MEMORANDUM

TO: Timothy Navarre, Assembly President

Members, Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly

FROM: Timothy Navarre, Assembly Member

Linda Murphy, Borough Clerk

Colette Thompson, Borough Attorney

DATE: October 11, 2001

SUBJECT: Ordinance 2001-39, providing for the apportionment and composition of borough assembly seats

In the October 2, 2001 election, the Kenai Peninsula Borough voters approved apportionment plan No. 1 consisting of nine single member districts in which one assembly member shall be elected by the voters of each district. Alaska Statute 29.20.070(d) and KPB 22.30.020(C) both require that within 30 days after certification of election results the assembly adopt an ordinance providing for composition of the assembly, the form of assembly representation that received the most votes, and, if applicable, the apportionment of assembly seats in accordance with the form of representation that received the most votes. Hearing on shortened time is requested in order that this may be heard within thirty days as required by Alaska Statute.

The assembly composition and form of representation that received the most votes is identical to the existing composition and form of representation. District lines will need to be revised in order to comply with the equal representation standards of the United States and Alaska Constitutions. However, the State has not yet issued final precinct lines. Until those lines are issued, the clerk's office and GIS cannot draw assembly district lines that coincide as nearly as possible to the State precinct lines. Accordingly, pursuant to this ordinance, a committee of no more than three assembly members and the borough clerk, with support from the administration, shall submit proposed district boundary lines for approval by ordinance within one month of the State's publication of election precinct boundaries or by the first assembly meeting in April 2002, whichever occurs first. This is to provide time for adoption of the revised boundaries before the borough must submit the plan to the Department of Justice for approval and the election filing period in August 2002.

At that time, the determination will be reached as to whether assembly members' terms of office shall be truncated due to deviations from the existing districts.