Be Heard at a Redistricting Hearing

ISSUE

Here are the next dates for public hearings on one of Texas’ most contentious issues: redistricting. Click below to see a clickable PDF of each date and more resources!

The Committee will meet to hear invited and public testimony from experts and members of the public on the 2021 legislative redistricting process. These hearings will focus on the Houston Area, but the committee will hear testimony about any region of the State.

TESTIFY IN PERSON

If you can be in Austin to testify, see info HERE about in-person witness registration.

TESTIFY VIRTUALLY

If you cannot attend the hearing in person, you may request to be invited to provide testimony virtually. Fill out a request (24 hours before the hearing time!) HERE.

Here’s a suggestion of what you can write or say. It would be best to personalize this script, so please treat this as a basis and edit as you wish.

The goal of redistricting should be to accomplish what the Bill of Rights guarantees: equal justice under the law. Texas is an enormous state with a wide variety of people, cultures, and needs.

Gerrymandering is a political process that draws district maps to substantially tilt the balance of voting power to favor one party, ethnic group or race. Gerrymandered districts do not respect the needs of voters, just politicians, richest campaign contributors, and powerful corporate interests. Spanning great spaces of rural real estate to connect two pieces of urban areas or carving slices of urban and rural communities to create districts harms communities. Urban, rural, poor and wealthy, white and non-white, apartments and single family areas often do not share the same needs. Transportation, health infrastructure, judicial, environmental, and enfranchisement constituents deserve caring representation.

Gerrymandering results in voter suppression and disenfranchisement and underrepresentation of constituents. No groups have been harmed more by map manipulation and voter suppression than Black, Latino, disadvantaged, and disability communities. Their voices have been minimized in the ballot box and in Congress. This is blatantly unfair.

The only way to achieve equal justice is to, as much as possible, create politically neutral districts that reflect the needs of protected communities so they have the representation they deserve.

SUBMIT COMMENTS ONLINE

Texas residents can submit comments online up until the hearing is adjourned. Go HERE.

Fill in your contact information, then select which hearing and option you want to comment on. See above for a suggestion of what to include in your comments.

CONTACT HOUSE COMMITTEE MEMBERS

You can contact a member of the House Redistricting Committee directly to make your comment (see contact info below; note that addresses are not mailing addresses).

CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES

Regardless of if you can be in Austin or you submit comments online, elected representatives also need to hear from you. You can call, email, or especially visit a member’s local district office. By visiting local district offices, those members are directly impacted by their constituents visits.

Find who represents you HERE. Then find the contact info for your state representative HERE or HERE.

See above for a suggestion of what to say or write. Remember to always provide your name and zip code when calling or sending email.

WATCH THE HEARINGS

A live video broadcast of the hearings will be available HERE.

FOR MORE ON REDISTRICTING

• BrennanCenter.org: Redistricting
• Texas Redistricting Process