Auditor wants outside group to draw new Linn districts

Paper: Gazette, The ( Cedar Rapids-Iowa City, IA)

Date: July 27, 2007

CEDAR RAPIDS - Now that Linn County residents have decided to have county supervisors represent districts, Auditor Joel Miller says his office will not be involved in drawing boundaries for the five districts.

He said he wanted to avoid any possibility of perceived bias.

Miller is a Democrat, as are all three members of the Board of Supervisors.

Miller will recommend the county's temporary redistricting commission hire the state Legislative Service Bureau, or another qualified entity, to draw the five districts using the 2000 census. The decision about who draws the five districts is up to the redistricting commission.

"If the commission asks me to draw the boundaries, I'm going to decline. If they ask me for information, I may provide that as long as it has nothing to do with boundaries," Miller said Thursday.

Miller will give the Linn County Board of Supervisors a letter Monday stating his decision and recommendation.

"I support Joel's position," Board Chairwoman Lu Barron said. As far as choosing what entity draws the districts, Barron said, "I'll leave that up to temporary redistricting commission."

On Tuesday, voters chose

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to split the county into five districts and have a supervisor elected from each by voters living in the district.

Supervisors are now elected at large. Linn County is to add two supervisors next year. Going to districts means all five seats will be open for election in November 2008.

On Monday, supervisors will discuss appointing the redistricting commission. A decision is likely Wednesday.

All three supervisors have said they favor a five-member commission with no sitting supervisor on it.

The supervisors, all Democrats, will appoint three members and the Linn County Republican chairman will appoint two, if a five-member commission is decided upon. The commission can be three, five or seven members.

"There's no requirement that my office draw the boundary lines," Miller said. He said that if Barron and Supervisor Linda Langston are not put in the same district, "Republicans may think it was gerrymandered."

"If they are in the same district, the Democrats will be upset that I didn't do something to prevent it.

"I see no reason for me, as the person that has to run the election, to potentially be tainted that way," Miller said.

Langston and Barron live in the same Cedar Rapids quadrant but in different precincts.

"I want to earn the public's trust and I think that is a very quick way to lose it by drawing those lines and have them perceived as partisan, whether they are or not," Miller said.

Miller likes the Legislative Service Bureau for the job. " Polk County used them," he said. "They have a history of doing it very effectively and thoroughly. "They are nationally known for doing a good job. So why not let them do it?"

- Contact the writer: (319) 398-8255 or dick.hogan@gazettecommunications.com

Linn census

data online

--Linn County Auditor Joel Miller has posted 2000 census data on the auditor's Web site for public viewing. Go to www.linncounty.org, click departments, then auditor.

Caption:
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Joel Miller, Linn County auditor

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