximately 50% of the population growth over the past decade
- Metrics will be released regarding the quality of the 2020 Census
- Menendez – Do you predict that the San Antonio area will receive an additional US Congressional seat?
- I will leave that to the legislature, but the population growth should be reflected
- Sen. Menendez – Shouldn’t there be at least one congressional district with a majority Latino population?
- The data should reflect that
- Sen. Menendez – What would prevent this?
- Most likely, the delegation of your colleagues or any other rulings
- Sen. Menendez – Is there any other data we could use to redistrict?
- There are different metrics that are applicable to different regions
- Sen. Menendez – You have testified earlier that the self-response survey is the most accurate?
- That is true
- Sen. Menendez – How does San Antonio compare in the self-response participation rate to the rest of the state?
- I can look into that for you
- Sen. Menendez – If this metric is used, will San Antonio be undercounted?
- The larger urban counties will struggle but so will other rural parts of the state regarding undercounting
- Sen. Menendez – This affects allocation money from the federal government, so I would like more education on how we combat these undercounts.
- I can certainly do that
- Sen. Menendez – Do you have any other data we can access in regard to the effect of the pandemic?
- The acting director was expressing a lot of optimism regarding the census data; the time has been expanded to allow for quality controls in the data
- Sen. Gutierrez – In September 2020, Texas posted data on the most vulnerable populations subject to redistricting, what were your findings?
- We researched data regarding economic issues associated with the pandemic, and found that African Americans, Hispanics, youth, female, and poorer populations suffered the most economically related to the pandemic
- Sen. Gutierrez – Why is this so?
- If you are a population that has lower socioeconomic tendencies during times of economic uncertainty or struggle, there tends to be more difficulties associated
- Sen. Gutierrez – Is there a higher percent chance that minorities will face eviction or food uncertainty?
- This is probably more likely
- Sen. Gutierrez – What percent of deaths are Latino related to Covid-19 deaths?
- I am not sure
- Sen. Gutierrez – I believe it is 53%; has the pandemic made minorities more likely to earn less money or have less access to healthcare than their Anglo counterparts?
- I would anticipate that would be the case
- Sen. Gutierrez – Has the digital divide between different racial groups driven the divide in educational attainment?
- I would assume so
- Sen. Gutierrez – Why is this occurring?
- This is most likely due to historical data and educational attainment, but I do not believe I am in a position to discuss discriminatory issues
- Sen. Gutierrez – Does the census provide shape files, population data, and population data by city for CDPs?
- Yes
- Sen. Gutierrez – Are CDPs a community of interest?
- There are varying communities of interest within cities, but I can’t generalize to a whole city
- Sen. Perry – Is it fair to say that the challenges raised in the previous line of questioning are more urban or rural than they are racial?
- Urban areas tend to be more diverse but there are disparities in rural and urban areas
- Sen. Perry – Covid-19 tends to impact different groups differently, but are there certain underlying health issues that are more related to genetics in medical makeup driving the disparities than they are simply because of race?
- From what I have seen there are many reasons for these disparities and there is a laundry list driving the variation; if we are talking about rural vs urban, there are real challenges in the healthcare aspect for rural Texans
- Sen. Perry – Science has begun to show that genetic reasons have a lot to do with the divide, but I want to be careful in making sure that we do not differentiate the impact of Covid-19 simply because of race, we are all in this together
- Sen. West – When we talk about healthcare availability, historically, could we agree that racial minorities within urban areas have less access to healthcare?
- A smaller percentage of minorities have healthcare than whites
- Sen. West – Have ethnic minorities been subject to more death and diagnosis as a result of Covid-19?
- I have seen reports indicating this
- Sen. West – If ethnic minorities had more representation would they have more access to these necessities?
- It is possible, but not necessarily a given
- Sen. West – Have ethnic minorities been more vocal on this issue than their Anglo counterparts?
- I cannot really attest to that
Public Testimony
Mayra Denapios, Self
- Filipino Americans have accounted for much of the population growth, but are subject to violations of the Voting Rights Act
- Need to hold public Census hearings after the data is made available and hold hearings throughout the whole session
- The public should be given sufficient time to review maps and adequate notification of map drawings
- Is necessary to provide analysis of communities of color
Melissa Cigaloa, Self
- The insurrection was an effort to disenfranchise millions of minority voters; Texas AG and Ted Cruz validated their actions without evidence
- In light of these actions, it is imperative to work transparently and create a non-partisan commission to redraw the maps
Leola Ross, Self
- From Katy in HD 23 and SD 13
- Wants to combine the Barker Reservoir Watershed District so our interests will be satisfied, and regional flood control issues are addressed
- Because of the district lines drawn in the current maps, there are 14 representatives for the districts, but none of them adequately represent us in flood control or economically
- SD 7, SD 18, and SD 17 need to be combined
John Tramer, Self
- Physician in San Antonio’s District 23
- Extreme eastern district that stretches 500 miles to El Paso and neighbors one block away live in another district
- Need an independent bipartisan redistricting committee with bipartisan representation
Name Not Clear, Self
- In SD 25; two-thirds of the districts I am in disregard common sense
- CD 21’s eastward extension violates common sense, and the I-35 corridor is too divided
- The result is that our concerns and values are diluted, and the only contest is within party during the primary
- Openness would go a long way to healing our nation
Selina Montoya, Self
- From Alamo Heights; San Antonio is one of the most economically segregated cities in Texas
- The growing Hispanic population is drastic and public engagement and input is a priority
- Voting Rights Act should be adhered to
Jesus Martinez, Self
- Bexar County resident; used to be in SD 21, but cut off into SD 25 last time
- The new district has left me totally misrepresented
- Need to look into similarities that make up the community outside the purview of the data
Marro Garza, Self
- In CD 20 in San Antonio; wants to make CD 20 a competitive district
- Should seek fair elections that give citizens a choice
Barbara Barouche, Self
- Resident of Bexar County; need to keep districts within Bexar County to the fullest extent possible
- Need to establish an independent redistricting commission
Samuel Stahl, Self
- From District 21; Texas redistricting seems to favor white affluent people
- In 2010, Texas produced discriminatory maps with which the court agreed; now the state must implement a fair and open process
Cynthia Munch, Self
- From SD 25; Texas lacks a nonpartisan process
- Lines are drawn to hold a party in power has compromised our interests
- Now there is sufficient data to make districts competitively balanced
Justin Stinken, Self
- Resident of Wilson County in SD-21; district holds a very diverse population
- Praises Sen. Zaffirini’s efforts after previous Mass Violence Events
- Sutherland Springs has benefitted greatly because of the Senator’s influence
- Imperative he remains in SD 21