Oregon Legislature and secretary of state argue over who will control redistricting

The Legislature and Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan appear headed for a showdown over who will control redistricting of legislative and congressional maps to be used in the 2022 election.

The Senate Redistricting Committee heard testimony on Wednesday from U.S. Census Bureau officials that data legally required for the Legislature to draw maps would not be available until after it adjourns July 1.

It was supposed to arrive April 1.

"We have not been able to achieve that," said Kathleen M. Styles, chief of the bureau's department dealing with redistricting.

Styles said data being sent to all states was delayed because of the difficulty of counting the population amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which struck just as the count was getting underway in March.

Read more: https://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/oregon-legislature-and-secretary-of-state-argue-over-who-will-control-redistricting/article_31948533-a5a4-59b4-b597-d9907e7fa141.html
(Corvallis Gazette-Times)