City of Austin staff reached out to Southwest Austin residents Jan. 24 with an informational meeting on the application process for the city's first Citizens Redistricting Commission, a group that will decide on the boundaries of 10 geographic districts for the election of City Council members.
In the November election, voters approved the 10-ONE plan, which will eventually result in 10 geography-based single-member districts for City Council members, with the mayor elected at-large. Previously, the council was represented by at-large council members and an at-large mayor.
"It is a historic moment for the City of Austin," said City Auditor Kenneth Mory.
The 10-ONE plan requires a 14-member CRC and a three-member panel to review and select qualified applicants for the commission, he explained. After panelist applications come in, Mory will randomly draw three names from the pool of qualified applicants. He will also facilitate the process and aim to make sure Austin residents are aware of the plan's timeline.
City staff conducted a series of public meetings in different parts of Austin in January. Advertisements , fliers and billboards throughout the city sport the plan's "10-ONE" logo and "Shape Austin's future" slogan, encouraging residents to get involved with the commission. Mory added that he and city staff are giving presentations to neighborhood associations to provide more information, but he does not have one scheduled with a South Austin neighborhood group yet.
Attendees at the Jan. 24 meeting sat in a Gorzycki Middle School classroom while city staff gave a step-by-step introduction to the 10-ONE application process and answered questions about eligibility.
Applications for the review panel and the commission will be accepted until Feb. 22, according to city staff.
After the application process has ended, the city auditor will select the members of the Applicant Review Panel. The panel will then select the 60 commission applicants they feel are most qualified based on their skills, impartiality, residency in various parts of the city and appreciation for Austin's diversity. After that, each member of City Council can remove, in writing, one applicant from the 60 of commission applicants.
On May 22, the auditor is scheduled to hold a second public meeting and randomly draw eight names from the final pool of applicants. Sometime after that date, the eight commissioners will then appoint six additional commissioners from the pool of remaining applicants, and together they will make up Austin's first CRC. The city attorney said city officials will provide dates for other parts of the redistricting process at a later date.
Who can apply
To participate in the applicant review panel, an applicant must be a registered certified public accountant.
Members of the 14-member commission must:
- Live in Austin
- Have voted in three of the past five general elections
- Have been a "continuously registered" voter for the past five years
At least one of the commissioners will be a student enrolled in a community college or university in Austin; the student must live in Austin and be a registered voter.
Applicants can be disqualified for conflicts of interest.
Getting involved
Sharon Hobart came to the presentation to learn more about 10-ONE and the selection process because she plans to apply for the commission.
"I wanted to make sure I didn't miss anything," she said, noting she works for the Internal Revenue Service and thinks her analytical skills would be a good fit for the commission.
Hobart has lived in South Austin for the past six years and previously lived in Houston, which has geographic representation.
"I think that is a much better way of governing a city, through the districts, because right now, South Austin doesn't have any representation," she said.
About 30 people attended the presentation, and many of them were students from Bowie High School attending for a civics class, Mory said.
"Obviously, we want more participation," Mory said. "We want a robust, diverse [group in terms of] geographics, ethnicity, race, gender, et cetera, to represent all of Austin in these pools. So we're encouraging everyone to please do this civic duty and apply to serve on either the panel as a CPA or on the commission itself."
The next public meeting in Southwest Austin is scheduled for Jan. 26 from 10:30 a.m.–noon at the Manchaca Branch Library, 5500 Manchaca Road. More information is available at https://austintexas.gov/department/10-one.
